Playing the Field ebook final draft

by Gray, Mackenzie

  I say, “Our specials for tonight consist of baked clams in coconut milk with a bit of a jalapeño kick. For the main course, it’s a seared halibut, truffle oil couscous, and broccoli rabe with warmed pecans. For dessert, we have our orange liquor bread pudding with lavender whipped cream.”

  Mitchell stares at my face with concern. Hurt and shame crawl up my throat. I consider taking another cry-fest in the bathroom to get the rest out, but I know it won’t help. The best thing is to get him out the door as quickly as possible. And pray he won’t return.

  Eventually, he turns to the menu. “I’ll have an order of the parmesan-crusted swordfish, as well as an order of your pesto gnocchi.”

  I snatch the menu from his hand when he passes it to me, quietly seething. His date hasn’t arrived yet. I wonder what she looks like. I wonder if she’s more honest than me. “I’ll be back with those shortly.”

  I turn away when he says, “Rebecca.”

  I meet his eyes. Find them simmering as he slowly peruses me.

  “You look good.”

  A flush warms my neck to the tops of my ears. My panties dampen as I remember the rough scrape of his hands over my breasts, between my legs. Those biting kisses along my inner thighs.

  I flee to the small computer station in the back, leaning against the wall for support. How the hell am I going to make it through the rest of the shift alive?

  Since it’s a slow night, it doesn’t take long for Mitchell’s order to be ready. I carry out the plates to his table, noticing whoever is supposed to meet him still isn’t here. Hurt is a powerful emotion. It drives people to fury, spite, hatred. And maybe it’s petty of me, but I can’t help but say as I set down the plates, “She stood you up?”

  He grabs my hand as I pull away, and the zing rolls through my entire arm, heat erupting where our skin brushes. “That has yet to be determined.”

  My heart thuds like the slamming of a door. “Excuse me?”

  He gestures to the empty seat, the steaming plate of food. “Are you hungry?”

  “You want me to eat your date’s food?”

  “Yes, considering I ordered it for you.”

  It takes me a minute to figure out what he’s implying. And the door that had slammed shut earlier inside my chest begins to creak slowly open. “This is for me?” I’m almost afraid to speak the words aloud for fear that I had misheard him.

  The gentlest of smiles grace his mouth. “If you want it.”

  “There was no date?”

  “Nope.” The smile widens, a touch shy. “Just you.”

  The swelling in my chest feels like hope. I’m afraid to feel. “What are you doing here, Mitchell? Is it to make me feel bad about what I did? Because I’m sorry. I’m really, really sorry, and I never wanted it to go that far.” Some of the customers glance at us curiously, so I lower my voice further. “But don’t you think it’s messed up for you to come in here, throw that back in my face, and leave?” My voice roughens with fury, because he’s leaving. He’s getting a fancy position in some soccer team somewhere else in the world, and I’m never going to see him again. So how fucking dare he come here and make me lose him a second time as well?

  His eyes and mouth are serious, his jaw set, and I want to pounce on him and latch my mouth onto the tan skin of his neck. But I’d probably lose my job, which is the only thing allowing me to pay my debt at the moment.

  “Rebecca—”

  Whatever he plans on saying, I don’t wait around to find out. I’m down the hall, grabbing Clara, another server, and asking if she’d be willing to take over Mitchell’s table for me, as I’m not feeling well. Since he’s so undeniably good-looking, she jumps at the chance while I hide in the back room until Clara returns and says he left.

  I feel both relieved and sad. “Thanks for that.”

  Her smile is small and pitying. “He left this for you.” She passes me an envelope with my name on it.

  I rub my thumb across the flap. Of course he’d leave me something to remember him by. Bastard. I tear open the envelope and peek inside. And choke on a gasp as my hands start to shake.

  “What? What is it?” Clara shoves her face over my shoulder to get a better view.

  Inside, there’s a single check written out to Duke University.

  And it’s written for one thousand dollars.

  Chapter 29

  mitchell

  Before leaving Dragonfly, I ask one of the hostesses when Rebecca’s shift ends. They tell me nine, so I wait the three hours in my car as the sky goes dark, the winter chill forcing me to turn on the heat. The radio plays softly, keeping me company as patrons slowly filter out the door. I sit with my hands on the steering wheel, not daring to take my eyes off the front door for fear of her slipping past me. I don’t know where Rebecca lives. I only know where she works, and if I miss her departure, I’ll have to come back tomorrow. I’m on borrowed time as it is.

  Technically, I’m breaking contract right now. I’m supposed to be in California, training with the US Men’s National Team, which officially began yesterday, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to leave without first trying to repair the damage between Rebecca and I. My coach was cool with it, so long as I got there by the end of the week. We train for six weeks before returning to Chicago, our home base, which is only thirty minutes away from Rebecca’s hometown.

  Once Austin slapped some sense into me, I realized my insecurity played a part in driving Rebecca away. I didn’t trust her word. My whole life I sought my father’s approval, and in the back of my mind I always felt like I wasn’t enough. Not for him, not for anyone else. But the thought of losing the best thing that ever happened to me gave me inspiration. My dad and I had a long heart-to-heart about my future. A future I want him to be a part of, as crazy as that sounds. After explaining to him how important soccer is to me—with the proof of the US contract to support my claim—he was kind enough to lend me the money so Rebecca could pay off her school debt.

  And he’s coming to my first game next season. Go figure.

  Seeing Rebeca after so much time apart was like coming up for air after an eternity underwater. She’s still beautiful. The same, yet different. Sadder. I didn’t like seeing her that way.

  I want her in my life. No, I need her in my life. She needs to know that what we have is real, and that I forgive her, and that I understand why she did what she did, and that I was wrong about her. Her refusal to cash the check tells me her character is honest and true.

  Now if only I can snag her before she gets away.

  It’s pitch black out. When the front door next opens to the restaurant, I’m out my car door so quickly I forget to shut it, jogging over to where Rebecca fishes for her keys in her purse. It’s not until she reaches her car that she looks up and goes still. Definitely a deer in the headlights look. “What are you still doing here?”

  As if that weren’t obvious. “Waiting for you.”

  Rebecca swallows. Her lips tremble. She pulls her coat tighter around her, gives me a curt nod.

  Taking a step closer, I slip my hands into my pockets so I won’t be tempted to touch her. “How are you?”

  Reaching into her purse, she draws out the check and throws it at me. “What is this?” It flutters onto the asphalt, illuminated by the parking lot lights.

  Slowly, I bend down and pick it up, giving myself time to figure out how to best respond. Her breathing hitches, then slows, as if she’s forcing herself to calm down.

  “It’s a gift,” I say, reaching forward to grasp her fisted hand. Gently, I uncurl her fingers, place the check into her palm.

  Her chin quivers. A sheen floods her eyes as she lifts them to me. “Why?” It’s a whisper.

  Because she deserves it. Because the money doesn’t matter to me. Because I want her to achieve her dreams. But I decide to go with what’s simple, what’s in my heart. What’s always been in my heart, I realize.

  Resting my hands on her shoulders, I draw her closer. She lets me. “Bec
ause I love you, Rebecca Peterson, and I’d be the world’s biggest idiot to let you walk away.”

  Tears spill down her cheeks, and her breath hitches. “Didn’t I break your heart?”

  “You didn’t break my heart, Rebecca.” She allows me to draw her even closer, and our chests bump. I cup her face in my hands and stare into her bright blue eyes. “You made it whole.”

  Lunging forward, she clings to me as sobs rip open her chest. “I love you too. So, so much.”

  My heart feels like it grows three sizes larger. My arms wrap around her, one hand cupping the back of her head, the other molding to her lower back. I bury my face in her hair and breathe in as deeply as I can. Light, floral, sweet. God, I missed her. These past weeks have been completely miserable. We haven’t forgotten how we fit together though. It’s as easy as it was the first time.

  Thank God. It’s the only thought in my head. Thank fucking God I wasn’t too late.

  When she lifts her face, her mouth is right there, and I can’t help myself. I steal a kiss so deep it feels as if our souls touch. Her lips part on a half-sigh as her fingers clutch the back of my t-shirt. She’s home for me.

  The kiss deepens. She angles her head and licks the inside of my mouth, and I capture her tongue and suckle on it until her eyes glitter with desire. In the deserted parking lot beneath the lights, we’re alone. My hands coast down her back to what I really want, and I groan against her neck as my palms are filled with her sweet, sweet ass. “Rebecca.” I murmur the word against the smoothness of her skin and plant kisses along her collarbone, moving up to her ear where I know she’s most sensitive. “I missed you. So much.” The biggest understatement of the year. I was going mad from missing her.

  “I’m sorry, Mitchell.” She tucks her face against my chest, still crying. “I’m so sorry for not telling you about the research. I didn’t go through with it. I dropped my thesis.”

  “I know. It’s okay.” I wait until she lifts her head, then press a soft kiss to her mouth and smooth down her hair from where my fingers mussed it. “It was a confusing situation.”

  “I can’t take this.” She holds out the check. “I won’t take your money.”

  “It’s a gift, Rebecca. I want you to have it.”

  Shaking her head, she slips it into my pocket. “I talked with my parents. They lent me the money so I could pay off the school, interest free. I’m going to pay them back in a few months.” Her frown deepens as she considers something. “Wait, aren’t you supposed to be in England right now?”

  For a moment, I allow myself to enjoy the feel of her beneath my hands, her curves and slender frame. “About that.” Another kiss. And another. The second one makes her giggle, so I give her a third one for good measure. “I decided not to play for Manchester. I signed with the US instead.”

  “Wait, what?” She leans back to study me, brows knit in confusion. “Why?”

  Many reasons. But the most important one is standing right in front of me. “You weren’t in England,” I say simply.

  “You stayed for me?”

  “For you.” Always for her.

  “But that was your dream,” she whispers.

  “I have a new dream now.” A gentle tap on the tip of her adorable nose.

  Her throat works, but her smile is bigger than I’ve ever seen it, and it’s all for me. “So you’re staying here for the year?”

  “We train in California every few months, but I’ll be living in Chicago for the most part.” Where we’ll have plenty of opportunity to build a real relationship. Since I can’t stop myself from touching her, my hands roam the swell of her hips, moving upward to her breasts, which I cup through her shirt. Her mouth twitches, and I lean in for another taste because my self-control is shit when it comes to her. Somewhere in the distance, a car honks.

  “When do you leave for California?”

  “Thursday night.” We have two days before my flight. “I’ll be back in six weeks though. And I have the best idea for how to make up for lost time.” My voice deepens.

  Her eyebrow quirks as her gaze heats. “Oh? Do tell.”

  Leaning forward, I murmur in her ear, “Two words: kitten sweaters.”

  Acknowledgements

  My thanks goes out to my family and everyone who supported me in this endeavor. And to you, dear reader. My thanks goes to you.

  Author’s Note

  Thank you so much for your purchase! If it’s not too much to ask, please consider leaving an honest review on Amazon. Reviews are critical for authors, as they help readers find books they might enjoy!

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  About the Author

  Mackenzie Gray read her first romance novel while flying on an airplane at age thirteen—a rather scandalous affair. Many years later, she decided to try writing one herself. That book, thankfully, will never see the light of day.

  When she’s not writing, you can find her traveling, gorging on chocolate, or watching Ever After reruns, sometimes all at the same time.