Playing Hardball: Part 5

by Sharon Cummin

  “I bet Brad did,” I said without even thinking and instantly regretted it.

  “No, he didn't,” she said. “When I was sick, he'd make sure I had what I needed. He never once stood there and rubbed my back or held my hair. It felt so strange that you were right there. We barely even knew each other and you didn't leave. You wouldn't even leave when I begged you to. I can't tell you how good that made me feel, after I got past the fact that you'd seen me like that.”

  “It scared the shit out of me. I just wanted to make you feel better. Little did we know our baby girl was the reason you were sick,” I said with a smile.

  “You even stayed at the hotel instead of being with Scott and Carrie,” she said. “It meant a lot to me. You do things to my head, Lance. You're so demanding, cocky, and bossy. At the same time you're so caring and loving. I've never experienced anything like that before. It is seriously confusing.”

  “I would never do anything to hurt you, Firecracker,” I said. “I will always protect you and love you. I'm used to getting my way. You are the only person that has ever challenged me. It takes all I have not to go caveman on your ass. I only want what's best for you. You're mine. I worry about you.”

  “I know,” she said. “You need to meet me halfway though.”

  I thought about what she was saying. We did need to come together on things. I knew we both needed to learn to give a little.

  “I'll think about it,” I said with a smile. “Some things I won't give on, Lucy. I will keep you safe, and you will let me.”

  She let out a huff but didn't say anything. Next thing I knew, her hand was moving over my boxers. I let out a grunt.

  “How much longer?” I asked.

  “What?” she questioned.

  “How much longer before I bury myself so damn deep inside of you? I need you, woman. Do you have any idea how long it's been? My fucking arm is starting to look bigger than the other one.”

  She burst into laughter.

  “I love you, Hotshot.”

  “Love you, babe,” I said. “Answer the question.”

  She pulled back the covers and began moving down the bed.

  “Get back up here,” I said. “I want you in my arms.”

  She shook her head with a smile on her face.

  “Another couple of weeks,” she said, as she pulled the waist of my boxers down until they were at my feet.

  My cock was rock hard. Her hand grabbed onto my shaft and a whoosh of air left my lungs. It had been so long since I'd had anything but my damn hand. I'd probably blow the second her lips even touched me, like I was a damn teenager or something. When her tongue darted out and licked the tip of my dick, I felt the fucker twitch. It was taking all I had to remain calm. Her lips spread around me as I watched her take me into her mouth.

  “Fuck,” I whimpered.

  She looked up at me, as her hand tightened around my shaft. Her other hand held my balls, and her mouth moved slowly down me. I watched my cock move deeper into her mouth.

  “Firecracker,” I groaned.

  Her eyes were still on mine. She stopped when I reached the back of her throat. Then she sucked hard as she pulled me from her mouth. That was it. I was gone. My control was gone. I grabbed the back of her head, wrapped my hand in her hair, and thrust my hips forward. My dick tapped the back of her throat again. I was lost. She never moved her eyes from mine. My firecracker was fucking hot. She was taking all of me into her throat. I used her hair to move her up and down my shaft. When I heard a moan from her throat and felt it vibrate up my cock, I fucked her mouth harder.

  “Fucking perfect, babe,” I said, as I looked into her eyes. “You have no idea how damn good it feels having my cock deep in your throat. Fucking love it. Hold on, Lucy. I want that mouth so damn bad. I'm going to fuck it hard and deep.”

  That was when I noticed her hand had moved from my balls. I lifted my head a bit to see her hand inside of her shorts. I shook my head.

  “Follow the rules, Firecracker,” I said. “Get your hand out of those shorts.”

  She shook her head and sucked hard around my cock. Fuck it, I thought.

  “I'm going to have my mouth on that pussy the moment I can. I don't care where we are. We can be at the doctors for all I care.”

  She let out another moan around my cock, and my legs fucking tightened. That was it.

  “Suck my cock, babe,” I said. “Suck it fucking hard. I love your mouth on me.”

  Our eyes were still connected. I could see her hand moving faster in her shorts and didn't want her flying over that edge without me. My grip on her hair tightened, and I fucked her mouth deep. She was going to take all of me down her throat. Looking down at her touching herself while I filled her mouth was so damn sexy.

  “Fuck, Lucy,” I cried out. “Suck it hard. Bury your finger deep in that pussy. Fuck yourself for me.”

  She was losing it. I could tell.

  “Fuck my pussy, babe. Does it feel good?” I asked.

  She nodded and moaned around me.

  “I can't wait to climb over you and bury my cock so deep inside of you,” I said. “I want you with me, Lucy. I'm going to fuck your mouth hard, and you're going to take every bit of me down your throat. Rub that clit with your palm while you fuck yourself. Suck my cock.”

  I held the back of her head, thrust my hips forward hard, and fucked her mouth. Her hand sped up. I was going to blow so fucking hard. One more thrust forward, and I was done. I held her head still over me while I shot jolt after jolt deep in her throat. She cried out around my cock as she came so hard. I could see her body move hard against her hand. She sucked me hard until she had taken everything I had given her. Then she licked up my shaft and around my tip taking anything that was left behind into her mouth.

  She got up and took off for the bathroom. When she crawled in next to me, I pulled her against me. My arm went over her and my leg wrapped in with hers. She kissed my arm over and over.

  “Love you so much, babe,” I said. “I'm moving my stuff in tomorrow. Won't be gone one more night. You're stuck with me now.”

  “Love you too,” she said. “I guess you can move into my house. Just don't be moving my shit around.”

  “Woman,” I growled out, and she burst into laughter. “Best sound ever.”

  I kissed the back of her head.

  “Now get some sleep and quit touching my cock with your ass.”

  She moved back against me. I was rock hard again and there was no hiding the smile on my face. I loved my woman and everything about her.

  Chapter 14

  Lucy

  I opened my eyes when I noticed he wasn't behind me in bed. I looked around the room, but he was gone. I quickly got out of bed and hurried across the hall. As soon as I saw them, my feet froze. The most beautiful sight was in front of me. If someone had asked me a few years before where I would be later, the vision in front of me would never have crossed my mind.

  Lance was sitting in the chair with his feet up. His head was back, and his eyes were closed. Sammie was cuddled up against his chest with his arms around her. If I could have gotten downstairs to get my phone fast enough, I would have. I walked slowly into the room taking in the sight before me. It would be a perfect picture burned into my mind forever. I heard Carrie's mom behind me and turned back to her.

  “Isn't that so precious?” she asked.

  “It's the most perfect sight in the world,” I said. “The two people I love most sleeping together.”

  “What?” she asked.

  “Yeah, Yeah,” I said. “Don't start with me. You heard me. I love the man. There's no way I can't. I tried, believe me.”

  She walked up behind me and wrapped her arms around me.

  “I'm so happy for you three,” she said. “So damn happy. I'm proud of you, Lucy. I love you, girl.”

  “Love you too, mama,” I said.

  “Pipe down over there,” Lance said. “Can't you see me and my baby sleeping over here.”

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nbsp; I could see the smile pulling at the corners of his lips and burst into laughter.

  “Did you hear her?” he asked. “She loves me.”

  “You're such an ass,” I said.

  “You love my ass?” he asked. “You really need to watch your language around Sammie. I don't want my little girl talking like that.”

  “Ugh,” I growled. “I was having such good thoughts about you only moments ago.”

  “You still are,” he said. “You're not fooling anyone.”

  I shook my head and rolled my eyes before turning to walk out of the room. Carrie's mom followed me down to the kitchen. She had no idea how much I was going to miss her. We began breakfast together. I wanted to cook with her again before she left.

  “I asked him to move in here with us,” I said.

  She stopped what she was chopping and looked over at me.

  “Really?” she asked.

  A small smile appeared on my face.

  “I did,” I said. “I can't be without him anymore. He's barely here. I don't want him across town when he is. He needs to be able to see the baby as much as he can. I don't mind being in his arms either. That man is something else. I'm not sure about it all. I just know that I want him here with us. He makes me feel safe.”

  “You're going to give it a chance?” she asked. “Are you going to stop pushing him away?”

  “I am,” I said. “I just hope he doesn't make me regret it.”

  “He won't,” she said. “You two were meant to be. I can't wait until your little girl grows up and finds out how she was conceived. I hope I'm there to see the look on her face.”

  Before I could even open my mouth, I heard his voice loud and clear.

  “Bullshit,” he barked out. “That will not be happening. We'll figure out a new story for her ears only. It will be about how we talked for two years before touching. My baby will not think her daddy was a player. She'll think her mommy was perfect as well. I don't need her thinking her momma talked back to me ever.”

  “Whatever,” I said. “He thinks she's going to want her bedroom the way it is forever too. I'm not sure what I'll do with him.”

  “I can think of a few things you can do with me,” he said, as he wrapped his arms around me.

  “Stop it,” I joked, as I pulled out of his arms to finish cooking.

  “You sure you can't stay longer?” Lance asked Carrie's mom.

  “She has Carrie's little girl and boy too, Lance,” I said. “We can't keep her forever.”

  “Sure we can,” he said with a smile. “Carrie's had her for years. It's our turn now.”

  “You two are something else. I love you both as my own. You better treat each other right. I know damn well either of you would call and rat the other out.”

  “Sure would,” I said with a smile. “I'm going to miss you.”

  “You two need to come visit with that baby girl,” she said.

  We sat through breakfast and sent Carrie's mom on her way. I think we both felt the loss of having her there as soon as the door closed. I also knew we needed some time together with our little girl. Lance would be back a few days before being gone again. The season was ending, and I was looking forward to having him around a bit more.

  The days that followed flew by. He moved all of the stuff he was keeping into the house. We couldn't decide what to do with the duplicate baby stuff. The toys we didn't have at the house already were brought over, but there were so many left.

  “We should donate the rest,” he said. “I'll make a few calls. I want it to go to a home or homes that can't afford the things I can.”

  I was really proud of him. He was an amazing man. By the end of the day, he'd found a woman that was pregnant with a little girl. She'd lost her husband in an accident. He'd asked me if I wanted to go with him to deliver the furniture, but I couldn't do it. With my world changing so much and the big decisions I'd just made, I didn't want anything to change my mind. I was so damn happy that he'd taken what had happened to me and turned it into helping someone I could have been at that time. I did give him a piece of paper to give the woman. It had my number on it and a brief statement that I'd been through losing my husband in the same way and she could call if she wanted a friend. It would actually be very nice to have someone in my life that knew how I'd felt. Not that I was happy she'd lost her husband. That's not what I meant. It would just be nice to talk to someone close that understood. I wasn't pregnant, so I couldn't imagine how she was dealing with that. I was willing to talk to her anytime. It would have been awesome to have had someone when I'd lost Brad.

  Lance told me the woman was very happy with what he'd given her. She told him she definitely planned to use my number. I loved seeing how good he felt helping someone else. When he told me he wanted to help others that had lost spouses, it made me fall even deeper in love with him. I wasn't sure what I did to deserve him in my life, but I was so happy he was there. I was so happy that he hadn't given up on me.

  I didn't want him to leave again, but I put on a smile and told him it wouldn't be long before he'd be home for longer. He held Sammie so tight. It took all I had not to burst into tears. It was the first time I was going to be alone without any help. I knew it would be fine, but I was still nervous. What if something came up, I wondered? What if I wasn't sure what to do? Even though Carrie's mom was five hours away, I knew she'd be there for me. If I had a problem, I could ask her. That gave me so much relief. It felt so good having people in my life that loved me. I was pretty lucky.

  “What are you thinking about, Firecracker?” Lance asked, as he put the baby down in her bouncer.

  “Just how lucky I am,” I said, as I wrapped my arms around his waist from behind and rested my forehead against his back. “I have people in my life that care about me. It's been a long time since I've felt loved. I've never felt the way I do right now.”

  He turned in my arms and wrapped his arms around me.

  “I love you, Lucy,” he said. “I will always be here. You will never have any reason to feel lost or unloved again. I will always take care of you, and I will always love you. I'd do anything for you. I hope you know that.”

  “I'm going to miss you,” I said.

  “Me too, babe,” he said. “I'm having the hardest time. Take care of our girl while I'm gone. She's going to grow again on me. Take lots of pictures and send them. Make sure she watches the games.”

  “You're adorable,” I said. “She's a lucky little girl. You're a great dad, Lance. Thank you for everything you've done. I have a doctor's appointment later this week. You know what that means?”

  “Does that mean I might get lucky when I get back?” he asked with wide eyes. “That will definitely give me something to think about this week.”

  “Hey,” I said.

  “I can't wait to get back to you,” he said. “Make sure you get on the pill while you're there.”

  “Why?” I asked. “You afraid of getting me pregnant again?”

  I let out a loud laugh. He did not. Lance pulled back, lifted my chin with his hand, and looked into my eyes.

  “Not risking losing you again,” he said in the most serious tone I'd ever heard from him.

  It was his do not even try to argue this tone. It was not negotiable. That I already knew. I was learning so much about him. Part of me wanted to challenge him. Hey, that's who I was. Things didn't just change over night. I knew I had to pick my battles, and that was not one of them. He was leaving, and I didn't want him worrying about something that wasn't even an issue.

  “I mean it, Lucy,” he said. “I feel strongly about this. It was the scariest moment of my life. My little one's life was in danger. I'd just began to relax. Seconds later I was inches away from losing the love of my life. That will not happen again.”

  “Are you saying ever?” I asked.

  “I don't know,” he said. “Can't think about that now. That shit's too fresh. I still see it in my sleep. Please do not argue this one.”


  He leaned in and kissed my forehead. I'd give him the win in that moment. That didn't mean he'd keep if forever. He was saying we wouldn't have any more kids. I know, it was crazy. I was the girl that didn't want a relationship or kids less than a year before. In that moment, I wasn't very pleased with the thought of no more kids. I couldn't believe how much my life had changed in that amount of time. I was so afraid of being a mom at the beginning of it all. That day, sending my man off, I wouldn't have changed being a mom for anything. It was who I was. I was Sammie's mom, and couldn't have been happier.

  Chapter 15

  Lance

  It took all I had to leave that day. Everything that mattered to me was in that house. Damn! My life had changed. I couldn't believe how different it was. The only thing that mattered to me less than a year before was turning into something completely different. Don't get me wrong, I still loved the game. When I was on the mound, that game was where it was. I put my all into every single pitch. My team was still like family. I just had a different family too, one that I'd do anything to protect. Being away from them was harder than anything. The days took forever. Knowing they were watching the games meant the world to me. Getting Lucy's text messages when I was done was the highlight of my days.