Played: Scandalous Moves Series

by Staley, Deborah Grace

He shrugged as if it didn’t really matter what he did, then said, “Pitch. That is my job, is it not?”

  Jaye laughed. She couldn’t help herself. “Yes. It is.”

  Matt nodded and kissed her neck, then moved downward, sucking and licking first the dip at the base of her throat, then her sternum. Next, he took his time at both her breasts, alternating sucking them into his mouth and biting her nipples. Then he dropped to his knees so he could go lower. When he dipped his tongue into her belly button, he spread her legs apart with his knees.

  She braced her hands on his wide shoulders. “Matt . . .”

  He slowly worked his way down to the tops of her thighs and slid his fingers into her slick, wet folds. “Mmm,” he said, looking up at her with those arresting, green eyes that darkened when he was aroused. “I love how wet you get for me.”

  He flicked her clit with his thumb, then slid his middle finger into her and lifted her up to her tiptoes while increasing the pressure on her and in her. She sucked in her breath, and he licked the spot just beneath her belly button. Then he slid another finger into her and started to move.

  After he’d worked her into a fine mess, he leaned away from her and said, “Step up onto the bench.” When she stood above him, he said, “Spread your legs. Wider,” he demanded. Still on his knees, he looked up at her. He spread her folds open and licked her. His stubble scraped against her soft flesh intensified the pleasure. He put his hands on the backs of her thighs then draped one over his shoulder. He sucked her clit and repeatedly flicked it with the tip of his tongue. Jaye cried out as she exploded. He pushed three fingers into her to give her something to ride, though she would have preferred to ride his cock. As if reading her mind, he stood and lifted her onto him as her spasms lessened. With her back braced against the tile, she wrapped her legs around him and held on tight while he took her to an even more intense orgasm.

  She fused her lips with his and acknowledged, if only to herself, that Matt owned her, body and soul. Now, she just had to figure out how to make this work for both of them. A life apart wasn’t going to work.

  * * *

  “Chief,” Jackie said. “Stan’s been calling. He said your cell was off.”

  Jaye checked her watch as she walked into her office. After she’d left Matt’s, she’d gone by her place for a change of clothes and her phone charger because her cell had died sometime in the night. “It’s not time for our call,” Jaye said.

  “He wanted a report on how it went with Ruiz yesterday.”

  Well, hell. There was nothing to report since they were just getting started with him, and she certainly wasn’t about to tell her boss she’d spent the night having wild sex with the man in question. “I’ll call him. Anything else?”

  “The coaches emailed me what they have planned for Ruiz today. There’s a game tonight. They’ll have him dressed and in the dugout, but don’t plan to play him.”

  “Perfect. Is that all?”

  Jackie tilted her head to the side and pointed, then pressed her hand to her chest, but pointed again, looking at a point near the base of Jaye’s throat. Jaye put her fingertips on the area, feeling for toothpaste or a sticker or she didn’t know what. “What is it, Jackie?” Jaye asked.

  “I think you have—um—stubble burn. On your neck.”

  “Shit!” Jaye ducked into her bathroom and looked in the mirror. When she saw it, she pressed her hand against the tender area and flushed with embarrassment. She buttoned her oxford all the way up, which sufficiently hid what Matt had done to her, very much with her consent.

  When she walked back into her office, Jackie stood on the other side of her desk, smiling. “Lucky you,” she said. “That glow becomes you.”

  “Jackie—”

  “Sorry.” Jackie held up her hand. “That was unprofessional, I know. But I’m happy for you. You deserve a life outside this place.” Her assistant walked toward the reception area, but turned at the door. “Oh, I almost forgot. Your father is here.”

  “My dad? Why?”

  “Coach Flint called him. Thought he could help with Ruiz.”

  Jaye wanted to scream, Oh. My. Freakin’. Lord! but instead she said, “Great. I’m going to call Stan now if there’s nothing more.”

  Jackie just nodded. “Coffee?”

  “Yes, please,” Jaye said as she hit the button to speed dial Miami. Stan picked up on the first ring. “Baxter! Where the hell have you been? I’ve been calling all morning.”

  “I apologize, Stan. I forgot to charge my cell last night, and I had a few errands to run this morning. What’s up?”

  “What do you think is up? I’m checking on Ruiz. How is he?”

  “He arrived yesterday afternoon,” Jaye said evenly, trying to counter Stan’s anxiety with calm. “He met with the coaches, had a physical, saw the trainers, threw, and then we had a driver take him to his condo so he could get settled in.” She picked up today’s schedule. “Right now, he’s in another meeting with the coaches, then he’s got a full day, beginning with the strength and conditioning team.”

  “Does he seem happy? We want him happy.”

  Jaye couldn’t help smiling. He had indeed seemed very happy after they finished their shower this morning. “Yes. As happy as a player in trouble can be when he’s just gotten traded and demoted from a major league club to AA.”

  “But that’s temporary. He knows that.”

  “He’s committed to working hard and doing everything he can to make a comeback. The climate in Florida should remind him of home.” And Jaye hoped that was a good thing. She needed to find out what it was that had him packing his bags in the minors years before and returning home. Maybe the memories in Puerto Rico weren’t so good.

  “I’m coming up there, Baxter. I just—”

  “God no, Stan. He’s got enough brass breathing down his neck. Let’s give him some space and let the coaches work their magic. We’ll have him back to his old self in no time.”

  “We’re counting on it,” Stan said firmly, a note of warning lacing his words.

  “We won’t let you down,” Jaye said, praying that was a promise she’d be able to deliver on. “I’ll call you at the end of the day with an update.”

  “Yep.” Stan disconnected the call, and Jaye hung up the phone.

  “How’s my girl?”

  Jaye saw her father standing in the doorway of her office. “Dad!” She met him halfway. The big hug he wrapped her up in was just what she needed. “Jackie said you were here.” Jaye stepped back and smiled at the tall, lean man she’d looked up to her whole life. “Do you have time to have a cup of coffee?”

  “I’ve always got time for my little girl. The question is, does she have time for me? I know you’re awfully busy.”

  “I always have time for you, Dad.”

  Jackie came in with two steaming mugs and set them on the low table in front of the couch. “I’ll hold your calls,” she said to Jaye, giving Jaye’s father a big smile. “It’s nice to see you again, Mr. Baxter.”

  “Call me ‘Chuck’.” Jaye’s dad said, giving Jackie a warm look. Jaye watched, fascinated, as the woman went from efficient professional to star-struck. “Well, thank you. Chuck,” she added before she turned and walked out of the office with a little extra swing in her hips.

  After she closed the office door, Jaye’s dad picked up his coffee and sipped as if nothing had happened. “What was that?” Jaye asked.

  “What?”

  “You know what. Are you hitting on my assistant?”

  Her dad grinned and set his cup down. “I think she was hitting on me,” he corrected.

  “Oh, excuse me.” She gave him a look and they both laughed. “It’s good to see you, Daddy,” she said. “I thought when I took this job in Jacksonville we’d be able to spend more time together, but it hasn’t worked out that way has it?”

  “Being a general manager of a minor league baseball team is a big job, an even bigger one for you. I know you’ve had to work harder tha
n two men to get to where you are, and I’m sure that’s not about to change anytime soon.”

  “I don’t mind.” Jaye said, and she didn’t. She loved proving everyone wrong. And she particularly loved being underestimated. The surprise on men’s faces when she did the impossible gave her an indescribable sense of self-satisfaction. Now, if she could find a solution to her problem with Matt that ended in everyone getting what they wanted, she’d officially be a miracle worker.

  “So you’re here to work with our new project?” Jaye said.

  “Yeah,” her dad said, brushing his soft gray hair back from his forehead. “Coach Flint’s call took me off guard. I don’t know what he thinks an old washed-out ballplayer like me can do for the likes of Matt Ruiz.”

  “Please, Daddy. You hold pitching records that might never be broken.”

  His bright blue eyes flashed as he spoke. “Well, you know what I say.”

  “Records are made to be broken,” they said together and laughed.

  “And that was a long time ago,” Chuck Baxter added.

  “Did you ever go through a slump, Daddy?”

  “Oh, sure. Everyone does, but you know, you just gotta keep working hard. Work through to the other side of it.”

  “I’m not talking about that kind of slump. I’m talking about the kind a guy gets when his heart’s not in it anymore.”

  “Well, I doubt that’s the case with Ruiz. He ain’t been in it long enough to have lost the heart for it.”

  “He had so much success so fast,” Jaye said, sipping her coffee. “Maybe his head just didn’t have time to catch up.”

  “Maybe,” her dad agreed. He leaned forward, his arms resting on his knees, hands clasped loosely. “Or maybe he never got over the loss he suffered years ago.”

  “Loss? What loss?”

  “After Coach Flint called, I did some nosing around, called a few people and asked about Ruiz. You know he walked away from his first contract with the Reds. Most people don’t know why.”

  “Well don’t leave me guessing,” Jaye said when her dad didn’t continue.

  “Honey, he lost his entire family in a house fire: his father, mother, grandmother, and two sisters. The boy’s got no one.”

  11

  Matt sent Jaye a note via messenger that read, “Room 1145. I’ll be waiting. Naked.” The envelope also included a room key card and a business card with the name and the address of the hotel. He should be exhausted from his workouts today, and God knows, neither of them had gotten much sleep last night.

  He sat in a chair opposite the door, wearing nothing but a towel. Maybe he’d just close his eyes while he waited . . .

  Some time later, Matt startled upright when he heard the door close. Jaye stood there, smiling at him and looking heart-stopping beautiful, even in her shapeless work suit. He stood and his towel fell off. He glanced down. He wasn’t the only one happy to see her.

  “You weren’t kidding,” she said as she moved into the room. She set her purse on the nightstand, looking at him—all of him—as she removed her blazer. “You are waiting for me. Naked.”

  He strode towards her. “I am a man of my word.” He cupped the back of her head and angled it for his kiss. Her response was warm, but she held back. “What’s wrong?”

  “I heard you had a good day,” she said evenly. But he would have preferred seeing her lose that professional control she wore like a second skin.

  “Yes,” he said. “I think everyone was pleased.” He walked over to the bucket that held a bottle of wine—still butt naked. “Would you like a drink?”

  “Yes. Thank you,” she said politely.

  So he tested the waters with another question, “Would you like to take off your clothes while I pour?” He lifted the bottle from the ice. “I’d be happy to watch,” he said, trying to match her polite tone.

  She laughed as he poured the wine. “Would you?” she said.

  He lifted the glass to his lips, and then let his gaze slide down her body. “Yes. More than happy.”

  “I thought that drink was for me.”

  Matt held the glass out to her, but didn’t move. “Come get it.”

  She surprised him by unbuttoning her pants and lowering the zipper. Then she pushed the waistband down, wiggling her hips more for effect than necessity. Matt sat, his legs wide, cock at attention, as she stepped out of her pants. She wore black, sky-high strappy wedge sandals that she left on. She took her time moving towards him as she unbuttoned her shirt. She stood just out of his reach when she had it open to reveal what she wore beneath: a lacy, pink bra that matched her shirt and only half covered her full breasts. Her tiny panties were made of the same lacy material. And she’d waxed. She turned and looked over her shoulder at him as she let the shirt slide down her arms. When it fell to the floor, he saw that she was wearing a thong. She reached up and pulled the band out of her hair, and he watched as she shook it out, growing impatient.

  She faced him, a hand on one shapely hip, teasing him as she slipped one bra strap off her shoulder. “Come here,” he growled.

  “Not yet,” she replied in that very polite tone. She pushed the other strap off her shoulder then reached behind with one hand and unhooked the bra. It slid down, but hung on her hardened nipples. She leaned forward, and the lacy garment slid down her arms to her wrists.

  “Leave the panties on,” he said.

  “You like giving orders, don’t you?” she said, but tossed the bra onto the bed and left the thong on as he’d requested.

  “And you secretly enjoy obeying my orders, don’t you?”

  “It is a novelty,” she confessed. “Would you like me to leave the shoes on?” she asked and closed the space between them. She put one foot on the chair between his legs, oh so close to touching the part of his body that was needy for her. “Or would you like to take them off me?”

  He trailed a hand up the back of her calf to the bend of her knee and squeezed the back of her thigh. She shivered and he said, “You may keep the shoes on,” He traced the upper line of her lace panties, which concealed very little to his view. “When did you have time to wax?” he asked.

  “A girl has to take lunch breaks,” Jaye said, sounding reasonable. “Sometimes she runs errands rather than eat.”

  Matt smiled, loving the fact that she’d done this for him. “You must be starved, then.”

  She focused on his lap before replying. “Ravenous.”

  Without releasing her leg, Matt stood, lifted her with a hand on her bare ass, and carried her to the bed. As he laid her down, she kissed him, taking at least that much control. She tugged on his lips and circled his tongue, then retreating to nip at his lips. While she focused on kissing him, Matt brushed her thong aside. Her wetness coated his fingers with slick heat. He groaned into her mouth and circled her clit, but didn’t touch it. Jaye got restless beneath him and opened her legs wider. She reached down between them and stroked his length, and his control vanished like mist in the sun’s bright light.

  She pushed him until he lay on his back and straddled him. He couldn’t fault the view. Thong and heels still on, she guided him inside her, then laced her hands with his, and started to move. Each downward motion brushed her nipples against his chest. When she rose up, he lifted to meet her. This time, she rotated her hips, grinding against him, eyes closed, mouth open, pure pleasure softening her features. “You’re so beautiful,” he said, and she opened her eyes and smiled.

  He rolled, reversing their positions, put her leg over his shoulder to find the angle that gave them both maximum pleasure, and soon tumbled them over the edge. After riding the long waves of release, he removed her shoes, then rested on his side, holding Jaye close. He pulled the blanket up to their waists and stroked her back while pressing his lips to her forehead. “Thank you for sharing yourself with me so completely.” In response, Jaye hugged him tightly.

  “You make it easy,” she said on a sigh. She propped her head on her hand. “How do you do that?”<
br />
  He shrugged. “I focus on nothing but you, us, here together, in this space.”

  “The same process as pitching.” She trailed her fingertips across his chests, making patterns as she spoke. “Just you and the catcher’s mitt.”

  “With pitching, it’s a bit more than that. I must consider the batter and know which pitch he prefers. With that knowledge, I can withhold what he wants.” He tucked a thick, golden strand of hair behind her ear. “With you, I withhold nothing. I want to give you everything you desire.”

  She melted just a little. “But that can become difficult. Giving me what I want here is simple. It’s what’s outside these walls that makes things a bit more complicated.”

  “Only if we make it so.” He took her free hand and brought it to his lips, considering his words carefully. “It is when we look at things only one way that solutions to problems evade us. Things are rarely black or white, this or that.”

  She traced the line of his necklace. “So what was different for you today?”

  “Today, pitching was easy again. The process made sense.”

  “Why?”

  He kissed her. “I think you anchor me.”

  “Matt—”

  He didn’t let her pull away. “Jaye, you haven’t succeeded in a profession that, for the most part, is not open to women without becoming the master of creative thinking and persuasion. Consider,” he said when she would have spoken, “does it not stand to reason you might become involved with someone at work when work is where you have invested all your time?”

  “I didn’t meet you at work.”

  “But you were drawn to me, a baseball player. Perhaps because you love baseball so much, you recognized that aspect of me even though you were not aware until later.”

  She frowned, but said, “Maybe.”

  He hesitated then added, “I met your father today. How is it I did not know the great pitcher, Chuck Baxter, is your father?”

  Jaye laughed. “We haven’t gone about this the usual way. Our time together has involved getting to know each other sexually. We haven’t done a lot of talking.”