Caught Looking
Page 18
“But what are you going to do? I thought you weren’t ready to retire partly because you hadn’t figured out what came next.”
Jake smiled and picked up the folder again, turning to another sheaf of papers. “Exhibit B.” This time she didn’t hesitate to take it, unable to fathom what else this amazing man had up his sleeve.
“You’re going to do color commentary for the Longhorns?” she asked.
He grinned. “Yep. Met with Ron and Wayne earlier today, actually, and they seem excited to have me on board.”
Her eyes were wide as she tried to take all of this in. “But how?”
“Aerin, Hunter’s agent. I signed with her and she got me this gig, so I can stay right here in Dallas with you. I’ll still be a part of baseball. Just not the part that gets you in trouble.”
She let out a little laugh and pressed her fingers to her lips. “I feel like I’m dreaming. This can’t be real. You can’t give all this up for me. This—”
“Is the perfect solution to our problem. Circumstances prevented us from being together. So I found a way to change the circumstances.” He slipped a hand under her chin, tilting her face up to his. “And I can give all this up if it means there’s an us. I know what you’ve sacrificed to get where you are, and I know what your career means to you. I’d never ask you to walk away from that. So I found another way. I love you, Abby. You make me want forever with you. And what’s baseball in the face of that?”
She sucked in a shuddering breath, clinging to him, hoping, praying that this wasn’t a dream she was about to wake up from in her cold, empty bed. “I love you too, Jake. So much.”
He kissed her again, wrapping his arms around her. “And before you worry about the media or how this all looks, Aerin’s on it. We might have to do a few interviews, but she promises me that everyone will eat up the story about baseball’s starcrossed lovers.”
She leaned her forehead against his, and a soft rain began to fall around them. “I think maybe we got our stars uncrossed, thanks to you.”
“I’ll rearrange a galaxy for you every damn day if it means you’re mine.”
Her throat thickened and she had to blink back the tears threatening to fall. “Cheeseball,” she whispered.
“Your cheeseball.”
She kissed him again, and again, and again, rain falling around them. The season was over. They’d lost. But for Abby, everything felt like it was just beginning.
Because she and Jake? They’d won.
Epilogue
One month later
Jake pulled his SUV into the empty driveway of the house, glancing over at Abby in the passenger seat beside him. She leaned forward and pulled off of her sunglasses.
“This is it?” she asked. “Jake, holy shit! This is a mansion!” Her mouth fell open as she took in the house he’d closed on just a few days ago. It was Mediterranean-style, with a terra cotta roof, stone façade, and rounded windows and archways. Live oaks surrounded it on either side, giving it both shade and privacy. He’d known as soon as he’d seen it that Abby would love it, which meant that he’d loved it.
“Come on, let’s go look inside,” he said, sliding out of the driver’s side door, his stomach giving a tiny little jolt. He laid a hand on his pocket, reassuring himself that the jewel box was still there. Taking her hand, he led her inside, their voices echoing off of the soaring cathedral ceiling in the foyer.
“This is beautiful,” she said softly. But he wasn’t looking at the crown molding or the sweeping staircase. He couldn’t take his eyes off of Abby. And it felt so damn good that he didn’t have to.
Her fingers entwined in his, her thumb tracing over his knuckles, he showed her the dining room with the hand-scraped hardwood floors, the wood paneled study with a fireplace, the kitchen with its granite counters and rustic-looking cabinets. She moved over to the little breakfast nook with windows that looked out onto the lush backyard. Glancing at him over her shoulder, her eyes met his and he felt it like a jolt of electricity. It took everything he had to stay where he was, leaning casually against the massive island, and not cross to her and pull her into his arms.
Before Abby, Jake had never known just how big love could be. Bigger than him or her or baseball or anything else life might throw their way. His mind flashed back to the night they’d met at the awards reception, and he knew now that a part of him had always known that she was his person. That something in her had called to something in him.
Shit, maybe he did believe in soulmates. He’d have to buy Hunter and Dylan a drink or three, wouldn’t he?
Abby wandered into the cozy living room off of the kitchen, spinning in a slow circle. “I love this house, Jake. It’s perfect for you.”
He pushed off of the island and walked into the living room. “I disagree.” He leaned closer, brushing his lips against her ear. “I think it’s perfect for us.”
She pulled back, her eyebrows climbing up her forehead. “What?”
He’d planned to draw this out more, to do it with more finesse, but he couldn’t wait a second longer, and so, standing in the empty living room, he sank to one knee. Abby’s eyes widened as he took her hand.
“Abigail Elizabeth Gossman, I feel like I’ve spent my entire life looking for you, and now that I’ve found you, I’m not letting you go. I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my days loving you. Live here with me. Let’s make a life together. Will you marry me?”
A tear slipped down over her cheek, her face tight with emotion. She nodded rapidly, and he could feel her hand shaking in his. “Yes. Jake, yes. Yes, yes, yes,” she said through her tears, sinking to her knees, too. She leaned forward and kissed him, still saying the word yes against his lips.
“Oh, shit,” he said, pulling back. “I have a ring. I forgot about the ring.”
Abby laughed as he slipped a hand into his pocket and pulled out the jewel box. She stopped laughing when he flipped it open, revealing the five-carat emerald with smaller diamonds flanking it on either side.
“Holy crap, Jake, I…”
“Do you like it? We can get you something else if you don’t.”
“I love it. It’s perfect. You’re perfect.”
A happiness like nothing he’d felt before flowed through him as he pulled the ring out of the box and slipped it on her finger. She kissed him, deeply and thoroughly. “I do have a question, though.”
“Hit me.”
She gestured around them and then held up the massive emerald on her finger. Fuck, he liked seeing his ring on her like that. He couldn’t wait to see her with it and nothing else on.
“Do you have any money left?” she asked through her laughter.
At that, he pulled her to him and tumbled them to the ground. “I do, but if I didn’t, would that change your answer?”
She bit her lip, looking up at him, and shook her head. “No. Nothing would ever tear me away from you. Wild horses, baby.”
He dipped his head and brushed his nose against hers. “Wild horses, sweetheart.” He kissed her again, feeling the warm glow of forever stretching out before him. “Wild horses.”
THE END
What’s next in the world of the Dallas Longhorns? Javi and Aerin’s story!
He can’t stand her.
She loves to push his buttons.
What’s a little harmless sex between enemies?
* * *
COMING JULY 21, 2020
* * *
For more information, go to
www.tara-wyatt.com/moon-shot.
Books by Tara Wyatt
Dallas Longhorns Series
Stealing Home
Wild Card
Caught Looking
Moon Shot
* * *
The Graysons
When Snowflakes Fall
Like Fresh Fallen Snow
Until the Sun Sets
The Complete Graysons Trilogy:
Can’t Help Falling in Love
* * *
&nb
sp; The Blood and Glory Series
co-written with Harper St. George
Dirty Boxing
Take Down
No Contest
* * *
The Bodyguard Series
Necessary Risk
Primal Instinct
Chain Reaction
* * *
Standalone Titles
Royal Treatment
Nailed
Stripped
Little Blue Lines
* * *
For complete information on all of Tara’s books, visit www.tara-wyatt.com/books.
About the Author
Tara Wyatt is a contemporary romance and romantic suspense author. Known for her humor and steamy love scenes, Tara’s writing has won several awards, including the Golden Quill Award and the Booksellers’ Best Award. In 2018, she was a RITA® Finalist for her novella, Until the Sun Sets.
When she’s not hanging out with your next book boyfriend, she can be found reading, bingeing something on Netflix, and drinking wine. Tara lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada with her husband, daughter, and the world’s cutest dachshund.
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