Page 112 of Play Along

I bury my face in his neck so he can’t see me. “Isaiah?”

“Yeah?”

“We got married on that date.”

He curls into me, lips dusting the skin of my neck before placing a soft kiss there. “I know.”

Isaiah turns onto his back, bringing me with him and draping my body over his. My short legs fall between his long ones, and though he took the pillow for himself, I’m perfectly happy to go without one when the alternative is his chest.

A hand settles on my lower back as I adjust the single blanket to cover us both.

“On the worst day of the year, I had two of the best days of my life.”

My eyes screw shut as I hide myself against his bare chest.

Just like I’ve never been someone’s joy, I’ve also never been someone’s best.

I don’t know how to process that.

I exhale a shaky breath. “Isaiah?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you ever wear a shirt?”

He huffs a laugh. A genuine, beautiful laugh that he needed.

“Thank you for that, but no, not around you anymore, Doc. I see the way you look at me.”

I smile against him.

“Please. Stay here with me tonight, Kenny.”

I nod. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Chapter 20

Isaiah

The driveway is packed when I pull up to my brother’s house and the endless voices can be heard from outside. I know Cody and Travis are here, and judging by the parked cars, quite a few of our other teammates are too.

Not that I blame them. I’m lucky enough to have a world-renowned pastry chef as a sister-in-law, and wouldn’t dare miss one of these nights at my brother’s house.

With my hands full, I use my foot to open and close the front door, and as soon as I pass the threshold, Max’s laughter is the first thing I consciously hear.

It’s the best thing I’ve heard all day, and the second best follows closely behind.

“Do you think that’s funny, Bug?” Kennedy asks my nephew, her tone pitched high for him.

Listening harder, I search for her voice again, not convinced she’s actually here right now, with all my friends and family, when she’s always been adamant about keeping her work and social life separate.

Max giggles again and I finally follow the sound to find the two of them on the floor in the living room, Kennedy with her back to the wall with my nephew standing between her outstret-ched legs. He’s pressing her cheeks together, trying to see what kind of faces he can make her do, and man, is it fucking cute.

A few of my teammates are on the couch, even more sitting on the floor with their eyes glued to the television screen where another baseball game is playing.

But they’re not who I’m looking at. I’m watching Max with my wife.

Whatever I’m feeling for Kennedy is far more serious than the once superficial crush I had on the girl. I didn’t know her then, but now that I’m learning exactly who she is, I more than like what I see.

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