Page 19 of Faking it With the Player Next Door

Sitting up, I swung my legs over the bed and rubbed my eyes to hopefully help me wake up more. I’d skip a shower until later as I had to clean the house before Hunter arrived. If he showed up and the place wasn’t as spotless as Gram kept it, he’d ride my butt about it.

Slipping into a pair of cut-off denim shorts, and grabbing a clean tee-shirt from the pile on the dresser, all I had left to do was brush my teeth and hair.

Ten minutes later, I was in my car heading towards the small grocery store on this side of town. It may be a small place, but they had the best butcher counter that I knew about in the county.

As I found a parking spot, I considered what I’d make, and if I should invite Van to keep up the appearance. As much as being close to Van caused me to drift back into my old daydreams, I knew I had to get a handle on my feelings and trudge through this farce of a relationship.

Entering the store, I grabbed a grocery cart and decided to invite Van over for the barbecue.

“I mean, what can be bad about it?” I mumbled as I pushed the cart towards the produce department.

After selecting salad items, I moved towards the butcher counter. I knew Hunter loved any meat on the grill, and I decided to go a little overboard and get some ribeye steaks. I hadthree large baking potatoes in the cart, some asparagus and now I needed some fresh cut steaks.

Coming home, I hadn’t planned on setting my sights on a man, especially Van.

Van has always been theproverbial one who got away.No, that’s not correct. He was the one whom I was never able to have a true romantic relationship with, and we both moved on. Him with his baseball career, and me, with my medical career.

Being around Hunter and Van all of my younger life, and having to listen to them talk about sports, or play sports, when it came time to choose my career, I took the route that seemed to fit.

I spent four years at the University of Virginia to obtain my Master’s Degree in Sports and Health Medicine. I doubled up on my academic credits and transferred some of my collegiate credits from high school. I never thought I’d be able to complete one degree as quickly as I had, but I did.

I had promised Gram I’d work hard, focus on my studies and avoid getting sucked into the party aspect of college, and I did. Gram was impressed with my determination and dedication, and when I came home two semesters before I graduated, she doted on me and bragged to her friends or anyone who would listen.

That visit home was the last time I saw Gram, and my heart breaks every time I think about how I could never show her my diploma. I knew she was proud of me and wanted to do everything I could to make her proud.

When she asked me why I had chosen the field I did, I told her it was because of Hunter and Van. I remember Gram’s dark brown eyes softened when I mentioned Van. She smiled and took my hand in hers. I thought something was wrong, but I laughed when she told me she had always envisioned Van and me being a couple.

I told her that Van would never date me and that he had already left town for college and begun his minor and major league baseball career. Gram shook her head and told me just to wait and see. I scoffed at her and told her Donovan Willis had no interest in me.

I was the little sister of his best friend who lived next door. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Turning down an aisle to head to the butcher’s counter, I saw Van at the other end of the aisle. I raised a hand to wave to him. I opened my mouth to call out so I could talk with him and tell him about dinner that evening, but before he looked in my direction, a tall, slender woman turned the corner of the aisle, and laid a hand on Van’s forearm.

The woman, probably the most beautiful creature I’d ever seen in person, laid her head on Van’s shoulder and leaned up to whisper in his ear. He shook his head, and I swear I heard him snort.

My stomach flopped, and I felt nauseous. Laying a hand on my abdomen, I swallowed hard, tasting the bile building up in my throat. I started to turn around but couldn’t take my eyes off them. It was like a car wreck where you wanted to look away but couldn’t.

When the woman nuzzled into Van’s neck and kissed him, I gasped and turned my shopping cart around. I practically ran down the aisle and stopped when I turned the corner. Catching my breath, I picked up my purse inside the cart and abandoned the food and cart.

I needed to get out of the store, and away from Van and his…What was she? Girlfriend? Some woman who gets with famous people?

“Hell,” I grumbled as I exited the store, and strode across the parking lot.Who is she?

Given the woman’s beauty, I assumed she was someone with notoriety—maybe a model or a low-grade actress.

Slipping into my car, I laid my forehead on the steering wheel, closed my eyes, and her image came to mind. Her long flowing, perfectly styled light brown hair, was streaked with professionally done highlights. Every curl was planned to perfection and bounced when she walked towards Van.

I couldn’t determine her eye color from a distance, but they seemed dark. I assume her makeup was applied, taking a painstakingly long time, and her flawless skin had never seen a pimple or breakout.

“And what’s with her skin?” I raised my head and snorted. “Did she just get off a plane from the Caribbean? I bet she’s the type of girl who doesn’t have a single tan line.”

After the initial shock of seeing Van with the woman, I became enraged. Forgetting about who she was for a minute, my anger grew as I considered that Van could have been using me. He kissed me, all the while having that woman in his life.

“What the hell!” I shouted and slammed an open hand onto the steering wheel. “You fool!”

Right now,, I wasn’t sure who I was mad at more: Van or me. Van for the obvious reason, but for me, it came down to being blindsided andusedby Van.

“For heaven’s sake, Taylor,” I scolded, started my car and went back home.

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