Page 23 of Love in the Outfield

“I’m so sleepy I can hardly keep my eyes open.”

“Go ahead and sleep. I’ll mind the time.”

“You sure?”

“I’m positive.”

He yawns loudly. “Maybe just a ten-minute snooze.”

I lay back as well and close my eyes thinking about how easy today has gone. Next thing I know I’m drifting off to sleep.

I wake with a start and look at my watch. I’ve only been asleep for fifteen minutes and Cade and August are still napping. I roll onto my side and face Cade. I know I shouldn’t be watching him but I can’t help it. Today, I’m crossing all sorts of lines I’d drawn in the sand. With time to study Cade and him none thewiser, it is surely my lucky day and a rare guilty pleasure. I feel like an intruder but I can’t help myself.

I’m fascinated by the resemblance between father and son and watch unapologetically like a thief in the night. No mistaking that he’s the daddy. Same dark mop of hair, matching lush lashes fanning their cheeks, same flawless golden skin and full bottom lip. Cade’s is slightly parted. Same strong jaw, except Aug’s doesn’t have the angles yet since he still has his round baby cheeks. I’m enjoying my freedom to study every inch of Cade Jennings unchecked. Dear Lord, what a specimen.

My eyes wander leisurely downward seemingly of their own accord, past his handsome face down his broad chest, his cargo shorts revealing strong sexy thighs… all the way to his bare feet. He twitches and there is a moment when I try to look away but my fascination is beyond rational thought. Every ounce of me saysdon’t get caught, but I don’t listen, I ignore it. My heart is pounding in my chest as he lifts heavy lids and catches me. Time stops. My breath hitches. His eyes flare with desire and I’m drowning in their liquid blue depths.

“Gigi,” he says on a long sigh. Rolling onto his side, he bends his elbow and props his head on his palm, never taking his gaze from mine. We’re only inches apart. He reaches for my hand, grasping it loosely while rubbing his thumb over the inside of my wrist. My pulse skips under his thumb, beating like a wild mustang running for its freedom, which does not escape his notice. We gaze into each other’s eyes, neither willing to look away. The comfortable intimacy between us has cast an enchanted spell. All my promises to myself … completely abandoned.

“Remember when we first met?” he murmurs.

“How could I forget?” I say. “I didn’t know a soul at that reception except the bride and groom.”

“Same.” He chuckles. “You were the prettiest girl I’d ever laid eyes on,” he drawls, his eyes lazily scanning my face. “Still are. That hasn’t changed. You were quite fetching in that olive-green jumpsuit with one shoulder out. Damn, I was smitten. I couldn’t believe my luck. The most beautiful girl in the room, all alone and sitting right next to me. I thought I had to be dreaming.”

“I felt so out of place that I kind of latched onto you. I was out of my league at that fancy weddin’. Crystal glassware, champagne towers, a chocolate fountain, for God’s sake. Course that was before I started catering… now I’ve seen it all, but then I felt like a newborn baby deer.”

“In the headlights,” he says with a chuckle.

“Then they played ‘Cha Cha Slide’ and you pulled me onto the dance floor so I could make a complete fool of myself.”

Cade bursts out laughing. “Every time I looked, you were either facing the wrong direction, turning the wrong way, or bumping into somebody. That’s when I knew, man am I ever in trouble. I’ve got to get this girl’s number—I’m not leaving this reception without it.”

I snicker. “If you’d a been a true gentleman you’d have removed me from the scene of the crime.”

“It was way too entertaining. You were the life of the dance floor.”

“I’d never done that dance before in my life. Everyone else looked like they were in on a flash mob. Especially you!”

“What can I say? I’ve been to a lot of weddings.” His eyes sparkle with humor. “You managed to leave the dance floor without breaking an ankle and it was all going so well too… until you got tipsy and spilled your glass of red wine all over that pretty white tablecloth.”

“I wanted to d-i-e!”

“But I gallantly took the blame and scored your phone number. It was a win for me.”

“You were pretty smooth.”

He leans in and barely touches my lips with his. It’s a mere whisper of a kiss. I can feel his breath against my face. I’m practically squirming with want. I fancy this man more than I’ve ever fancied anything in my life. But he is forbidden fruit. I will not bite the apple again.I will not!As I’m falling head first into his baby blues, thinking I’m going under, he opens his mouth and says the exact wrong thing, or maybe the absolute perfect thing.

“I’ve missed you, Georgia.”

I can hear brakes slamming like a cartoon soundtrack. It’s terrifying how quickly I slipped back in time… like we were never apart. He missed me? How about every moment without him felt like an eternity after he left? I sit up and wrap my arms around my bent knees. I see the regret in his eyes and I’ve got plenty of my own.

“I’m sorry, Cade. This,” I gesture between the two of us, “is not going to happen… I mean itcannothappen. Do ya hear me?”

“It just did,” he says quietly.

I glare at him. “Yes, but as of this moment, I am officially friend-zoning you.”

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