Anything but Minor - Kate Stewart Page 0,68
had on slacks, heels, and a simple peasant blouse, and felt underdressed.
“You’re perfect,” he said as he cranked his Jeep and pulled the elastic out of my hair. I held my roses to me as I stared over at him.
“What has gotten into you, Rafe Hembrey?”
He looked at me seriously. “I’m happy. For the first time in a long time, I’m happy. You showed me what it looks like and then you became a reason.” My heart pounded inside my chest at his declaration. I felt the same but was completely taken aback by this new side of him. He’d always been good to me, but it was a whole new level of intimacy. He put the Jeep into gear as we slipped through the crowded streets of downtown Charleston and ended up at a restaurant on the outskirts with an unparalleled view of the marsh. Seated outside with a breathtaking view, we dined and sipped wine as daylight dimmed and globe lights illuminated the dock around us. Rafe and I got into a deep conversation about our bucket list as I named off a few things I must do by age ninety-nine.
“Fly with a Blue Angel,” I said with a sigh. “I had a chance once but was afraid I’d pee.”
Rafe chuckled.
“I want to meet Nolan Ryan,” he sounded off in thought. “That man is a truly decent human being and amazing pitcher. He’s kind of my man crush.”
“Oh?” I said with a smile. “Good to know. Find a four leaf clover.”
“Go to Ireland for it?”
“Hell yes,” I said with enthusiasm.
“You don’t cuss much.”
“I was raised not to. It kind of stuck with me.”
“I like it.”
“Yeah, well...you’ll know when I’m serious. It’s my verbal exclamation point. You don’t get one because every other word you use is eff.” I said as I sipped my wine and tossed my napkin on my plate. “That was delicious, thank you.”
He gave me a smile and then sipped his beer and replied, “Welcome.”
“Rafe,” I asked as he looked over the marsh, “what would you do if you didn’t play ball?”
He didn’t miss a beat.
“Male escort.”
I narrowed my eyes as he chuckled.
“I’ve never known life without it, so I don’t think that way.”
“What if you hadn’t found it?”
“Male escort.”
“That wasn’t funny the first time,” I scorned.
He set his beer down and wiped the sweat from his palms down his pants. “It’s always been ball.” He looked at me across the table, lost in thought. “When my dad bought me my first glove, I refused to take it off for a week.” He chuckled. “I was three, and according to my mother, I bathed with it, ate, and slept with it. It’s so much a part of me, Alice, there’s never been an alternative future. I still have that glove.”
“What will you do when it ends?”
“There’s no end, Alice.”
I looked at him pointedly. “That’s not very realistic.”
He gave me an eye roll. “Leave it to you to take the romance out of baseball. Do you tell all jokes and lead with the punchline, too?”
“Sorry,” I offered with a wince.
“Alice.” He grabbed my hand over the table and tugged my arm until I moved to sit in his lap. I turned to look up at him as he continued. “There’s no end because, even when I don’t play, I’ll still love it. It will still be a part of me in one way or another. I’ll be involved somehow. I’ll still feel that leather fit on my hand.”
“That’s beautiful,” I said as my eyes glazed over and his lips kept me slightly dazed. “That’s how I feel about flying.”
“Alice, you have got to get back in the air.”
“I know, and I will,” I said as I nuzzled his neck and rubbed a hand down his smooth jaw. “Anything else in your future?”
He smirked. “I see a runt in my bed with a killer body and beautiful brown eyes...Wait”—he tapped his temple—“she’s muzzled.”
“Har har,” I said as I fell limp against him and his arms encased me.
“I love you,” he whispered, his warm breath at my ear.
It was the third or fourth time he’d said it without me reciprocating, and just as I was about to, he spoke up. “Night’s not over. Let’s go.”
He pulled us from the chair, and I heard the song he’d played for me in the Jeep chime over the speakers.
“It’s our song,” I reminded excitedly as he pulled me to him and we moved around in a slight dance before he whisked