Double Play, page 21
“I have?”
“You have,” Brad said, and I whipped around to see him sitting at my desk. “Prancing in here all high on life and shit. It’s disgusting.”
“Whatever,” I said. “I’m just having some fun while I’m still young. Might go somewhere, might not. No need to rush anything.”
“You ever gonna tell me who he is?” Dee asked.
“Not yet,” I replied. “When I’m ready, and when… he’s ready, then I’ll let you know.”
I almost slipped up and said when they’re ready but caught myself just in time. Didn’t need anyone to know it wasn’t just one guy. Spencer and Billy had been so good to me that I never wanted to let them go. I also knew that no one in my family would understand my dating the both of them.
“We want to start on the baseball players’ house right after the new year,” Dee said. “Since you’re running shotgun on it, I’ll let you work with them to figure out dates to start the demo.”
“Sure thing,” I said. “You wanna move your fat ass out of my chair?” I asked Brad. “I have work to do, and you’re in my way.”
“Fuck you,” he said.
“No thanks,” I replied. “I’m getting plenty of that from people who appreciate me.”
It was a low blow, especially since I knew he’d had a crush on me since I was like twelve. But the truth of the matter was, I never thought of him as anything other than my brother’s friend, and now, an employee.
“You start the bathroom yet?” Dee asked, completely ignoring the comments Brad and I made.
“They said they wanted to hold off until we had dates for the big remodel,” I said. “Besides, I think they’ll be heading down for spring training at some point in the next month or two, so it’ll be easier for us to do the work while they’re away.”
“You gonna riffle through their closets while they’re away?” Brad asked.
“You really want me to answer that?” I asked, glaring.
“God,” he barked. “I was fucking with you. Can’t you even take a fucking joke anymore?”
“That’s not something to joke about,” Dee said, and I could see he was getting about as fed up with Brad as I was. “Now, I think you’ve got somewhere to be, don’t you?”
“Fine,” he said. “Great fucking way to treat your friend you’ve known since forever.”
“Exactly,” I replied, and he looked at me.
The look gave me a shiver I never thought I’d feel from him. I’d known him for as long as I could remember, and there had never been anything sinister about him, even when he first started hitting on me way back when. Now, though, he had size on him, and there was something in the way he was looking at me that gave me the willies.
“What the fuck was that?” I asked Dee when Brad had left.
“I think he was trying to make a go of something from that woman up in Bellingham,” he said. “But when he tried to do anything, she kept shutting him down. He tried to pull the ‘I saved you’ card, but all that did was make her even more antsy about him.”
“Does he not know how truly terrifying he can be?”
“He doesn’t,” Dee said. “He thinks he’s just a giant teddy bear, but he’s big, and that’s something that will put everyone off. Besides, I think the woman from up there moved well away from here.”
“Good,” I said. “She doesn’t need to be jumping from one toxic relationship to another.”
“I wish he’d just fucking think before he acted,” he said. “Like, that whole thing was probably terrifying for her, and he went and brought in a fucking biker gang to fix the problem. Word is, they got the woman out, but still. How would you feel if a whole ass gang of dudes showed up at your place and forced you out?”
“Is that what really happened?” I asked.
“From what I heard, yeah,” he said. “I mean, Brad wanted to go with them, but they told him he was an added risk they didn’t need or something. Really made him butt hurt. I guess he’s been trying to get into the gang for a while, and they just don’t want him, which is fucking hilarious to me.”
“Dude’s too dumb to get into a biker gang?” I asked.
“Dude’s too dumb to know not to get into one,” he replied.
“True that,” I said. “Let me see if I can reach them and set up a start date. I’ll also ask about when they’re gonna be out of town so we can plan around that as well. I’ll let them know we’ll need to have access to the house, so see if they have a key or something they can give to me so we can get in and out.”
“Oh, yeah,” he said. “Good plan. Didn’t think about that, but we definitely will need to get in and out of there while they’re gone.”
I sat down at my desk and started in on that project. I didn’t need to actually borrow a key, because they’d given me one, but I was going to do my cover and ask for one anyway. No need for anyone in the office to know that I had full access to their house. That would just cause too many questions, and they were all ones I didn’t want to answer.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
Billy…
“They’re starting after the first of the year,” Spencer said to me.
“Who all is gonna be here?” I asked. “Are they bringing in a whole crew? Or is it just gonna be her for a while?”
“The whole crew,” he said. “She also said that they’re gonna need access to the garage the whole time, so we’re gonna have to figure out where to park our cars while we’re in Arizona for spring training.”
“Damn,” I said. “I prefer them being here while we’re gone.”
“She offered to house them in her garage for us,” he said. “It’s not ideal, but we can think about it. I mean, she is kinda going out on a limb about that, cause it’s not something normal.”
“No shit, Sherlock,” I said. “Who lets their clients park their cars at their house?”
“I’m just telling you what she said,” he replied.
“Sorry,” I said. “I’m just pissed that our time with her is going to stop. I don’t want her to get away, so we gotta figure out a way for her to stay with us, even when we’re gone.”
“I know,” he replied. “But it’s the way the world works.”
“We could marry her,” I said, and he looked at me like I’d grown two heads. “Not both of us, obviously, but maybe you. You’re the most presentable of us. Then, she wouldn’t have to work.”
“You really think she’d quit working if she married one of us?”
“I guess not,” I said. “I just wish she’d come with us when we went down.”
“We’re still pretty early in this whole thing,” he said. “Let’s not try to rush it. We might scare her off if we push too hard.”
“Still,” I said. “The days she can’t stay are the hardest for me. I miss her.”
“I do, too,” he said. “But we need to just be patient. She’s come a long way in the last month and a half or so. I mean, she really has blossomed into the wild and crazy woman we knew she would be.”
“Oh yeah,” I said. “I’m loving seeing her freak flag fly.”
“Of course you are,” he said. “She also said that we should make sure that any of the toys we’ve got are well hidden while they’re here and we’re gone. She doesn’t want her brother to find out about our stuff. She said it would make it awkward once she tells him that she’s seeing us.”
“Guess we need to get it all into the office, then,” I said. “That seems the safest place to put it. No one should be going in there, right?”
“That’s what I was thinking,” he said. “We can just tell her where we put everything, and she can tell the rest of the crew that it’s an off-limits room.”
“What do you bet they still go in there?” I asked.
“I’m planning on locking the door,” he said. “I’ve also got a camera coming that we can put in there to watch and see if anyone goes in the room while we’re gone.”
“You little spy, you,” I said. “I like it. Can we keep the camera in the bedroom before we leave? To maybe give us some good things for the spank bank?”
“No,” he said, and I waited. I knew he’d tell me why, and sure as shit, he did. “We are not going to record ourselves,” he said. “I’m not going to tell you how horrible that could go if someone got ahold of the videos. And besides, Ari would never agree to it, so it’s a moot point.”
“You sure she wouldn’t agree?” I asked.
“No,” he said, and sort of just glared at me.
“Okay,” I said, holding my hands up in surrender. “I was just asking.”
“She is not one of our regular women,” he said. “She is a partner to us, and not someone we are simply fucking. Do you understand the difference?”
“You’re such an ass,” I said.
“I’m not an ass,” he replied. “I just want to make sure you know she is not some whore who we fuck. She’s a woman, and a damn fine one at that. I don’t want you to fuck this up for us, so I’m making sure you know what the deal is.”
“I fucking know,” I said, and was getting angry. “Do you think I’m a child or something?”
“Sometimes you act like one,” he said.
“Fuck you,” I said, and turned and headed into my room. “Fucking asshole thinks he knows every fucking thing there is to know about women.”
I slammed my door, which is something I knew pissed him off, but I was petty, and didn’t even fucking care. What I wanted to do was call her, ask her how she felt about it, but I knew he was right, that she wouldn’t agree, and that if I asked her, she’d get skittish and maybe even bolt. That was not what I fucking wanted, so I didn’t do it.
Instead, I stripped, climbed into the shower, turned the water on as hot as I could handle, and stood in the spray. Nothing calmed me down more than just getting in there and existing. I hadn’t done it in a while, and I knew it was likely the result of all the shit my mom did, but I needed that to turn my brain off for a bit, undo whatever had been built up in me, and get it all washed clean.
I needed to get a therapist to deal with all the shit I went through but didn’t want anyone else to know what it was. It was embarrassing, and disturbing, and I just sort of pretended it didn’t happen. It’s what I’d always done, and it had worked for me. Something about Ari, my little angel, brought up the feelings of inadequacy in me, and I didn’t like it. She was absolutely perfect in every way, even with her little idiosyncrasies. She was good to us, and she let us be good to her.
I knew that eventually we’d have to have a talk about what the future looked like for us, but for now we were all content to just hang out, do our thing, and enjoy what time we had together. Once we were out of state, she may change her mind about us, and I had to get as much time with her before that happened as I could. I knew it would come, I just didn’t want this to end. At least not yet.
CHAPTER FORTY
Ariana…
We’d already gotten some the framing parts of the project started, and they would arrive the second week of January, barring weather. I prayed for no snow. Rain wouldn’t be great, but snow would be worse. Couldn’t do a damn thing if it snowed. Thankfully, the winter had been pretty mild, but I was still worried. You could never tell what the weather would do in Seattle. It was one of those things where, if you wanted rain, all you had to do was either plan an outdoor event or wash your car.
We were set to meet with Spencer and Billy the Friday before the work was to start, and I’d let them know what to expect at that meeting. Dee would be with me, and we’d chat about what the crew would be doing, and what would need to be moved. All the things that logistically made a renovation work. I wanted them to know that Dee would be with me so they’d know to behave with respect to touching me. They were good about it, but I wanted to reiterate that it would need to not exist during that meeting.
When the date rolled around, Dee had been on another site, dealing with more Brad shit, and I’d let him know I’d meet him at the house. We really needed to start dealing with all the issues his friend had brought up, and maybe talk to him about it. The thing we didn’t need was him fucking up a job, and us being left holding the bag when he did it. If he caused issues with a client, we needed to take a hard look at whether he was an asset, or just around because he was a friend. We didn’t need him to be a friend, we needed him to do his fucking job.
I got to the house first, and when I went up to the door, Billy let me in. He looked behind me, and when he didn’t see anyone else coming, he pulled me against him and kissed me, deep, long, and passionately. I didn’t complain but did remind him that he needed to keep control once my brother arrived.
“But he’s not here, yet,” he said.
“I know,” I replied. “And when he gets here, you need to back off. I can’t let him know we’re in a relationship, cause it would be an issue with the job, and I don’t want that.”
“I’ll be a good boy,” he said. “Does that mean you’ll reward me later?”
I rolled my eyes but nodded. He loved the dynamic of a reward system, and he always did everything he could to make sure he played by the rules. It was honestly one of the things I loved most about him.
As soon as the thought entered my mind, I blinked and stalled, not moving further into the house. It was like a ton of bricks had just slipped off the roof and landed square on the top of my head.
“Hey,” Spencer said as he came into the living room. “What’s wrong?”
“What?” Billy asked, looking at him, then back at me. “Wait, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I said, trying to compose myself. “Just a fleeting though.”
“What did you think?” Billy pressed, just as the doorbell rang.
“Shit,” I said, schooling myself, but failing miserably. “I’m going to the bathroom until I get my face under control. I can’t let him see me right now, cause he’ll know.”
With that, I headed down the hall to the powder room that served as a guest bathroom. I knew the house well enough to know where everything was, so it wasn’t hard to find a spot to get my shit together.
“Hey,” I heard Billy say when he opened the door.
I shut myself inside and couldn’t really hear anything they were saying, thankfully. I took deep breaths, closed my eyes, and tried to focus on the job that we were doing. I needed to get all thoughts of the guys out of my mind, because if anything showed, Dee would know, then he’d grill me once we were back at the office, and I didn’t know if I could lie to him. Honestly, I didn’t know if I even wanted to.
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Spencer…
“Hey,” Billy said as he opened the door and let Ari’s brother in. “She had to use the restroom, but should be out, I would guess, soon.”
“No problem,” her brother said. “Did she start talking about the project, yet?”
“No,” I said. “She just got here, so I think she was preoccupied with needing the restroom to even think of anything else. She seemed kind of miserable, honestly. Has she been sick? Is she gonna be able to do this?”
“Did she look sick?” he asked.
“Not that I could tell,” Billy said, glaring at me over the brother’s head.
“It was probably nothing,” I said, letting it go.
I didn’t want to throw her under the bus, but I also didn’t want her brother to know why she was in the bathroom. The fact that it had everything to do with the two of us and nothing to do with an illness was something I wanted to avoid discussing, especially with her brother.
“Hey,” Ari said as she came down the hall.
“You okay?” her brother asked her.
“Yeah,” she said, looking confused. “Why?”
“They said you rushed to the bathroom,” he said. “He thought you might be sick.”
“I’m not sick,” she said. “Just one of those things where I drank too much soda and forgot to go before I left. I’m fine.”
“Okay,” he said, but was watching her. “Did you bring everything we need to talk about?”
“Sure did,” she said. “Where can we sit to discuss?”
“Dining room or living room,” I said. “Which would be better?”
“Having the table would probably be preferable,” she said, so I held my arm out to indicate the dining room. “Hang on,” she continued. “I think I left my phone in the bathroom.”
She headed back down the hall, and her brother and Billy went into the dining room. I looked after her as she went down the hall, and she turned back, seeing the other two gone, she glared at me and I shrugged, so she motioned that I should go to her. I looked into the dining room and saw that Billy was getting some water, and Demetri was sitting with his back to me. When I got down the hall to her, she yanked me into the guest bathroom.
“You can’t tell him I’m sick,” she hissed. “You need to just act normal. We can’t show him in any way that there is anything between us but the emails and occasional calls from the office. I can’t have him knowing what’s going on.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t think.”
“Well, you need to,” she said. “If he finds out, I’m fucked six ways to Sunday.”
“Then tell him,” I said. “It’s not a big deal. You’re an adult, I’m an adult, why can’t we be together?”
“You are a client first,” she said. “After all the work is done, fine. But not yet. Not until after we’re already well underway on this thing.”
She shoved me out the door, pulled her phone from her pocket, and walked back down the hall.
“Found it,” she said, as if nothing had just happened.
I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. Billy had pulled out glasses and a pitcher of ice water from it, but I was needing something to occupy myself with, so I just grabbed the first thing that came to my mind.
“You okay?” her brother asked.
