Текст книги "Just Play"

Автор книги: Taylor Hart

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Текущая страница: 3 (всего у книги 13 страниц)

5

When Sam awoke the next morning to the sound of a baby crying, he jumped out of bed like a zombie and headed from the guest room to Maddy’s princess room down the hallway. He’d finally gotten his wish late last night when Tiffany had gone home to sleep, promising to return in the morning. She’d helped transfer Maddy to her crib, and then she’d left him detailed instructions on what he was to do if she woke up, needed a change, or wanted a bottle. The list had been kind of long, and Sam almost changed his mind and asked her to stay, but he’d wanted to be able to do this on his own. His mind flashed to the fact he hadn’t had heaviness in his chest or panicky feelings or anything for the last twelve hours—that was a bonus.

Of course his cell phone buzzed at the exact moment he pulled Maddy out of the crib. She’d been up three times, wanting a bottle and then having one wet diaper and one poopy diaper. The last had almost made him gag, but he’d held it back.

He jogged down the stairs to the high chair and quickly grabbed for the little bowl of cheerios that Tiffany had put out for him to start her with in the morning. He was grateful Tiffany had taught him how to adjust the high chair and how to buckle her in.

By the time he reached for the phone, he was too late. It said he had a missed call from Roman.

Immediately, he called him back.

“Hey.” Roman picked up quickly.

“How’s your son?” Honestly, Sam could not remember what his name was.

Roman let out a long breath and Sam could sense his frustration. “He’s okay. He has a concussion, and they want to keep us another day and run more tests.”

“I’m glad he’s okay,” Sam said for lack of anything better to say. “Really glad.”

“Yeah, listen, I just talked to Katie. She’s in Europe this week with one of our friends, but she wants to come back. I…I told her everything’s fine and that you got everything handled. Right?”

“Of course.” He answered instantly and telling himself it was the truth.

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.” Sam kept shoveling food into the hungry baby and she gulped and opened, then gulped and opened. “How did Josh fall?” Sam asked, not wanting to give Roman a chance to think of someone else to care for Maddy.

He sighed. “They were tossing the ball around up in his bedroom, and he dove for it and clonked his head against the hard wood of his bed frame.”

Sam’s heart sank, feeling bad for the boy. And for Roman. He hadn’t realized how much Roman had to juggle having a family. He’d only been doing it less than twenty-four hours, and he was already exhausted. Not to mention that was just one child. “What else can I do for you?” he offered, really meaning it.

Roman’s voice caught. “I…it really means a lot to me that you’re there, Sam. Tiffany called last night. She said you had things under control and that she would come back in the morning.”

At the mention of Tiffany’s name, and that she would be back, nervous energy filled his stomach. He moved to the fridge, swinging open the door. He searched for more food. “She said that? Hey, where’s more baby food?”

“Oh.” Roman seemed like he was jerked out of his thoughts. “It’s in the cupboard by the refrigerator. It’s all stocked up. Whatever she doesn’t eat, just stick in the fridge for later.”

Turning to the cupboard, he found peaches, green peas, and more carrots. He pulled them out. “Got it.”

“I mean it, Sam. You couldn’t have come at a better time yesterday. It was like…” his voice trailed off, and then emotion filled it. “You were there for a reason.”

Warm chills washed over Sam. He blinked and shook his head, trying to clear it. “It was no big deal.” He popped off the top and got a spoon.

Maddy was busy hitting the high chair excitedly in anticipation of the food.

He laughed as she slurped back the food. “Boy, this girl can eat.”

Maddy grinned, and her food hung right inside her mouth. Then she blew it out…all over his face.

“Dang!” he stood, reaching for a clean rag that Tiffany had put on top of the newly cleaned high chair last night. “She’s great at getting in some good food spits, too.”

Roman laughed through the phone. “You have no idea.”

“I’m learning.” He wiped her mouth and then filled it with more peaches.

This time she gulped it back.

“I guess she’s a little picky.”

Roman roared out another laugh. “Oh yeah, I never knew picky until I met Maddy.”

Sam grinned, shoveling in more food. “I think she’s going to be as big as her father.”

“Let’s hope not. Katie says that wouldn’t be good for her.”

Sam laughed, thinking that he’d never officially met Roman’s new wife. “I’m glad you found Katie.”

Roman didn’t speak for a second. “The truth is that I got lucky.” He sighed. “And, Sam, Sheena dumping you was the best thing that ever happened to you. You know that, right?”

Sam pushed another round of food into Maddy’s mouth. He sighed. “I know that now, but I just…feel bad about what I did to you.” His mind went to the fact he actually felt great this morning. The past couple of months he felt like every day he woke up and the burden of everything he had done wrong felt more and more crushing. His shrink had asked him if he thought the panic attacks had something to do with the guilt. He hadn’t known for sure then. All he knew now was today, sitting here feeding this pretty little girl and making amends, he felt better than he had in years.

Roman went silent for a second. “I’m worried about Josh,” he confessed. “Concussions are a serious thing, ya know.”

“He’ll be okay,” Sam offered, wishing he could fix it. He knew it might be a lie, but at the moment, Roman needed to hear the reassurance.

“Thank you.” He coughed. “Well, I hope you really are good to stay because I need someone there.”

“I got it handled. Don’t worry about things here. Tell Katie not to worry either.” He was needed by someone. Sam liked the sound of that.

“When will you hear about your contract with Miami?”

“Uh, it’s fine. My agent said we should know by the end of the week if I need to get to Miami to start training with the team.”

“Hmm.”

“What?”

“Do you want to go to Miami?”

A tinge of anger passed through him. No, he would prefer to stay as the starting quarterback for the Destroyers, but Sam let it go. He reminded himself it really wasn’t Roman’s fault he was getting traded—it was his own. “Florida is home, so there’s that.”

“True,” Roman agreed. He sighed and then changed the subject. “So, you’re getting along with Tiffany?” His voice was suspicious.

“Ah, sure.”

A light laugh sounded through the phone. “She kinda hates you?”

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

“Yeah, she’s always been fiercely protective of me. Of Katie. See, she and Katie were best friends in high school, and both of them fought over Katie’s first husband.”

“Whoa…what?”

“He…passed away a few years ago.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, anyway, they made amends and are best friends again. But recently, the guy she was engaged to broke her heart. He’s in a band, and he ended up cheating on her. It was a raw deal. Tiffany seems tough, but she’s been having a hard time.”

“Oh.” It was all beginning to make more sense now, but it felt weird talking to Roman about ‘cheating.’

“Dude, look, I wasn’t thinking of what you did, okay?”

“No, of course not.” The fact he brought it up told him he was thinking about it.

Roman sighed. “It’s over. If we’re going to be friends, you have to let it go too.”

Without wanting to, Sam got choked up at how easily it seemed Roman had forgiven him—well, minus the black eye. “Okay.”

“Anyway, Tiffany is a great girl. Don’t worry, she’s not all bite. She has a big heart.”

Sam let out a puff of breath and pushed away what he’d felt for her yesterday. “It’ll all be good.” Sam finished up feeding Maddy, wiping her face. He stood and got a sippy cup. He filled it up with water, gave it to her, and smiled as she took a couple of long pulls on it. He actually did feel bad for Tiffany.

Roman exhaled. “Yeah, you’ll have to hear her sing, she’s good. Doing the indie thing. You should ask her about it.”

“Yeah?” He couldn’t picture her really wanting to talk to him at the moment.

“Hey.” He heard the door open and Tiffany call out.

“Is that Tiffany?” Roman asked.

“Yep.” Sam tried to balance the phone as he wiped Maddy’s legs, got ready to unbuckle her and turned to face Tiffany.

“Well, almighty!” Another older blonde woman bustled in next to Tiffany, putting her purse down and clapping her hands before reaching for Maddy. “You come to Auntie Reese, little Darling!”

“Oh, that’s Reese, Tiffany’s mom. Let me talk to her,” Roman commanded.

“Alright.” Giving up the baby, Sam turned to the lady, who looked like a replica of Tiffany. He supposed in reality Tiffany was a replica of her, except the woman was much older and a bit heavier with shorter hair and make up an inch thick. “Roman says he wants to talk to you.”

Tossing the baby into the air, Reese laughed and Maddy giggled. Actually giggled. A million emotions whirled around Sam. Plus, simply having Tiffany in the same room was making him kind of nervous. Reese balanced Maddy on her hip and took the phone.

Reese gave Sam a wink exaggerated by her fake eyelashes. “Thanks, Sugar.” Then she cleared her throat. “Roman Young, you are in trouble.” Her tone sounded like a scolding mother. “You know you could have had Tiffany bring little Maddy back to our place, and I’d have treated her like the princess she is.”

Sam watched as Tiffany, clearly drawn to Maddy, made googly eyes at the baby. “Hey, sweet thing,” she whispered. “It looks like you made it through the night.” Her gaze turned to him. Her lip cocked up to the side. “It looks like you’ve just come back from the dead.”

He noticed Tiffany looked taller in the red summer clogs she wore. She carried a sack full of toys and another sack that she placed on the counter. Today, she wore a jean skirt that ended just above her tanned knees and a light, airy kind of yellow shirt with a string at the top. Her long hair fell down her back in soft curls. He smelled the same light vanilla smell from the night before and tried to not think about how appealing it was.

A half hour later, Sam showered, thinking how between Tiffany and her mother he’d speedily become superfluous in caring for Maddy.

After Reese had gotten off the phone, she’d informed him that she would be taking over for the day, and she’d shooed him off to get a shower.

Now, as he let the water go down his back and scrubbed his face, trying to fully wake up after having been up half the night, he couldn’t stop the stupid grin that appeared.

In less than twenty-four hours, everything about his life had been turned upside down. He’d come to apologize to Roman, and amazingly, he’d somehow been granted forgiveness.

A stir went through the bottom of his stomach, and an electric kind of energy filled him. For the first time since his break up with Sheena, he’d actually been attracted to a woman. Not just the 'she’s hot' kind of attraction either. There was something about Tiffany. Even under all the anger, he saw the vulnerable, soft side. It was in her smiles at Maddy, the way she held the child close, and the way she’d almost cried when he’d refused to give Maddy to her last night.

An even wider grin tugged at the edges of his lips thinking about how flustered she’d been about his shirt being off. He finished his shower and grabbed a towel, perfunctorily going through the process of getting dressed for the day. A whistle escaped from his lips. He looked in the mirror and kept grinning even though he sported a nice black eye from Roman’s punch yesterday. He scrunched up his face and pointed at himself. “You’re number one,” he stated. And dang, it felt good to say it. Growing up, it’d kind of been the positive affirmation he’d always given himself in the mirror.

For the first time in a long time, he wasn’t thinking about football and vying for his position. It was nice. It was more than nice. He had a new purpose today, and he wasn’t going to let Roman down. He headed down to join Reese and Tiffany. As he jogged down the stairs into the living room, there was an extra spring to his step.

Hearing his descent, Reese looked up and smiled at him. She was sitting on the floor next to Maddy, who had been changed into a cute pink dress. Her hair had also been combed, and a large white flower overtook her whole head.

“Doesn’t she look so cute?” Reese gently tugged at the hair at the edges of the flower on Maddy’s head. “My, she’s a looker.”

Pausing next to them, Sam knelt beside Maddy. He reached for one of her toys and felt his grin expanding as he shook it at her. “Of course she’s cute.”

To his utter delight and amazement, Maddy grabbed his face and cooed.

Warmth filled him at her sweetness. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”

Tiffany was in the kitchen. She had all sorts of pans out and food was everywhere. “I’m making some spaghetti for you all tonight. I won’t be out that late, but I am driving to Ogden, so, mama, you can probably just mash up the noodles and the sauce together for Maddy.”

“What are you going to Ogden for?” Sam didn’t know exactly how far away Ogden was. He just remembered passing through it on the way to Wolfe Creek. It wasn’t rational, but he realized he didn’t want Tiffany to leave.

Reese spoke up, leaning her back against the couch for support. “Oh my baby’s the next Reba McIntyre, let me tell you what. She can sing like nothing you’ve ever heard.”

“Mama.” Tiffany frowned at her, putting her hand to her hip.

Reese gave an equal scowl back. “What? It’s true. And furthermore, you have more talent than Brett ever had. It made no sense to me when he went off touring and you stayed home. You should have gone with him, but he was too intimidated and worried you would be more successful than him. You know that’s the truth.”

“Mama.” Tiffany now gave her a silencing glare. “We have company right now,” she said indignantly.

Reese flashed her a wide-eyed scowl. “I never liked Brett.” She turned to Sam. “He’s the cheating boyfriend.”

Unsure of what to say, Sam only nodded.

“Mama.” Tiffany deepened her glare, and Sam could feel the chilliness of it sweep through him.

Reese waved a hand through the air. Then turned to Sam. “I’ll level with you, Dumont. I didn’t like you, either. No, I don’t think anyone in this town would like you, knowing what you did to Roman, but…” She paused and held up a hand dramatically. “After Tiffany told me that you were here apologizing to Roman when everything with Josh went haywire and how you stepped up to take care of this baby…” Tears filled her eyes, and she fluttered her large lashes. “I can’t say that doesn’t soften me.” She grinned and reached out to pat his shoulder. “And I will say that I heard about your daddy and—” More tears pooled in her eyes as the grin slipped. “I did lose my husband recently.”

Concern washed through him. On impulse, he touched her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

Reese wiped beneath her eyes with her long red nails. “It’s fine, Sugar. Me and Tiffany are doing fine, aren’t we girl?”

When he turned to look at Tiffany, she was looking at the floor, a blank look on her face. But she quickly blinked. “Yes, mama.”

Reese took his hand and put it between her own. “I guess we all have lost important men as of late.”

He swallowed and tried to push back the emotion bubbling up. He didn’t know if he pulled Maddy to his lap because she was reaching for him or if he did it because he needed a shield from Reese, but he found himself giving Reese a nod and cuddling Maddy’s comforting frame. “Looks like.”

Watching him cuddle the baby, her flashy grin came back. “Well, that being said, I want you to know I spoke with Roman, and I told him I wanted to have the day with Maddy.”

Sam pulled Maddy closer, not wanting to give her up. “Oh.”

“Well.” Reese lifted her eyebrows. She grinned and turned to Tiffany and then back to him. “Mind you, I don’t want to pull night duty. It wouldn’t be good for my beauty sleep, so I’ll make you a deal. You go with Tiffany to Ogden early, get some lunch, and watch her play her show. Then after you get back, Maddy is all yours.”

“Mama!” Tiffany spoke sharply from the kitchen. “I’m sure Sam has stuff to do.”

Sam had to admit the day had just taken another unexpected turn. He felt his cheeks redden.

Tiffany pursed her lips together and shook her head, clearly embarrassed. “Mama, I don’t need you to meddle.”

For a second, no one spoke. Reese lifted her eyebrows and gave Sam an expectant look.

Sam wondered if he would feel the tightness in his chest that usually accompanied thoughts of hanging out with any woman, but he didn’t. “Actually,” he said slowly. “I don’t have any plans.”

Tiffany leveled her mother with a glare. “Mama.” She scowled.

Reese was unfazed by Tiffany’s outrage. “Now, sweetheart, I know you’re smarting still from Brett, but the best way to get over your fear of horses is to get back on one.” She paused and cocked an eyebrow at Sam. “Not in that way, but you know what I mean.” Clapping her hand to her leg, she shook her head. “Plus, he’d be good for a media plug anyway.”

“If I wanted a media plug, I’d ask Roman and Katie,” she said stiffly, not looking at Sam.

“Ah.” Reese looked embarrassed; she turned to Sam. “You know what I mean by getting back on the horse. It doesn’t mean…that.”

He was now sure his face was on fire. “Right.” He nodded, trying to swallow and process all this.

“Stop it.” Tiffany held her mother’s gaze for a second then continued putting ingredients together. “You are unbelievable, Mama.” But she did look at Sam, and the edges of her lips turned up in what appeared to be an amused smile. “Look at you, putting Sam on the spot that way. He’s blushing.”

“Well.” Reese appeared breathless. “Why, I didn’t put you on the spot, did I, Sam? I mean, now that you’re in Wolfe Creek, you have to accept that we’re like family around here. Everyone is just doing their part to help the others.”

Okay, he wanted to outright laugh at the antics of Tiffany’s mom, but he only cleared his throat and handed Maddy a toy she’d been trying to reach. “Right. It’s good.” He snuck a glance at Tiffany.

Tiffany shook her head and lowered her voice. “I need to do this alone, mama.”

Reese leaned forward, taking Maddy into her own arms, a smug smile of satisfaction on her face. “Oh, hush up, girl, go out and have a good time with a nice looking man. It might actually do both of you a world of wonder.” She winked again at Sam. “Plus, Brett was so negative with you all the time. I think having Sam with you might help your confidence.”

Tiffany threw her hands up in the air and started washing dishes. “I have confidence, Mama.” She didn’t look at Sam.

At this point, Sam stood, making his way toward the kitchen, reaching out, and picking up a carrot that had been peeled on the counter.

“Hey, that’s for dinner.” Tiffany glanced at him.

He grinned, and he realized the muscles in his face were actually kind of hurting from smiling so much since he’d arrived. He chomped down on it. “Well, maybe we’ll have to save dinner for tomorrow.”

Confused, she frowned at him. “Why would we do that?”

He turned to Reese and winked at her. “Because I might just have to take you out for dinner after your show…if I like it.”

“I don’t even want company. Plus, you probably don’t even like country music.”

He hesitated. “Of course I like country music.” He kept his face expressionless as he delivered the bold-faced lie.

He heard Reese whooping with laughter. “I like you even more, Sam.”

Sam walked toward the stairs. “I’ll get my wallet, and then we can go.”

“I’m not taking you,” she replied stubbornly.

He turned back and flashed her his media smile before climbing the stairs. “Of course you are. Your mama likes me.”

At this, Reese hooted out another laugh.

6

Tiffany didn’t engage him on the drive to Ogden. It was like they’d both silently agreed not to talk. She put on her favorite country station and sang along to the songs. What did she care if he liked the way she sounded or not? She didn’t. After Brett had told her he’d found someone else, she’d told herself she was done with men. Done trying to make a man happy. Done being something for a man. It still ticked her off that she’d let Brett have so much power over her.

After ten minutes of no talking, only singing, Sam turned to her, turning down the radio.

“Don’t touch the radio please,” she said, her voice clipped as she kept her eyes on the road.

“You have a good, clear sound.”

She hadn’t been expecting the compliment, and she chose to ignore it.

He turned the sound back up and looked back out the passenger side window.

Slightly shaken, by his easy compliment, she felt her voice falter. She stole a glance over at him. The smell of what she recognized as the shaving cream he’d left on the bathroom sink that morning wafted off of him.

Crap. She didn’t want to think about the way he smelled. She didn’t want to think about how she’d noticed his black t-shirt stretched gloriously over his broad shoulders as he’d opened the truck door for her. She absolutely was not going to think about the way his dark hair, shaved on the sides and longer on top, fell into his eyes when he looked at her a certain way. She sucked in a breath.

Focus. She had to focus on getting through her first official gig without Brett. And she didn’t need Sam Dumont and his too good looks distracting her.