Short Stop to Love Read online

  Keri: I wish I could stay with you tonight. :(

  Jeremy: Me too, but I don’t want to disturb you when I get up. I’ll make it up to you.

  Keri: You better. ;)

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Keri

  The weeks following the doping scandal were difficult for Jeremy and Keri. While he dealt with the negative press from the allegations and constant meetings, Keri was fending off photographers who stalked her through the city shouting questions at every turn.

  As a result, she and Jeremy were staying out of the public eye. They would fulfill their obligations, but neither of them were volunteering or going out more than necessary. While it was fine at first, it was now starting to take its toll and Keri grew increasingly stir-crazy.

  She sighed as she sat heavily on her couch. It was a beautiful Sunday. The sun was out and it was warm enough that going to the park beckoned. But she couldn’t go outside to enjoy it. She was lucky the media still didn’t know where she lived. Every so often, they’d lurk outside because of her association with Joann. It was maddening.

  The ringing of her phone pulled her from her thoughts.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey, babe,” Jeremy said.

  Keri smiled at his voice. She hadn’t seen him in a few days and she felt his absence keenly. “Hey, I wasn’t expecting to hear from you today.”

  Jeremy chuckled. “I didn’t think I’d be able to talk to you either. We got back to Seattle earlier than planned and I was wondering if you wanted to join me for lunch with my family.”

  While they had been dating somewhat seriously for a few months now, she hadn’t yet met anyone in his family besides Troy.

  “Are you sure?” she asked, nervous at the thought of meeting them.

  “Very sure. My parents have wanted to meet you for a while now since I talk about you constantly.”

  She didn’t have a good reason why she couldn’t go and nerves weren’t a reason to beg off.

  “If you’re sure…”

  “Great! Can I pick you up in about an hour?”

  “Oh, sure. What do I need to wear?” Keri asked, already moving to her room to get ready.

  “It’s at my parents’ house, so something casual is fine.”

  “Okay, I can do that.”

  Daunted to be meeting his intimidatingly successful parents, Keri carefully considered her clothing options. Since it was now late spring, the weather was finally nice and she felt like she could wear a nice sundress and not freeze.

  She flicked through several options before settling on a navy blue dress with thick shoulder straps and a sweet heart neckline. The top of the dress was a bit tight, accentuating her chest and waist, before flaring out slightly.

  She moved to the bathroom and pulled her hair into a high ponytail, curling the ends slightly to give it some volume. She then did her makeup in light, natural tones. She quickly got dressed and smoothed her hand over the dress as she walked to the full-length mirror. She liked what she saw and hoped Jeremy’s family did too.

  Her buzzer sounded and butterflies danced in her belly. This was it. She released a breath and went to meet Jeremy downstairs. With a smile and a quick kiss, they were on their way to his childhood home. The closer they drew to the house, the more sweaty her hands got and visions of wardrobe malfunctions assailed her. Her eyes widened as the car stopped in front of an impressive house. She took in the stone facade of the house before looking at everything else. The drive was lined with mature trees that shaded the driveway. It was gorgeous and looked like it belonged in a magazine.

  Keri felt out of her depth as Jeremy helped her from the car. Standing in the open doorway was an impeccably dressed older woman with sandy blonde hair just starting to turn gray. She beamed at Jeremy.

  “I’m so glad to see you!” she said as she pulled him to her for a hug.

  Keri caught a glimpse of the smile on Jeremy’s face. She waited patiently as they embraced. They were obviously close and Keri felt a pang of sadness at the realization that she couldn’t experience the same with her own parents.

  “Mom, this is Keri Robson, my girlfriend. Keri, this is my mother, Brenda.”

  Keri held her hand out. “It’s wonderful to meet you.”

  Brenda pulled her into a hug and held her tightly before releasing her. She eyed her up and down.

  “You’re very pretty. I love this dress on you.”

  Keri blushed and smiled. “Thank you.”

  “Come in, come in. Everyone is in the living room waiting for you to arrive.”

  Brenda ushered them inside, closed the door behind them, and then led them down a wide hallway into a large comfortably furnished room. Keri’s eyes swept over the people seated inside. She smiled at Troy before her eyes moved to the dark-haired gentleman in the matching chair next to him. She assumed he was Joseph, Jeremy’s father. On the couch she could see the back of a dark-haired girl.

  Jeremy led her further into the room, stopping next to his father to introduce Keri before moving to the couch and introducing her to his sister Emily. She smiled and shook hands with everyone before sitting next to Jeremy on the loveseat. Joseph handed both of them a drink before sitting back down again.

  “So, Keri, Jeremy tells us you work in publishing,” Brenda said.

  “Yes, I work with a local publishing group. I’ve been there for about five years now.”

  “Do you enjoy it?” Brenda asked.

  “I do. It’s a dream come true to be able to read for a living,” she said with a smile. “Though, to be fair, I don’t like some of the paperwork aspects or having to deal with the authors and their mercurial temperaments sometimes.”

  Everyone laughed.

  “I’m sure that has its difficulties,” Joseph said. “I understand creative types can be a handful.”

  As he said that, his eyes slid over to Emily, who huffed before laughing.

  “I’m not temperamental! I just know what I like.”

  Everyone teased Emily about her personality and Keri smiled at the interaction. It was easy to see how close they all were and how proud Brenda and Joseph were of their children. By the time they made their way into the dining room to eat, Keri found herself completely at ease with everyone, easily joining in the conversation flowing around the table.

  During a lull in the conversation over lunch, Brenda said, “I know you’ve been to a few of Jeremy’s games now. What do you think?”

  “I enjoy baseball. It was something I shared with my father. We would watch it together and he would try to make it to at least one game a season. Though I haven’t done that in years, I find I still enjoy it. There’s nothing quite like the atmosphere at the ballpark.”

  “I understand you’re a teacher?” Keri asked Brenda.

  “Yes, I teach elementary school.”

  “And she isn’t ready to retire either,” Joseph joked.

  Brenda shook her head. “I’ll retire when you step out of politics.”

  Joseph shrugged. “I guess we’ll both be working for years to come.”

  Keri glanced between the two of them. “You’ve both been working for a while?”

  “I’ve taught for over thirty years. I could retire, but why stop when I enjoy it so much?” Brenda said with a shrug.

  “It’s about the same for me. My father was in politics and groomed me for it. I enjoy the mudslinging and getting involved in change. Why stop now?”

  It was obvious they were passionate about their chosen professions, just like Jeremy and Troy.

  “Keri, tell me about your family?” Brenda said.

  The smile on Keri’s face froze. Everyone noticed her grimace and looked at each other.

  “Why don’t we—” Jeremy started.

  “No, it’s fine,” Keri said, laying a hand on Jeremy’s arm. “I don’t mind talking about it.”

  She took a deep breath and looked at Brenda and Joseph. “Neither of my parents are in my life. My mother left when I was a child. I h
aven’t seen her in years. My father was killed in a car accident while I was seventeen.”

  Brenda gasped. “Oh my, I’m sorry to hear that. You have no family?”

  “No, just my best friend who I consider my sister.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. You’ll just have to join us at the holidays. I understand Troy is dating your best friend?”

  Keri blinked rapidly, trying to decide which part to comment on. The implication that she would be around for the holidays warmed her inside, but she didn’t want to assume she’d still be around. She chose to focus on the second.

  “Yes, Joann is dating Troy.”

  “We’ve been trying to get him to have her over, but he isn’t budging,” Brenda stage-whispered.

  Keri slid her eyes to Troy and he studiously avoided them, picking at the food on his plate.

  “That’s the first I’ve heard of it.”

  “Really? We’ve been pushing for weeks now and he always says she’s busy.”

  Keri leveled her eyes at Troy, now sure that he was avoiding bringing Joann to his parent’s house. “She is rather busy I guess.”

  Color rose on Troy’s cheeks. She’d say something later. Taking pity, she turned her attention to Emily. “Jeremy tells me you’re interested in fashion?”

  Emily nodded. “Yep. I’ve been trying my hand at designing dresses. I want to intern in a fashion house if I can. It’s hard to find those around here though.”

  The rest of lunch passed quickly with conversation flowing between all of them and Keri wished they could stay longer as they said their goodbyes. Jeremy’s parents were warm and quite welcoming and she enjoyed spending time with them.

  “You must come back soon,” Brenda said while hugging her. “I need to get to know the girl that’s stolen my son’s heart.”

  “Oh, well…”

  Keri didn’t know what to say. She felt strongly about Jeremy, but she didn’t know how he felt. They hadn’t talked about it. Her smile froze on her face as she tried to think of something to say.

  “Mom, stop making Keri uncomfortable.”

  “Oh, please,” Brenda said, swatting at Jeremy as he danced away.

  “We’ll come back soon,” he said as he kissed her cheek.

  With a final round of hugs and promises to return, they were on their way back to Jeremy’s place. Upon walking into his living room, Keri kicked her shoes off and collapsed on the couch. Jeremy joined her.

  They sat there in silence for several minutes before Jeremy asked, “Want to have sex?”

  Keri burst into laughter.

  “What the heck?” she asked, looking over at him. She burst into another fit of laughter at his wiggling eyebrows.

  “Trying out some new lines?” she chortled.

  “Are they working? If so, yes.”

  She shook her head in exasperation and moved so she was straddling his lap. Jeremy’s hands went to her hips immediately as she leaned down, her face a few inches from Jeremy’s. Her breath fanned over his face as she whispered, “They are.”

  She rubbed her nose against his lightly. She felt him shift under her and smiled as she brushed a light kiss against his lips, pulling back before he could deepen it. He huffed in frustration as she evaded his lips. He threaded his fingers in her hair and held her still as he kissed her, licking her lips before slipping his tongue into her mouth.

  Keri groaned as their tongues danced. Jeremy’s hand moved down her body until it was on her butt. He squeezed lightly before bunching her dress in his hands. He pulled his mouth from hers and placed wet kisses down her throat, making her throw her head back and moan.

  Her dress was now around her waist and Jeremy’s fingers danced across her hip before gripping the edge of her underwear and tugging. They ripped and she felt cool air hit her center before Jeremy’s fingers probed her wet flesh.

  He slowly pushed two fingers into her, thrusting slowly as she pulled him to her for another kiss. Unlike the one earlier, this one was more languid. The pace of their kissing matched the pace of Jeremy’s fingers slowly moving in her, building her to release. Keri pulled back, trying to catch her breath as Jeremy pressed his thumb against her clit.

  She clenched around his fingers and knew she was close to the edge. Seeming to sense this, he sped his movements up slightly, just enough to push her into oblivion. She groaned through her release, collapsing onto Jeremy’s chest as he removed his fingers. His belt jingled and Jeremy’s hands brushed against her as he worked to open the fly of his pants.

  She lifted herself slightly, allowing him more room to move and push his pants down. She reached between them and grasped Jeremy’s erection, lightly stroking it a few times before placing it at her entrance and sinking down. They both sighed as she fully enveloped him. They sat together unmoving, the only sound in the room was of their mingled breathing.

  Keri shifted as she started slowly moving up and down his shaft. Much like Jeremy’s pace with her earlier, Keri moved languidly against him, just enough to stimulate them both, but not enough to push them over the edge. Their lips came together in another soft, slow kiss that made Keri tingle all over.

  Jeremy placed his hands on her hips once more and guided her movements. They moved together for an undetermined amount of time, slowly building toward their completion. Her body tingled, signaling her impending release. Keri stiffened as her orgasm surprised her. Her walls fluttered, pulling Jeremy’s orgasm from him.

  He clutched her to him as they calmed. Keri looked at Jeremy and realized that she felt strongly for him and she didn’t care if he felt the same. Only, should she say anything? His gray eyes met her blue ones and she decided to throw caution to the wind.

  “I love you,” she blurted.

  Jeremy’s eyes widened.

  She repeated herself. “I love you. I think I’ve loved you for a while now and I’ve only just now realized it. I love you with every part of my being.”

  Jeremy was silent and Keri grew nervous. Maybe she made a mistake in admitting to her feelings too soon. He pulled her to him for a soft kiss.

  “I love you too. You’ve shown me what true love can be like these past few weeks. I never thought I’d feel this.”

  They smiled tremulously at each other and tears gathered in her eyes. After her father’s death, she never thought she’d find someone she could love like she loved him. It devastated her to say goodbye to him and be on her own.

  Yet, here Jeremy was. He opened her up to the possibility of love and family, something she wanted and craved, but been unable to have.

  Jeremy pulled her in for another kiss as he stood from the couch, wrapping her around him, and walked to his bedroom, kicking the door shut behind him.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Keri

  Jeremy woke Keri with an explosive orgasm the next morning and left her lazing in bed. He needed to prepare for an away series against Philadelphia and Toronto. The doping scandal still hung over his head, and he longed for time off to relax. But he knew the media would be relentless.

  Jeremy pulled up his Google alerts and saw one about Andrew. It looked like Andrew broke his silence. Jeremy’s eyes widened as he scanned the article. Andrew denied fabricating the drug test and swore he’d pursue this to clear his name. He needed to get on top of this.

  Two arms encircled his waist and he smiled.

  “Morning handsome.”

  “Morning yourself. Sleep well?”

  “Very well.”

  Jeremy pulled Keri into his lap and kissed her lightly. She tried to deepen it, but he resisted.

  “I’d love nothing more than to spend the whole day with you, but I have to get to the airport soon.”

  Keri pouted.

  Jeremy nipped at her lip and raked his eyes over her body. She was wearing his shirt from last night and apparently nothing else. He groaned at the thought.

  “If we had more time, I’d show you once more how I feel,” he said, thrusting his hips up so she could feel the e
vidence of his arousal. “But we don’t have the time.”

  “Fine, I guess I’ll take matters into my own hands.”

  He blew a raspberry on her neck, making her squeal. “You’ll do no such thing.”

  “You don’t control me!” she laughed as she squirmed in his grasp.

  He continued his assault for several more moments.

  “Stop! Fine, fine! I’ll wait for you,” she said, still giggling.

  He abruptly stopped. “Good.”

  He then helped her stand and followed her up.

  “That’s it?”

  “Yeah, that’s it.”

  With a light kiss on her lips and a pat on her butt, he left her standing there, mouth gaping.

  “Hey!” she shouted as she followed him.

  He walked faster and grinned as her laughter followed him down the hall.

  Glass on Fire

  In the first game against Philadelphia, Jeremy Glass was on fire. While he’s always been a solid player, batting clean-up for Seattle since he started as shortstop for them, he hasn’t had an at bat as hot as this one in quite a while. Each time he steps up to the plate, he makes runs happen.

  When asked about his success on the field, he talks about the teamwork they’ve all displayed. “We’ve all worked hard to play well, and it’s showing in our results from today.”

  While that’s all well and good, we love a good sports platitude, We want to know the cause behind Glass’s hot, playmaking streak.

  Glass Comes Out Swinging

  At the start of the away series against Philadelphia, Glass’s bat turned red-hot. He ended the game with five hits and three RBIs. That luck only continued as the series progressed. Now at the end of the series, we’re all left wondering if Glass’s luck will continue as they move to Toronto to play in a three-game series.

  When Glass left the dugout for today’s game, he came out swinging, focused and on the ball throughout the game. He made no errors and showed immense control while playing, helping his fellow infielders keep the score low against Toronto.