Play By Play [6] One Sweet Ride Read online

  Didn’t you?”

  “I used you to make myself feel better.”

  “You made me come—twice. I hardly feel used.”

  His lips curved in a hint of a smile. “That’s good. But I still feel shitty.”

  “Well, if you’re going to continue to self-flagellate, I suppose you could buy me some diamonds.”

  He snorted out a laugh. “You don’t seem like the diamonds-as-apology type of woman.”

  “That’s quite possibly the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

  She got up and went into the attached bathroom to clean up. Lord, her hair was a mess, her lips were puffy, and she had to do some definite damage control. She smoothed her hair and corrected her clothing, but there was nothing she could do about the flush on her face. Hopefully people would think it was the heat.

  Gray came in and wound his arms around her, then kissed her temple. “I love making love with you. But I was wrapped up in my own head—” He pointed to his forehead. “This one. And not thinking about covering up the other one. I’m sorry for not thinking about your protection.”

  She turned in his arms, then lifted up to kiss him. “Thank you. But I got caught up in the heat of the moment, too. Remember, it takes two people. We’re fine, okay?”

  “Okay.” He kissed her. “And I’m sorry about that shit with my dad. He screws with my head even without trying. I ruined your day.”

  “You didn’t ruin my day at all.”

  “Let’s go do the speech and photos thing.”

  “Don’t do that on my account, Gray.”

  “I am doing it for you. And for my mom. But most important, I’m doing it for me. I made a commitment and I’m going to stick with it. The old man isn’t going to run me off anymore.”

  She slid her fingers up his arms. He was relaxed, no tension in his muscles. “If you’re certain that’s what you want, let’s go.”

  “I’m sure.”

  They found the senator outside with Loretta. He looked concerned when they met up, not upset or angry.

  “Everything okay?” he asked.

  Gray gave a curt nod. “Fine. Sorry for the delay. Are you ready to get started?”

  Evelyn squeezed his arm. “I’ll get the media in place, then we can begin.”

  She got everyone assembled, then went up to the podium and introduced Gray.

  He was perfect as he spoke about the holiday, what it meant to him, and thanked those in service for fighting for his country. And though he didn’t highlight his father’s accomplishments as senator, you couldn’t tell there was friction between them or what Gray personally felt about his dad as he introduced him. He was polite and courteous as he made the introduction. Then the senator stepped up and they hugged briefly before the senator took the podium to make his remarks.

  All in all, a great few moments, and she’d have good quotes, photos, and sound bites for social media.

  “Did I do all right?” Gray asked when the senator finished speaking and the crowds began to disperse.

  “You did great. Thank you. I know that wasn’t easy for you.”

  He shrugged. “It was over fast. That part was good.”

  She laughed. They grabbed more food and drink, and Gray crowded around with Trevor and Drew, laughing while they told him about the golf tournament. She was glad he was relaxed now. She worried for him after that tense exchange with his father. Though not many words had been said, there were undertones of history between them, things from Gray’s past she obviously didn’t know about that ran deep and upset him.

  She wished he would talk to her about them, but he obviously didn’t trust her enough yet to open up. And she wouldn’t force it. Maybe someday.

  At dark, there were fireworks, a spectacular forty-five-minute display that left Evelyn in awe. After, the guests began to leave. Evelyn made sure to thank the media who’d come for the speech and to make arrangements to receive copies of the sound bites and photos. She’d already grabbed some photos and quotes and put them up on the senator’s social media accounts since it was important to be in real time for the senator, but she’d do more in the coming days.

  They had already made arrangements to spend the night on the ranch. Evelyn was glad they didn’t have to drive to the airport and fly out tonight. It had been a long, exhausting day and she was ready for bed.

  Though it would have been nice to go to bed with Gray, they had separate bedrooms. And since this was his parents’ home, sneaking into his room would not be a good idea.

  So he walked her up to her room and said good night. Since his mother had also walked up with them, his good night was very short and curt.

  “See you in the morning,” he said, his gaze lingering.

  She looked over his shoulder at his mother, who stood at the top of the stairs, obviously wanting a word with her son. So she smiled. “Good night, Gray.”

  She closed the door, washed up, and put on a tank top, then climbed into the bed in the guest room she’d been assigned. She worked on her laptop, posted some photos to Facebook and tweeted, caught up on her email, then set her laptop aside and turned out the lights. She stared up at the whirring ceiling fan while she mentally rehashed the day in her head.

  There was a lot in her head, from her conversations with Carolina to the questions surrounding Gray’s relationship with his father to the heat-inducing sex she’d had with Gray in this very room earlier today. She smoothed her hands over the cool sheets, recalling the desperate way he’d taken her, the way it had felt when he was inside her, the way he’d made her come. He knew her body, knew what it took to bring her right to the brink, then make her fall.

  Her body swelled with arousal. She softly sank her teeth into her bottom lip and slid her hand into her panties, her mind filled with visuals of Gray sinking into her today.

  Then her phone rang.

  “Crap.” She turned and looked at the display.

  Was he psychic? She grabbed her phone and clicked it on.

  “Gray.”

  “You sound out of breath. What are you doing?”

  “Uh . . . nothing.”

  “Where are you?”

  “In my room.”

  “What are you doing?”

  “I was restless.”

  He was silent for a moment, and she could imagine him smiling. “And just what are you doing alone in your room, Evelyn?”

  “Thinking about you and hating that I’m not in your room.”

  She heard shuffling. “Oh, yeah? Is that why you’re out of breath?”

  “You could say that.”

  “Were you touching yourself while you were thinking of me?”

  He made it so easy. She settled back against the pillows and cradled the phone against her ear. “Yes.”

  “Do it again.”

  “What are you doing?”

  “Now that you’ve made my cock hard, I’m stroking it.”

  She took a deep breath. “I feel like a teenager.”

  “Did you ever have phone sex when you were a teenager?”

  She stifled a laugh. “No. I’ve never had phone sex at all.”

  “Then you’re about to have a first. What are you wearing?”

  She laughed. “A tank top and panties.”

  “Did you slide your hand inside your panties and stroke your pussy?”

  The man had to be psychic. “That’s what I was doing when you called.”

  She heard his low hum of approval. “Then I’m glad I interrupted you before you got to the really good part.”

  The sounds he made as he shifted in bed were driving her crazy. She had to use her imagination to visualize what he might be doing.

  “We could . . . video chat, you know.” She knew what kind of phone he had, and he did have that feature.

  “Hmm, we could, couldn’t we?”

  She pressed the button, and within thirty seconds his face was on the screen. He ga
ve her a lopsided grin. “You look sexy.”

  “It’s dark in your room.”

  “I like it this way. That way you can see me, but not really see me.”

  All she could see was his face and upper body, but she saw his shoulder move.

  “What are you doing, Gray?”

  “Rubbing my cock. When you answered the phone, you made that out-of-breath sound you make when I’m fucking you.”

  She sucked in a breath and shifted down, then spread her legs, sliding her hand over her sex. “I didn’t know I made a certain sound.”

  “Oh, I’ve memorized all the sounds you make. Your breath catches when I rub your clit or suck your pussy. And your moans—I really like those.”

  She slipped her hand in her panties, and released the sound he liked, grateful that his parents slept downstairs. “This is a little wicked, doing this in your parents’

  house.”

  “That’s what makes it fun. If my mother wasn’t such a light sleeper and didn’t get up several times a night, I’d be in your room taking your clothes off right now.”

  “I’d like that. I really wanted to go to your room with you tonight.”

  “Pull your straps down, Evelyn. Let me see your breasts.”

  It was hard to maneuver the phone with one hand and direct the camera in the right place, but she dropped the straps on her tank top, revealing her breasts.

  “Nice. I wish I was there to suck them.”

  Her pussy tightened with arousal. She brought the camera back so she could see him. “When you say that, I get wet.”

  “That’s good. Touch yourself for me, tell me how wet you are.”

  “Hang on.” Anxious to be rid of her panties, she pulled them down and left them at the foot of the bed, then picked up the phone and spread her legs, patting her sex, teasing her clit, letting him watch her face as she tucked two fingers into her pussy.

  “Oh, that’s so good.”

  “I like watching you, Evelyn. Will you do that for me in person sometime?”

  “Yes. Only if you’ll touch your cock for me at the same time.”

  He rolled to his side and she watched his arm. “I’d love to jack off for you.”

  She found her clit and caressed it, using the heel of her hand to apply the right amount of pressure as she kept her fingers busy inside her pussy. “I wish you were here, that you were inside me.”

  “I’d like that. My balls are tight and my cock’s so hard it’s ready to burst.”

  “Show me how you do it, Gray.”

  He moved the camera and she watched his hand gripping the base of his shaft, the way he squeezed as he pumped his fist over his cock, then eased up at the tip, rolling his thumb over it, then used a steady rhythm to pump up and down.

  It was the most exciting thing she’d ever seen. She rolled her hand over her pussy as she watched, mesmerized.

  “I’m ready to come, Evelyn,” he said, and she looked at him, watching the strain on his face as the movements of his arm grew faster and more frantic.

  “Me, too. Talk to me, Gray. Make me come for you.”

  “Rub your pussy faster. I want to hear you scream for me.”

  “Oh, God. I can’t scream. Your parents will hear.”

  “Then roll over and scream into the pillow. I just want to know you’re coming. And I’ll come with you.”

  “No. I want to watch you come. I’ll hold back, but the next time you make love to me, I’ll scream loud for you.”

  His hand was working hard over his cock now. Sweat beaded down the side of his face. “Now, Evelyn. I want you to come now.”

  “I’m so close.” Her nipples tightened and she felt the stirrings of orgasm. “I’m going to come, Gray. I’m going to come.”

  With his guttural groan, he rolled over onto his back, holding the camera out so she could see the streams of come spurting onto his belly.

  “Oh, God, yes,” she said, fighting back the scream as her climax slammed into her.

  He turned his face to the camera, his cock held tightly in his fist as he lifted his hips and she buried her fingers in her pussy while she shuddered through a wild, crazy orgasm that left her shaking and sweaty.

  When it was over, she dropped the phone onto the mattress and had to catch her breath.

  “Hey,” he finally said. “I need a few minutes. I’ll be right back.”

  “Me too,” she said, staring up at the ceiling fan, still trying to breathe normally. She rolled off the bed and went into the bathroom. When she came back, Gray’s face was smiling at her on the phone. He was stretched out on his side as he lay on the bed.

  “Thanks for that,” he said. “That took away the last of the day’s tension.”

  She grinned at him. “Mine, too. I think I might even be able to sleep tonight.”

  “Good. I’d still like it better if you were in my bed.”

  Her stomach fluttered. “I’d like it better, too.”

  “Tomorrow night, you will be.”

  “Good night, Gray.”

  “’Night, Evelyn.”

  She clicked off, rolled over, and closed her eyes, unable to remove the smile from her face.

  TWENTY

  GRAY HAD EVELYN CHANGE THEIR FLIGHT. NOW THAT HE knew Bill was sick, it was important that he at least stop by and see him. They were flying out later that afternoon, which would still give him plenty of time to meet up with his crew and prepare for practice and qualifying.

  “Tell me about Bill Briscoe,” Evelyn said as they drove to the university.

  Gray smiled as the memories flooded him. “He and his wife Ginger were dorm parents the entire four years I was at the university. And from day one, Bill was the father figure I needed—hell, the father figure all of us guys needed. He gave me advice and discipline and warmth and compassion, especially during those critical college years when I floundered, when I felt lost and alone after . . .”

  He paused, realizing he was going on and on about stuff he normally didn’t talk about—with anyone.

  “You can tell me, Gray. It’s not like this is going to end up in social media. This is personal and I understand that.”

  “After my father and I had a falling out when I decided not to go to Harvard and took the baseball scholarship to Oklahoma. Things were rough after that.”

  “Because your father thought your schooling and career should go one way, and you wanted to go in another direction.”

  “Yes. He wanted me to go into law, and eventually follow him into politics. That was never my passion.”

  She nodded. “Because sports had always been what you loved.”

  Funny how easily she understood that, and his father never had. “Yeah. The old man was pissed when I turned down Harvard.”

  “Understandable. It’s always a parent’s dream that a child will follow in their footsteps. I’m sure he was disappointed.”

  “Oh, he was more than disappointed. He railed about it, called me a failure, and told me I was wasting my life. And then he cut me off financially from the family money.

  He told me if I was going to insist on making this mistake, I’d be doing it on my own.”

  “Oh, God.” She laid her hand on his leg. “I’m so sorry, Gray.”

  He shrugged, keeping his gaze firmly on the road. “I was so used to him always having to have his own way, by the time he’d made that decision I’d already figured that’s probably what he was going to do.”

  “Didn’t your mother run interference for you?”

  “She tried, but once Mitchell Preston makes a decision, no one can change his mind. There wasn’t much she could do. The family money is all his. But I had the scholarship to Oklahoma, so I didn’t need his money. I worked my ass off at school, worked part-time to cover whatever the scholarship didn’t. I managed just fine. Even got an offer from a major league team.”

  He glanced over at her. She was frowning.

 
“But you didn’t pursue baseball.”

  “Yeah, I know. It was enough to know I could have succeeded. I liked playing ball, but my love was always in racing. After I graduated college I pursued it professionally, made it my full-time career.”

  “You’ve done very well for yourself. You should be proud. And all without Preston money.”

  Hearing the words from Evelyn sank deep into his chest. “Thanks. I got lucky and raced with someone who showed me the ropes and allowed me to hone my instincts.

  He gave me a car and let me show what I could do. After I won a championship, the money from sponsors started rolling in, enough to sustain me until I turned twenty-five. That’s when I received the inheritance my grandfather left for me, something my father couldn’t control.

  “I took that money and started Preston Racing, went out on my own and built a successful race team, won another championship.”

  When she didn’t say anything, he shifted his gaze to hers. “What?”

  Her lips curved. “There’s such a spark when you talk about racing. I can’t imagine you ever having that kind of fire in you in law or politics.”

  He let out a laugh. “I’d have hated it. I’d have been miserable.”

  “Not many people get to do what they love.”

  He took the exit that would lead to the main road and the college. When he stopped at the light, he turned to her. “You are.”

  “That’s true. I guess both of us are very lucky.”

  “I guess we are. And I have Bill Briscoe to thank for that. He kept me focused, made me pull my head out of my ass. I arrived with a huge chip on my shoulder and a lot to prove. He knocked that off and told me to stop thinking about my dad, stop being mad at him and start focusing on myself.”

  He turned left at the light and made his way down the road. “He helped shape who I am today. I owe him a lot. I just hope he’s okay.”

  Evelyn leaned over and squeezed his leg. “Me, too.”

  Bill and Ginger’s house was on campus, just down the street from the dorms. Gray parked in front and got out.

  “Drew and Trevor aren’t here yet, but there’s a car I don’t recognize in the driveway. It might be Haven,” he said as he held the door for Evelyn.