The Game Changer: A Novel (21 page)

I allowed my tears to fall, but I couldn’t say anything yet.

“Cass, I don’t want you to stop working. I don’t want you to give up anything for me. But I need you to know that I’ve learned from losing you. I know how bad it feels to not have you in my life, and I never want to experience that again.”

I sucked in a breath. “I can’t imagine my life without you, Jack,” I wholeheartedly admitted. “Even when we were apart, I always hoped that we’d find our way back to each other. But I don’t like feeling pressured to choose between you or my job. It’s not fair, and it’s a decision I don’t want to have to make.”

“Because I won’t win?” he asked, his voice soft but firm.

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly. “But I can’t believe we’re fighting already.”

“We’re not fighting. We’re just figuring things out.”

“No. I’m pretty sure we’re fighting.”

Jack

I
knew what Kitten meant last night, even if she didn’t. She felt like choosing between her job or her heart was like being asked to literally choose me over herself. I wanted to blame her, but I couldn’t. She didn’t know what it was like. Not really. To live without the one person you knew you were meant for. I’d experienced the pain of being forced to live without her while I had achieved my biggest dream.

It wasn’t enough.

Having baseball but no Cassie didn’t make me happy. I was pretty sure it was the same for her with photography and no me; she simply hadn’t realized it yet. She hadn’t really been forced to. At least not from the perspective I had been. I fucked up. I lost her. It’s different when you’re the one who made the mistakes.

I tried not to wake Cassie as I dialed the office where Matteo worked. I purposely woke up before her alarm was set to go off to handle this.

“Good morning, Mr. Lombardi. It’s Jack Carter.”

“Good morning, Mr. Carter. Is everything working out with Matteo?” His accent echoed through the phone.

“That’s what I’m calling about actually.” I attempted to explain before he interjected.

“If Matteo’s not working out, we have plenty of other drivers.”

I released an irritated breath. “No, Mr. Lombardi, Matteo’s fine. I wanted to see about booking him longer on the days I have home games.”

“Ah, how much longer?”

“I need him to stay at the field from the time he drops Cassie off until we leave.” I didn’t want to tell this guy my reasons for needing Matteo to stay. I wanted to keep that business as private as possible. “So, that’s probably an extra four or five hours. Is that possible?”

“How many days a week do you have home games?”

“We have about thirteen home games a month, with usually six or seven of them in a row.”

I heard scribbling and the sound of papers being shuffled on the other end of the line. “That shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Are you sure? Because if it is, I’ll need to look into other options.” I needed a straight answer with no bullshit. If this guy wouldn’t give me Matteo’s time, I’d take Matteo from him and hire him exclusively. Or find someone else to do the job.

“It’s fine. Just make sure you give Matteo a copy of your schedule so we can write him off in the books.”

“Great. Can you have Matteo call me when he checks in?”

“Not a problem, sir.”

“Thanks.” I clicked the phone off before breathing out a sigh of relief. I’d half expected more of a battle for Matteo’s time. I appreciated it didn’t come to that. Now I needed to talk to Matteo. I needed someone who wanted to watch out for her, and he needed to be able to put Cassie’s safety above his own. Maybe he wouldn’t
like the idea of his pretty little model face being put at risk. I guess I’d find out.

“Hey, you’re up early.” I turned around to see Cassie standing in the doorway, watching me. She looked so beautiful standing there that I couldn’t resist her. I eagerly walked toward her, wrapping her up in my arms, and squeezed. I kissed her neck, breathing in the smell of her skin.

“I’m so sorry about last night.” She tilted her head up to look at me. “I think I just get really defensive when it comes to my job.”

I looked into her green eyes, pushing the hair back from her face and tucking it behind her ear. “I know. It’s OK. I get it.”

“I hate fighting with you.” Her lips jutted out in a pout, and I smiled.

“I told you we weren’t fighting. We’re just figuring things out, OK?” I leaned down, planting a kiss on her cheek. “So listen, I talked to Matteo’s boss this morning, and he’s fine with him staying for the games. I’m going to meet with Matteo later today to make sure he can handle it.”

She released a breath. “Handle it how?”

“I just want to make sure he’s up for it. I’m not going to ask him to do this for us if he isn’t comfortable doing it. He does have a choice in the matter.”

“Well, how nice for him,” she said, her voice laced with bitterness.

I dropped my hands. “Am I doing something wrong, Cass? I’m just trying to make sure you’re safe and protected when I’m not around. Is that not OK with you?”

This girl is driving me fucking crazy.

“No.” She paused before looking at the floor. “God, I’m sorry, Jack. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.” Her eyes closed as she dropped her face into her hands. “I’m not used to anyone looking
out for me the way you do. It’s a bit of an adjustment for me is all. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. Please don’t fight me on this. I won’t be able to concentrate on the field if I think people are harassing you or being mean or hurting you.”

“I know.” She nodded her head in agreement before swallowing. “I’ll try to be less crazy. I love you.”

“You’re not crazy.” I smiled. “And I love you too.” I kissed her lips before she pulled away.

“I need to get ready for work.” Her face softened.

“Go then. Stop wasting time fake fighting with me.” I smacked her ass, and she yelped.

“Jack!”

Half tempted to chase her ass right into the bathroom, the sound of my phone ringing distracted me. “Hey, Matteo,” I said into the phone, after seeing his name and number appear on my screen.

“Good morning, Jack. Mr. Lombardi said you wanted to talk to me?”

“Yeah. Is there any way we could meet a little bit later to go over some stuff? I’ll pay you for your time, of course.”

“Hold on one sec.” The phone sounded like it got tossed onto a desk. “I have a couple clients this morning, but I’m free around eleven. Is that too late?”

“No, that’s perfect. Meet me at Sal’s?” I suggested.

“Yeah. Sal’s it is,” he replied, his voice excited.

“OK, Matteo. See you then.”

I pressed End, dropping my phone on the small counter before walking into the bathroom. I peered around the shower curtain at Cassie and became instantly aroused.

Down, boy.

“I’m having lunch with Matteo at Sal’s. I’ll text you afterward to let you know how it goes, OK?”

She turned her body to face me, embarrassment spreading pink across her cheeks. “Great. Now get out of here before you make me late for work. I know what you’re thinking, Carter.”

I loved it when she called me by my last name. Her voice always sounded extra sassy, and it turned me on even more.

“Can you blame me? Fuck, woman, look at you. Sexy as hell,” I teased, knowing I was making her uncomfortable. But she looked beautiful all naked and wet, and now all I could think about were the things I wanted to do to her.

She pressed her lips tightly against each other. “’Kay. Get out now. Bye. Thanks.”

I walked into Sal’s, the smell of pizza making my stomach growl.

“Hey! Jack! Good to see you!” Sal stood in the kitchen area, waving at me through a pass-through window. “And hey, nice game the other night.” His boisterous voice reverberated throughout the small building.

“Thanks, Sal.”

“So what can I get ya?”

“I’m going to wait until Matteo shows up, and then we’ll order something,” I said, before sitting down at one of the tables.

“Matteo’s coming? Ha! I haven’t seen that little shit in weeks!” He flung some pizza dough into the air before catching it on his fist and spinning it wildly.

“He’s not really that little.”

“No, he’s not.” He chuckled. “So, how’s he working out for you and Cassie? Everything good?” He eyed me while pressing down on the dough, creating the perfect thin crust.

“It’s all good so far. Thanks again for the recommendation.”

“No problem, no problem.” He waved a hand at me as the bells on the door chimed. Matteo walked into the pizzeria, a huge smile spread across his face.

“Matteo! Why don’t you come visit me? You don’t like my food?” Sal teased before coming out from the kitchen to greet his cousin.

I watched the two men embrace and realized in that moment how much I missed my little brother, Dean. I wished he was done with school so I could move him out here, but he probably wouldn’t leave Gran and Gramps. Dean was always the better grandkid.

“Ah, you know I love your food. I’ve just been busy.” Matteo nodded in my direction.

“I’ve heard. Busy’s good.” Sal slapped Matteo on the back. “You two let me know what you want to order, OK?”

“I’ll just take a slice, Sal.” I hesitated, patting my rumbling stomach. “Better make it two.”

“Same here,” Matteo said, following my lead.

“I’ll just make you guys a whole pie. It’s not like the two of you won’t finish it.” Sal laughed before walking back into the kitchen.

I smiled, waving Matteo over to sit with me. Once he was close enough, I reached out my hand. A quick, firm handshake later and Matteo was seated across from me. “So, I need to talk to you about something,” I started, leaning my elbows on the tabletop.

“Yeah, Mr. Lombardi mentioned that you want me to keep the car there during the games, is that right?”

“Yeah, but there’s a bit more to it than that.”

“What’s up?”

I pushed back into my chair, thinking about how to word it right. “Some fans were heckling Cassie last night at the game. And I guess the other wives are really mean and don’t do anything to help. The press is taking pictures of her and posting them online. I would really appreciate it if you would take her to the games and sit with her so she’s not alone.”

“So, you want me to drive her to the field and then stay for the game with her?”

“Yeah. But I also need you to watch out for her. And if anyone fucks with her, I need you to be OK with handling it.”

“Like a bodyguard?”

“If it comes to that, yeah.” Matteo shifted in his seat, and I added, “That’s why I wanted to talk to you. If you’re not comfortable doing this, I’ll find someone else.”

“I never said I was uncomfortable,” he responded in a sharp tone that caused my defenses to flare.

“Well, I figured I’d ask you because you’re obviously strong, and I assume people find you intimidating.”

I don’t.

He laughed. “I actually don’t have a problem with it at all. I just need to know my boundaries.”

“What do you mean?” I jerked my head toward him as my muscles tensed.

He better not be talking about his boundaries with Cass. I’ll beat his ass right here in his cousin’s restaurant.

“I just mean, what exactly do you want from me? If someone heckles her, do you want to me to knock his teeth out, get him to shut up, or do nothing?”

This was my idea and I hated it already. The thought of someone else defending my girlfriend was agonizing. I should have been
the one protecting her, but I was willingly handing that job over to another guy. A guy who looked like a fucking magazine model.

“I don’t think you should cause a scene unless it’s absolutely necessary. Don’t overreact, ’cause that will only lead to more bad press.” He nodded as I continued. “I basically don’t want Cassie to be alone at the games anymore. I figured she’d make friends with the other women on the team, but since that doesn’t look like it’s going to happen… I need to make other arrangements for her safety.”

“I understand.”

“And all this is fine with you? I need you to be sure,” I asked, waiting to sense any hesitation on his end.

“I’m sure. It’s not a problem.”

“Great.” I smiled, happy we’d come to an understanding. “Listen, that girl is my world, and I can’t stand the thought of anyone hurting her. I’d handle this myself if I could play the game and be by her side at the same time, but I can’t.”

“You need me to start tonight?”

“Yeah, if you can.”

“I cleared my schedule already.”

“Perfect. I appreciate you watching out for her.”

“I won’t let anything happen to her. I promise.” His expression turned serious, his mouth narrowing into a thin, tight line, and I believed him.

Cassie

M
atteo arrived at my office promptly at six, just like Jack texted he would. He waited for me downstairs with the car while I finished up some last-minute photo editing. Tonight’s game would be the first game he’d attend with me, and I was nervous. Not to be alone with Matteo, but because now I’d be photographed with some guy who wasn’t Jack.