Caught Looking (Hot-Lanta Series) (30 page)

Brady gave a handshake to Austin and Marc. “What are you guys doing here?”

Marc looked at the girls, he lingered a little longer on Patty and said, “Uh, we heard they have great food here and thought we would give it a try.”  

Jane noticed how M
arc looked at Patty. Jane introduced everyone once again and couldn’t help but smile. Marc was a very good looking guy and fun. She would maybe talk to Brady and see what Marc’s status was. Maybe she could get Marc to ask out Patty. Whoa, Patty expressed she was not interested in having a relationship. Now that Jane was in love she apparently wanted everyone she knew to be in love as well.   

Patty did
say she didn’t want a relationship but the way she turned bright red when she shook Marc’s hand and continued to stare at him gave Jane the impression that her new co-worker not only wanted to be in a relationship but she had eyes for Marc Sullivan. She couldn’t blame Patty the Braves had some amazingly gorgeous men on their team.

They all parted ways and Jane made sure to wish the boys
good luck with spring training and told Patty she would see her on Monday. She watched Patty walk away and glance back at Marc. Poor girl, Jane knew exactly how Patty she felt. 

Chapter 21

Jane and Brady spent the rest
of their hours together in bed, where they held each other, pleased each other and even ate off each other. Jane had never felt so good in her entire life. Even when she was with George, he never truly made her feel as feminine as Brady did. Brady treated her with respect and showered love on her whenever she was near him. 

She was upset that he
had to leave but after this visit they just had she had never felt more confident in her life about a relationship. Brady made it quite clear that she was his and he wasn’t interested in anyone else. In the back of her mind she always wondered if Laney Johnson would ever take action to win Brady back but she knew it would not work. Brady would never give Laney the time of day…right?

Brady put his head on her stomach and looked up at her. “What are you thinking about sweet thing, I lost you a
little.”  

“Oh
, I was just thinking about how this has been the best day and a half of my life.”

“Mine too
, baby. I hate that I have to leave so soon but time is going to fly by, right?”

Jane thought about all the things that
she had to accomplish in the next week. She had an event next weekend that she had to put on for a major pharmaceutical company in the area and then of course she was in crunch time with Molly’s wedding and her bachelorette party. Time really would fly by.

“It will fly by.” Jane stroked Brady’s hair. “When do you have to go?”

Brady sighed, sat up and pulled her close. “My flight leaves around eight. I wish I could stay longer but I’m pushing it as it is.”

“I understand. So now that I have a key, does that
mean I can go in your house, paint the walls pink and put fake flowers everywhere?”

Brady laughed and then got extremely serious. His eyes burned int
o hers and she shivered a in her place. “Babe, you can do whatever you want to my house. I’m serious. I want you to be comfortable and I want you to think of it as yours as well.”

Jane was taken aback
. She was only kidding. She didn’t expect Brady to say she could actually make herself at home. She knew he gave her a key, but just so she could come over whenever not to set up and play house. Was he serious? He really wanted her to come into his house and decorate?

“Brady
, you are not serious. You don’t want me going into your house and messing up your vibe.” 

Brady grabbed her hands and rubbed the tops of
them with the pads of his thumbs. “Jane, I’m dead serious. I want you to do whatever you want to the house so you feel at home. Right now the house is just a house, it’s not a home. You will make it a home. You know I want you to move in with me, but I’m giving you your space. When you are ready, you can start making it a home for us.”

Jane’s breathe caught in the back of her throat. Were they moving too fast? He didn’t say she had to move in right away, they could take their time and slowly move her in. Although there was a little voice in the back of her head that was screaming yes, yes, yes!  A
little part of her, the not overly cautious and conservative part of Jane wanted to move in with him so badly but the old, hurt Jane was extremely cautious. 

She simply replied, “We’ll
just see what happens. Can you hold me for now, until you have to leave?”

“Of course sweet thing, come here.”

Brady grabbed Jane and pulled her close to him. She laid her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his bare waist. They were skin on skin but nothing erotic passed through her mind. She just wanted human contact, Brady’s love. 

                                                                      ***

Molly was dreading today. Luke was leaving for training to lord knows where. They were scheduled to go to North Carolina first and then to some non-disclosed location. She assumed it was in a jungle area because he had packed his woodland camouflage. Luke seemed more anxious than usual especially since he was just going on a training session. He acted like it was an actual mission. She wondered if it was an actual mission and he didn’t want to tell her because he didn’t want to make her nervous. Missions were more unpredictable and it could be possible that he would miss the wedding. 

If Luke missed the wedding it would
not be that big of a deal. The wedding was a small one so it wouldn’t be a big hassle to move it to another day. Maybe they should just move it to another day anyway. She thought the more she put it off, the more she wouldn’t have to worry about not having any family there.  

Molly gained some courage and asked Luke, “Do you just want to move the wedding so you have plenty of time to get back
and you don’t have to rush?”

Luke stopped in his tracks and whipped his body around. “Are you serious right now?” Molly just nodded her head. “Jesus Molly, are you having second thoughts about us?”

Molly saw every ounce of Luke’s love for her fall flat to the ground and he went completely pale. She grabbed him by the arms and shook her head.   

“No not at all, God I love you and want to be your wife more than anything. It’s jus
t…” Here goes nothing. Luke tilted her chin up so she looked him in the eyes. “I love you Luke and I want to be married to you but this whole wedding thing has just made me realize that I’m all alone, I have no family. I’m practically an orphan. When a girl gets married it’s supposed to be this glorious celebration with her family and she is supposed to pick a dress out with her mom and be told how beautiful she is by her dad right before she walks down the aisle. I won’t have that.”

Luke wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her head. If Molly could stay in the little cocoon Luke formed around her
, she would be happy for the rest of her life. When she was wrapped in his arms she did not have to worry about anything.  

“Oh
baby, I didn’t even think about how you would feel about not having your family here to celebrate with you. I’m so sorry but you know a wedding is not only about celebrating with family but it is also about starting a new life with your soul mate. You know you have family not by blood but by heart. Jane, Albert and even Michael and Brady are your family. Most importantly I’m your family and that is all that matters. Instead of focusing on your family not being there, focus on starting a new life with me.”

Molly knew Luke was right. She had family all around her but just a different kind of family. They loved her, supported her and would be by her side on the most important day of her life. Molly just nodded her head against Luke’s chest. 

“Believe me I can’t wait to start a new life with you, buy a house and start making some really cute babies. Those are my top priorities right after we say our I do’s. What do you say babe? Are you in? Will I forever be Molly’s man?”

Molly’s man.
She couldn’t think of anyone else who could fulfill that position. Of course he would be Molly’s man, he always had been and always would be. Luke was right. She just needed to think of their wedding as the start of a new chapter in their life together. When she thought about it that way she could not wait, she wanted to get married right away. 

“Yes, Luke. No one will ever come close to filling that roll. Three weeks
and we will be married. I can’t wait. Now enough with all this talking, it seems to me like you are taking off and that calls for a good bye blow job.”  

Luke instantly dro
pped his pants and told her “I’m ready woman when you are.”

Molly threw her head back and laughed. Yes, this
would be a very interesting new chapter in her life but it would be the best thing that ever happened to her.

                                                                      ***

Brady got back to his apartment in Florida and was hit in the face with an empty and lonely apartment. No big blue eyes to stare at him, crystal clear smile that said ‘I love you’ or warm embrace to help him relax. Damn, he had it bad. He tried to text Michael to see how he was doing but Michael never sent him anything back, which was weird. Last time he saw Michael was at Deuces as he rolled on the ground laugh-oinking. Austin and Marc said they got him home alright. They just dropped him off on his couch and assumed his wife would take care of him. 

That made Brady nervous
. Brady knew Michael was struggling with his marriage and was having a difficult time, he only hoped that Michael would open up to him about it. He hoped Michael made it back to Florida for practice. After practice he was going to take Michael out, given he is back. It seemed like Michael needed to get some things off his chest. 

At Deuces Brady noticed that Michael was more quiet than usual and he drank a lot more than everyone else. He wondered if
Michael still had feelings for Jane. He hoped not because what was going on between Brady and Jane wouldn’t be messed with. Brady knew he found the woman he was supposed to spend the rest of his life with and nothing could mess that up.

Brady’s phone beeped on his way out
of the apartment, he looked down at his phone. It was a message from Jane.

Jane: Hey handsome, just thinking of you. Hope you made it back alright. Thank you so much for one of the best weekends ever.

Brady’s whole body went warm. Yea, nothing would break them up. Hopefully while he was gone she would go over to his house and start to make herself comfortable there. He really wanted her to start to move her things in there but he knew that might be moving a little fast for Jane. When he got back to Atlanta he would go buy some of her favorite products, a tooth brush and maybe some spare clothes for her so she didn’t always have to have an overnight bag. He sent Jane a message back. 

Brady: Hey sweet thing, I had the most amazing time. I miss you. I’m headed to practice now. I’m hoping to catch Michael after and grab a bite to eat.

Jane: That should be nice. He has been weird lately. I hope everything is ok.

Brady: I noticed the same thing that is why I wanted to take him out.

Jane: You are a good guy Brady Matthews.

Brady: I try to be. I will call you later tonight. I love you

Jane: I love you, handsome.

Brady headed to his car to drive to the ball park and had just placed his phone in his pocket when it beeped again. He got in his car and cranked up the air conditioning. It was surprisingly very warm in Florida for the time of the year. He pulled his phone back out of his pocket and hoped Jane sent him a picture of her or maybe a naughty text. When he saw a strange number again, he swore under his breath.

Brady boy, you have not gotten back to me. I am going to find out where you are and just jump your bones myself. Come on baby, I know you want me.

Brady was about to throw his phone when he received one last text message. Fuck! It was a picture of Laney, completely naked holding a bat as it rested on her shoulder. He instantly deleted the message.

He was shaken from the erotic picture that popped up on his phone, not because Laney was a hideous looking person but because if Jane ever knew Laney sent that picture to him, he could possibly lose her forever.
He needed to remind himself to block that number.