Page 37 of Your Play to Call
She takes her hands on each side of my face, locking her eyes onto mine, and then pulls me in for a long, sweet kiss. Her arms reach up and around my neck and she rests her head in the crook of my neck.
Sensing the shift, I hug her back.
“Okay, definitely wasn’t imagining this,” she says, quietly, her mouth right by my ear.
“Huh?”
I jokingly glance down at my strained joggers. She laughs and it’s the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard.
Chapter 23
Willow
My heart races, echoingin my chest, as I reach for Tripp’s shirt and pull him into me. Closer. I need him closer. His stubble is rough on my chin and I kind of love it.
The canceled plans and the whole Bailey situation are in the back of my mind. I have no reason not to trust him, but it feels like I’m blindfolded while trying to walk a straight line.
Is this worth it? Putting myself out there for him? Tripp makes this sound while kissing me that snaps me back to the present. I feel guilty for letting my mind wander.
I think I owe it to myself to give him a chance. Give us a chance. Hell, if it doesn’t work, put that in the pile of failed relationships. There’s a corner of my chest that pricks and tingles. Doesn’t feel quite right. It’s the voice that whispers,Get out while you can, before asking,Why would Tripp stay when everyone else has left?
How many times can I put myself back together?
Thinking these things while wrapped up in Tripp feels wrong.
“Want to take the snacks out to the pool?” I ask, pulling away from him long enough to get the words out. I need to quit spiraling.
Tripp picks me up from the island, spinning me around, before he sets me down with a kiss on my forehead. It’s like two of the cutest gestures I’ve ever dreamt of in the same three-second blur.
Instantly, I feel better. The pinch in my chest is almost gone. I grab my shirt, reluctantly putting it back on.
We walk out to the pool, which is one of my favorite parts of the house. Well, the whole patio. This was one of the first home renovation projects we dreamt up, my parents and I. I’ve always loved the water—pools, hot tubs, the ocean, you name it.
“Wow. It’s beautiful out here,” Tripp says, spinning around, taking in the details.
“Thanks. We re-did this whole backyard patio area when we bought it.”
“Who is we?”
“I bought it, but I had no idea what I was doing. My parents helped.”
I can still feel the excitement of planning this whole space. I was so conscious about spending money because I truly hadn’t grasped what was happening with my career.
“I bought it the month I turned eighteen. I had signed my first record deal. Claire, my manager, had always encouraged me to find a place kind of conspicuous, and to do it early on. She gave me all these tricks for keeping it a secret and it’s worked, so far.”
“That’s amazing. What was out here before you redid it?”
“Nothing. We planned everything… the pool, hot tub, sitting area, hammock, bar, fireplace, all of it.”
This is something I’m proud of. With Tripp, I don’t feel the need to play it down.
“How fun was it? Dreaming this up and bringing it to life.” We sit down in the loveseat, near the fireplace, and set the snacks on the table in front of us.
“At first, not so much. I was ridiculously stressed about spending too much money. My parents finally convinced me to relax. I had no idea how much money I had since my mom and dad did all of the right things and kept it in several accounts until I was eighteen. We didn’t have much growing up, and I wanted to scrounge and save every penny I made.”
I know I’m lucky. There are tons of tales of musicians, under eighteen, who didn’t have cautious parents like mine.
“What was the first thing you bought? When you got your first check, or whatever the NFL gives you?” I ask because I have no clue how athletes and their salary work.