Page 14

Chapter 13

Ainsley

I didn’t think my plan all the way through.

Honestly, I just wanted a distraction, so I didn’t hop on his dick right then and there in my kitchen. But it’s like this guy memorized every freaking question known to man. I take a bite of the oxtail, and it dissolves into a buttery texture as the flavorful dish hits my taste buds.

“Shit, Shawn. This is so fucking good. Seriously. I could eat this every day.”

He laughs and picks his bowl up, looking underneath it, turning it around under intense examination. I smile.

“What’re you doing?” I poke.

“Trying to see where these bowls are from. They are the perfect size and weight. Especially for a dish like a pelau.”

“Thanks, I appreciate the compliment. I meant for them to hold heavier dishes like this.” I say, stuffing another bite into my mouth.

“You made these?” He looks at me, shocked.

“Yep, it was an assignment for my traditional modern ceramics class at the end of university. I had to make a dinner set with four plates, four bowls, and four cups. My mom wanted the plates, Liam got the cups, and I got to keep the bowls. It’s your turn for the next question.” I smile at him.

“Okay. How’d you get into pottery?” He adds, wanting to know more.

I sigh and decide to give him the actual answer, not the watered-down version I typically tell admirers.

“When I first moved here, I was sad for months. I had just met Millie, and she and Mimi would try to get me to do anything and everything with them. They tried to bring me back to life. Millie’s mom was the best gardener, and Mimi has always done pottery at her cottage for fun. So, we would spend the first part of our summer mornings outside gardening when it was cooler outside, and then we would go inside, and Mimi would try to teach us how to throw. She was so patient and calm with every movement. The ease, the gentle movements, the idea of something being so messy but still somehow looking elegant. I was hooked. Planting and tending to new vegetables and fruits outside and then molding and throwing clay when I came inside. It helped me learn to process my emotions and still helps me to this day. When it was time to go to university, it just made sense to study art, and in my junior year, I started making edited videos of my pottery, which kind of blew up on social media. But now I just volunteer when I can at the studio down the street, so they let me keep throwing there when I have the time.”

I look over, and he’s looking at me just like he did when I first met Luna and Blaze.

“Lee, that makes so much sense. I can’t wait to see you throw; I’m surprised I haven’t seen your videos on my feed. What’s your handle?”

He pulls out his phone to search for me. I hesitate before I answer, wondering how hooked I’ll be, checking to see if he has watched my latest videos. Sue me, I’m a girl, and I like to keep tabs. I clear my throat as I see him wave his phone next to me, encouraging me to continue.

“PotterLee, like Pottery, but ya, know, Lee.” I shrug as a laugh bubbles out of him.

“That’s fucking genius! I’m so proud of you, Lee; I should've known you would have done something with your hands. You made all those mud bowls for us to make flower stew at the park, and if you weren’t doing that, you were making those dandelion headbands.”

“Flower crowns.” I smile, remembering the days at the park that seem so long ago but also feel like yesterday.

“Okay, Lee, it's your turn to ask a question.”

He looks at me as I see him scroll through my page on his phone.

“Why did you switch from hockey to basketball?”

He pauses, shuts his phone off, and sets it down slowly. Looking up at me, taking a long breath, clearly working up the courage to unravel the past twelve years.

“I think you can pretty much piece it together from how well you know my family, so whatever you’re thinking is probably pretty close to what happened. I crushed it on ice at the tryouts after y’all left. Shoot, they even told my mom they would give me a scholarship, so we didn’t have to pay the insane registration fees, but the second my dad saw how much my gear, equipment, away games, extra fees here and there, he pulled me out. No discussion to be had. Not that I would have asked. I knew I couldn’t ask them to pay for all that. The next sport to register for a few months later was basketball. I was crushed for months, skating and crying in the park while other kids mocked me. One day, my AAU coach came over with Luna and Blaze. His dogs had just had puppies. Blaze was supposed to be mine, and Nora was going to have Luna. They both stuck to me like glue from the very beginning, and Nora was always out with friends, so they just became mine. They went to the park with me, played ball with me, and they helped build my foundation and love of basketball. And I do; I truly love it. The second I put a ball in my hand, it’s like it all just clicked. Add in that I was almost two feet taller than everyone in my class at that point. I become a beast on and off the court. Focused on success, I still am.”

He winks at me, but I can see how much it hits him that he didn’t get a say in what sport he played and the pressure to succeed.

“Oh okay, I’m so sorry. I get it, though. The only reason Liam kept up with hockey once we got up here is because he got a scholarship, then sponsored, and even then, Mimi started selling her pottery to help pay for all the extra stuff, so I understand.”

He nods and clears his throat as I take another bite, waiting for him to continue.

“Did you ever like me more than just a friend when we were younger?”

WTF. I choke on the food that I just shoved in my mouth. He reaches over with a soft chuckle and starts patting my back. I grab my water and take several gulps before I think of how to answer. I mean, I get why he asked, but still, he’s coming in hot. I try to collect my thoughts, reflecting on those feelings the little girl inside me had. How she craved spending every moment she could with her best friend.

“Um, I think so, maybe. It was hard for me to know at that age.” He puts his head down and nods.

“No, but really, Shawn, I think I just didn’t understand why I cared and wanted to be around you so much. Each day, you were the first person I wanted to talk to and the first person I looked for at the park. You didn’t treat me like a silly girl. You were my best friend.”

“I understand. I felt that same way. But as the years went by without you around…” He coughs and stops.

So I continue for him, but express what it was like for me.

“But as the years went by…and you met other people and friends, you realized that our friendship we had was more than a friendship? It was a connection that souls feel when they’re drawn to one another.”

His head hangs even lower, and he just nods, clearly feeling everything I felt since the moment I laid eyes on him again. He looks up at me, directly into my eyes.

“Everything felt so hard when you left. School, my parents, and even Nora because she was so little, and I had to be there for her all the time when my parents had to work. You were all I had, the only good in my life, the only one that cared about me and how I was doing. But as I found things that made me happy over the years, I realized you were more than just there for me. You were my sun; my soul rotated around you because we were connected. I wanted to come up here and find you so bad. I researched it and everything, but I was a kid. I didn’t know how to get back to you. So, I waited to see if you would visit in the summer, but training and AAU games picked up. I never saw you again.”

My heart twists in on itself as I picture Shawn as a kid, my best friend, waiting for me. Hoping that there could be a way for us to find our way back to each other.

“I didn’t go back. Canada just made sense for me. When my parents were finally ready to move back to Dallas, Liam’s hockey commitment meant he’d stay, but I thought you’d already moved on. I didn’t know what you were doing, but I thought about it daily. Every time my friends got asked out or we had school dances. I always felt like you should've been there with me. Then the Six, Shawn. I fell in love. The city, the people, the things to do. I can’t wait to show you.”

“I thought about you constantly. Never dated in high school and didn’t have a date to prom because I just felt like if they didn’t understand me like you, it wouldn’t have been enjoyable. So, I just focused more on ball.”

I nod and push back the tears that are trying to make themselves known.

“Your turn, Sunshine.” He says as he leans down and kisses my cheek. I think about it for a minute and decide to try to get the hard questions out of the way now. If this grows to anything more than what it already feels like, then I need to know.

“Do you want kids?” I say bluntly.

He stops mid-bite, puts his spoon down, and smiles. Turning slowly so he is looking right at me.

He opens his mouth and shuts it. Opens and shuts. My knee automatically starts bouncing, anticipating what he might say.

“Not ready to tackle that question just yet, Lee.”

My heart spins in my chest as my brain lights up. My eyes widen in shock, and he looks at me and realizes what he just said.

I shoot up out of my chair and start dancing, pointing at him.

“HELL YES, BITCH! I WIN.” He didn’t freaking answer.

Oh. My. Damn.

Then it dawns on me. He didn’t answer that question. I go to sit back down as a pit settles in my stomach.

“Shit. Fuck. No. Lee, I just haven’t thought about kids. I just didn’t picture that with anyone other than…” He stops himself.

Was he about to say an ex from college? Shit, there is no way he could have meant me. My eyes widen, my head involuntarily nodding as if my body is accepting this, so I can. He chuckles and grabs my knees, spinning me to face him as he smiles.

No way.

No freaking way.

“ME?!?”

“Duh, you. Soul connection, remember, Sunshine?”

He rubs a hand down his face, laughing. “Do I still get to keep playing because I answered the question?”

Shawn Salisu has only ever seen himself having kids with me.

“Um, sure. But I still won. I get to pick the next kink.” I smile proudly, but also my little heart is freaking the fuck out right now.

What the fuck. What the fuck. What the FUCK.

I need to ease back and guard myself. I could easily see myself getting consumed in the ripe tide that is Mr. Superstar, but it has always been this way with him. Easy. I inhale through my nose, count to ten, and release.

“So, what kink do you want to try next? Because I’m ready. To. Go.” He claps like he’s getting ready for game time.

I try to think and look down to review the list. Oh, I put some good ones on here. I decide to wait on the primal play and go for the next best.

“Belt play, please. That one also involves some spanking, but I already know you’re good with that.”

He looks at me with one eyebrow raised. “Oh really? Why is that?”

“Well, um, for starters, you smacked my ass multiple times last night…”

“Damn straight baby!” He says, bending back to look at my ass.

“And two, I know you and your teammates stay slapping each other’s asses after winning on the court. So safe to say you’re good if I want to smack that fucking perfect ass of yours, too.”

He laughs. “Great observation there, baby. Okay, when and where?”

I think it over for a minute before adding, “I want to show you around the Six. There is so much to see, so much more to fall in love with. Next week, the CNE kicks off. It's right by Centre Island, too. My Mimi literally made Liam take her there weekly over the summers leading up to university. It’s a must for your first month here.”

“Sounds fun! What about the kink? Maybe after?”

I wiggle my eyebrows at him.

“Guess you’ll have to wait and see. Safe to say you should always come prepared.”