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thirty-three

Cole

Once we checked out of the hotel yesterday, Rory came to my apartment, and we spent the entire day together.

We ordered some Italian takeout.

We watched a couple Christmas movies— Christmas Vacation, my favorite, and A Christmas Story, her favorite.

We baked some chocolate chip cookies with the dough that Rory didn’t eat first.

What we didn’t do, though, was spend time in my bed.

Partially because we just used the couch but also because I just wanted to spend time with her. I know her well enough, but now she’s my girlfriend—I want to know everything .

I want to learn which side of the bed is her favorite.

If she cleans her dishes after she uses them or waits until the sink fills up.

If she’ll put on a pair of socks when her toes are cold or just use my legs to warm them up.

I want to know how she takes her coffee if she doesn’t have her favorite chai latte, how she likes her eggs in the morning… and how many kids she wants.

It is way too soon to be thinking about that, so I’ll keep the thought to myself for now. But I can’t deny the warmth I feel at the thought of her potentially having my babies in the future.

When we wake up on Monday morning, we just lay in bed for a while, enjoying each other’s company and talking about anything and everything.

I tell her about how I had to shave my head my junior year of college after one of my friends drunkenly took a pair of scissors to it. I haven’t had a haircut since. I’ve been growing it since I was drafted six months later, and I just get it trimmed occasionally.

She tells me about the scar she has on her shoulder blade from falling off the swingset when she was five. She swears that’s why she has a fear of heights now.

It all feels so mundane and domestic.

I fucking love it.

Rory eventually leaves, saying she has some errands to run since Christmas is two days away.

And I use that time to spoil the absolute shit out of her with my own Christmas shopping.

Am I going overboard?

Abso-fucking-lutely.

Do I care?

Hell no.

I finally have Rory where I’ve always wanted her—in my arms as my girlfriend. This relationship was years in the making, and nothing will stop me from treating her exactly how I want to.

When I finish buying her gifts—some practical, some less practical, but a hell of a lot more fun—I drop the bags off at my apartment before heading to the stadium. I drank and ate a lot this weekend; I could use a good workout.

I’m only halfway through my workout, though, when I hear a voice behind me. “Still not using your building’s gym?”

I laugh nervously before turning to the man I really hoped I wouldn’t bump into today—my girlfriend’s father. “Nah. You know I like this one more.”

Skip just laughs and shakes his head. “Have you talked to your friend lately?”

“Ari?” I ask.

“That’s the one.”

“Yeah,” I reply, rubbing the back of my neck. “Talked to him last week. He mentioned he’ll be in New York soon.”

“Friday morning,” Skip confirms. “I do have to thank you for that suggestion. Turns out, he seems to really want to play for the Stars.”

“Well, I did tell him he needs to play for a team that can actually win the pennant,” I laugh.

“Thunderbirds did almost win, though. But I’m hoping we can reach a deal with him on Friday. With Waller gone, we really need a permanent first baseman.”

“I’d be surprised if he doesn’t sign. I mean, I’m here.” I point to myself with a smug smirk.

“I told Rory at the wedding,” he grumbles, “that you were the one guy on the team that wasn’t a pain in my ass. Starting to think I was wrong.”

I rear my head back and laugh.

But my mind wanders a bit as I do.

If I’m not a pain in his ass, maybe there’s a chance Rory and I can get him to come around to the idea of us together. It’s the first time I’ve felt a slight bit of hope for that.

But it’s dashed just as quickly.

“Cole, can I ask you something?”

Fear creeps up my spine, and I try to not let it show on my face. “Uh, sure, Skip…”

Paul lets out a sigh. “Do you know if Rory is seeing someone?”

Why yes, I do know that. Funny you should ask.

“Nope,” I lie. “She, uh… hasn’t mentioned anything.”

He eyes me but moves past my stammering. “She’s been acting weird lately. She’s always nervous around me. She won’t tell me what’s going on, but I know the signs of someone in a relationship.”

“Oh,” is all I can manage to mutter, afraid that if I speak more, all of our secrets are going to come out like word vomit.

“You two are friends. I know it’s asking a lot, but will you see what you can find out? If she’s being secretive about this, there has to be a reason why. I’m not trying to invade her privacy, but I want to know if I need to be worried.”

What.

The.

Fuck.

My girlfriend’s dad just asked me, his daughter’s secret boyfriend, to find out who she’s seeing.

My heart is hammering in my chest.

“With all due respect,” I say nervously, “I don’t know if I’m comfortable with that. I’m not much of a spy.”

“You’re the only one I can ask,” he sighs. “Your sister, Lucia, and Ella would never. Lane is her boss, so I don’t want to put him in a weird spot. Josh seems to be clueless most of the time. And Knox would probably just walk away from me if I asked him.” Paul takes a deep breath. “I know it’s a shitty position to put you in, but she’s hiding something. Rory doesn’t hide things from me, so I’m worried. I just want to make sure everything is fine. Can you please help me, Cole?”

What the hell do I do?

If I say yes, I’m going to have to pretend to be searching for myself since I’m who she’s hiding.

If I say no, it’s going to seem suspicious as hell, and he might not feel the need to search at all after that. It’ll be obvious.

When I say, “Sure, Skip. I’ll see what I can find…” I know the only chance I had at winning over my girlfriend’s father just slipped right through my fingers.

Cole

Rory

We have a fucking crisis

Rory

That’s ominous

What’s happening?!

Cole

I ran into your dad

Rory

WHAT?!?!

Oh God…

Cole

He doesn’t know

But I’m freaking the fuck out after I talked to him

Can you come over later?

Rory

Of course, I can

I’m almost done with my errands

I’ll be there soon, Cole

“So what the hell is happening?” Rory asks as I let her into my apartment.

I scrub my hands over my face and lean back against the wall. There’s no point in beating around the bush. “Your dad asked me to spy on you.”

“I’m sorry, what?!” she yells, anger seeping out of every pore.

“He says that you’ve been acting weird, and he’s certain you’re seeing someone. Said none of our other friends would be willing to do it, so he asked me to find out who you’re sneaking around with. Of all fucking people to ask, he asked me. What the fuck am I going to do, Rory?”

“You’re going to tell him to fuck off is what you’re going to do. Who the hell does he think he is trying to fucking spy on me?”

“I can’t tell him no, and you know it. It would be way too suspicious. Crazy as it sounds, though, he’s not doing it to be nosy or anything. He said you never hide anything from him, so he’s worried.”

Rory groans and throws her head back before wrapping her arms around my waist and resting her head on my chest. “I’m sorry, Cole. I can’t believe he asked you that.” She looks up at me, eyes glassy. “Do you think this is more trouble than it’s worth?”

“Fuck no,” I say immediately, wrapping my arms around her lower back. “Absolutely not. Rory, I knew what I was getting into when I told you I didn’t want to be friends. Sure, I wasn’t expecting your dad to ask me to spy on you, but I’m not backing away from you. I’m all in. I finally have you where I want you. I’m not letting you go.”

Rory stands on her tiptoes, kissing me softly and tenderly.

There’s a promise behind her lips.

A promise that no matter what happens, we’ll face it together .

We knew this wouldn’t be easy. This is just a speed bump on our road to what I hope is forever.

“Thank you, Cole,” she says lowly, resting her forehead against mine.

I brush my thumb across her cheek, catching a stray tear that falls. “You don’t need to thank me, Starlight. This isn’t even a hard decision. I’m more than willing to fight for you. This is just the first battle.”

“How are you so perfect?” she asks, a look of complete adoration on her face before she kisses me again.

It’s not as soft this time.

There’s far more fire burning in every stroke of our tongues.

She takes me by the hands, walking us backward toward my bedroom. “Let me help you relax, Sparrow…”

I smile and follow right after her.

I could use a nice stress reliever.