Page 44 of Stopping Short

“Man, that woman is going to be the death of me,” Jax mumbles.

I can’t help but laugh at him. It’s so much fun catching up with all of Mulberry Lane. They’re all the people I’ve considered family since my parents got married.

As the game starts, we all take a seat and turn our attention to the field. I love watching my man play the game he loves and watching him dominate on the field.

Chapter 26

Jackson

“Man, I love this,” I whisper as I exit the locker room and sweep Harper into my arms.

After every game, the guys leave the locker room and find their girls waiting for them. I was always jealous of them, but now I have my girl waiting for me too.

“You played such a great game,” she giggles as I kiss the side of her neck.

“Oh, yeah? You were paying attention?”

“How could I not? My boyfriend was on the field.”

I smirk down at her and cup her face in my hands. I never thought this would happen. I thought we’d always have someone or something standing in our way. I feel like I'm finally getting the life I’ve always dreamed of and it’s amazing.

“Are you telling the entire world you’re mine?” I arch a brow.

“Of course. All of Mulberry Lane knows since Sophia made Owen have your jersey brought up to the suite for me.” She laughs again, making my smile grow. I love seeing her so happy and carefree. It’s a complete contrast to how she was during her birthday weekend. She looked like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders then.

“What about your parents?”

“Yeah… I haven’t told them yet.” She scrunches up her nose. “How long do you think it would take for the news to spread?”

“Well, the game started three hours ago, so… I’d say they already know.”

“Nooo,” she groans, covering her face with her hands. “They’re going to be so angry I didn’t tell them first.”

“Your dad definitely knew something was up when we went to Bennett Bradley Security today.” I shrug. Maddox isn’t a dumb guy. He pays attention to everything going on around him. There’s no way he didn’t notice the spark between us. Honestly, he’s probably been waiting for this to happen.

“In my defense, we didn’t kiss until after we saw him and I don’t think we’ve officially labeled what’s going on between us… though I did refer to you as my boyfriend a few moments ago.” She nibbles on her bottom lip as she peeks up at me through her lashes.

“And you admitted to being in love with me this morning,” I murmur, taking a step closer to her and slipping my hand around her waist.

“You did too, Mr. McLaren.” She places her hands on my chest and smirks.

“I did.” I nod, staring deep into her eyes. “I don’t regret it. Not even for a second.”

“Me neither.”

“Good.”

I eliminate the space between us and press my lips against hers. She responds immediately and slips her arms around my neck. I get lost in her kiss, in her. Everything else just seems to fade away until it’s only us. Just like it always does when I have Harper in my arms.

A throat clears behind us. Loudly.

Harper jumps in my arms and pulls back before burying her face in my chest. I chuckle, tightening my hold on her. I glance over my shoulder to find Wheeler watching us with amusement.

“This is a family area. You should really keep your lips to yourself. Especially you, Miss Bradley.” Wheeler folds his arms over his chest and watches us.

“Why especially me?” Harper pulls back and her brows instantly for a deep V.

“I don’t know.” Wheeler shrugs. “I feel like your daddy wouldn’t be happy to find out you’re mauling a professional baseball player in public.”