Center Stage: A Hot Baseball Romance (Diamond Brides Book 8) Read Online Free PDF Page B

going to get back in my car now,” she said. “I’m going to use my turn signal, and I’m going to check my side-view mirror very carefully before I pull back onto the road, and I’m going to drive precisely at the speed limit. Is that okay with you?”
    That earned her a shadow of a smile. “I’ll follow along. Just to make sure you get to the farm.”
    “What is it with you ballplayers?” she shouted.
    “I hear there can be some pretty nasty stalkers on this road.”
    She gritted her teeth, resenting the way he threw her ridiculous fears back at her. It was time for more regal acting. “Don’t you think a woman is capable of taking care of herself?”
    “You’re perfectly capable of taking care of yourself,” he said, his voice so quiet she had to catch her breath to hear him. “But I’ve already come this far. And I’d hate if you got a flat tire between here and the house.”
    “I can change a freaking tire!” Her voice broke on the last word. Of course she could change a tire. Zach would never have let her behind the wheel to take her driver’s test if she couldn’t change a tire.
    “Come on, Lindsey,” Ryan said. And there was something about her name on his lips, something about the way he balanced those two syllables, halfway between a laugh and a sigh. She heard determination in his voice and amusement and an endless vault of patience.
    But even more important was what she didn’t hear. She didn’t hear pity. She didn’t hear kid gloves, like he was afraid she was going to break into a million little pieces because Will had left her at the altar, the same way Doug had.
    “Fine,” she said, surprising herself by how good it felt to agree. “You can follow me home. But that’s it. I don’t need anything else—from you or anyone else!”
    “Fine,” he said, echoing her.
    So she did what she’d said she would do. She drove the last five miles to the farm like she was taking the test for her license all over again—perfectly matching the speed limit, perfectly centering the car in her lane, perfectly timing her turn signal.
    And the entire time, she told herself it felt right to be the good girl. It felt good to follow the rules. She shouldn’t have been so rude to Ryan; he was only trying to help. He was only trying to be nice to her on a day when absolutely everything in her life had gone wrong. She’d been out of line, pushing at him like that, then screaming at him like she was some sort of maniac. Glancing in her rear-view mirror, she barely recognized the haunted eyes that stared back at her.
    ~~~
    What the hell had he been thinking, tailgating Lindsey on a deserted country road? Of course she thought he’d been ready to attack her. And how long would it take for that story to get back to Zach? Ryan could kiss his dreams of getting his father the coaching job goodbye.
    Lindsey turned on her flasher and slowed by an oversize metal mailbox. He considered driving on, just staying on the country road until he reached a place where he could safely turn around. He could get back to the city, back to his own house, safe and sound, before it got too much later.
    But he really should apologize one last time. Maybe Lindsey would decide that Zach didn’t need to hear anything about this entire goddamn trip.
    He followed her up the driveway.
    She was climbing out of her car as he braked to a stop. Her hands settled on her hips, and she planted her feet like she expected trouble. He took a deep breath and stepped out to try one last apology. “Lindsey—” he began.
    “Forget it,” she said. “I was being a bitch.”
    He raised his eyebrows, ready to protest, but she shook her head before he could say anything.
    “Can I make it up by offering you a beer?”
    He shrugged, and she led the way to the front door. “Have a seat,” she said, gesturing toward the pair of Adirondack chairs that filled half the porch. So, Lindsey was comfortable enough to offer him a drink, but she didn’t