A woman leaning on the bar smiled at him. “Why aren’t you mad? Guys I know would want that reporter’s blood.”

He took another order from one of the servers, then began to pour more beer.

“I was pissed at first,” he admitted. “Embarrassed, but then I realized it didn’t matter. I was a pitcher for a lot of years. Everybody who watched the game had an opinion about what I did and how I did it. Yet not one of them could come close to doing what I did. I learned there’s always some as**ole who can do a hell of a job on play-by-play but can’t last a second in the game. It’s the same with sex.”

The woman grinned and several of the guys around him laughed.

“The thing is,” Reid continued. “As many women as I’ve been with, I had to learn something. Right?”

“I know you did, darlin’,” the woman said with a smile that told him she was one of the many.

Not that he remembered anything about whatever time he’d spent with her.

Well, hell. What did that say about him? He could only imagine the choice words Lori would have for him if she knew there were women who had been in his bed and he didn’t remember anything about them. He couldn’t even pick them out of a line-up.

He continued filling drink orders and talking to the customers. No one else made any cracks about him, but he barely noticed. There was only one opinion that mattered. And the only way to keep her coming back was to make sure he was the kind of man she would want to be with for the rest of her life.

FRIDAY AFTERNOON, Reid got back to Gloria’s place about four-thirty. He took the stairs two at a time. Lori was working until six, and then she was joining him upstairs. He had big plans for the night. He’d ordered a great dinner, then he was going to seduce Lori three or four times, after which they’d have dessert.

As he’d spent a couple of hours in the gym, he wanted a shower before she showed up. He walked into his bedroom just as he pulled off his sweatshirt. So he didn’t see his surprise right away.

“Hi, Reid,” an unfamiliar voice said.

He froze in the act of dropping his sweatshirt, swore silently, then shrugged the shirt back into place. He sucked in a breath, then turned to look at the bed.

Two women lay there. Two blond, pretty, young women. They’d pulled back the covers, fluffed the pillows and stretched out na**d on his sheets.

Totally na**d.

He barely glanced at their bodies before returning his attention to their faces. He recognized the twins. The three of them had had a weekend together and then the twins had gone on CNN to promote some damn book. They’d also taken a couple of pokes at him.

The one on the right sat up then crawled toward the end of the bed.

“Are you mad at us, baby? We were bad. Very, very bad. Do you want to punish us?”

Her large, perfect br**sts hung down, swaying gently with each movement. Her skin was pale, her ni**les nearly red.

The one on the left smiled. “You could spank us. Wouldn’t that be fun?”

Several feelings crashed in on him, but the overriding one was complete and total panic. What if Lori walked in on them right now? What would she think? There was no way in hell he could explain these two. He didn’t want to explain them—he wanted them gone.

“Let’s have some fun, Reid,” the first one said, her blond hair falling over her shoulders. She licked her lips. “Really hot, na**d fun. You’ll like it. I promise.”

“Me, too,” her sister said.

He couldn’t get out of there fast enough. Not caring if he looked liked an idiot, he turned and ran from the room, then sped along the hall and raced down the stairs. He found Lori in with his grandmother and asked to speak with her.

Lori followed him into the hallway.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. “You have the weirdest look on your face. Are you hurt or sick?”

He didn’t know what to say to her. How could he tell her the truth? She wouldn’t understand. Lori had issues. Some made sense to him and some didn’t but he knew they were there.

He touched her cheek. “You matter to me,” he said. “You know that, right?”

Her eyes narrowed. “What have you done?”

“I haven’t done anything. I swear. It wasn’t me. It’s not my fault.”

“The eternal cry of the irresponsible male.”

“It isn’t. Dammit, Lori, you know me. You know that I’m a decent guy. I would never hurt you.”

She folded her arms across her chest. “Tell me.”

“I want you,” he said, knowing he was getting it all wrong, but not sure what else to say. “You mean a lot to me. More than a lot. I like what we have together and you like it, too. I would never do anything to mess things up.”

She raised her eyebrows. “But?”

He sucked in a breath. “I came home and went upstairs because you’re coming up and I wanted to take a shower. I walked into my bedroom and they were just there. I didn’t let them in. I’ve been gone. You know that, right? I’ve been at the gym. They were just there.”

He paused and waited, braced for the explosion.

“Who was where?”

“These two women. You don’t know them. They’re baseball groupies. Twins. I want them to leave, but I don’t know how to make them. I’m afraid they’ll take anything I say as encouragement.”

He couldn’t read her expression. Something flashed in her eyes, but it was gone before he could identify it.

“They’re upstairs?” she asked.

“In my bed. Naked.”

Her eyes widened. “You have two na**d women in your bed?”

He nodded frantically, then grabbed her arm. “You have to help me. I swear, I didn’t contact them. I don’t want them here. I don’t want any of this.”

One corner of her mouth twitched. “Is the big bad baseball player afraid?”

“Terrified.”

“You expect me to go up there and throw them out?”

“That would be great.”

“I’m assuming you’ve slept with them.”

He glanced down and shuffled his feet. “It was a long time ago.”

“Both of them? At the same time?”

He nodded glumly.

“Impressive.”

He looked at her. Okay, maybe he wasn’t the best judge of women, but if he had to guess, he would say Lori wasn’t totally furious with him.

Her mouth twitched again. “What did you want me to say to them?”

“That we’re together. That you don’t stand for this sort of thing. Not ever. You could tell them I’m not interested, if you want. Because I’m not. You’re the only woman I want in my life.”

“All right.”

She turned and walked up the stairs. He followed, not sure how this was going to go, but relieved to have Lori take charge.

She walked through the living room and into his bedroom. The twins were still sprawled na**d on his bed.

The one on the right smiled when she saw Lori.

“Hi. We’ve never done a foursome before. This could be fun.”

Lori glanced around the room, then walked over to the neatly folded clothing on the dresser and picked it up.

“Aren’t you two a little old for games like this?” she asked. “Showing up na**d in a guy’s bed seems beneath you. You’re attractive women. Do something with your lives. Go to college, have a career. Be more than your bust size.”

The twins looked at each other, then at Lori. “But we like this.”

Lori tossed them their clothes. “Do you? Really? Are you proud of yourselves? Can you tell your grandmother how you spend your day? When you were little, didn’t you want more than this?”

The twin on the left blinked. “I always liked working with animals. I thought I’d work in a vet’s office, you know?”

“Fine. Do that. Do anything. In about ten years your looks are going to go. Then what? You need to think about your future. Open an IRA, start learning about current events. Grow up. In the meantime, get dressed and get out of here. I’m with Reid and he doesn’t cheat on me.”

The twins looked at each other again, then shrugged. “Okay,” the one on the right said.

They got up and dressed.

“We’re sorry about barging in,” the spokestwin said. “We didn’t know Reid was serious about anyone.”

Reid had kept quiet through the conversation, sensing things would go better if Lori was in charge. Now he walked over to her and put his arm around her.

“I’m serious,” he said clearly. “Totally serious. Involved. We’re together.”

The twins smiled. “That’s good. Okay. Well, good luck with everything.”

They collected their purses and left.

He waited until their footsteps had faded, then looked at Lori.

“You saved me.”

“Apparently. I can’t believe you dated those two. They give airheads a bad name.”

He stared into her hazel eyes. “I didn’t date them, Lori. I had sex with them. That’s who I was. A lowlife bastard who accepted every interesting invitation sent my way. I didn’t require anything of them and I sure as hell didn’t require anything of myself.”

It was as honest as he’d ever been in his life.

“I’m not proud of that past. I won’t apologize for it, but I’m done with it. I’m not that guy anymore.”

He braced himself for a crack or worse, her withdrawal. Instead she leaned in and kissed him.

“I know,” she whispered. “You’ve turned into someone quite amazing.”

He liked the sound of that. He put his hands on her waist and pulled her close. “I’ve always been amazing.”

“Okay, maybe. But now it doesn’t have anything to do with getting na**d.”

He cupped her rear and squeezed. “It could.”

She laughed softly. “I have to get downstairs to your grandmother, but we’re on for later, right?”

“Oh, yeah.”

She smiled and he smiled and then it was like someone hit him in the chest with a baseball bat. He felt the impact and the air rushed out of him and he couldn’t breathe.

He loved her. Honest to God, he loved her. Everything about her. The way she talked, how her brain worked, the scent of her skin, her sense of humor, her combination of toughness and caring.

She was the best part of his world and she’d made him into a better man. He wanted her and he needed her.

He wanted to be with her always. He wanted to marry her.

“Reid? Are you all right?”

“I’m good.”

He wanted to tell her right that second, then he hesitated. Telling Lori he loved her was a big deal and he wanted to say it right. He wanted the moment to be special and powerful. He didn’t want her thinking he was just grateful for how she’d handled the twins.

Tonight, he thought. When they were alone. He would confess his feelings and propose. Was there time to go buy a ring?

Her cell phone rang. She pulled it out of her pocket and glanced at the screen.

“It’s Madeline,” she said, paling slightly. “She would only bother me at work if there was an emergency.” She pushed the talk button. “Hello?”

Reid waited while she listened. As he watched, the worry faded and elation took its place.

“Are you sure?” she asked. “For real? When? Oh, my God! I’ll be right there. I know. It’s amazing. I love you.”

She hung up and grinned at him. “She got the call. There’s a donor.”

CHAPTER NINETEEN

LORI SAT on Madeline’s bed and counted socks. “We don’t have to worry about you bringing everything,” she said. “I can go get anything you need.”

“I know.” Madeline’s lips turned up in a smile, but her eyes looked worried. “I’ll feel better when I have my suitcase packed.”

Lori suspected her sister’s issues weren’t about the suitcase. “Are you okay?”

“Sure. I’m scared but excited. Did I mention scared?”

“Scared?” Reid asked as he carried in an empty suitcase and put it on Madeline’s bed. “Who’s scared?”

“No one,” Madeline said with a smile. “Just maybe a little chicken.”

“Which beats being a big chicken,” Reid said. “Or a duck.”

Madeline laughed.

Lori stood and pulled her sister close. “This is a great thing. You know that, right? It’s your chance.”

“I know. I’m so grateful to find a match. I wasn’t sure we ever would. I’m such a difficult blood type. But we did and now I have a chance again. That’s all good. Reid, I don’t want you to think I’m not grateful. You put yourself out there for me.”

“I delivered an important message,” he said. “Nothing more.” He patted her arm. “I’ll leave you two to your packing.”

When he was gone Madeline sighed. “He’s a good man. I just wish there’d been more time.”

“What do you mean?” Lori asked.

“I’m not ready to do this.” Madeline held up her hand before Lori could protest. “I know. Without a transplant, I die. I want the surgery. It’s just…”

Lori understood. They were talking about a serious operation. “You have a great doctor. Remember that.”

Madeline stepped back and smiled. “I do. Still, it’s weird to think about someone else’s liver in my body. It sounds so gross.”