My eyes open wide. I cover my mouth in shock as my heart drops to my knees. “Seriously?”
I suddenly can’t breathe. Here this guy is, who’s worked his entire life to get here, and I go and make a mess of things in the first few weeks.
He takes my hands in his. “It’s okay. My coach stood up for me, and I had a good game, so I should be fine.” He sighs before he continues, “I feel really bad though about not bringing Nolan to the field today. The same guy had told me I couldn’t bring kids onto the field after that first game, so I didn’t want to push the subject today.”
I shake my head. “No, don’t worry. Nolan’s fine. Don’t think about him.”
He lets go of my hands and places his palms on either side of my face. “But I want to think about him. I want to think about you.”
He brings his lips to mine.
I instantly forget where we are and only think of him until I hear a guy yell out, “You do remember that’s how you got caught, right?”
I hide in Evan’s shoulder, embarrassed. When I peek out to see who it is, I see Evan flipping Tripp off.
Tripp laughs it off, and Evan grabs my hand to walk us toward the locker room, where I’m sure a very eager little boy is waiting for us.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Evan
Now I see why coaches warned me of girls like her because that little space in my head that used to be occupied with only baseball seems to be filling up with her and Nolan more and more.
We just finished our night game, and I’m racing out of here to get to her.
As I throw my stuff in my bag, I hear Jake off to the side say, “Where are you racing off to in such a hurry?”
I just give him a smirk, then turn to get one more thing.
“Fuck, dude. You got it bad.” He opens his arms out wide. “You’ve worked how hard to get here, and now you’re racing out of here on the daily for some girl?”
I don’t hide my chuckle or feel bad about it as I grab my stuff, swing my bag around my shoulder, and smile at him. “Yep. Sure am. Don’t be jealous that she’s helping my game while you sucked today,” I jab back just for fun.
As I walk out the door, he lets out a loud laugh behind me because he knows I’m full of shit since he had a decent game.
I did my job today, played a good game even, but now it’s time for my personal life. So far, I’ve proven I can do both, and if there’s one thing baseball players are, it’s superstitious. As of right now, I’m continuing to play just as well as I did in the minors, so I’m not changing a thing.
I head straight to Christy’s house, excited that I have the day off tomorrow and I get to go to Nolan’s game tomorrow night. We didn’t discuss me coming over after tonight’s game, but I don’t care. Even if I only get a quick kiss good night, it will be worth it.
When I arrive, I hop out of the truck and walk up to her door, only for it to open up before I get there. Just seeing her standing there makes me stop in my tracks. Her hair is pulled back in a loose ponytail with little pieces falling out, and it’s obvious she’s already taken off all of her makeup to get ready for bed.
All I can think is,This is the real her, and she’s absolutely gorgeous.
I take the next few steps faster than before, picking her up into my arms and kissing her with everything I’ve got.
“God, I missed you,” I say between kisses.
“It’s only been two days since I saw you last.” She giggles.
“Two days is too long. I had to come straight here.”
“I was hoping you would.”
I look into her eyes with a smirk. “So, you were watching out the door for me?”
“Maybe.”
I pick her up, having her wrap her legs around me, and carry her inside. “Glad we’re on the same page here.”
