Hudson doubles over, the two of them howling in obnoxious laughter.
I roll my eyes, but my lip betrays me with a twitch. “Glad my life is providing you with such quality entertainment,” I deadpan as we enter the Honky Tonk clubhouse.
“Hey, man,” Easten says, his tone growing a touch more serious. “We’re only trying to help.”
“And by help, he means relentlessly mocking you until you cave and tell us what the fuck is going on,” Hudson adds as he walks toward his stall and sets down his gear.
“Nothing is going on,” I snap. “Did you dipshits ever stop to think that Hollis and I are just two friends doing our best to stay civil at work?”
“Oh, so is that why you’ve been in such a shit mood?” Hudson presses, either oblivious or just not caring how pissed I’m getting, though right now I’m going with the latter. “She stopped giving you any?”
My fists clench as I close my eyes and blow out a breath. Normally I don’t mind a little teasing. It’s what we all do. But today my patience is about as thin as the maturity level in this locker room.
Hudson holds up his hands. “Hey! Sorry, but it’s like we said earlier, you suck ass at keeping secrets. Everyone knew the second you two began fu—” he starts but stops as he notices the death glare I’m shooting his way.
“Boning,” Easten happily jumps in, clearly not as triggered by my annoyance.
“Exactly,” Hudson agrees. “It’s not like you two were subtle about it.”
I blow out a loud, shaky breath, still doing my best to harness the boiling anger bubbling beneath my skin. I’m not looking to say anything I’ll regret. They are two of my closest friends, after all, even if they’re currently testing just how flexible the definition of friendship really is.
I drop onto the bench in front of my locker and bury my face in my hands. “Okay, fine. Yes, things were good with Hollis, but she made it pretty fucking clear she’s done with me now, so what the fuck am I supposed to do about it?” I ask, glancing up, even if I know damn well these two idiots are the last people I should be getting relationship advice from.
“Fuck if I know,” Easten admits. “But I’ve also never really pegged you as a guy who gives up easily.”
“Plus.” Hudson says, taking a seat next to me as he gives my shoulder a light pat. “We’ve seen you two together. I don’t think she’s as over you as you’re making it sound. I saw her today, and she looked just as miserable as you.”
The words aren’t comforting. If anything, they only make me feel worse. I’m the one who pushed her into this mess, and now she’s forced to pay the price as well.
“Fuck,” I mutter into my hands.
“It’s obvious you’re still in love with her, so come on,” Easten scoffs. “Do something about it. You can’t tell me that you’re just going to let her slip away.”
I drag my hands down my face and arch an eyebrow. Love? That’s a pretty serious word to be throwing out there, and one I know for a fact I’ve never said out loud to anyone but my family.
“What?” he asks, looking equally confused. “Come on. We all know you’re in love with her.”
“It’s been pretty fucking obvious,” Hudson agrees, giving my back a final pat before standing. “We’ve seen you around plenty of women, but Mason Fletcher in love? He’s a whole new kind of beast.”
Am I really in love with Hollis? I suppose it would make sense why I’ve felt so fucking miserable since I got that offer and she kicked me out of her apartment. It would also explain why my chest constantly feels like it’s been cracked wide open, along with the constant, dull ache that seems to follow me around everywhere I go.
I just assumed it was from the stress of figuring out the future of my baseball career, but what if it’s actually all because of her?
“For arguments sake, let’s say you’re right and I am,” I pause, lowering my voice, “in love… there's a lot you guys don’t know. This isn’t just a case of me being able to walk into her office, confess my feelings, and everything going back to normal. Things are well... complicated,” I explain, as a new fresh wave of guilt washes over me.
These guys are my best friends, and they should’ve been the first ones I told about my offers. I kept telling myself I’d do it when the time was right, but the full and honest truth is, I was too scared to say it aloud, because when I finally did, everything would come to a head and I’d be forced to make that life-altering choice.
This is one of the biggest decisions I’ll ever make. The last thing I need to do is make a rash and permanent decision over what I hope are only temporary feelings.
“Okay… so,” Easten says, leaning forward as he spins his hand, urging me to explain.
“A few Major League teams have reached out to my agent,” I blurt, the relief instant at finally having it out there.
Both heads snap toward me, eyes wide with gaping grins.
“What? Are you serious?” Hudson asks, bouncing with excitement. “Dude, that’s fucking awesome and so well deserved.”
“Hell yeah it is.” Easten beams, giving my shoulder a congratulatory slap that leaves a soft sting in its wake. "So this means you’re considering it, then?”
