“Of course we do,” the blonde says, giggling into the straw of her margarita.“We’d recognize players from the Bears anywhere.”
The brunette turns back to me with determination. “Can I buy you a drink?”
Before I can answer and shut her down for good, another presence presses into my side, familiar and warm.
Indy doesn’t make a sound, just slides onto my lap like she belongs there—because she does. Her arms loop around my neck, fingers sliding through the short hair at the base.
Then she kisses me.
Hot.
Claiming.
Unrestrained.
Showing everyone who owns my heart.
The bar disappears, and for a second, it’s only me and her. I kiss her back just as possessively, my hands gripping her waist tight enough to leave marks.
She pulls back, just enough to take a breath, then turns her head to the brunette with a sweet smile on her face. “He’s spoken for.”
Indy turns back to me and kisses me again. Slower this time. Deeper. Like she has all the time in the world.
This kiss is meant to be seen byeveryone.
Behind us, a whistle cuts through the bar.
And another.
Cheers roar out around us, Andromeda vibrating with an excited energy I know is meant for me and Indy.
I smile against her mouth, laughing softly, my heart full and grateful.
“I love this woman!” I shout, lifting her arm and mine into the air. “Obsessed with her, actually. She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I’ll spend every day of my life making sure she never forgets it.”
The bar erupts, loud enough to rival the cheers at Coit Stadium after a game-winning play.
Indy’s breath catches and she presses her forehead against mine, eyes shining.
“I love you too,” she whispers, nudging her nose against mine before finding my mouth again.
The cheering fades, dissolving into background noise as I hold her close, our kiss lingering.
All my life I’ve played by the rules and chased wins. I’ve spent every season swinging for the fences, convinced that with one more victory, I’d truly be happy.
But my happiness had already taken a permanent spot in my heart when I was just a kid—long before baseball taught me how to distract myself from loving someone I couldn’t have.
Indy isn’t just the love of my life.
She’smy home run.
EPILOGUE
Four Months Later
The hot September sun blazes down on me, my skin sticking to the metal stadium seat with every shift of my legs. The paper cup of lemonade in my hand sweats almost as much as I am, condensation rolling down onto my fingers as I peer down at the field, instantly finding Gareth.
“What do you think Austin’s getting chastised about now?” Hailey asks curiously next to me, nudging my arm with hers. Declan's girlfriend’s wearing a black Bears cap over her fiery red hair and a beautiful red sundress that hugs every curve of her body. Gareth introduced us a couple months ago and we’ve become fast friends, both happy to have another female to hang out with whenever the guys get together.
