“Noprobablyabout it, brother.” He gives a haphazard salute, then heads toward the pitching tunnels, leaving me with my renewed enthusiasm for moving in a woman I barely know but am dangerously attracted to.
I shuffle that thought to the back of my mind while I finish my workout, but one phone call on my way back to my apartment drags it right back to the front. My agent, Brian, and I have been playing a lot of phone tag the past few days. Truthfully, he’s been chasing me down more than I have him. His reaction to my news about being an instant single dad wasn’t exactly warm. I get it. I’m a commodity to him. And my stock value got fuzzy the minute Holly showed up. But I’m still driven, and I need him to see that. In fact, I’m more driven than ever now that my little girl’s home life depends on my performance on the diamond.
I answer the call and pull over about a block away from home.
“Hey, Brian. Sorry I haven’t gotten back to you. It’s been busy.” I hold my breath for his response.
“Yeah, babies will do that,” he says through laughter. I roll my eyes at his attempt to be light. There’s a tinge of scorn in his comment.
“Anyway—” I may need him, but one day, I’m going to get called up, and he sure as hell isn’t negotiating my contract.
“Right. Well, it’s about that. I know we talked about you maybe joining the team on their away stretch in June, before the All-Star break.”
I sit up tall and lean forward, my heart racing as I rest my forearm on my steering wheel. Jake was right—Idoneed Lindsey’s help for more than a few hours each day.
“They put the brakes on that,” he adds. And just like that, I sink to the back of my seat and slouch as if I’m trying to hide. Iam.
I fucking blew it.
“Don’t get discouraged, my man!” I hate when he calls me that.
“Right,” I sigh out. I’m not great at bluffing.
“Brooks, it was insane that they were even talking about pulling you up for a series or two. It’s your rookie season. Hell, most guys never make it out of Sweetwater. Sit tight. Your time is coming. Just not this year.”
Not this year.
I do the mental math, which puts me right back here a year from now, hoping for the same phone call, with a different result. A year. In Sweetwater. It’s not like I have some great life in Cali to get back to during the offseason. Or some fancy facility to keep up my training at. I’d be better off staying here and using the tools in the Mavericks’ clubhouse. Maybe giving lessons to some of the high school kids. And giving Holly stability for the first year of her life.
“Okay,” I breathe out.
“Start stringing those hits together, slugger. I believe in you. Hey, I gotta run.” He ends the call so fast that hhe cuts off his last word.
Slugger. BeatsMy Man.
SIX
LINDSEY
Brooks messaged me early this morning, about an hour before I was set to head to his place with the boys. Of course, Brandon has yet to drop them off, and Brooks has to get to the field soon, so now I’m stuck pacing my parents’ front lawn while I wait for two men to show up and dump news on me.
BROOKS:Can we talk about something?
What was I supposed to say?No, we can’t talk. Not about anything. Not ever.
I replied:Sure.
I’m sure Brooks wants to fire me. He’s been quiet ever since our kiss. Which, while I did like it, that man kissed me.So what if I kissed back!
Brandon took the boys for an extra weekend to celebrate their fourth birthdays with his family. Their real birthday isn’t until Wednesday, but since his parents were in town for something else and rented some penthouse at a hotel with an indoor waterpark, I couldn’t exactly put my foot down. Plus, we still don’t have a parenting plan nailed down. Mostly because he wants everything, and I would prefer he walk straight off a cliff.
Brooks pulls up first, and my heart kicks at the bones in my chest.
Please don’t make that kiss more than it was. Please don’t back out on me. I need this job.
“Howdy,” I say, lifting a hand as he exits his driver’s side door. I instantly feel every bit of my country roots.
I cross my arms over my stomach in an attempt to settle my nerves. Brooks moves to the back seat, and when he unfastens Holly’s carrier, I exhale through my trembling lips. He’s not firing me today, at least.
