I’m thinking about us returning to the condo tonight.
Until I see who she’s talking to.
All that elation gets smothered with a hundred-pound weight because sitting right next to her is Penelope Ripley.
My hand clenches around the ball.
I’m fucked.
Chapter
Forty-Seven
Foster
* * *
I have no idea how I manage to do it, but I pitch better than I have all season. So much so that there’s a text from my agent waiting for me when I get in the locker room.
Jagger Kale: Finally… this is good. We have a lot of eyes on you right now. Keep it up and something will come through.
Hayes slaps me on the back. “Great job tonight.” He sits on the bench to undress.
“Thanks.”
I would be ecstatic if not for the fact that a woman from my past was talking to the woman carrying my baby, and she didn’t even know it. Now I have to have a very difficult conversation with Callie with the hopes that it doesn’t change our dynamic.
I should’ve seen this coming, but I don’t give Penelope any thought if I’m honest.
I head to the showers, the water washing over me not calming me one bit. The fear that I’ll lose everything we’re building and Callie will walk away from me is eating me up inside.
Hello, childhood trauma, great to see you again.
And just like with the pregnancy news and Hayes, I want to tell Callie as soon as possible. I can’t stomach this torture.
I leave the shower and get dressed, stopping right before I walk out. “Hey, I need to talk to Callie about something. We’ll meet you at Peeper’s, okay?”
Hayes nods, a few lines forming on his forehead. “Everything okay?”
I could tell Hayes, and he might tell me I’m overreacting. That Callie will handle this fine. Surely, she knows I wasn’t celibate before her, but I’m not sure Hayes is aware of how hurt Callie still is from her past relationships. How hard she fights to trust people, men especially. And I’ve worked really hard to get her to trust me. Hell, I even told her about my mom, which is something I’ve never done—with anyone.
“Yeah.” I play it off as best as I can. “It won’t take long.”
I hope.
“Cool, see you there.”
As I walk out of the clubhouse, everyone nods and tells me good game. It’s been a long time since my pitching felt so flawless and effortless. Like I could depend on my arm again.
Some of the families are waiting around, and Callie is with Leighton, having a conversation, as Lincoln and Monroe run around with Penelope’s daughter, Hazel. Standing next to Leighton, Penelope glances up from her phone, and our eyes catch for a moment. She offers me a small smile, but I shut it down immediately.
“Hey, you!” Callie hits my chest with the back of her hand. “What a game. Congrats!”
She’s all smiles. What I really want to do is swoop her into my arms and kiss the shit out of her, but there are a lot of eyes here, and she’s not really mine.
“Foster, they said your fastball hit 103!” Lincoln’s mouth is open, and his eyes are wide.
I ruffle his hair. “It was a good day on the mound.”
