Taking a ball out of the bucket, he rubbed it between his palms as if he were trying to get the scent of the ball into his skin. He stepped onto the field and pointed to Joe at first base before he threw the ball. Joe caught it and tossed it to the second baseman, Devin Capiro. They threw it back and forth while Dustin jogged his way to short. With a careful glance, he checked the seats above the bullpen.
She’s here.
Wearing a generic ball cap, her hair falling down around her shoulders, Clover took in the ball field with wide, excited eyes. Her hands moved as she talked to the woman sitting next to her. Dustin thought it might be the same woman from the club the other week, but he couldn’t be sure. He hadn’t spent much time looking at Clover’s friend that night—Clover had had his full attention.
For all the brightness and beauty the stadium lights provided, they paled in comparison to how beautiful Clover was when she smiled. He hadn’t seen her honest smile since the day she stopped him on the street and gave him the stupid essentials bag. That smile had grabbed hold of his heart, playing it like a puppeteer and rendering him speechless.
“Dustin!” shouted Joe.
Dustin barely had time to raise his glove and stop the ball from hitting him in the face. He easily threw to Ricky at third, his eyes going back to Clover. She sat on the edge of the seat, her hands clasped and her eyes drinking in everything from the mow lines on the field to the images on the JumboTron. He didn’t think there was anything more attractive in the world than a woman excited to watch a game.
He dropped his head, shielding his face with his hat as he smiled. He shouldn’t be this happy to have Clover in his seats, but a sense of fun tickled the night. A couple kids sitting a few rows in front of Clover waved to him. Dustin looked down at the ball in his hand and then lifted his arm to throw. The kids screamed and waved their arms, but he wasn’t aiming for them. Clover was looking his direction, so he tossed the ball to her. Just as it left his hand, she turned to her friend, and to his horror, the ball hit her in the shoulder and bounced away. The kids scrambled for it.
Her mouth dropped open, and her hand covered her upper arm. She might have a bruise. He’d been excited when he threw that ball and wanted to make sure it got to her. Some guy with a beer in his hand and a Redrocks shirt came up with the ball and held it above his head. Dork. The game hadn’t even started yet.
Dustin mouthedSorryto Clover. She glared. The umpires came out on the field, and the team lined up for the National Anthem.
“Nice,” goaded Brayden. “That’ll make the blooper real.”
Dustin punched him in the arm. “Shut it.”
Brayden shook his head and pulled his hat off and over his heart. Thankfully, Brayden didn’t notice that it was Clover in the stands. Or, if he did, he didn’t comment. Good thing, too, because Dustin had no desire to explain how she ended up in his seats. He’d given the tickets to the manager of The Pantry. He’d hoped Clover would get them, but he didn’t dare specify who he wanted to see at the game.
He wasn’t sure why he wanted Clover there. Motivation was the most likely and easiest answer. Dustin wanted Clover to see him play, wanted to show her what he could do with a bat and a low curveball.
Not much happened in the first inning. In the bottom of the second, Devin hit a fly ball into the dugout. Dustin ended up with it in his mitt. He turned to the fans above the dugout and held up the ball.
Dustin made eye contact with Clover. The stands and the fans and even the jumbotron faded away, and he had this feeling that he’d love to play catch with Clover. That they’d be able to read one another like a catcher and a pitcher should. He grinned and sent the ball flying her way.
One of the kids with a mitt jumped up and snagged it out of the air. He celebrated, showing off to his friend and his dad. Clover clapped eagerly for him, yet she hadn’t lifted her hands to even try for the ball.
Dustin groused and sat back down. Getting a ball to a woman in the stands wasn’t supposed to be this hard. After two attempts, one that was obvious he was throwing directly to her, he couldn’t make another attempt without the team realizing he had his eye on her.
The game continued with the Redrocks trading runs with Oakland. In the bottom of the seventh, a fly ball bounced and landed in Brayden’s mitt. He turned to Dustin with laughter in his eyes. “This is how it’s done, bro.” He dragged Dustin up to the top step, pointed to Clover, waved off the guys crowding around her, and underhanded the ball.
Clover caught it, barely, and jumped up and down, holding it over her head. She was laughing with her friend and smiling and doing all the things Dustin had pictured her doing when she caughthisball. They hastened to sit back down, and Dustin used his foot to shove Brayden off the bench. The guys cracked up, pointing at him. Brayden chuckled from the ground. “If I’d known you’d be this ticked, I would have done that three innings ago.”
“You suck.”
Brayden laughed harder.
Dustin took a seat on the bench and pulled his hat down low. She should have caught his ball.
Chapter Fifteen
Clover yawned as she placed heads of lettuce on the shelf. The yawn ended in a smile. She worked the night shift at the hotel five nights a week and didn’t feel this tired. Being at the baseball game last night was too much excitement, and she couldn’t fall asleep when she got home. She ended lying in bed with her phone, scanning the Redrocks website and watching YouTube videos. Some of them had her laughing into her pillow—baseball players had a sense of humor she wasn’t expecting. They did choreographed dances in the outfield and held dance-offs during rainouts. They charged the mound to protect their teammates, and they hit batters who had too much attitude. Rivalries between teams were as big as rivalries between siblings. In short, baseball was a family, and she wanted to be a part of it.
Dustin’s media circus yesterday had been good for The Pantry—much to her chagrin. They’d gotten a donation of fresh fruits and vegetables from a local grocery store this afternoon. The food chain was a major sponsor for the Redrocks. Canned goods came in fairly regularly, but the fresh stuff was always a blessing. Jane was in the office, texting some of the regulars on their government issued cells about the apples and bananas so they would know to come in before the fruit was gone.
Clover hummed along to the love song playing over the speakers. They kept the station tuned to a local oldies favorite. Music was subjective, but no one objected to Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley.
The door whooshed open, and Dustin charged in, his arms stiff. Clover found herself smiling at him. He’d looked so good in his uniform last night—even better than on television. He stopped on the other side of the produce and folded his arms over his chest. His arms bulged in the tight workout shirt, and she swallowed.
Clover jerked herself out of admiring his physique. She wasn’t that shallow. Dustin was a fine specimen of manhood. Usually, she felt threatened around a guy that big. That was part of her mother’s training—stay away from men who are bigger than you. Dustin didn’t give her that sense of danger. Even though he was glaring at her and acting like a bear protecting his cave, she still felt safe.
Her eyes didn’t get much past combing over his arms when he snapped, “Do you even know how to catch a ball?”
Clover’s defenses sped from zero to one hundred at his tone. She planted a hand on her hip. “No.”
