I laugh. “Sure. How can I help?”
“We all know that Cal Raleigh won the home run derby in 2025, but my father insists it’s because he had one more homerun in the final than Rooker, but I say it’s because Rooker’s home run didn’t count because of fan interference. Which one of us is right, Sage?”
Austin puts his hands on his hips, and his father crosses his arms over his chest. There is pressure to pick one over the other and I don’t want to upset his father. I could easily agree with him, but…
“Actually, you’re both wrong.”
Austin drops his arms. “What? No, we can’t be.”
Jane playfully smacks Austin in the chest. “Let the woman finish.”
“Sorry,” he grumbles. “Go ahead.”
“Raleigh did beat Rooker in the ’25 homerun derby but it wasn’t for either of those reasons. The fan interfered with Junior Caminero’s homerun, not Caleigh’s, and the ump ended up counting it anyway. But Caleigh won the derby not because he had the most homeruns, he tied Rooker with 17. To break the tie, the umps decided that Caleigh won because he hit the furthest homerun of the derby.”
Austin’s father smiles widely and shakes his finger at me. “She’s right. I’d forgotten about that.”
Austin tuts sheepishly. “Shoot. You are right. I remember it now.”
“I never forget an All-Star series,” I say, having watched every game since Casey’s rookie year.
Speaking of the devil, I spot him from the corner of my eye walking toward us. His father notices my gaze and smiles. “You’re good for him, you know. He needs someone like you in his life.”
“Someone like me?”
But he doesn’t have a chance to elaborate because Casey arrives and grabs my hand. “Can I talk to you?”
He smiles and my stomach somersaults as though I’m on the tallest rollercoaster. “Sure,” I say, breathlessly.
He leads me onto the dance floor, although there’s only one other couple dancing and pulls me close. As we sway along to some country song I hardly recognize, his body presses against mine. More couples join us and soon the dance floor is nearly full.
“They flock to you like moths to a flame,” I whisper in his ear as I lay my head on his shoulder.
“Who?”
“The people of this town.”
A wave of his cologne hits me as he sharply turns his head to the right and then left. “Maybe it’s a popular song.”
I laugh. “Maybe. But I don’t think so.”
Casey’s back stiffens beneath my palm, and his hand tightens over the one he’s holding as we dance. “Sage, I…”
I close my eyes and smile. My heart anticipates his next words, and I can’t wait to hear them. It feels like I’ve been waiting my whole life for him to say them. It feels as though I’m that teenager in her room, dancing alone with him, no one around us but my posters of him, nothing between us but his jersey. He mumbles something, but I miss it. “Mmm?”
“I’m leaving tomorrow.”
“I know,” I say, softly. Sadly.
“I don’t know when I’ll be back.”
“We’ll figure it out.”
“I won’t be staying in Cedar Brook Falls.”
“It’s okay. I’ll come to the hotel with you.”
He stops dancing and drops his arms. He pulls back, but I resist. Only when he doesn’t resume dancing do I look up. “What’s wrong?”
