Faye’s voice grew thick. “I hate that people see you as my boyfriend and Dylan as a side thing.”
“Me too,” I replied.
Dylan let out a short laugh. “You’re so calm for a guy who probably wants to break his phone in half.”
“I’m not calm,” I corrected, still pacing the small hotel room. “I’m focused. Because if I lose my shit, it doesn’t help either of you.” I was also exhausted from playing nine innings and having the worst game of my career, but I wasn’t thinking about it.
“I love you,” Faye whispered.
“I love you.” Dylan didn’t hesitate. “Both of you.”
My breath caught for a moment. Dylan and I had joked about loving each other over the years, we had probably even said it to each other in a friend or sibling way, but things were different now and there was so much more behind those words.
“And I love you too.” I let out a long exhale to compose myself because the three of us needed to be on the same page with what was going on. “Okay. Here’s the immediate move. Faye, stay with Morgan tonight. Don’t read the comments.”
“I already did,” she admitted, and the defeat in her voice made my fists clench.
“Okay,” I replied, forcing myself not to spiral. “Then you stop now. Dylan, call your manager back and tell him what’s actually going on. I’m calling PR and telling them we’re not issuing a statement tonight. If anyone tries to force an answer, we say ‘no comment’ and stick to it.”
They both agreed, and after we said our goodbyes, I called Lila.
She picked up immediately. “Jase.”
“Yeah,” I answered. “I saw it.”
“Of course you did,” she responded, already in work mode. “I need to know if there’s anything we should be concerned about.”
“The only thing I’m concerned about is you guys panicking and making it worse. I’m not making a statement today.”
There was a pause. “Your instinct is to protect her, and I respect that,” she said. “But you also have a brand now, and the team has a brand, and you need to understand …”
“I understand, but I’m not going to lie or throw anyone under the bus. If you need a quote, it’s ‘No comment.’”
“Okay. ‘No comment’ is acceptable.”
“Good.”
“And Jase,” she added. “Whatever this is in your personal life, be smart about it.”
“I am being smart,” I stated.
“All right. Keep your head down tomorrow. We’ll talk again after batting practice.”
“Got it,” I responded, then ended the call.
I tossed the phone onto the bed and stood there for a second, breathing through my nose, trying to convince my body that this was survivable.
It was.
But it was also going to be a problem until we faced it together.
And that meant Vegas.
A rushof happiness washed over me the second I saw Dylan, his baseball cap pulled low, leaning against a column outside baggage claim at the Las Vegas airport.
He pushed off the post when he spotted me, a massive grin on his face.
I didn’t bother with words. I walked straight into him and wrapped him up in a giant hug. He pressed his face against my shoulder for half a second as if he needed it, as if he was trying not to kiss me like I wanted to kiss him.
