“Aww,” Jayden’s mom hums, her hand covering the center of her chest.
I’d laugh at the corniness, but truthfully? His words made me melt a little, too. And when I meet Jayden’s waiting gaze, the same sentiments emanate from his expression.
“You know I had zero say in this bet, don’t you?” I take his waiting hand, and he walks with me toward the turf behind home plate.
“I do. It wasn’t fair, so I’ll give you an out. Right now. If you honestly have zero desire to kiss me, just say so, and we’ll walk to our separate dugouts and meet up later for dinner.”
My head falls to the side.
“It’s not that I don’t want to kiss you, Jay.”
“Then what is it?”
I glance to my right, to the stands with families still seated, and a few diehard fans who might know the gossipy stuff that isn’t entirely true. Jayden’s still a player and I’m still a coach. And now we’re rivals, for Christ’s sake!
“What if I promise you that nothing is going to happen?”
I shake my head and chuckle, my fingers threading through his.
“You can’t promise that, Jayden.”
“I don’t know, Colby.” He scans the same seats and clusters of people I did, then brings his gaze back to me. “I kinda think I can. Trust me? On this?”
I take a deep breath, my lips already buzzing with the desperate want to kiss him. I lick them, and his attention darts to the spot where my tongue peeks out.
“Fuck it,” I finally say, slinging an arm around his neck and stepping up on my toes, my lips pressing into his while the rest of the world around us whirls into a muted haze of nothingness.
Jayden’s hand slides up my neck and into my hair, and he leans me just enough that my mouth opens to his, and our kiss deepens.
A single shrill blast breaks through our perfect tiny world, and I’d recognize my dad’s finger whistle anywhere. I giggle, my lips tickling against Jayden’s as he laughs, too. Our kiss dissolves into a blissful moment, and while my cheeks burn from the public display, Jayden was right—nothing else happens.
“There. See? The world is still here,” he says, lifting my chin and dusting one more kiss on my lips before stepping back and smiling.
“It sure is,” I say. “I guess we may as well make it ours.”
EPILOGUE
3 YEARS LATER
TEXAS ANNOUNCERS STEVE SPUREL AND VIC BANDOS
STEVE:It’s a beautiful day at the ballpark. One ten start today, and Vic, I just have to tell you . . . love is in the air.
VIC:I know what you mean, Steve. I feel it. The birds are chirping. The bees are making honey. And someone . . . is having a baby!
(Laughing)
STEVE:All right, for those of you just tuning in for this pre-game and thinking we’ve gone crazy, let me fill you in. It was almost exactly three years ago when Texas made that horrible trade. You remember that trade, Vic?
VIC:I sure do, Steve. We sent Jayden Vargas to Chicago for a pitcher who threw . . . five innings for us? Maybe six?
STEVE:To say that move was a disaster is minimizing things, Vic. We had a chance to have both Vargas brothers on the same roster when both of them were hot. Now, tell me that wouldn’t have made a difference there at the end when we were trying to squeeze in to that wild card spot.
VIC:It sure would have, Steve.
STEVE:But it’s a new day. A new dawn. And folks, Jayden Vargas is once again wearing number ten in Texas red and blue. And today? Today we’re going to find out if he and his wife, hitting coach Colby Kessler, are having a boy or a girl.
VIC:So that’s why love is in the air. I see what you’re saying now, Steve.
