29. JOSH
JOSH
It was our first day back to work after her Papi’s birthday.
I was trying not to make things awkward when we showed up, separate, of course.
April insisted, and despite my protest, she’d won.
To me, it was ridiculous. We had just spent the last two days fucking on every surface of my condo.
Part of me wanted to show up to work with her.
I was starting to want the guys to know she was with me. Something had changed this weekend. As much as we were having fun, I didn’t want to hide it. I didn’t want her to feel as if I was ashamed of her. And this morning actually felt like we were sneaking around for real, not pretending.
Just before we had the huddle, I jumped into the warm-up room.
April was stocking supplies in the corner.
She looked adorable with her five-foot-three frame on her tiptoes, trying to reach the top shelf.
I tucked in behind her, giving her ass a squeeze before taking the items from her and placing them.
“What if someone saw that?” she hissed, glancing around.
I shrugged. Truth was, I wanted someone to see us. “You’re sexy when you’re flustered.”
She swatted at me, but I caught her hand, and tugged her into my chest long enough to inhale her scent.
Christ, it was like a lightning bolt to my cock.
I dipped my head and planted a kiss on her soft lips.
She was shocked for a second, but then her hands gripped my jersey and she kissed me back.
Soft, but territorial, and all I wanted to do was get lost in her.
But she pulled away at the sound of the coach coming down the hall.
I winked at her and backed up, just in case.
“Tonight?” I whispered.
She nodded and I left with a smile wider than my growing cock.
“Alright, listen up!” The assistant coach, Gentry’s loud voice boomed over the room.
“It’s game day, we’re coming off two losses.
” There was a collective grumble throughout the room.
“We’re back on home turf, so make it fucking count.
Let’s break this damn tie for the conference and win us the game! ”
Catcalls and whistles rang throughout the room as we took our walk toward the field.
It was one of our family days. Out of all the events and themed days we ran throughout the season, this was always a team fave.
There was nothing like watching the kids’ faces light up as they ran wildly around the bases or got to hit a ball, even if it just trickled out in front of them.
We celebrated each hit like it was knocked out of the park.
It gave us some extra pep in the game, something about not wanting to disappoint these little kids with our jerseys on, staring at us like freaking superheroes. We fought hard.
We were in the bottom of the fourth when my peripheral vision tracked April in the dugout talking to Kev.
Something about watching their interaction had my stomach flipping.
The way they laughed like it was an inside joke before he brushed his arm across hers had a flood of rage ripping through me. When did they get so chummy?
“Josh! Focus!” Jake yelled across the field as Thompson’s bat connected hard with the ball and launched it right at me. Fuck.
Sprinting forward, I tried to get underneath it, but I was slower than I should have been. It bounced a few inches from my grasp, landing with a thud. I raced to pick it up and toss it to first base, but I was a second too late as he slid over the plate and the ump shouted safe.
A loud echo of boos rang throughout the stadium as I watched Jake and Carlos both shake their heads in disappointment. Jake shot me a glare that said, get your head in the game and off April.
Yeah, yeah. I was trying. It wasn’t easy though, watching her looking delicious in her team gear. The way she filled out her stretchy pants and top. Did she always look that good in uniform? Why hadn’t I noticed? My eyes scanned the dugout as the next batter stepped up to plate.
Focus. I lectured myself. Tearing my gaze away from her and forcing myself to watch the next batter swing and miss for strike one.
There goes the ball and another miss.
“Strike!” the ump bellowed, again.
He stepped back from the plate and kicked the bat with his toe before raising it above his head and stretching again, then stepping back up to the plate.
Kev wound up and threw his signature curve ball and fuck, despite the large crowd, I could hear the ball slicing through the air before the bat connected with it.
This time, I was ready. I waited until it was right where I needed it to be.
I sprinted forward as fast as I could and launched in the air.
My glove clutched the ball as I fell to the ground.
The crowd erupted into a fit of cheers and the inning ended.
We ran in from the field and my eye caught sight of a little boy about five or six, waving at us, cheering with his little jersey and foam finger nearly the size of him.
I stopped just before him, and personally handed him the ball.
There had been a lot of jackasses lately stealing balls from kids as if they were entitled to them.
News flash, they weren’t. They were assholes.
I wanted to make sure there was no mistake who I was giving it to.
When I handed him the ball, his face lit up to reveal he was missing his two front teeth.
“Thanks!” he said with a slight whistle, which made me smile.
“I’ll sign it after the game,” I added, before jogging back to the dugout. Leaving him to brag to his family about his new ball.
The locker room was in good spirits. We had won the game by just one, but it was enough.
“Nice fucking catch, man!” Jake came around the corner, fresh from the shower.
“Thanks.” I nodded, tossing my shirt over my head.
“Duuude!” Kev snapped the towel in my direction, making me flinch. “I swear you leapt a foot in the air for that catch.”
“Okay. A little dramatic, Kev.” I chuckled. However, I’d take the praise. It felt fricking good to redeem myself after that shitty miss.
“You coming out tonight?” Jake asked.
I tilted my head at him. “Depends on who’s going.”
“Mitch and Lisa are in town, Sam and Gia, us, Kev and…” He turned to Kev, “What’s the girl you’re seeing this week?”
Kev rolled his eyes. “Leah.”
I paused. “Sounds awfully couple-y. Not sure I wanna be like, the eighth wheel.”
Jake grinned. “We can solve that.”
I tracked his eyes to the doors and I knew exactly who was on the other side of them. Kev stared between us as Carlos came over.
“Yeah, bring what was her name? Summer?” Kev asked, in a suspiciously higher tone than usual. As if he was trying to save me from Carlos and the bet.
I nodded. “Just not sure if she’s free tonight.”
Carlos narrowed his brown eyes at me. “Because she isn’t real?”
“Because she has a life,” I replied dryly. Grabbing my bag, ready to be done with the conversation.
The truth was, if I wanted to win this bet and shut him up, at some point, April and I would have to make our public debut.
I just wasn’t sure if an all-couples thing was the right moment.
Nor had I had the chance to talk with her about it.
I had already sprung Millie and Jake’s on her last weekend. This probably wouldn’t fly well.
Catching Jake’s eye, he seemed to catch on. “Meh, don’t worry about him.” This puzzled everyone. Just then, April walked by us and we locked eyes for a split moment when Jake called out to her, “Hey April.”
“Oh, hey guys,” she said with an armful of the stretch bands we often referred to as torture devices.
“What are you up to tonight?” She froze mid-step, hesitantly spinning around, eyeing me as if she didn’t know how to answer, before glancing around the rest of the team.
“Uh, nothing. Maybe hanging out with a friend.” She caught my glance and my entire body screamed, yes!
“Wanna come out with us instead? Millie’s friends are here tonight and I was just asking Josh to join, but he doesn’t want to be the single man out.”
I glared at Jake. My face said, that was subtle, you dick.
“Oh, uh,” she stared at me for what seemed like reassurance or a way out, I couldn’t tell at this point.
“Please save me from their meddling ways,” I added sarcastically.
She chuckled. “Sure.”
She left the room and Jake stood there grinning at me like he just did me the world’s biggest favor. He kinda did, it was a great way to break the ice in small steps, but I couldn’t tell him that.
“Is there something between you and April?” Carlos questioned, standing a little too close to me, his hot breath wafted in my face.
“What if there is? It isn’t against the rules.”
Carlos’s eyes bugged out of his head. “Really, Josh? April?”
“What’s wrong with April?” Jake demanded quicker than I could.
“She’s part of the team! You can’t use her for your gain.”
“I’m not using her,” I defended myself, although it was kind of true. And that realization made me feel like a dick. Even if it was a two-way street.
Carlos scoffed. “Right, we’ve been working with her for how long, and nothing. I’ve seen the girls you date. She isn’t your type.”
“Maybe I needed to find a woman, and not a girl,” I retorted with gritted teeth.
“Sure, right when you’re losing a bet, to me, about love? Does she even know about it or are you pretending with her so you can win? Because that would just be fucking low of you.”
“You’re the one who forced me into this.” My teeth clenched so hard I could hear them grind into each other. “And for the record, no one is pretending anything.”
He scowled, “Okay, but don’t think I’m suddenly going to believe that the two of you have anything real going on.” He checked me with his shoulder before walking out of the doors. Asshole.
My entire mood shifted into angry, fuck-you territory.
Pretending? No. Maybe? The problem was, I wasn’t sure anymore.
The minute I was buried deep inside April, it had changed.
My priority wasn’t the bet, it was her. Except, I wasn’t sure it had changed for her.
She’d had this whole conversation about being friends with benefits, how it suited our situation.
No one would get hurt because it was all fake.
She wasn’t wrong. But the way Carlos insinuated I was doing something to her that would crush her for my benefit, was just fucking wrong.
Even if he had no idea what we had agreed to. I didn’t like it. Or him.