Chapter 20
TWENTY
Wild
Practice is hell.
Not because of the drills. Not because of the heat.
Because of the silence.
No one says anything outright, but it’s there. In the way conversations stop when I walk up. In the way a couple of the guys glance between me and Kamden like they’re waiting for round two.
Kamden won’t look at me.
Not once.
He calls pitches like a machine. No eye contact. No back slap. No “nice one, brother.”
Just distance.
And it’s killing me more than the punch did.
We run situational plays for an hour. I throw hard. Harder than I need to. Let the ball rip out of my hand like I can throw the tension away with it.
“You good?” Evan mutters as we rotate off the field.
“Fine,” I say automatically.
Lie.
After practice, I’m in the locker room pulling a clean shirt over my head when Coach Carson’s voice cuts through the noise.
“Wilder. With me. Now.”
The room goes quiet again.
I don’t hesitate.
I grab my bag and follow him down the hall.
He doesn’t say a word the whole walk. That’s worse than yelling.
We reach Susan’s office.
He opens the door.
And my stomach drops.
Kamden is already sitting there.
Susan’s at her desk.
Coach closes the door behind me with a heavy click.
I look at Kamden first. His jaw is tight. His eyes red like he hasn’t slept.
“What’s this?” I ask evenly.
Coach gestures toward the empty chair. “Sit.”
I don’t.
“Just say it.”
Susan folds her hands. “Wilder, we’ve spoken with league officials.”
That’s not a good start.
Coach crosses his arms. “This relationship is a conflict of interest. It puts Amelia’s internship at risk. Her future licensing at risk.”
“I already said I’d request a transfer,” I reply.
Kamden finally looks at me.
“You think that fixes it?” he says, voice flat. “You think the league doesn’t look at timelines? At power dynamics? At perception?”
“I didn’t manipulate her,” I snap.
“That’s not the point!” he fires back.
Susan speaks calmly. “Wilder, optics matter. Even if this began organically, it will be viewed as inappropriate.”
“Inappropriate?” I echo.
Coach steps forward. “If this gets out publicly, it doesn’t just become gossip. It becomes a liability.”
“And?” I challenge.
“And Amelia loses everything first,” Susan says quietly.
That hits.
Hard.
“She’s an intern,” Coach continues. “You’re an established player. The narrative will not favor her.”
Kamden leans forward, elbows on his knees.
“If you love her,” he says, voice rough, “you’ll walk away.”
The words hang in the air like smoke.
My jaw tightens. “You don’t get to define love for me.”
“I don’t,” he agrees. “But I know what it looks like to protect someone.”
Coach sighs. “This doesn’t have to be permanent. Amelia gets a permanent position somewhere else, another organization, another team. Then revisit it.”
“So I just what?” I ask. “Drop her?”
“Step back,” Susan corrects gently. “Create distance. Let her build her career without your shadow over it.”
“You’re killing her career,” Kamden says bluntly. “Every day this continues.”
Anger flares hot in my chest.
“She’s not some fragile thing you all have to protect from me,” I say through clenched teeth.
“No,” Susan replies. “She’s a young professional in a male-dominated field who will be judged harsher than you ever will.”
Silence.
That’s the part I can’t argue.
Coach softens slightly. “You’re one of the best pitchers in this league. You have options. She doesn’t. Not yet.”
Kamden’s voice lowers.
“She’s worked her ass off for this. Since high school. Since before you.”
I look at him.
“I would never hurt her.”
“I know,” he says quietly. “That’s why this is killing me.”
The room feels smaller.
“If you love her,” Susan says carefully, “prove it.”
My heart pounds.
“Walk away,” Coach finishes. “Even if it’s only until she’s safe.”
Safe.
That word twists in my chest.
They’re asking me to lose her.
To protect her.
And for the first time since this started, I don’t know which choice hurts more.
I don’t remember leaving Susan’s office.
I just remember the noise in my head.
Walk away.
If you love her.
You’re killing her career.
I hit the locker room and slam my bag into my locker harder than necessary. Metal echoes through the space.
Evan glances over. “You good, man?”
“Yeah,” I lie, again. But he asked, again.
I’m not good.
I’m furious. At them. At the league. At the situation.
At myself.
By the time someone suggests grabbing drinks, I don’t hesitate.
“Yeah,” I say. “Let’s go.”
The bar is loud. Dark. Safe in the way it used to be.
This used to be my therapy.
Music pounding. Liquor burning. Girls laughing too loud.
I order whiskey.
Then another.
Then a third.
The old Wild slides back into place like he never left.
A brunette leans against the bar next to me, hand brushing my arm.
“Weren’t you the one who closed the game last night?” she purrs.
I smirk automatically.
“Maybe.”
She laughs, twirling her hair.
“You celebrating?”
“Something like that.”
I let her stand close. Let her touch my chest when she talks. Let her flirt.
I know exactly what I’m doing.
And I hate myself for it.
But if I’m going to walk away from Amelia, then I need to make it real.
I need to make it ugly enough that she won’t fight for it.
The brunette presses closer.
“You don’t look like a man who wants to go home alone.”
I lean down, close enough for her to think I might kiss her.
“Maybe I don’t,” I murmur.
My stomach twists.
This isn’t me anymore.
But I don’t pull away.
The door to the bar opens.
I don’t look at first.
Then the air shifts.
I feel it before I see it.
I glance toward the entrance.
Kamden.
And behind him is Amelia.
My heart stops.
For a split second, everything in me wants to shove this girl away and run to her.
Instead, I stay still.
The brunette’s hand slides down my chest.
Amelia sees it.
I watch her face fall.
Not anger first.
Not rage.
Just devastation.
That almost breaks me.
Kamden’s jaw tightens as he takes it in.
Amelia steps forward slowly, like she doesn’t believe what she’s seeing.
“Wilder?” she says.
Her voice is small.
I swallow hard and straighten, but I don’t move away from the brunette fast enough.
“Hey, Doc,” I say, forcing a crooked smile.
Her eyes flick between me and the girl.
“What are you doing?” she asks, her voice shaking.
“What does it look like?” I reply.
Every word tastes like acid.
The brunette senses tension and steps back slightly. “Do you two know each other?”
“Yes,” Amelia says softly.
Kamden steps closer, fury radiating off him. “You couldn’t even wait a day?”
I ignore him.
My eyes stay on Amelia.
“You said we needed to think about consequences,” I say evenly. “This is one of them.”
Her brows knit together. “What are you talking about?”
“You need your career,” I say, keeping my tone detached. “You need distance.”
Her face drains of color.
“So this?” she gestures between me and the girl. “This is distance?”
“It’s easier this way,” I say.
That’s the lie.
It’s not easier.
It’s hell.
Tears well in her eyes.
“You said you loved me.”
I force myself not to react.
“I do,” I say quietly.
“Then why are you doing this?”
Because they’re right.
Because the league will tear you apart.
Because I can survive being the villain.
You can’t.
“Maybe loving you isn’t enough,” I say instead.
The words slice through her.
Kamden grabs her arm gently. “Let’s go.”
She doesn’t move.
She just stares at me.
“I was willing to fight,” she whispers.
“I’m not,” I reply.
The biggest lie I’ve ever told.
Her chin trembles.
“Then I guess that’s it.”
She turns.
Walks away.
Kamden follows, throwing me one last look of pure disappointment.
The door shuts behind them.
The music keeps playing.
The brunette touches my arm again. “So. are we—”
“No,” I snap, stepping away.
I grab my jacket and walk out the back exit, into the cold night air.
The silence hits harder than any punch.
I lean against the brick wall, pressing my palms into my eyes.
I just shattered her.
And watching her walk away like that nearly destroyed me.
But if this protects her, if this saves her career…
Then I’ll be the villain.
I’ll be Wild again.
Even if it kills me.