Chapter 3 Triple Play
Chapter three
Triple Play
Derby
I adjusted my batting glove as I headed toward the field. I needed the practice, having hardly picked up a bat in the past year in the American League. I wasn’t there anymore, and I was determined not to make a fool of myself in the batter’s box.
“Derby. Derb. Did you hear what I said? You have to meet with Godwin Ellis tomorrow.”
Well, that got my attention. “Godwin?”
“Yes. He wants you to review and finalize the plans for your mother’s house.
” Amy shoved her phone under my nose. She’d been remarkable.
I’d hired her back when I was in the minors because I couldn’t focus on baseball and still deal with life.
She’d rapidly become my right and left hands off the field. “He says a Zoom call would be fine.”
“We can’t do it on a Zoom call. I have to be there in person. Can you make that happen?” I wanted to use the excuse to see him again.
“He says it’s better if you’re not there. You can’t really walk the lot. It’s not safe, Derb.” She shrugged, her brown hair bouncing around her shoulders. She was shorter than me, a simple girl with cute freckles, and she’d become a lot like a sister to me.
“I don’t know about that.” My need to see him again was irrational. “Can you get me there? Will I have time?”
Amy huffed, clicking around on her phone.
“Yes, but you have to leave by four and go straight to the airport. You fly into Mobile. Only flight I can get right now. I’ll have a car ready for you, but not your SUV.
I don’t have time to arrange that, but your drive from there is only an hour. So, yeah. You can do it.”
“Sweet.” I stepped out to the field and adjusted my visor against the Florida sun.
I’d hoped we could practice at home in Mobile, but more often than not, we were in Florida.
This was the last practice before we hit the road, and I needed to make it count.
But now I was thinking about hot builders, or rather one hot builder.
“As long as I get where I need to go. What about clothes?”
“You know I have you covered.” She winked at me and gave me a crooked little smile.
“Okay.” I leaned over and gave her tiny frame a half hug. She was about five-four to my six-foot frame. “We’ll see you later then.”
She waved, and I headed to the batting cage. I needed to get my game on.
I was pathetic. After a dozen balls, I hadn’t hit one.
My batting coach, Milton, finally raised his hand. “Wait. Let’s reposition.”
I knew better than to complain. I needed all the help I could get.
He pushed and pulled me around, changed my stance and how I held the bat.
“You’re standing in here swinging low to high like you’re going to knock it out of the park.
You’re not. Only powerhouses like Bresnick can get away with that. Certainly not you.”
“Right.”
“You want a nice even swing. Show me, slowly.”
I rotated my shoulders until Milton grabbed my stick. “Here.” He moved it. “And watch the ball. All you need to do is make contact.”
“Okay.” I flashed him a smile, but he ignored it.
Instead, he left the cage, and the steady whir of the pitching machine started up.
I had pitched to batters for practice a gazillion times, but I wasn’t ready to take this to the field and let another pitcher show me up.
I took a slow practice swing. “Let’s go. ”
The assistant fed the machine. I missed. Again. And again. Then I caught the edge of the ball, sending it popping up behind me.
Milton whistled and motioned a flat, even swing. I nodded, and the machine spit out another ball. This time, I made contact. It was a grounder.
“Yeah. Let’s go. I’ve got this.” I yelled, hyping myself up.
Thirty minutes later, I was making good contact and hitting almost everything.
Milton called the practice. “Good job. Tomorrow you can join the big boys.” He nodded to the main field where the team was taking their own batting practice.
Franklin was pitching to them. He was pretty good but not as good as I was.
Practicing tomorrow wouldn’t work for me. “Oh. I thought we were off tomorrow. I need to pop back home.”
Milton gave me a side-eye, then looked at his tablet. “Yup. You’re off. Not my best advice.”
I snuck a glance at my watch. “I can get a little more in now.”
“Nope. You’re already getting tired, and your arm is more important than your stick. Get out of here.”
I didn’t wait for him to change his mind.
I was headed to see Godwin Ellis, the sexy as fuck builder.
More importantly, we were getting my momma’s house going.
It couldn’t get built fast enough for me.
I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I couldn’t wait to see the smoldering builder’s face again.
It was stupid, though. Maybe seeing him again was what I needed to be sure what this was—a potential crush, a silly attraction, or something else?
I couldn’t keep flying back and forth, and I was probably jumping the gun by ignoring what Godwin had said about not showing up there, but that’s all I wanted to do.
That night, after a thankfully uneventful flight, I did what every good son does. I went home. Momma made a great dinner for me, and we ate it at the small table in the corner of the kitchen.
“What brings you home?” she side-eyed me. Hell, she always knew when I was up to something.
“Going to see where we are with the house tomorrow.”
“Why didn’t you say something?” She through a hand in the air. “I want to see it, too. I’m coming with you.”
“Don’t you have to work tomorrow?” I had no problem taking her with me, but I didn’t want to disrupt her world, either.
She was a nursing assistant, and she took that work seriously.
She didn’t have to work, given the salary I made, but she wouldn’t quit.
No, not my momma. It was hard enough to get her to accept the new house.
She wanted to do her own thing, and nothing I could say would change her mind.
“I have some home checks tomorrow, but they’re in the afternoon. So, I’m all yours.”
“Great. I can’t wait to show you.”
She’d seen the land and had given me input to what she wanted, but it would be cool to show her how it was all going to lay out. And get her opinion of Godwin. I was going to get that whether I asked for it or not, but I did value what she had to say. And she was very perceptive.
“What else is going on?” she asked me, casually picking up her roll as if she wasn’t prying.
I had to chuckle. “Momma. What makes you think—”
“Don’t give me that.” She pointed her fork at me. I should have known better than to try to keep it a secret. “There’s something going on. I see it in your eyes, boy.”
“You got me.” I set down my fork and held up my hands in surrender. “Let’s just say you’ll like the builder. A lot.” I did, and I wanted her to as well. “I hope.”
“Oh...my baby boy has a crush,” she singsonged and danced in her chair. “Derby and the builder sitting in a tree...”
The blush spread over my face in record time. “Mom...” I complained. “It’s not like that.”
“At least not yet. Right?”
“Maybe.” I tilted my head from side to side, thinking about it, then picked up both our plates to carry them into the sink. “I don’t want to jump the gun. I hardly know him.”
“Well, I’ll make up my mind tomorrow.”
After cleaning up and saying goodnight, I brushed my teeth, and stripped down to my boxers, crawling into bed at an early hour. We had to meet Godwin with the sunrise.
I couldn’t stop thinking about him, and the anticipation of seeing him again had my brain chasing butterflies through my tummy. I flipped and flopped in the bed until finally giving in.
I stuck my hand down my boxers and grabbed my half-hard chubby. Imagining Godwin’s ass in those jeans and squeezing my dick had it fully hard in record time. Damn, but I wanted to see those golden, hazel eyes staring back at me, pinning me with a glance.
Everything was too tight. I lifted my ass and shucked the boxers. Then decided I needed lube, but that was one thing Amy hadn’t packed for me, and I hadn’t had any here in my old room for ages.
Groaning, I spit in my hand. It would have to do.
I stroked my long shaft with images of Godwin Ellis floating through my mind, while trying to be as quiet as possible.
I wanted him to throw me on the bed, or hell, on the floor, and take me hard.
I wanted him to slide in and out, slowly, passionately. I wanted...
Ugh. I came entirely too fast.
And how was I going to have a meeting with him?
Talk to him? After that? He would so not appreciate being part of my spank-bank.
Or maybe he would. Who knew? But I certainly wasn’t going to tell him about it.
I hoped my embarrassment wouldn’t show on my face when we met up tomorrow.
And with my momma by right there beside me.
I rolled over and tucked my face in the pillow.
Sleep came quickly after that, and soon enough, the alarm was squawking at me. I grabbed my phone and shut it off. I wasn’t one to go back to sleep after waking, so I got up and jumped in the shower. I washed everything well, wanting to smell fresh and clean, wanting to make a good impression.
Momma had made a quick breakfast of eggs and toast, and then we headed out.
Thirty minutes later, we pulled into the parking lot at Ellis Homes.
The building had stonework up the corners with a deep red siding.
Their lettering on the sign wasn’t fancy, but it was framed in the same stone. It appeared modest but professional.
I escorted Momma up the sidewalk and through the glass door. The foyer had a small comfortable seating area to the right and a desk to the left, but there wasn’t anyone behind it.
“Hello?” I called out.