11. Adam #2
“If you say so.” Something in my gut knows she went a little further, but I can handle whatever question she has as long as it’s not about my parents.
Her eyes roll. “Am I allowed to ask about the fight during last season’s Opening Day? Or is there some weird NDA thing? There seems to be more yelling in baseball as opposed to fighting.”
I snort out a laugh. “It definitely wasn’t the first to ever happen, but wasn’t exactly my best moment.
That being said, I don’t regret it either.
It was Callie’s ex, and I won’t give many details as it’s her story to tell, but he absolutely deserved it.
I would have never initiated the fight, but the moment he hit Will, I blacked out. ”
She nods. “This makes a little more sense for the engagement and party on Opening Day. Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring up a bad mem—”
“No, Mia, you’re fine. We still have to play the asshole, and for a while Olsson kept me and Will in the dugout for those games, but eventually worked us back in. Any time Will and I are in the game, we never let them win, and Callie seems to handle it just fine.”
“That doesn’t surprise me. I told you she didn’t need a knight in shining armor.”
“No, but she has them at her disposal.”
Mia lifts her hand to the back of my neck, scratching up and down slowly.
“I will say the expectations are high for today’s game.
I hope you’re on your A-game, All-star. The videos I watched really painted you in a good light.
Not to mention Michael’s praises…if I was on the fence about you, that kid would talk me right off it with the way he idolizes you. ”
For fuck’s sake. “Quit talking to the panty thief. I swear, he’s only using me as an excuse to talk to you.”
“I’ll talk to the kid if I so please, my knight in shining armor isn’t the boss of me.”
I chuckle, then pull her on my lap. “Oh, but you have him at your disposal, Mia.”
“Lucky me.” Mia sets what little is left of her sandwich to the side, then shifts to straddle me. “Or is it lucky you?”
“Me, definitely me.” Tucking her hair behind her ears, I tug her closer. I want to savor every second of having her here, but at the same time, I need to start preparing myself to let her go back to Boston. “How long are you here?”
“Only for the weekend.”
“Any chance I could convince you to stay longer?”
Mia huffs in amusement. “Maybe you can later.”
There’s always a game-time mode that I switch into. A mental block on the crowd and my focus primarily on my team, my job, and the ball—but today, there’s also Mia.
With any downtime in the dugout, I’m looking at her in the stands. I can hear her cheers and judgment passed when she doesn’t agree with a call made.
In the bottom of the sixth, we’re up by two against the Pittsburgh Patrons. We’re only one out away from going into the seventh with Dex coming in as our pitcher to close the game.
“Looks like the girls are having fun,” Beck says, coming up next to me.
I only nod in response, because I’m not quite ready to pull my eyes from Mia laughing with Jensen and Lucie in the stands. “I like seeing her in the stands.”
Dex comes up on my other side. “It’s a damn good feeling, isn’t it?”
“It really is.” Finally pulling away, I try to switch gears back to the game. “I know we’re up by two, but that could easily change. Keller has been stealing bases all fucking game, and he should be up to hit in this inning.”
Dex scoffs. “I know, it’s making him and a few other players cocky. Wouldn’t surprise me if a few more of them won’t try to be a little bolder with it.”
“You mean like when Tripp bunts then Beck starts doing the same.”
“Exactly.”
“What the fuck?” Beck smacks my shoulder. “I wasn’t doing shit, don’t use me as a bad comparison.”
“It’s not necessarily a bad thing when you both manage good bunts, but when you don’t get good hits off then it creates a fucking problem. You and Tripp are smart enough to know when to pull back on them or use them to your full advantage.”
Dex adjusts his hat. “It’s also preseason. The Patrons had a pretty average season last year. As serious as we all still take this, they’re probably seeing what they can get away with and testing out some different tactics.”
I nod along with Dex. I like that he sees the game in a bigger picture than most of the players care to. I’m not sure if that’s from switching from player to coach, now back to player again…or maybe it’s a dad thing. Some weird sixth sense that he also uses for the game.
Beck shrugs as the ump calls for the last out. “Well, let’s just try to shut that down.”
Hitting Dex with my glove, I stop him before going out. “During your warm-up pitches, I’m going to warm up myself, sending a few back to second, so have Zane and Mateo ready.”
“Sounds good. I’ll keep a pretty fast pace throughout too, cut down on the opportunity. Might not stop Keller with how fast that asshole is, but it may deter the others.”
I nod, then make my way to home plate. Mia does what she’s done every inning: a cat-call whistle. Every time I can’t help but laugh. I know Lucie and Jensen aren’t ones for the WAG box in general, but now that Mia can be with them, I want her always right here close to the net.
Dex pitches a few warm-ups, and I send a few back to second and our shortstop, then for the hell of it send one to Tripp at third.
Dex had a point with it being a boundary push for the Patrons.
Some arguments could be made that stealing bases or even bunts are counterintuitive in the majors, but I think that’s a bit of bullshit.
You know how to do them well, and they trip up your opponent? Then they’re fucking gold, not to mention it’s a fun strategy to have up your sleeve when our games mostly seem to be focused on home runs and strikeouts.
Hell, makes the game a little more fun for me too, trying to stop them.
With the first batter, I prep for Dex’s fastball. With him closing out, we’ll stick to those pitches to start since they’re fucking fast and his most consistent throw.
We can adjust if need to, but the batter swings at the first pitch, the ball smacking into my glove.
The ump calls the strike and then thankfully calls two more.
Keller is up next, and while Dex gets one strike on him, on the second pitch he hits a beautiful line drive down left field.
With him now on first, Dex and I are both going to have to keep an eye on him. Like I said, ignoring the bases being stolen probably wouldn’t make a huge difference as long as we keep getting outs like we have been all game, but this is that fun part.
Using all of my brain to focus on the players in front of me and getting ready to make a split-second decision once the ball is thrown.
Keller takes his lead off, and Dex glances back at him before hauling his four-seam fastball down to me.
The ump calls the strike, and from my point of view it didn’t even seem that stealing the base was on Torres’s mind.
The tempo Dex is setting may be enough to keep him in place, but with the next pitch, he takes his chance.
The ball’s in my glove in the blink of an eye, and I shift, sending it straight back to second just as Keller slides in. I feel pretty damn good about the throw back, but the ump calls him safe and now the fucker’s on second.
As annoying as that call is, it gets worse when I hear an abrasive voice in the crowd yelling. “Hey, pretty girls up front who keep whistling and making slutty looks at our pitcher and catcher. Yeah, you guys.”
Fucking hell, this isn’t going to end well.
“Shut up and quit distracting them so they can do their fucking jobs.”
Great, I’m going to get kicked out of this game. I can tell that Dex knows something’s up from the look on his face, but I know he can’t hear what’s being said.
I’m the last player on our team who would get into it with a heckler in the freaking crowd, but I’m not about to let him talk to my girl like that, let alone her, Jensen, and Lucie.
But before I can even turn my body toward them, I hear Mia.
“Fuck off. The only men who get to tell us what to do are the ones we’re sleeping with, and that’s them, so we’ll do as we damn well please.
And just to warn you, anger can cause impotence, so maybe you chill the fuck out and enjoy the game. ”
“Fuck you, bitch,” the guy yells back.
Ah, shit. I lift off my catcher’s mask and move toward them.
Mia and Jensen have both fully turned in their seats, and while I’m sure they’ll have the man shut down in two minutes, there’s no fucking way I’m letting him speak that way to our girls.
I immediately spot a security guard and wave him down. When I get to the net, I yell at the guy now standing over them. “Hey, asshole, if you don’t know how to speak to women, get the fuck out.”
When the security guy comes up, I point to the dick. “Either move him or get him out.”
The prick makes it worse by trying to blame the girls for starting it. I can see Mia’s mouth opening, but I’m not about to have security take her, too.
“Mia,” I clip, bringing her attention completely to me then changing my tone. “You’re good, honey. Let it go.”
Mia bites back her smirk, or maybe bites back a remark on me bossing her around, but the moment I turn back to home plate she does another cat-call whistle.
Yeah, she’s earned several orgasms tonight, that’s for sure.