Fallon #3
I shake my head. “Nope. It’s you. She likes your toughness.
She’s obsessed with softball. Her stepmom is a pro player.
Harper thinks you’re more like a softball player because your style of play is so rough and tough.
She loves watching you push people around.
She gets the biggest kick out of it. I honestly think it’s the only reason she comes to the games. ”
A genuine smile takes form on her pretty face. Oh god, it’s the same as Jett’s real smile. The one I love seeing when we’re together.
“Thanks for sharing that with me,” she offers in a gentler tone. “I’d be happy to sign her jersey, take photos, or do anything else she needs.”
“She’d truly love that. Thank you.”
We chat a bit about Harper’s relationship with Bailey’s team. I can see Kennedy’s wheels turning. She’s assessing me. I hope I’m passing the test.
I’m helping the girls get set up with the E-stim machines after practice.
E-stim is short for electrical stimulation.
It has been a long-standing therapy for athletes in which mild electrical currents are delivered through the skin into muscles and nerves, simulating muscle contractions.
It helps increase circulation in overworked muscles, aiding in recovery.
It’s a staple for athletes. They should all be using them both before and after practices and games for injury prevention and pain relief.
It’s something I’ll work hard to enforce.
The Beavers’ training room is state-of-the-art. No expense was spared in keeping these girls healthy. It’s a welcome change from the budget-conscious hospitals I’m used to.
I’ve got several of the players, Kennedy included, hooked up to machines. I’m also helping Coach Carroll learn which pressure points to hit to relieve her pregnancy-related lower back pain when I hear Kennedy and a few of the girls laughing loudly. They’re practically hyperventilating in laughter.
I walk over to them. “What did I miss?”
Sulley smirks. “Kennedy maintains a list of red flags on her phone. It never fails to amuse us.”
“Red flags for what?” I ask.
“For men,” Kennedy answers immediately. “Men are idiots. The more I can weed out the losers early, the better.”
I pinch my eyebrows together. “Like guys who gaslight?”
She twists her lips. “No, not obvious things like that. No one likes a guy who gaslights or a guy who follows all supermodels on Instagram. I mean the slightly more unusual things. It’s an ever-growing list. These ladies have given me several new ones that I’ve added to my list. We were laughing at Layla’s new addition. Guys with guylights?”
I scrunch my face. “What’s that?”
Layla giggles. “Guys who always have erect, hard nipples…all the time. It’s weird. I hate when you can see them through their shirts. There were a bizarre number of guys in Vegas with that.”
Kennedy shifts uncomfortably. Hmm, that’s odd. I wonder if something happened in Vegas.
“What else?” I ask.
Kennedy looks down at her phone. “Guys who won’t or can’t use chopsticks. If they can’t manipulate their fingers enough for that, what good are they going to be on your body in bed?”
I nod my head as I consider it. “That actually makes a lot of sense.”
Palmer agrees. “Yep. And guys who soften ice cream in the microwave.” She makes a look of disgust.
The girls all giggle. Kennedy pats Palmer’s back. “Palmer has a food fetish,” she informs me. “Hers always revolve around food.”
I shrug my shoulders. “I soften my ice cream in the microwave. It’s easier than waiting for it to melt enough to get my spoon in.”
Shay nods. “It’s okay for girls, not guys. That’s why lesbian red flags are different from hetero red flags. My girlfriend does it too.”
I mock wipe my forehead. “Phew. I was nervous. Give me another one,” I ask with a sudden wave of curiosity.
Kennedy looks down at her phone again. “Guys who overuse emojis. Do you not have a vocabulary? And it’s too girly. That’s a non-starter for me.”
Sulley agrees, “Yep. I see that. And guys who wear fedoras. Who do they think they are, JFK Jr.?”
Kennedy smirks. “I think Sulley prefers men in cowboy hats.”
Sulley narrows her eyes at Kennedy as something passes between them. “Who doesn’t like a guy in a cowboy hat? It’s hot,” she answers.
Kennedy raises her hand. “I don’t. My dad used to wear them now and then when I was a kid. Especially when we’d visit his family in North Carolina. Turned me off to them.”
I imagine Jett that first night in his cowboy hat while he drove into me. Fucking hot. Hmm, we might need to bring back the cowboy hat into our bedroom.
Layla wiggles her eyebrows up and down. “Ooh, your dad in a cowboy hat is being added to my spank bank. You know he’s on my hall pass list. I bet he’d look hot in nothing but a cowboy hat.”
I inwardly smile. Oh girl, you have no idea just how hot that is.
Kennedy rolls her eyes and gives Layla the finger before gasping. “Oh shit,” she exclaims. “I forgot that today is my dad’s birthday. Fuck, I’d better call him.”
What? It’s Jett’s birthday? He mentioned dinner with his agent tonight, but nothing else. Hmm, I might need to do something about this.