Page 84 of Hot Streak

Including all the hoses.

“It’s mostly artificial turf. How are you gonna do that?” Kevin questioned as they walked out. There was a light that flashed on, for security, and for a second, Jackson was sure their goose was cooked, but nothing happened. “The water’s just gonna drain away. And if you take it to the outfield, then that’ll just destroy the grass.”

“We’re not destroying anything. We’re gonna plug some of the drains in the turf. That’ll just mean the water hangs around longer. They won’t have time to drain it properly and get it ready when they show up tomorrow morning. Bingo. Rainout.” Jackson grabbed a hose and began to unwind it from its hook. “You gonna help me or am I gonna do this myself?”

Deke grinned and took the hose from his hands as Jackson cranked the water on. “I got you,” he said, giving it a tug and unwinding it as Ro opened the wooden door that led out onto the field.

“You three—plug the drains,” Jackson suggested.

“With what?” TJ asked, looking around helplessly.

Jackson shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know! Find something. Be resourceful.”

TJ nodded, and when he left, jogging out after Deke, Kevin and Ro trailed after him.

Leaving him and Connor alone.

“Are you crazy?” Connor hissed at him under his breath.

Jackson grabbed a second hose. Both these hoses were already hooked up to water and had a nozzle at the end to control the flow of water. He tested it, pulling the lever back, and it worked great, soaking the ground at his feet.

“No,” he said.

But Connor didn’t leave it there. He put a hand over Jackson’s. “I don’t want—” He swallowed hard. Jackson could see his throat working. “I don’t want you to get in trouble.”

“It’s just some water, Clark. Besides, I heard some of the maintenance guys talking two days ago. I guess this is a common prank with high school kids. They’ll blame them. So just lighten up.” He finished pulling the hose off its hook, and he wasn’t sure if Connor would follow him out onto the field, but he did.

“I’m light,” Connor grumbled.

But he wasn’t.

He hadn’t been ever since he’d heard about that stupid scout. Instead, he’d been all up in his own head.

There were lots of ways to fix that particular problem. Jackson should know, he was practically a fucking expert in overthinking. The easiest way to stop Connor from doing it would be to lean over and kiss him until they both stopped thinking entirely, but that wasn’t going to happen.

No matter how much you want it to.

Instead, Jackson did the next best thing. He lifted the hose, turning the nozzle on—but instead of turning it onto the turf, he flicked it up right at Connor.

As the stream of cool water hit him, he yelped, so high and shocked Jackson couldn’t help the laugh that exploded out of him.

“What the fuck?” Connor retorted, dodging the water, but Jackson wasn’t so easily deterred and he hit him again, and this time, it was Connor laughing even as he tried to avoid getting soaked to the skin.

“Guess your hair’s pretty messed up now,” Jackson teased, raising the stream and aiming it towards the top of his head, but Connor ducked, and only a light shower of water droplets misted around his head.

“You’re the pain in the ass,” Connor complained as he tried to find a way to get out of the line of fire. “You pretend to be all solid and dependable, but inside, you’re all . . .” He evaded the water again. For a tall guy, he was actually pretty agile.

“Oh my God, what are you two doing?” Deke asked, jogging up. “What happened to being careful?”

Jackson didn’t know. He’d left careful right back in the hotel room, apparently.

Because it also made perfect sense to turn the water onto Deke—and it was on after that.

Deke slipped and slid across the wet turf and then nailed Jackson in the face with water from his own hose.

Jackson yelped as the chilly water hit him. It was cold, sure, but it actually felt good, cooling down his overheated body from the humidity outside and also the inner heat Connor kept generating inside him.

“What the fuck,” Ro shouted as he ran over to them. Behind him, TJ tackled him, and laughing, Jackson hit him with the hose the second he was down.

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