Page 47 of The Trouble with Players

“I forget nothing,” she assured me as something happened on the field and everyone cheered.

I looked to see what it was. Crew dove and stopped a grounder. He got to his knees and fired the ball to first base, getting the runner out with no time to spare.

“I told him about my father,” I admitted.

“Oh,” she said.

“Yeah. Stupid. I know.”

“No, it’s just…you keep that one so close to the vest. I’m surprised you felt comfortable opening up to him.”

I shrugged. Same.

“But, Peyton,” she continued. “It never should’ve been your secret to keep. Your dad did it. He needs to deal with the aftermath. Not you.”

She was right. Why did I hide what he’d done? If he was so worried about his image, he wouldn’t have cheated on my mother in the first place. “Yeah, well, so much for opening up to someone. He turned around and kissed some girl in front of me.”

“Seriously?”

I sipped my drink. “So I had Sam bring me home.”

“God, I hate baseball players,” she said. “Except Cody of course.”

“Of course,” I agreed.

“Have you spoken to him since?”

“Yeah. Of course he said it meant nothing. But I told him I didn’t care.”

“Do you?”

“Why would I?”

“Because there’s something going on between you two. I think you need to figure out what it is.”

“There’s nothing going on.”

“Excuse me,” one of the little leaguers interrupted, pulling our attention to him standing in front of us. “The shortstop asked me to give the girl with pink hair this ball.” He held a baseball out to me. It read Go Out With Me in black marker.

I looked out at the field. Crew was staring my way. I looked back at the little kid. “You can tell him he can save it for someone who wants it.”

The little boy scrunched his nose. “O-kay.”

I looked to Gina who knowingly stared at me with a raised brow.

The little leaguer turned and ran off. But he returned during the next inning still clutching the baseball. “He said you didn’t answer his question.”

“No,” I said.

“He thought you’d say that. That’s why he’s gonna hit a homer right over here, so you better be ready to catch it since it’s for you.”

My teeth clenched together as I looked back out at the field. Crew was looking my way again. I hoped the batter hit one right off the side of his face.

“You two are hysterical,” Gina said.

I glared at her. “You think this is funny?”

“Isn’t it?” she asked, snatching the baseball away from the kid and examining the message on it.

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