Page 110 of Hitting the Gap

Bailey glanced over at Max, jumping up and down, waving his arms. She flashed him a little wave and headed in their direction with Sloane.

“Thank you so much for this, Sloane. I’m glad you didn’t let me chicken out.”

“Good. You feeling like you have a little more perspective?”

She didn’t know what she was feeling at the moment other than high. “Too soon to tell, but I do feel amazing.”

Sloane grinned. “Yeah, that’s pretty normal.”

“Is this what you feel like every time?”

“Nah, there’s nothing like the first jump, but I’m not going to lie. It never gets old.”

“I can’t imagine feeling like this every day. No wonder you do this job.”

“It is pretty outstanding. But you’re welcome to come back anytime. Maybe eventually get you to do a solo jump.”

The sky drew her gaze. It looked so open with endless possibilities. “Yeah maybe.”

As they walked closer to Max and Kia, Max yelled, “That was awesome!”

“I know, right?” Bailey widened her eyes and flashed him a big toothy grin.

Sloane looked at Kia. “So what do you think, wanna go?”

Kia glanced at the sky, then at Max. “No, I’ve got enough excitement right here on the ground.”

“Well, if you change your mind,” Sloane replied, then turned to Bailey. “Anytime you want to go again you’ve got my number.”

Bailey wrapped the other woman in a hug. “Thank you.”

Sloane squeezed her tight and patted her back. “Anytime.”

Bailey watched the other woman walk away, then turned to Max. “Who wants ice cream?”

Chapter 25

“That was one hell of a game, boys,” Ryan yelled as they walked off the field. He slung his arm around Gonzo’s shoulder. “Looks like somebody’s shooting for Heavy Metal this year. A dinger and a sweet snag for a DP in one game.”

Pete walked up to Gonzo’s other side. “Nice catch, man. How am I supposed to win Golden Glove again this year when you do double plays like that?”

“Guess you’ll have to work a little harder to keep up.”

“Fuck you. That glove is mine.” Pete laughed. “I’m gunning for you, asshole.”

“You can try.” Gonzo waggled his eyebrows at his friend. “But you don’t have the lightning moves I do.”

“Sometimes you gotta take it slow and drag it out more, hasn’t Bailey taught you that?” Pete tossed out the dig and carried on toward his locker.

Bailey had taught him a lot of things. He tossed his glove in his locker, dropped on the bench, and rubbed his hands across his face.

What the hell was he going to do? Baseball was everything to him. Everything. But so was Bailey.

And having both of them for the past few months? He’d never dreamed his life could feel like this. And in a few months, if he got offered the kind of deal he’d always dreamed about and took it, then it could all disappear. Now that he’d had a taste of what life could be like with her, he couldn’t imagine baseball alone would ever be enough.

How was he supposed to choose between the life he’d always dreamed of and the woman he loved? Fuck.

Smitty sat down on the bench beside him. “That was a hell of a play to end the game, Gonz.”

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