Page 94 of Triple Play

He’s barely past the click of his office door when Blake turns to me, fire in his eyes. “You were going to quit?”

“I thought maybe he knew about…” I trail off. You and me. You and Shira. Me and Shira. This whole thing seems to defy categorization. “Maybe that the team found out somehow. Figured it’d be easier for you if I wasn’t on the roster.”

Blake’s frown intensifies. “But the farm…”

“Yeah.”

“What would you have done?”

I shrug. “Figured it out.”

“Just like that?”

“Is it that strange that someone else might want you to be happy?” I ask.

“Yes, kind of.” Said too honestly.

“Look, you don’t have to believe me, but Shira and I really did want to tell you. I know that’s not an excuse, but it wasn’t like we were trying to be assholes. If me quitting will make it easier for you and her to work things out, then I should probably go ahead and do that.”

Blake takes another long drink of coffee. “Shira got in an argument with Brayden yesterday.”

I laugh. “Yeah, I noticed that too.”

“It’s been a long time since anyone’s done that for me.”

“Shira really loves you—all of you,” I say pointedly. “If you love her, you need to love all of her too. And if you can’t do that, you have to let her go.”

Blake looks up at me from over his coffee cup, eyes a questioning blue. He has a scar through his eyebrow, barely visible unless you know what you’re looking for. How did I ever think he was perfect, bordering on fake? He has scars like the rest of us, even if his only show in certain lights. Slowly, he nods.

“She’s leaving, you know,” I say. “She said she was taking the auto train home this afternoon.”

Blake’s forehead wrinkles. “She didn’t mention anything?”

“Yeah, she might not.”

He takes out his phone, taps something on it. A second later, a message comes through on our group chat.

Blake: Don’t go back to Boston, please.

I immediately respond with a heart. Nothing from Shira. Maybe she won’t see it. Maybe she’ll see it and ignore it. “We should probably deliver the message in person. Tell Skip we need to go work on our infield chemistry.”

Blake laughs. “Seems like. So you good with playing first if I’m at second?”

“I am if you are.”

“Yeah, I feel like I could use a fresh start,” Blake says. “But…can I tell you a secret?”

“What’s that?”

“I’m actually pretty bad at fielding second base.”

And I laugh so hard that I’m still going by the time Skip comes back.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Blake

When I got ready this morning, I tried to be quiet in case Shira was still sleeping. No light came from under the guest room door. If I’d known she was leaving, I would have at least woken her up. And said what, exactly?

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