Page 52 of Fastlander Fighter

“Mmm.” He nodded. “A follower then.”

“What?”

“Only followers hate a person who hasn’t done anything to them personally. You heard about her, so you hate her, right? Maybe the people who slandered her are the problem. Followers don’t understand that. It’s not your fault. It’s just you’ve peaked at being a follower.” He offered her an empty smile. “You enjoy the game.”

She sat there with her mouth hanging open and a frown knitting her perfectly-plucked brows.

“Okay, I got Skittles, and Starbursts, and popcorn, and a cherry Coke, and a couple hamburgers, and I got nacho cheese on the fries.” Sloane looked up at him with the prettiest grin as she approached. “I blacked out and ordered everything.”

He chuckled and gestured to the chair he’d set up for her. “I’m going to help the team, but let me take a couple of bites real quick.”

“I should be the one helping the team,” Ryan announced. “I’m the dad.”

“Do it,” Captain dared him around a bite.

“Well, I don’t want to be rude and leave you,” he murmured to Naomi, and relaxed back onto the bleachers.

Captain shook his head and exchanged a knowing grin with Sloane. Excuses. He offered her a bite of burger. She took it, chewed it, and allowed him to wipe a drop of mustard from the corner of her lips. He swallowed, then leaned down and kissed her. “I’ll be back. Don’t let them fuck with you.”

She smacked his ass and said, “Go get ‘em, Coach.”

He chuckled and took the last bite of his burger as he jogged to the gate that would allow him onto the field. He was going to help warm up the boys. It was a lot of kiddos for one coach, and at the very least he could shag balls or throw a few balls for them to snag off the ground.

A whistle rang out, and he turned to see Sloane had done it. He belted out a laugh and winked at her, then continued his jog toward the team.

Yeah, he was living two completely separate lives. Eventually that might catch up to him, but God, this was such a breath of fresh air, being out here at a baseball field like he was a normie. Like he was a human.

Sloane made him feel like everything was okay.

She was the most beautiful escape.

Chapter Sixteen

“You’re late,” Gunner growled, the flames from the firepit illuminating his face with shadows and gold highlights.

“Well, I have a life outside of here.”

His brother stood, and the other Fastlanders dropped their heads from where they sat around the fire. Even Wreck was here. He didn’t drop his gaze though. He glared straight at Captain. It grated on him.

“I called you at least ten times,” Gunner gritted out.

“Cool, I was busy.” Captain yanked a neon-orange chair farther away from the fire, knowing the heat of the flames would be too much when his bear was getting worked up like this.

“Lucia’s had an addition to her vision,” Gunner said.

That froze Captain. He slid his gaze around the circle to the others, and then back to his brother. “What addition?”

“The boy is in it now.”

Captain swallowed down a snarl. “Ruger?”

“Yep.”

Captain cracked his knuckles and took a steadying breath. Don’t Change. “Explain.”

“Lucia sees him running through the woods. A lioness is chasing him.”

Captain’s chest lifted and fell with his faster breathing as he glared at his brother. “How does Lucia know it’s Ruger?”

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