Page 57 of Wild Pitch

Now I know where I get it from.

“Good,” I say, squeezing him tightly. He’s been so attentive for the last couple of days, making sure I’m okay after my dad’s arrest. I probably shouldn’t be, but I think my heart and head disconnected from him after the night he came here and degraded me to the point where I almost fell back into the dark hole he kept me in as a kid. If it weren’t for Riggs reminding me who I am that night, who knows where I’d be right now?

“Atta girl,” he replies, making the butterflies in my stomach flutter around wildly. I’ll never get over the way he can make me feel so adored with barely any words. Just as I press onto my toes to kiss him again, the doorbell rings. I throw my head back in exasperation as Riggs chuckles quietly. “You want to grab that for me, sweet thing?”

“No, thank you,” I reply. “I don’t have the best track record when it comes to opening the door.”

He barks a laugh. “Trust me. After I threatened to move out, taking every other Fury player in the building with me, they hired several new security guards. No more unexpected guests will be knocking without checking infirst. Now, go,” he says, patting my ass as I walk toward the entryway.

I grip the knob, taking a deep breath before swinging the door open. Without so much as a greeting, my best friend barges in, steam practically coming from her ears as she makes a beeline for the living room.

“Douchebag!” she screeches, pointing an accusatory finger at Riggs. I can tell the look of bewilderment painted across his face is fake, even from where I’m standing. Whatever he did to piss her off is something he’s well aware of, and likely planned on purpose to get this very reaction.

“Wow. Nice to see you too, sis,” he says. “How was your flight?”

She grits her teeth. “Myflightwas great. The full-body cavity search at the security desk downstairs, though? Not so much!”

He tries to hide his laughter by tucking his lips tightly between his teeth, but fails miserably as he bursts into hysterics, bending down with his hands on his knees as he loses it.

“Really, Riggs?” she yells. “You told them I carry weapons from time to time,just in case I need them? You made me sound unhinged! I had to take off my shoes and socks while they wanded methree timesbefore patting me down!”

“Seriously? They did?” he says as he continues laughing. “Oh my God, that’s gold!”

She straightens, tossing her long blonde hair over her shoulder. “Yep. Last time I was that up-close and personal with a wand, your best friend’s dick was in my mouth.”

His face goes completely pale as horror clouds hisexpression. “Jesus fucking Christ, Grace! I told you to stop fucking him!” He stomps his foot like a petulant child, and I stifle a laugh of my own.

“We’re married, asshole!” she shouts. “I didn’t want to say that, but you left me no choice! Maybe next time you’ll think twice before you fuck with me!” I swear, these two need their own reality show. I’d totally pay for a subscription to the Valentine siblings’ clusterfuck of a relationship.

God, I love them.

“Mom,” I say, sauntering back to the living room. “This is my best friend, Grace. She’s Riggs’ sister.”

Grace stiffens, realizing we aren’t alone. “Oh my God,” she whispers. “It’s nice to meet you.” She walks over, taking my mother’s extended hand and shaking it.

“Jenna Decker,” she says, holding back her smile. “Your Thanksgiving dinners must be interesting.”

“You have no idea,” I reply, chuckling as I walk back over to Riggs and wrap my arms around his waist. “What are you doing here?” I ask Grace.

“I wanted to come check on you. Figured I’d spend the week out here while Tan is at training camp. You good?”

“I am,” I say with a genuine smile. “I’m happy.” Having the three of them here right now gives me a sense of family that I’m beyond grateful for. For the first time in my life, I feel like I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be, surrounded by all the people who love me.

FORTY-ONE

RIGGS

“What’s your deal today?”I ask Ace as he moves his gaze from the stands to me. He’s had a silly smile on his face for the entire game, and I swear I’ve had to snap him out of several daydreams so he could focus on doing his job. Last inning, he threw up two hand signals that I had never even seen before because he wasn’t paying attention.

“Huh?” he asks, looking back to whatever he was distracted by moments ago. I try to follow his line of vision, but with a packed stadium, it’s hard to see exactly who’s caught his eye.

“I know that look,” I say. “I’ve had that look.That’s theI’m getting good pussystare. Details, Mathers. Give me all of them.” I put my hand out, wiggling my fingers as though I’m expecting him to drop something into my palm. My catcher is always down to hang out with women, but I rarely see him actually leave with any of them. He has no issue sucking face with them on the dance floor, but at theend of every night, it seems as though he goes home alone. So, if he’s got a new girl in his life, I’m intrigued.

“What?” he chokes out. “No. I’m not—” His eyes are wide, and he looks like he just got caught with his hand in the cookie jar, making me laugh loudly.

“Oh, wowwwww,” I say, drawing out the word. “You got a secret girlfriend? It’s about time, Acey boy!”

He scoffs as if it’s a crazy idea, but I don’t miss the way he wrings his hands together in his lap as a silly grin breaks back through. I decide to leave it alone, because when he wants to tell me about it, I know he will. He isn’t private by any means, but I suspect there are things about him that would probably surprise me. I’ve gotten to know the rookie pretty well throughout the season, and he’s a great kid. I hope whoever this girl is doesn’t break his heart.

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