Page 41 of Stolen Bases

“Nurses and doctors were coming out of exam rooms to see what was going on. No one knew what the heck to do until this woman came rushing, begging us to help her boyfriend. Turns out they were using toys in the bedroom, and one got stuck.”

Cam winces, shaking his head. “Shut the fuck up, no. Wait… Where?”

“Yup.” Repeating his earlier gesture, I point down into the water. “He had a cock ring stuck at the base of his penis. We tried tohelp, but the scissors we had were too small because his problem was … quite large, if you know what I mean.”

Cam throws his head back and laughs. It’s hearty, free, and infectious. I laugh with him.

“Not a bad problem to have,” Cam jokes, sending us both roaring with laughter.

Wiping a tear from the corner of my eye, I watch Cam relax. My story worked.

“True, but the ring was so tight it was cutting off all the blood flow to the area. We had to put in an emergency call to the fire department to bring us cable cutters. Poor guy almost lost his junk.”

“Is it wrong to laugh at this guy’s misery?” he asks, trying to sober up.

“Probably. If it makes you feel better, no one laughed until after he was safe … and out of earshot.” I’m going to hell for telling this story, but the carefree look on his face is worth it.

“Good to know. What hospital do you work at?”

Cam’s question gives me pause. “Oh, um. I don’t know yet.”

“What do you mean you don’t know yet?”

“It depends on the results of my board exam.” The flood of nerves that usually follows thoughts of my boards doesn’t come.

“When do you get those?”

“Yesterday.” I cringe. I couldn’t bring myself to open the email and look. But now?

“Are you scared?”

“A little. What if I didn’t pass?”

“You passed,” Cam says without a hint of doubt.

I narrow my eyes at him, and he flashes me a wide grin. Sexy jerk.

“If I passed,” I continue, ignoring the way my insides turn to liquid at his smile and attention, “I start my dream job. But—”

“There’s that but again.” He winks at me. It’s playful, but from the way his eyes soften, I know he gets it without me even saying it out loud. “Just say it. Be fearless.”

“Now what?” I slap my hand to my mouth. Did I really just admit that out loud? I’ve only known this man for a few days, and here I am practically spilling my biggest fear.

Cam sighs. “I’ll let you in on a little secret. Everyone thinks that, even me.”

“Really? Why?”

This man, coined one of the best pitchers in baseball history, has multimillion-dollar contracts from his team and a variety of sponsors. He doesn’t have to worry about what comes next. He can do nothing or everything with that kind of money. It also doesn’t hurt that he’s both incredibly handsome and talented.

He drops his head back onto the rim of the tub and stares at the sky. “If and when I retire, I can’t do … nothing after. I’ve worked every day since I was a kid, trying to be the best baseball player. Sitting around doing nothing all day sounds great, for a month maybe. But after that? What comes next for me? I’ll be just another washed-up, old pitcher, and I refuse to be one of those talking heads sitting around a table reminiscing over my glory days.”

He stays focused on the sky, refusing to look at me after spilling his biggest fears. Fears you wouldn’t imagine a man like him to have. Fears that are similar to mine, even though we live in different worlds.

Without thinking, I move beside him and twine my fingers with his, letting him know he’s not alone.

twelve

Cameron

---