Page 111 of Off Pitch

As we continued our stroll, I noticed someone with a camera on the trail ahead of us.

And I take a deep breath.

“Knox, there’s someone with a camera.”

“Oh,” he says. “Just smile as we walk by then.”

“No,” I say, stopping and facing him. “We’re selling this, remember?”

And before I have time to tell myself this is a terrible idea, I stand on my tiptoes, bringing my lips to his and kissing him.

It’s not a long kiss, just a tiny peck.

But all the hurt from yesterday bubbles up again when all I feel are the butterflies taking flight.

No matter what, I won’t be able to move on while we’re keeping up this charade.

The rest of this season is going to be hell…

“Yeah,” Cole says from the clubhouse sofa. The guys went out to the field early, so Cole snuck me in to do our interview here. “Getting to play for the Stars has been a dream. Having grown up in Brooklyn, I grew up a Stars fan, and I always said I’d play for the Stars one day. This is a lifelong dream realized.”

“You did always say that,” I reply with a laugh. “How often did you tell Mom and Dad that you only wanted to play on the Stars?”

“Hey, I meant that. Those three years I spent between the Kansas Huskers and their farm system just solidified it.”

“Didn’t enjoy the cornfields, huh?” I tease, finally smiling today. I spent some time with Rory and Sage to try to recuperate after seeing Knox before I met up with Cole. It helped a bit but didn’t cheer me up as much as I’d hoped.

“You know damn well how much I hated that,” Cole says, crossing his arms. “I’m pretty sure I called you every fucking day to ask you to find a way to get me out of there.”

“Yes, your sister—with absolutely no pull in the MLB—was definitely going to be the one to get you out of Kansas.”

“Thankfully, Kansas eventually wanted me out of Kansas, and now here I am where I always wanted to be.” He laughs and smiles. “It’s all I ever dreamed of.”

“I do enjoy having you here as well, Cole. I missed you when you were in Kansas.”

“Because I’m the best big brother anybody could ever ask for,” he says with pride and a smirk.

“Such a fucking ego,” I say, pushing Cole’s shoulder. “You’re the only brother I know, so I have nothing to compare it to.”

The clubhouse door swings open, and Knox walks in. When he spots us, he quickly turns around and leaves. I can’t hide the hurt on my face.

“You okay, Lo?” Cole asks seriously.

“Yeah,” I say, dusting myself off, though there’s nothing there. “I’m fine.”

“It’s okay if you aren’t, you know.” He smiles at me reassuringly.

“I know,” I reply. “Lucia and Rory came over last night, and I got all of that out of my system with them. Today still sucks, but it’s not nearly as shitty as yesterday.” I take a deep breath. “Okay, back to the interview. I need to finish before you decide to tell me you changed your mind.”

Cole laughs heartily. “Better be quick then.”

I roll my eyes before looking through my list of questions and topics. “What’s your favorite part of getting to play for the Stars? You said it was always your dream, so what do you love most about seeing that dream unfold?”

“Familiarity and family mostly,” Cole replies. “I know the city well since I spent my life here. And getting to stay around you, Mom, and Dad is awesome. I’ve always been family-oriented, so I didn’t like being away from you all. Aside from those, the Stars are an incredible organization with love for their players. You feel cared for and know they aren’t just looking for a buck off of you. That’s always nice.”

“Fun questions now!” I chime. “My favorite part.”

“Lay ’em on me, Lo.”

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