Page 7 of Off Pitch

I’d be remiss to say that she’s never crossed my mind during some... alone time when I’m home. She’s fucking stunning. Her wavy hair falls down past her shoulders. She has the brightest blue eyes I’ve ever seen. And her other... assets... are more than enough to continually attract my gaze.

Attractive as she is, though, she’s not my type. She’s way too fuckinghappy. Like, all the time. She’s the female version of Cole. I could never manage that without going out of my mind.

There’s that, as well as the fact that she runs a blog about the Stars. She’s trying to be seen, while I’m someone who wants to stay in the shadows. Incompatible, if you ask me.

Cole spots me as I shut the clubhouse door behind me. “Hey, man. How are you feeling after our first win?”

I reluctantly make my way over to join them. I might be considered an asshole across the league for my unwillingness to speak to the media, but I do still try to show my friends and teammates some respect.

“Not bad. Good to get a win,” I say, sidling up next to Cole.

“You pitched a great game tonight, Knox,” Harlow says, peering up at me. I forgot how small she is—I’m six-four and easily have a foot on her.

“Uh, thanks,” I reply, running a hand through my hair. “Media doesn’t think so,” I add. If I have to pretend to be approachable, it’ll be easier to do that around people I already know. I don’t know Harlow or Lucia well, but I’m familiar with them since we have the same circle of friends. I might as well get a start on all of this now. Simon will be happy, at least.

“The media is full of dicks looking for a story,” Harlow replies. I actually laugh at that, earning a side eye from Cole since that’s unlike me. “They just wanted to get you worked up so you’d say something they could run with.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” Why is Harlow trying to talk me up right now? I’ve known her for years because of Cole, but we’ve exchanged maybe five sentences with each other in that time. So that’s weird. Changing the subject, I turn to Cole. “Lane already leave?”

“Oh, yeah,” he says, rubbing his neck. “Sage was tired, and he wanted to get her home. Rory went to help get her down.”

Lane Brooks is our center fielder and the third member of our friend group with Josh Garro. He’s like a damn golden retriever, lapping up the attention and giving the fans everything theycrave. He always has women falling at his feet... which is how he ended up a single dad from a one-night stand. But the guy’s a damn good father. And his daughter Sage could melt even the coldest of hearts, including mine.

Skip’s daughter, Rory, is actually Lane’s nanny. Rory was always around the team because of her father, and she has a background in childcare. When Lane unexpectedly became a dad, she jumped right in to help, traveling with Sage and the team around the country for games.

“Oh!” Lucia chimes in. “I need to find Josh before he leaves the stadium. I have to see how his leg held up today to get an idea of what stretches he needs to work on ahead of tomorrow’s game.”

“I’ll come with,” Harlow adds. “I’ll see you for breakfast tomorrow, Cole, and I’ll see you at the game tomorrow, Knox.”

With a wave, they both turn on their heels and head back down the hallway. And I get a view of Harlow’s hips swaying side to side as she struts away. Adding that to my memory bank for later.

“Dude,” Cole says, shoving my shoulder. “Since when does my sister actually talk to you?”

“I have no fucking idea, man.”

“Weird.” He pulls a hoodie over his head—navy with yellow accents and the Stars logo front and center. “Well, I’m heading out. Catch you tomorrow, Fort.”

Cole takes off down the hall and heads the way Harlow and Lucia left. I turn around to head in the opposite direction to find Simon standing right behind me.

“Christ, Simon. What the hell are you doing?”

“You seem friendly with Cole’s sister,” he says, completely ignoring my question.

“That’s the most we’ve ever spoken,” I reply honestly. “She seems nice and all, but I’d hardly say I know her.”

I can see Simon working through something in his head. The gears are turning. I have no idea what he’s thinking, but I’m sure that I won’t like it.

“I’ve got some things to work out tonight, but meet me in Conference Room A before the game tomorrow. I’ve got an idea...”

three

Harlow

“So, what was withyou chatting up Fort yesterday?” Cole asks as he stuffs his face with a bite of his spinach omelet. Cole and I have a scheduled weekly breakfast together since we don’t see each other as often during baseball season. At least, that’s what we told ourselves when we started it. I’ve since started joining the Stars on the road as I work on my blog, so we see each other nearly daily. We decided to keep the tradition going, so we still meet up every Wednesday morning and alternate between whose apartment we meet at.

“I’m trying to be more friendly with all the guys on the team this year,” I reply, taking a bite of my French toast that Cole grabbed from our favorite diner. “With me wanting to start interviewing players and personnel forStarred and Fast, I want them to all be comfortable around me. To understand that I’m not a reporter, and I’m not going to include anything in a post that they don’t want me to.”

“Most of the guys already know that, Lo. You’re practically friends with everyone on the damn team.”

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