Page 81 of Off Pitch

“Oh, yep!” I say, trying to sound nonchalant. “Just pulled a muscle in my leg when I tripped in my apartment this morning.”

“Well, if you live like Rory, you have things scattered everywhere. Easy to trip over.”

“Haha, yeah. I’ll have to get better about that.” Oh God, this is not convincing at all.

Paul gives me a curious look before dropping the subject altogether.

Phew.

“You know,” he says, sitting across the desk from where I sat. “You’ve been looking a lot happier lately, Harlow.”

Paul doesn’t know about everything that happened with Derek. He knows we dated and broke up, but that’s the extent of his knowledge. It’s not like my friend’s dad needed all the intimate details, but that means he has no idea why I wasn’t happy in the first place.

“I’ve been a lot happier,” I admit, smiling brightly. “Life is really good right now.”

“Knox has been looking a lot happier, too,” Paul says with a knowing glance. “Not hard when he never gave anyone a damn smile before.”

I laugh in earnest. His image has really been improving this season, but it’ll take a while for him to shake the grumpy asshole persona entirely. “I like to think he’s been happy, too,” I reply as I feel a blush creeping across my cheeks.

Paul gives me a soft smile. “Team morale has been better, too. I never thought I’d want to delve into my players’ dating lives, but considering you two are plastered on the front of every tabloid in the supermarket checkout line, it’s hard to avoid. But you guys somehow work together. And I’m all for it if it means every goddamn reporter isn’t asking me why the league’s best pitcher never wants to talk to anyone.”

We both laugh. “Okay, enough about my personal life, Paul. Let’s get down to business, shall we?”

“Shoot,” he says. “I’ve got about half an hour before I need to start preparing for the game.”

“I can make that work. I’ll start with my standard questions before we get to the deeper ones.” I pull up a blank document on my laptop. “Favorite color?”

“Navy, of course,” Paul says with a laugh. “Gotta be Stars navy.”

“Favorite food?”

“A BLT. Simple and hits the spot every time.”

“Favorite Taylor Swift song?”

“Why do you want that?” he asks incredulously.

I shrug. “It’s just something for fun. My readers seem to really like it.”

“Okay then. Well, what one did Rory pick?”

“She said, uh…” I’m absolutelynotgoing to tell Rory’s dad that she said her favorite song isDress. A little white lie never hurtanyone, right? “She pickedMaroon.“ She did technically say maroon but as her favorite color, not her favorite song.

“I don’t think I know that one. What’s that one about Romeo and Juliet? That one is fine.”

I laugh heartily. “Love Story. Got it. Now let’s get into the rest of this…”

“Where’s Sage?” I ask as Lucia and Rory walk into Lucia’s office, where I’ve been taking refuge since I finished my interview with Paul. I’ve got time to kill before the game, so I’ve been hiding away from everyone and lying with my back on the floor.

“Lane wanted to keep her for a little longer today. He still struggles with leaving her sometimes.” Rory and Lucia walk to where I’m lying on the floor and plop down on either side of me. “Lo,” she says with a tone I can’t quite place. “What are you wearing?”

Shit.

I knew they’d notice this wasn’t my usual attire, but I completely forgot to spin a lie that would be believable.

Shit shit shit.

“What’s wrong with my outfit?” I say in a dismal attempt to shirk this.

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