Page 20 of Tame the Player

I look between him and my sister. “What—”

But before I can even finish my question, his phone starts ringing, and I remember that it's his emergency ringtone.

Gabe looks at his phone. “There’s a fire. I gotta go.” He looks out at our family, and they’ve all stopped what they’re doing and are now looking anxiously at him. We all worry when he gets a fire call. “See you guys later. Keep working, Cole! You’re a natural, and if you keep it up, you’ll be following this guy into the big leagues.”

He gives a longing look at Chrissy and then is headed out the door. All of us are quiet, and I’m sure we’re each saying our own prayers for his safety.

They are just getting back into the game when Cat walks out in cut-off shorts and a tank top, holding a pink glove.

“Pink?” I ask her.

She smiles up at me. “It’s cute, right?”

Before I can tell her she’s the one that’s cute, Cole hollers for her to join them.

For the first time, I’m glad I have to sit out because I can stay here and watch Cat. There’s something about the way she smiles and laughs. She gives a hundred percent, and when she dives for a ball and misses, she gets right up and chases after it. My family is totally rooting for her, and she's won them all over in no time.

It’s crazy because if she was anyone else, I would be trying to figure out how to get her out of here. But with Cat, I’m wondering how long I can keep her and Cole here. It doesn’t make sense to me, but I will not question it. I’m just going to enjoy it while I can.

12

CATHERINE

I can’t sleep because I can’t stop replaying the night in my head. I should probably figure out what I’m going to do about Jeremy—I can’t keep seeing him—but that’s not what is on the forefront of my mind. Nope, all I’m thinking about is how wonderful it was hanging out with my son, Holden, and his family.

At one point, I sat back while everyone was playing the game and just soaked it all in. This is what I hoped for my son to have. This is the kind of family nights I wish he had. Everyone was laughing, having fun, joking around with each other. The night was perfect.

I walk into the kitchen and turn on the low light, trying to be quiet. Holden and Cole areasleep, and I don’t want to wake them up just because I can’t sleep.

I pull open the fridge and grab a bottle of water. When I shut the door, I jump and let out a squeal after seeing Holden standing behind the once open door.

“You okay?”

With my hand to my chest, I try to calm my breathing. “Yeah, I’m fine. You scared me.”

He walks across the kitchen, putting the island between us. “Sorry. I couldn’t sleep.”

“Me either… why couldn’t you sleep?”

He puts his hand to his shoulder and grimaces. He’ll never admit it out loud, so I shake my head. “You’re hurting, aren’t you?”

He grunts and lifts his shoulders in a shrug.

“Really? Answer me, Holden, instead of grunting and groaning.”

When he remains silent, I ask, “Did you throw the ball tonight in the game with your family?”

“I did not throw the ball,” he assures me.

He’s hiding something, though. He was standing with Chrissy when I got here, but maybe he played before then. “What did you do, Holden?”

He lets out a laugh. “I may have hit a few balls—”

I start to cut him off, but he continues. “I was helping Cole with his batting.”

I stomp my foot. “Really? What part of resting your arm do you not understand? I’m trying to get your arm ready, and you don’t want a setback.”

Once I get started, I can’t stop. I keep rambling on, and he’s just sitting on the stool with a smile on his face.

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