Page 3 of Double Play

Cheetah shouts, “Gemma, you’re giving me a chub. Tone it down.”

She and Trey smile into each other’s mouths as they break apart.

She raises her eyebrow. “With all the romance novels you read and the porn you watch, it’s Trey and me kissing that does it for you?”

We all burst out laughing. It’s well known among the team that Cheetah loves to read romance novels and watches a ton of porn. We often draw names out of a hat as to who’s forced to share a hotel room with him on the road. He watches porn all night long. It’s disturbing.

He rubs his hands together. “You would love the book I’m reading right now. It’s sexy and sassy. The banter ischef’s kiss. The main characters just had sex in the bucket of an excavator.”

Gemma scrunches her nose. “Eww. That sounds dirty.”

He wiggles his eyebrows up and down. “It was. In the best way possible.”

She giggles as we change subjects and chat about nothing in particular for about an hour. I always have fun with this group. I truly love my teammates. I can’t imagine playing anywhere else. I’m suddenly hit with a moment of sadness. This could be my last three months with them. My family. The only true family I have left.

At some point, I excuse myself and go to the bathroom. As I turn the corner, I notice a table of women laughing. They’re tucked away, completely removed from the action of the bar. While women laughing isn’t unusual, what stands out is that they’re all in sweatpants and hoodies. Their hair is in messy ponytails, and they don’t have on any makeup. It looks like they just came from soccer practice or are coming from the gym. I don’t think I’ve ever seen women in here dressed like that. It’s always women dressing like they’re on the prowl for professional baseball players, wanting to put their best foot forward. These women don’t give a shit.

After using the bathroom, I walk out and notice a blonde at that same table whose back was to me earlier, but I can see her face now. She’s effortlessly gorgeous. Stunning.

Something her red-headed friend sitting next to her just said made her laugh. Too bad Quincy left. The redhead is exactly the type of woman he likes, curvy and outgoing.

Blondie snorts in laughter. So fuckingcute. I find a genuine laugh to be incredibly attractive in a woman. I hate it when they fake laugh. And her smile. It’s breathtaking.She’sbreathtaking.

I decide to head over to their table. As I approach, I give them a smirk. Admittedly, one that often works in my favor. “You ladies look like you’re having the best time of anyone here. Will one of you tell me what’s so funny?”

The redhead’s blue eyes widen. “Holy shit. Layton Lancaster. You’re even hotter in person.”

I shrug. “I suppose that’s better than the alternative.”

She giggles as she holds out her hand. “I’m Ripley. It’s nice to meet you, Layton Lancaster.”

“You don’t have to say my full name. It’s just Layton.” I take her hand and kiss it. “It’s nice to meet you, Ripley.” I stare at the blonde next to her. “In all honesty, your friend’s beautiful smile anddistinguishablelaugh caught my attention. I had to come over here to meet this stunning person.”

While Ripley seems impressed, blondie does not. She rolls her eyes. I hold my hand out to her. “And you are?”

She practically snarls at me. “Not interested. This isn’t the Layton Lancaster groupie section. You have no chance of hitting a home run at this table. Move along to the skanks who are no doubt fighting with each other to dance within eyesight of your booth, praying to get a whole three minutes of yourundividedtime and attention.”

I let out a laugh. That’s kind of true. The women here do often jockey for position so they can be within our sight.

I lean over and whisper in her ear, “I promise it lasts way longer than three minutes.” I stand back to my fullsix-feet-four-inch height. “And I guess you noticed me too?”

She pinches her eyebrows together in confusion.

“You knew I was in a booth.”

She grimaces, knowing she’s busted.

Ripley elbows blondie. “Excuse my friend.” She points to the women on the other side of the table. “Let me introduce you to the gang. These gorgeous ladies are Bailey and Kamryn. Before you ask, yes, they’re twins.” Oh shit, she’s right. They’re identical, with stick-straight, jet-black hair and big brown eyes.

The one that she indicated was Kamryn gives me a sexy smile. “To be clear, I might be offering a home run later.”

She’s beautiful, but it’s blondie that caught my eye. Before I can reply, Ripley continues, “And Ms. Mannerless next to me is Arizona.”

“Arizona? Do you have the kind of parents who name their kids after the place they were conceived?”

Arizona quirks an eyebrow as she sarcastically replies, “Wow, I’ve never heard that one before. I’ve never even thought about it. Perhaps I should ask my brother, Tex, and my sister, Georgia. Maybe they have the answers.”

I can’t help but chuckle at that.

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