Page 2 of His Team

My wife can be free. I can be the man I want to be for my family, and I can finally live the happy life I’ve always wanted.

“Just do it, Cam,” I growl at myself as I pace back and forth.

I pull my phone from my arm as I continue to grumble to myself. I’ve done some fucked-up shit in my life, but this will cross the line. I can’t believe this is even a debate in my mind right now.

“Fuck it,” I murmur as I write the text.

Me:Let’s play ball.

My thumb hovers over the send button. The last thirteen years play through my mind. Longer than that if I’m honest.

I shouldn’t even be here. Anger with myself and what I’ve allowed to happen fills me. All doubts vanish as my true feelings surface.

“I would have dealt with this a long time ago if I could’ve been sure I’d get away with it,” I breathe.

That’s the God’s honest truth. The old me, the wild Cam who didn’t have children and a wife to think about would have reacted and not given two fucks at all.

“Why give a fuck now?”

I read the text again quickly before I hit send. I have to do this. I have to end this once and for all.

“I’m doing this for us. For you, baby.”

How did you really get here, Cam?

CHAPTER 2

Freshman Year

Cameron

Thirteen years ago …

“We’re late,” Caleb says in annoyance.

“Relax, we’re fine. I told you no one comes to these orientations anyway,” I reply.

“You’ve never been to one before. You can’t say that for sure. We shouldn’t have been late.”

I have tons of shit I could be doing, but my brother insisted he wanted to come to freshman orientation. He’s the only reason I’m here. I’m doing this for him, but I drew the line at the courses he’s signing up for.

Caleb’s ass has signed up for a bunch of nerdy shit I’m not touching. Dakota can handle that shit. I’m here for baseball. I refuse to sit through lectures on physics and don’t get me started on the advanced math courses I had to sign up for to shadow him.

It’s not that I can’t handle the work. I’m just not spending my time here with books tied to my face. Nope, this is going to be four years of coasting. That is if we hang around here for four years. The major leagues are calling our names.

“Look, no one’s speaking yet. They haven’t started,” I say.

“We’re late,” Caleb repeats.

“I know, but we didn’t miss anything.”

“It’s our first day. We shouldn’t have been late. I hate being late,” he says, pursing his lips and squinting.

Yeah, I fucked up. We shouldn’t have been late. I know that.

This is a new environment for Caleb, and he needs to adjust. Making us late isn’t the best way to start off our college life, especially since we’re hiding the fact that my brother has autism.

He could totally melt down on me. In my defense, it was Kay’s fault. God, that girl can get on my last nerve at the worst times ever. I knew this was going to be a problem.