Page 3 of Totally Fanatic

“Well, I am sure you will get plenty of opportunities to talk to him. You got your season pass, and an amazing boss who has already approved all the dates off you need to go following his tour all over the US.”

“Thanks, Mary Beth.”

“Don’t mention it. Oh, one thing, though.”

“Yeah?”

“Can you make the display pretty for me, please?”

I kneel in front of the glass cabinet where we keep the cakes and baked treats and shake my head.

“Did a raccoon get in here?”

“I tried, okay. Look, you make it pretty for me and I’ll make you a caramel macchiato.”

“Ohhh, iced with whip and caramel drizzle, please?” I ask, and I move behind the case to get to work.

“You got it.”

I grab two sets of tongs, snapping them like claws in her direction a few times to make her laugh and then start rearranging the display. The whole cakes on the middle shelf are mostly fine, but I move them around a little until they sit evenlyapart and then set a few fresh flowers and macarons in the gaps between them.

The top shelf is a complete mess. Keeping the packaged gluten-free, dairy-free, and nut-free options on top is important, but they don’t have to look like they were just tossed in there. I put the tongs down, throw on some gloves, and start moving each piece into place. The individual packets make them less pretty than the rest of the case, but the fresh flowers Mary Beth orders from the florist two shops down surround them beautifully, and in a few minutes, the whole display is organized down to the bottom shelf with the kids’ cookies, cake pops, candy marshmallow skewers and monster face cupcakes. It’s my favorite shelf, and I love that it is right at the kids’ level so they can see all the fun colors and yummy treats just for them.

Okay, not just for them. I guess if an adult wanted one, we would sell it to them, too, but really, they are made for the kids. Why an adult wouldn’t just get an adult-sized cookie or slice of cake instead of a kiddy-sized one is beyond me. Mary Beth makes the skewers herself, out of candy and marshmallows, and charges only a dollar for them with any coffee purchase.

I pull out my phone to pop it away in the back of the cafe before customers start arriving and see the notification on the screen. I didn’t turn the sound back on after I left home. How long ago did this come through? I quickly swipe it to open the post. Tim has liked all of my comments, and he replied,Hope you had an amazing birthday!on one of them. I log in as Kittyball100 and hit reply.It was amazing, almost as fun as seeing you hit that home run in game seven last season.

“What’s got you looking so happy?” Mary Beth asks as she flicks the sign on the door from closed to open.

“Tim Sage wished me a happy birthday.”

Chapter three

TIM

“Do you and Ianwant to grab a bite to eat?” I ask Duckie as I twist my still-damp hair up into a knot at the back of my head. The first day of training is a blur. I know one thing for sure. I am glad I didn’t slack off during the break because the guys who did are feeling it way worse than me right now.

“I totally would, but I’m wrecked. I was just going to grab take out from that rib place and head home and crawl into bed.”

“Ohh, The River Steakhouse. Yes, it’s Tuesday. They have the two-for-one sides. Great idea. Let’s get going before they sell out of the spicy ones.”

“Ian doesn’t like the spicy ones.”

“He’s dating you, isn’t he?”

“I’ll never get your Australian humor.”

“Please, I’m hilarious, and you know it.”

“Sure I do.”

The River Steakhouse is only a few blocks from the field, so we walk together and recap the day’s session. Duckie is about my age, a little older, but he acts younger than any guy on the field.He joined the team on our first tour, stepping up for Nate when he was injured. Personally, I think the coaches asked him out of spite. He made it no secret he didn’t think what we played was a real sport, or at least he used to. But reporting on the tour and getting his own ass out on the field changed all that. I was over the moon when I got called to fly over and meet with the GM of Banana Ball. Australian baseball is great, but it isn’t as popular as it is here in the USA, and nowhere else has anything like Banana Ball. I think it would do really well in Australia if they ever decide to actually go global with their world tour. Not that I have any plans to move home. My life is here now.

“So, how are you handling your no-phone rule, you got the shakes yet?” Duckie laughs as we reach the restaurant, and he shoves open the door, holding it for me to pass.

“It’s not a no-phone rule, just no socials unless I’m eating, and it’s going fine actually,” I lie. Truth is, it’s terrible, and his joke about the shakes isn’t actually that far from the truth. I hear the thing vibrate and I want to grab it and see if it’s a fan messaging on one of my posts or someone sharing something on my feed, and that’s all I can think about for longer than I would like to admit. “You can’t get on my case when you spend half the day with your face in yours.”

“Do not.”

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