Page 159 of Catch Me
Getting in his face, I barely restrained myself from putting my hands on him. It was the smile he wore that held me back. I knew he wanted me to start something so I’d get pulled.
“You wanna pitch?” I asked.
“Clearly, you’re not getting us the win today.”
“Did the Braves ever make it to the World Series when you were the starter, Tony?”
Anger twisted his expression. I stepped back and tugged on my batting gloves.
“Everyone calm the fuck down,” Spencer demanded. “It’s the first game. Hold it together. You’re up to bat, Trav.”
“Don’t choke,” Anthony said.
“Your dick’s too small for that to ever happen,” I returned before I cleared the steps and walked onto the field.
My eyes traveled up to the suite the group was in. There were people visible up there, but I didn’t take the time to figure out who they were. Clearing my head, I took a deep breath and tapped my bat on the ground as I got into position.
Pitching was where I excelled, but I was damn good at hitting a ball too, which was why they were letting me cover for Marcus after he fucked up his hand last inning. It rarely happened, and I was actually excited for it. I’d been watching this pitcher closely all day, and even though I couldn’t be sure exactly how he’d throw this round, I was confident that I could adjust to whatever came at me.
The crack of the bat hitting the ball was like that first breath when I broke the water’s surface. It was a risk, but I pushed myself to make it to third. My foot touched the base just in time, and I broke into a smile.
“Good fucking hit,” Amir, the third baseman, noted. “Better than your throw earlier.”
I laughed, keeping my eyes on home plate. “Watch me turn it around.”
“Give us some actual competition.”
“I don’t want your daughter to see you strike out.”
“I’m a good sport. You got any plans to celebrate your loss tonight?”
Glancing at him, I rolled my eyes lightheartedly. “Don’t try to throw me off by flirting with me.”
“You’re just no fun, always turning me down. It hurts my ego. Mallory needs a stepdad. Tessa needs a stepdad.”
I readied myself to run, but Pat struck out. “If you came out, you’d have plenty of men to choose from.”
“Eventually. You came into the major leagues already out. I’m trying to establish my career first.”
“Fair.” While I waited for the next batter to come up, I straightened and tapped the back of my hand against Amir’s chest. “It’ll work out. Be fearless, man. There’s more support out there than you think.”
He grinned, then nodded toward home as Grisham readied his pitch. As soon as the bat hit, I took off. The ball didn’t soar, but it was enough for me to make it. I pointed at Vince on first base and blew him a kiss. Some people in the crowd laughed, and it made my mood lift a little.
Spencer squeezed my shoulder when I got back to the dugout. “Good hit, Trav. Your arm good for the eighth, Tony?”
“Hell yeah, it is,” he said, throwing me a glare.
His arm was pretty good the rest of the game, but winning wasn’t only about the pitch. We didn’t score enough runs to catch up, and the game ended with us two behind. Since Dan was our third to strike out in the ninth, he was angrier than usual.
“We’ve got them the next game,” I said as we walked through the tunnel, hoping to make him feel better, even though he didn’t deserve it.
“Fuck off, McKinney.”
“Relax, man. We’re still a team. Act like it once in a while.”
He shoved my shoulder, then sped up to walk beside Anthony. I’d worked past most of my anger, but that move didn’t help one bit. Vince tried to talk to me, but I ignored him.
After I’d showered, I rushed up to the suite. When I got there, everyone was gathering their things to leave. Sen and the rest of the guys were horsing around while they did it, and I saw West put Linc in a headlock. Tessa barked, her tail wagging from the excitement. When Roman patted his leg, she turned her attention to him immediately.
