Page 35 of Fake Dates and Home Plates
“Not right now,” I say. “This week. You, me, a real date.”
It’s a long shot, and I know it. There’s no way she’s not at least a little curious at how good it could be with us, not after the moments we’ve had.
I swear, the seconds feel like hours as she thinks it over.
Finally, “Alright, Baseball Boy. A real date.”
It takes everything in me to not happy dance in my car or shout something about being on top of the world outside the window.
“I feel like a big girl now,” she says, reaching over to kiss my cheek.
That makes me laugh.
“See you soon!” she shouts as she hops out and shuts the door behind her.
A real date.
Fucking finally.
Chapter Fifteen
Theo
Before leaving Henley’s apartment, I send a text message to Bash saying I needed to talk. He responds immediately, telling me just to head over. Unfortunately for me, when I walk into the apartment, I can hear he’s not alone.
He and a couple of our teammates are spread throughout the living room, remotes to game consoles in their hands. All of them are talking shit and cussing each other out, so I’m guessing I missed something pivotal.
“Oh, hey, Theo,” Ezra says before hitting Lukas on the back of his head.
They both live in the building, with Lukas living just down the hall from Sunny and Bash, so I’m not too surprised to see them here.
A chorus of greetings echoes around me as I find an empty seat near the TV. Leaning back, I run a hand down my face.
I’m so fucking pissed, and I hate that I have no idea how to help Henley with her Dakota problem. She wants to let it go, and I want to respect that, but I also think she knows deep down, he’s not going to stop. At least not until he’s taken things way too far. The texts and trolling are his stepping stones.
Sleeping with her teammate? That dude is fucked in the head.
“What’s going on, man?” Bash asks.
I huff out an exhale.
“I want to kick someone’s ass, but I’m not sure my girlfriend will be happy if I do,” I tell them.
“Do it anyway and then beg for forgiveness on your knees, if you know what I mean,” Ezra says, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
Can’t deny the idea is appealing, but I’m trying to earn Henley’s trust right now, and that doesn’t seem like it would benefit me much.
Lukas tosses one of Sunny’s throw pillows at him, but Ezra catches it with a smile.
“I’m guessing you mean Dakota? Is Henley okay?” Bash brings us back on topic with his questions.
Nodding, I clench my fists. “He won’t leave her alone. Today at lunch, I think she probably got at least twenty notifications just from him. Every time she blocks him, he just finds another way.”
My teammates all make different sounds of annoyance; none of us care for the guy, and knowing just how fucking intense he’s being makes it worse.
Lukas’ face twists into a grimace. “Maybe Ezra’s on to something. We beat his ass, and you can apologize later.”
As much as I want to, I know we can’t resort to violence. We’ll end up hospitalizing him and catching criminal charges. All the romance books I’ve read would definitely have the love interest go that route, but this isn’t a fictional story. We’d all be off the team.
