Page 82 of Fair Play
“Uh…” I cut a quick glance in Bodi’s direction. “Two.”
If he doesn’t invite Billie, I will. If he does, I’ll bring Athena or my mom.
“You dating someone?” Connor calls out, wiggling his eyebrows. “How come you didn’t invite her on Easter?”
“Not dating anyone.” I laugh. “I’ll bring my mom or sister.”
“You’re no fun.” Connor types something into his phone before walking around the room to find out who wants what.
“You going to invite Billie?” I ask Bodi as I tape up my stick.
He looks confused. “Why would I do that?”
“Because she loves baseball?” I stare at him like he’s stupid—because he should know this about his sister.
“Says who?”
“Uh… sayshersince the games are on the TV in the living room whenever they play.”
He seems surprised for a moment but then shakes his head. “Nah. She wouldn’t want to hang out with us.”
“Why not?” Marty interjects. “She’s gotten friendly with Stevie and some of the girls. And everyone enjoyed her company at the cookout.”
I’ve put Bodi on the spot, which is what I intended, and he doesn’t like it. But that’s too bad. He’s going to have to get used to this because no matter what happens with Billie and me, she’s not the innocent little introverted virgin he seems to want her to be. I don’t know if it’s her virtue he’s worried about or just her general safety, but he has to get used to her spending time with the team.
“I was going to bring adate,” Bodi says, frowning again.
“Oh. Well, you can buy my second ticket off me,” I say, “and let her have it.”
“I can order more tickets, guys!” Connor waves an impatient hand, typing into his phone. “There. Extra ticket for Billie. One of you can pay me for it, I don’t care who.”
As much as I want to say I will, I hesitate long enough for Bodi to get the hint.
“Yeah, uh, just let me know.” He walks over to Blake and says something under his breath, but I’ve stopped paying attention.
“Be careful,” Marty murmurs quietly. “You’re in dangerous territory.”
“What are you talking about?”
He smiles. “There’s nothing more obvious than a man in love.”
I start to protest, but he cuts me off. “Hey, your secret’s safe with me. But I’m not the only one who’s noticed. Eventually, someone will say somethingto Bodi, and it’ll be a lot worse than if you come clean yourself.”
“We’re waiting for the season to end,” I admit. “So that there’s no issue in the locker room. I heard about what happened with you and Phil. I don’t want to be responsible for anything like that.”
“I understand, but we could be two full months away from the season ending, if we’re lucky, and you can’t wait that long. He’s suspicious. I heard him asking Blake if Rowan has heard anything about you guys.”
Fuck.
We think we’ve been slick but obviously we aren’t as clandestine as we thought we were.
“Thanks for telling me,” I say after a moment. “But I don’t know what to do because she made me promise not to say anything untilshe’sready. I have to respect a promise I made.”
“You do. But if you’re smart, you’ll get her to let you off the hook. And if you need anything, let me know. Stevie and I are here for you guys.”
“Thank you.” I say it sincerely because I can’t remember the last time someone in my locker room went out of their way to have my back.
He winks. “I saw how she looks at you—kind of how Stevie looks at me. I figure you must be doing something right to have a sweet girl like her look at you like that.”
