Page 38 of The Fun Part
I’ll take a wait and see approach. That’s only sensible.
She pops back in and smiles at me. “Ready?”
I can’t say no to this woman. That should scare me more than it does. “Ready.”
Mackenzie
So here we are at Cal’s apartment in Clover Park. He has the entire second floor of a house. It’s cozier than I thought it’d be. Built-in bookcases flank a fireplace, and he actually has books in them. A man who reads, yum. There’s a cushy navy sectional sofa. I imagine his bedroom is equally nice, but we won’t be going in there tonight.
“Want anything?” he asks, taking my coat. He hangs it on a hook by the door.
“No, thanks.” I’m suddenly almost shy. This feels kinda like a date—dinner and then a movie. Well, dinner with my parents and then a movie at home.
“I actually have it on DVD,” he says, rummaging around in the drawer of a coffee table.
A few minutes later, he presses play onField of Dreams.
“Hit the lights,” he says.
Oh, we’re going to sit in the dark together. Okay, no problem, standard movie procedure. I turn off the lights and join him on the sofa. Then I grab a throw pillow and hug it, mostly so I’m not tempted to climb into his lap and kiss him. I breathe in his scent, like soap and pure sexy man.
I glance sideways at him as he settles back, resting his feet on the coffee table. He seems to be into the movie. I should pay attention so I can argue more intelligently whyBull Durhamis better.
Before long, I’m pulled into the movie, my throw pillow long forgotten. Oh my gosh, the players are all here in the field of dreams. They showed up! And his dad. My throat tightens, my eyes stinging with tears. When the end credits roll, I have to wipe the tears from my cheeks.
“Are you crying?” he asks.
I sniffle. “No.”
“You are. See, I told you it was the best baseball movie of all time.”
“No, that’s stillBull Durham.”
“I don’t have that one. Let’s watchMoneyball.”
“If we’re going to have a triple-header, I insistBull Durhamis next. Find it on a streaming service.”
His lips twitch. “There’s no such thing as a triple-header.”
“All the more reason to watchBull Durhamnext.” I pull out my phone. “I’ll look up where to watch it. You make the popcorn.”
He stares at me, not moving to get snacks like a reasonable person. “You’re willing to watch three baseball movies in a row? You must really be a fan of baseball.”
“I’m a fan of good stories, and this is the only way to prove my movie is best.”
He cocks his head. “You’ve never asked me about my baseball-playing days.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not really, but most people are fans. They want to know.”
“I’ve been to my brothers’ games as a kid, and a few times I saw Yankees games in person. My favorite part was the snacks.”
“Oh.”
“Speaking of…” I smile encouragingly.
He tugs a lock of my hair. “Popcorn. How do you know I have popcorn?”
