Page 76 of Crew
It seemed weird to think of Crew as a dad. Not that I didn’t think he was capable. In fact, it was just the opposite—he would make a great dad. But after going through the pregnancy scare when we first started messing around, I didn’t expect parenthood to be something either of us would be tackling at this point in our lives.
But I knew how badly Crew wanted to be a part of Grady’s life, and I would do everything possible to support that.
His phone vibrated, and he looked at the screen. “They’re here.” He jumped up. “I’m going to meet them so they don’t have any problems getting back here.”
A few minutes later, he stepped back into the locker room, Grady standing next to him but clinging to Mallory’s hand. When my eyes met Crew’s, I could see he was still nervous, yet he was sporting a huge smile as well, showing how happy he was to have his son close.
The three of them started walking toward Crew’s locker. When they got to me, Crew rested his hand on my shoulder. “Grady, this is my teammate,Knox.”
I knelt to his level and held my fist out for a bump. “Nice to meet you, little man.”
He blinked at me and then mumbled something that sounded like hi.
Mallory smiled. “He’s a little shy, but he couldn’t stop talking about watching a baseball game the entire way here.”
“Hopefully, we’ll put on a good show for you.” I stood and continued to get ready, although it was hard for me to keep my eyes off of Crew and Grady.
“This is where I keep all my gear,” Crew explained as he pulled out his chest protector. “Do you want to try it on?”
Grady beamed as Crew placed it on him. The thing practically swallowed the kid, but he couldn’t have looked happier.
“Hey, Stratton! Who’s the kid?” Diaz called out from the other side of the room.
Crew quickly introduced Mallory and Grady. “They’re friends of mine from back home.”
It was how Crew and Mallory agreed to describe their situation for the time being if questions came up. Neither of them wanted it to come out that Crew was Grady’s dad before they had the chance to explain things to him. I didn’t know how they planned to break the news to a four-year-old, and I didn’t ask.
Grady waddled around for a couple of minutes handing out high-fives once he got a little more comfortable. Eventually, Mallory told him it was time for them to find their seats.
Crew helped his son take off the gear and said, “I’m going to head out to the field soon. Make sure you look for me.”
Grady nodded. “Okay.”
“We’ll be cheering for you,” Mallory replied.
Shortly after they left, Crew and I walked to the dugout. “You’ve got a cheering section tonight. You know what that means, right?”
His brow furrowed. “What?”
“You better hit a bomb and make your son’s night.”
“Talk about pressure.” He chuckled.
I elbowed him playfully. “I’m happy for you. Fatherhood looks good on ya.”
His face lit up. “If you told me a year ago that I’d have a boyfriend and a kid, I would’ve laughed in your face, but damn, I wouldn’t change it for anything.”
Crew hada great game behind the dish. He blocked a few wild pitches, picked off a runner trying to steal second, and caught a couple of foul balls.
At the top of the eighth, the score was tied. Crew stepped up to the plate with two runners on and one out. From where I stood against the railing, I could see Mallory and Grady a section over and two rows back from the field, giving my man their undivided attention.
The first pitch was an outside fastball, just like Crew liked. I knew the moment he made contact that it was a solid hit, and I watched it soar over the left-field fence. Sabato and Turner scored, and when Crew rounded third, he looked over at his son, who waved a foam finger wildly in the air.
Both of them looked so happy in that moment.
When Crew got back in the dugout, I smacked his ass. “You just became someone’s hero.”
He let out a breath. “I hope so.”
