Page 45 of What We May Be

“Tough crowd?” He swung and missed the next pitch, the ball clanking off the fence behind Sean. He kicked it and the other missed balls over to Trevor.

Trevor gathered them back into the bucket. “The opposite actually. They welcomed her with open arms.”

Pitch. Hit. A scorcher to center field. “I don’t follow.”

“She never believed that it wasn’t Charlie’s arms I wanted to be in.”

Sean’s piercing blue gaze cut to his as the next pitch sailed between them. “Was she right?”

“To a degree. What she didn’t get was that Charlie’s arms weren’t enough.”

Pitch, hit, a gorgeous arc all the way to the back fence.

Fuck if watching Sean Hale at bat wasn’t still a turn-on.

“What happened with Julian?”

The interrogation, not so much, but the fact Sean could carry it on while still hitting most of the pitches was impressive. And fascinating enough that Trevor kept answering. “Neighbor told me. I told Tracy we could bring Julian in. I wasn’t attracted to him, but she could be the connection that made the polycule work. I just needed the relationship with her. She could also have a relationship with him. But by then, she wasn’t in love with me anymore.”

“Charlie said she wasn’t poly.”

“That too. She always thought it was Charlie I wanted instead of her. She couldn’t wrap her brain around the notion I could love and want them both. Or that I could be poly and be in a monogamous relationship if that’s what she wanted.”

“Most people don’t get it.” The next ball sped past, and their eyes clashed again over the plate. “Trev—”

He stepped up to the plate. “My turn.” He connected on the first pitch, ground ball to short, and then Sean threw a fastball of his own.

“Why didn’t you and Charlie try to find a third? If Tracy didn’t work, someone else?”

Anger gone, joy depleting as the conversation wore on, Trevor was too exhausted to hold back the truth. He mentally collected all the balls and blitzed Sean with them. “Because we were all connected. Without you, something was always missing. And who the fuck else would’ve had the self-confidence to encourage two best friends to fall in love and be sure enough in themselves to know they’d still have a place among them.” He slammed the bat into the next ball, a line drive to third. “Only you, Sean. Only you’re that arrogant.”

He didn’t sound arrogant at all when he spoke. “I’m sorry, Trevor.” His voice was soft, pained as if all those balls had pummeled him.

Trevor pitched another. “Why’d you leave us?”

“Jesus, you don’t pull your punches.”

“I thought that’s why you liked me.”

“Loved you.”

Trevor hit a homer to center field.

Sean ended the game. “Saul’s dying.”

The bat fell from Trevor’s hands. “Repeat that.”

“I got a call from Marie right after police academy graduation. Saul had collapsed and was in surgery. Cancer.”

If Trevor thought his heart had ached before… “Is he better?”

Sean whipped his head to the side and his Adam’s apple bobbed. “Third time’s gonna get him.” He cleared his throat. “Any day now.”

As soon as the next ball blew past, Trevor bolted across the plate, grabbed Sean by the arm, and dragged him to the other side of the fence and into his arms. “Fuck, baby, I’m sorry. I know how much he means to you.” One orphan to another, Trevor knew how much it meant when someone else opened their arms and home and invited you into their family. Knew how much it hurt when you lost those people who were your second chance, your hope.

“I’m the one who should be apologizing.”

“You forget I know how this mind works.” Trevor cupped the back of his head, fingers threading through the short hairs, as so many pieces of the puzzle fell into place. “You ran to your family. You thought you’d have to stay and take over Paxton and you wouldn’t ask us to leave our family.”

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