Behind the Plate: A New Adult Sports Romance (The Boys of Baseball Book 2)

by J. Sterling

  “Danika? Can I borrow you for a second?” Cassie asked.

  I stood up from the chair I’d been sitting in and nodded. She reached for my hand. It was a simple gesture, motherly really, and I relished in it as I let her guide me down a long hallway. I noticed various jars filled with what looked like quarters all over the house before we walked into an office that I assumed was Cassie’s. There were even more jars with quarters on the shelves and one sitting on top of the desk. Only once we were inside the office did she let go of my hand.

  Cassie Carter made me miss my mom even more, just by existing.

  The room was well lit, but there were additional art lights hanging above framed black-and-white photographs, spotlighting each one along the walls. They were spectacular.

  “Did you take all these?” I asked as she sat down at the desk and started frantically working at the mouse and keyboard.

  “I did.”

  “They’re really stunning,” I said because they were.

  The majority were landscapes of places I didn’t recognize, but the ones that included people were heartbreaking, showcasing genuine emotion after what looked like some sort of loss. It was written all over their faces, and Cassie had captured it beautifully. Her pictures made you ache when you looked at them.

  “Thank you. I have something to show you,” she said as she waved me over.

  I walked around, peered over her shoulder to the oversize monitor, and gasped. There, alive and in color, were pictures of my mother and my father together.

  “Oh my God,” I said before reaching out and touching the screen, my fingers resting on my mom’s face. “I’m sorry,” I said as I quickly pulled my hand back.

  “It’s okay,” Cassie said, the warmth in her voice comforting. “I always keep copies of the pictures I shoot. Even the ones I did for the magazine. I wasn’t sure if I could still find these so easily or not, but they were right where I thought they’d be on that external hard drive,” she said, pointing to a bright red box that sounded like it was going to crap out at any moment.

  “There are so many,” I exhaled, still mesmerized as I stared at the screen, willing the pictures to come to life.

  My parents looked so happy and so in love.

  Cassie laughed. “Yeah. I always shoot way more than necessary. My motto was basically that it’s better to have too many pictures than not enough.”

  Tears spilled down my cheeks. “My mom looks so beautiful.”

  Cassie turned to face me. “And you look just like her.”

  “You think so?” I wiped at my face, but it was no use.

  “Yes, I do,” she said as she stood up from her chair and hugged me before looking right in my eyes. “I’m going to make you copies of all of these, okay?”

  I practically stuttered, “Really? Oh, yes. Please. That would be so amazing. Thank you.”

  “I’ll email you a link to the files too. That way, you can share them with your dad if you think he’d be up to seeing them.”

  I wondered for a brief moment if the pictures would upset my dad or make him happy. “I think he’d love that.”

  “Good,” Cassie said with a smile as she passed me a notepad and a pen.

  I scribbled my email address down and pushed it back in her direction.

  “Do you remember that day? I mean, I know it was a long time ago, but what were they like?”

  “I actually do remember parts of it. Your parents were a great team. Even back then. They were so different in the way they came across, but they complemented each other perfectly. Like true partners. Does that even make any sense?” she asked, her head shaking like she was speaking nonsense when she wasn’t.

  “More than you know,” I said as I started thinking about my own relationship in comparison to what my parents had been like.

  They’d fought for each other, not against. They had been a team, just like Cassie had said. But Jared and I … I wasn’t sure we’d ever truly been on the same page. And we’d grown so far off course that I wasn’t sure we could ever get back. More truthfully, I wasn’t sure that I wanted to or not anymore.

  Cassie started laughing softly as she pointed at a picture of my dad cracking up. Him laughing like that was rare. He was always inundated with work. Even when he tried to take time off, work stayed firmly rooted in the back of his mind, his phone never quiet, his wheels always turning. And that laughter had grown even rarer since my mom passed. I used to think that she had taken his smile with her when she left.

  “I remember that your dad was trying to look tough for the photographs. He wanted to appear strong and smart. His goal was to attract big-money clients, and he said he couldn’t look soft. But your mom kept making him laugh. I don’t even know what she was doing half the time because I was too busy staring through my lens, but all of a sudden, your dad’s eyes would wander over my shoulder, and a giant, toothy smile would break out of nowhere.”

  “That sounds like my mom,” I said almost wistfully.

  “It was a good day. Fun. Your dad never remarried, did he?”

  A surprised sound escaped me. “No way. My mom was the love of his life. He always said he could never replace her, so why bother trying?”

  “That’s really sweet,” Cassie said with a smile before turning serious. “Jack had better feel the same way about me.”

  “Are you joking? That man is so in love with you, it’s sick. But not really because who doesn’t want to be loved like that?” I added, feeling way too comfortable already.

  “I love the way he loves me. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. There’s a bathroom around the corner if you want to go freshen up. I’ll just copy these for you.”

  I nodded. “Thank you again. This is the best gift anyone could give me.”

  “What a small world, huh?”

  “Yeah, small world,” I said as I walked out of the office in search of the bathroom, but I ran into a rock-hard chest instead. “Oof, Hotshot. A little warning next time.”

  “I was just coming to make sure my mom hadn’t kidnapped you or something. You’ve been gone too long,” he said, sounding way too sweet and sincere for the current state of my heart. It was vulnerable. He reached for my chin and tilted my face up to look at him, those green eyes filled with concern. “You’ve been crying.”

  “Happy tears,” I said, and his face relaxed only a little. He didn’t like it when I cried.

  “Promise? I mean, it’s my mom and all, but I’ll rough her up if she hurt you,” he said.

  Cassie yelled that she had heard that from the office, followed by Jacey saying the same thing from somewhere deeper in the house.

  “Your sister really can hear everything. That was exactly the kind of thing you should have warned me about,” I teased.

  “I can still hear you,” Jacey singsonged, clearly enjoying eavesdropping on us.

  “Go away, troll,” Chance yelled back in response.

  I swatted his shoulder. “Don’t call her names.”

  “She’s fine. Bounces right off her hard head.”

  “Stop talking about me, or I’ll come to all your games in crop tops and booty shorts and flirt with all your friends,” Jacey shouted.

  Chance visibly tensed. I made a mental note to make fun of him about it later when Cassie walked out of the office, holding a thumb drive between her fingers.

  “Here you go, Danika,” she said, handing it to me. “I also emailed you the link. You can just forward it to whoever you want to share the pictures with. I’ll go finish getting dinner ready, but it’s still about an hour away.”

  Chance looked at me. “We should probably study then.”

  I nodded in agreement. “You’re right.”

  “Show her to the bathroom first,” his mom said before she headed back toward the kitchen.

  “This is crazy, right?” Chance shook his head, and a half-smile appeared along with his lone dimple.

  “That your parents know mine?” I said in disbelief. “Crazy doesn’
t even begin to cover it,” I said as Chance led me toward the guest bathroom.

  He waited outside the door, refusing to leave me alone, even when I insisted that I could find my way back to the office by myself. His house wasn’t that elaborate. It actually felt more comfortable than I would have expected, which was nice.

  I thought he sensed more that I was teetering on an emotional seesaw that I might fall off of at any moment, and he wanted to make sure he was there to catch me if I fell. And to be honest, I found myself wishing that I could allow that, that Chance could be the rock I used to lean on, but I couldn’t let myself go there. Depending on another guy while I had a steady boyfriend was beyond wrong. I needed to remember that, but Chance made it really fucking hard when he looked at me with those green eyes, all filled with concern and sympathy. He cared about my well-being, and I liked the way that made me feel.

  Focusing on math was just the distraction I needed. It gave me a goal and a job to do. It was easier to focus than I’d expected, and we studied without stopping until Jacey let us know that dinner was ready. That hour had flown by.

  “Think I’ll ace it?” Chance whispered, clearly joking, as we made our way toward the kitchen.

  I laughed. “I’m not sure about acing it, but you’ll definitely pass. I know that much.”

  “I hope so,” he said before adding, “Thank you for all the help. I still don’t understand it, but you make it a little less complicated.”

  “Thanks”—a soft laugh escaped—“I think.”

  The Carters were easy, comfortable, and kind. And boy, did they love each other. It showed in everything that they did. The way they interacted and talked, in the things they said. I wasn’t envious for what they had because I was lucky enough to have it, too, but it made me miss my dad and home. Chance must have sensed it at one point because he reached under the table for my leg and gave me a small squeeze before moving his hand.

  I loved and hated how in tune he was with me. How did a guy I barely even knew seem to understand me so well? It was beyond all reason, but this night had already demonstrated that. The Carters and the Marchettis were connected, in more ways than one.

  Dinner flew by too fast, and when I offered to help clean up, Cassie insisted that she had it handled and that we’d better get back to school. She wanted Chance to get a good night’s sleep before his big test. She was a good mom.

  “Thank you so much for coming and bringing my boy to see me. He wouldn’t have come without you, so I’m grateful,” Cassie said as she hugged me good-bye at the front door.

  “I’m grateful. I can never thank you enough for what you’ve given me and my dad tonight. And for being so gracious and welcoming.”

  “Please come over anytime. With or without him.” She nodded toward Chance, who stood there, watching us with a joyful expression.

  “Please come without him. You’re so much cooler than he is,” Jacey added from where she stood next to her dad.

  “I know I am. Don’t tell him though. We might hurt his precious ego,” I said, and Jacey gave me a high five.

  “Okay, okay. We’re leaving, and when we don’t come back, you’ll have no one to blame but yourselves,” Chance teased, and Jacey stuck out her tongue.

  We headed outside with Chance leading the way, and I knew his family was still watching from the front door. I hadn’t heard it close yet. When we got to his car, he unlocked the doors and opened mine for me … again. Damn Chance Carter and his chivalrous ways.

  He got into the driver’s seat and started the engine with one last wave toward his family. I watched as they closed the door, blocking all the light that had been spilling out from behind it. It was only then that I reached for my phone in my bag and checked it. I’d put it on silent before we walked in the house, afraid that Jared might text or call and start drama like Chance had mentioned. I was thankful I had as I looked at the string of texts from my boyfriend, each one more annoyed than the last.

  “Jared?” Chance asked, his voice breaking the silence.

  “Yeah. I didn’t look at my phone once while we were there,” I said, not sure why I’d offered up that extra bit of information.

  “I noticed,” Chance said, and I shouldn’t have been surprised that he had been so observant. “Is he pissed?” he asked.

  “A little, but I think it’s because he’s more worried than anything else. I just need to text him back really quick.” I started typing on my phone, letting Jared know that I was sorry but that I’d been tutoring and I’d call him as soon as I got home.

  My phone vibrated in my hand, and I hesitated before Chance suggested, “You should probably answer it.”

  I knew he was right, but answering it would lead to questions I wasn’t in the right state of mind to get into. Plus, I wasn’t comfortable with Chance hearing me on the phone with Jared, especially if he was upset.

  “I’ll wait until I’m home.”

  I could tell that Chance didn’t agree and wanted to say something else, but he kept quiet instead.

  “I’m really sorry about your mom. I can’t imagine losing mine.” Chance sounded choked up, just thinking about it.

  “It was awful. I mean, one day, she was full of life, and the next, she was fighting for it. I know it wasn’t that sudden in reality, but looking back, that’s what it seemed like. Like everything changed in an instant.”

  “Was it cancer?”

  “Yeah. Out of nowhere. She had this pain in her stomach, so they took an ultrasound, looking for a possible rupture, and they found tumors instead.”

  “I don’t know what to say.”

  “When I first found out, I was so positive, you know? Telling her that she could fight this and we’d beat it. That kind of thing,” I said, remembering exactly the level of denial I’d felt back then. “But when reality started to sink in and I saw how fighting it only killed her differently, I stopped being so positive and optimistic.”

  “I’m really sorry.”

  My eyes started to water. “She stayed as long as she could. Held on for way too long because she knew I didn’t want her to go.”

  “How old were you?”

  “I was sixteen when she died. Thirteen when she was first diagnosed.”

  His hand moved from the steering wheel to the top of my leg, like it had at dinner. He squeezed, his thumb rubbing across my thigh almost absentmindedly. I looked down, and he jerked it away.

  “I’m sorry. I seem to have this need to comfort you. I do it without thinking.”

  I swallowed hard and tried to blow it off. “It’s okay.”

  “It’s not. It’s not my place. I keep trying to stay away from you, Danika, but you make it really hard.”

  Huffing out a choking sound, I argued, “I make it hard? I’m not even doing anything.”

  “You exist,” he said, and I found myself struggling for anything to say after that. “Did he know your mom?” Chance’s voice sounded strained.

  “Who?”

  “Your boyfriend.”

  I nodded even though I knew Chance couldn’t see my head in the dark cab of the truck. “He did. Our families were old friends, and we went to school together. He was there for me when she died.”

  “Were you dating already when it happened?”

  “Not really. Jared was around a lot, and after it happened, he just never really left,” I said the words out loud and realized how odd they sounded.

  “You needed him.” Chance sounded almost defensive.

  “I guess I did,” I said because I’d never thought about it that way before. Was it truly Jared that I needed, or did I just need someone, anyone?

  “He made you happy?” Chance asked without bitterness.

  “He did.” I nodded as I thought back to when we’d first gotten together. And even though I had been mourning the loss of my mom, Jared made me excited. “He was there for me. Without Jared, I would have felt really alone and been consumed in my sadness I think.” He distracted me from my pain because
everything with us had been brand-new.

  “What about your dad?” Chance asked, and I couldn’t help but smile.

  My dad was my best friend. I not only loved him, but I also respected him. “My dad’s really great. But he was always working. And once my mom died, he worked even more. I don’t know how that was even possible, but even then, I knew that he was just doing anything he could to avoid his broken heart.”

  “Were you one of the things he avoided?”

  The question sliced through me as I sucked in a steadying breath.

  “No. It wasn’t like that. I don’t have daddy issues, if that’s where you’re headed,” I said with a lighthearted laugh.

  “I wasn’t. I was genuinely curious.” Chance’s voice was calm.

  “I know my dad loves me. I have never once in my life felt unloved. I think, at the time, I definitely could have used a little more of his attention, but I also understood that his heart was broken. And Jared helped fill that void.”

  Chance cleared his throat. “My dad would be devastated if he lost my mom. I think he’d turn into a shell of a person without her. I wouldn’t even know how to help him.”

  “Yeah. It was really sad. I lost my mom, but my dad lost his partner and the person he’d thought he’d spend the rest of his life with. He had to distract himself with something. And making millions of dollars while doing it wasn’t a bad side effect.”

  “Damn. So, your dad’s like that, huh?” Chance laughed.

  “Oh, you have no idea.”

  My dad was filthy rich. He had built his empire from scratch with no help from anyone, and everyone knew it. He was respected, looked up to, and connected. Things didn’t go down in New York real estate without my dad knowing it was happening.

  “Will you go work for him after you graduate then?”

  “That’s always been the plan.”

  “Your idea or his?” Chance asked, and I knew what he was getting at.

  “Mine. My dad isn’t the type to force me to do something I don’t want to do.”

  Chance looked at me for only a second. “I can’t imagine anyone forcing you to do something you don’t want to do.”