Fastball (Stadium Series Book 3)

by S A Clayton

  9

  Harper

  I walk into my office to Mel sitting at my desk with a huge smile on her face.

  “Hey gorgeous,” she teases, standing and walking toward me. “I see you went all out getting dressed this morning.” She motions to my wrinkled jeans and stained T-shirt. “Did you find those on the floor next to all your other dirty clothes?”

  I shake my head, hating that she knows me enough to know I hate doing laundry and therefore all my clothes end up either on the floor or on the chair in the corner.

  “Joke’s on you, I stayed at Joshes last night. These were the only clothes he had that weren’t dirty.”

  Her eyebrow quirks as a blush creeps up my chest.

  “You’ve been staying there a lot lately…”

  I roll my eyes, knowing exactly where this is going.

  “Yes, because his apartment costs a million dollars and has an amazing view of downtown. Mine is worth a quarter of that and shows me the lovely view of the European couple across the street that loves to have sex on their balcony.” As much as I love Enzo and his wife, I do not need to see that… or hear it for that matter.

  “Fair enough. You thinking about moving in?” she questions and to be honest I’ve thought about it, but part of me thinks it’s too soon and the other part of me just thinks this whole relationship is too good to be true.

  “Maybe? I kind of want to get this picture scenario out of the way before we make any bigger life decisions.”

  Mel holds her hand up to her mouth and pretends to fan away tears.

  “What?” I say through a laugh.

  “I’m so proud of you. You’re growing up!”

  I throw a pen in her direction as I sit in my chair and lean back while my computer turns on.

  “So what’s happening with the studio?” I ask, hoping to change the conversation.

  Mel shrugs, sitting on the couch with a sigh. “It’s good. We open in a few weeks, so I’m pretty excited about that.” She’s trying to hide her smile, but I can see it sneaking through.

  My best friend might pretend that she doesn’t give a shit, but for this? This is a big deal. This is her independence.

  “What else do you have to do? Do you need me to do anything?”

  She shakes her head, pulling out her phone as it vibrates against her knee. “No,” she mutters, obviously reading a text and smiling a huge smile and then chuckling to herself. “All I need is a few pictures and maybe some decorations.”

  My eyes bug out. “So, you need to go to Home Sense… that is definitely something I am helping you with.” I wink, loving her look of despair knowing we will definitely be at that store for at least a few hours as I scour every aisle.

  “Sure,” she murmurs, obviously placating me as she dips her head once more and starts texting.

  “Who are you texting?” I ask, feeling a bit like a third wheel in my own office.

  Her eyes lift and I see the guilt written all over her. “King.”

  I burst out laughing, not expecting that name to leave her mouth. I arch an eyebrow, conveying exactly what I think she’s doing talking to him, but she shakes her head again.

  “It’s not like that, we’re just friends. When I used him to make Will jealous that day at Hawk Stadium we got to talking and we actually have a lot in common.”

  When I say nothing, she chuckles and leans back against the back of the couch.

  “He’s a really fun guy to be around, we have a great time together, and honestly it feels nice to talk to a guy without the threat of them wanting in my pants.”

  Will is going to flip the fuck out when he finds out. And I can’t wait to see it happen.

  “So you’re sure nothing could ever happen between you two?”

  “God no. We’ve both agreed that we wouldn’t be compatible. Can you imagine? We’d be horrible together. We are definitely better off as friends.”

  I sigh in relief. “Okay good.”

  She picks up her stuff, stands up and heads toward my office door, waving goodbye. I’m left to my own devices so I decide to take a walk around the gym and make sure everything is going smoothly, plus it will distract me from wanting to text Josh every three seconds.

  It takes about an hour to do my rounds and when I’m finally done, I’m feeling exhausted since Josh kept me up way too late last night teasing me, touching me, and making me black out at some ungodly hour of the morning.

  I open the door from the batting area, heading back toward my office when I stop dead in my tracks because standing in front of my office is two people I would rather see get hit by a bus than in front of my office. Angela and TJ. I plaster a fake smile on my face as I approach, knowing what I’m about to endure will test every limit to my patience.

  “Well, well, well, look who looks like a hot mess tonight. Josh know he’s fucking a troll?” Angela sneers, TJ snickering behind her.

  “What do you want, Angela?” I sigh, hoping this is over with soon so I can lock myself in my office and skip talking to anyone else for the rest of the night.

  “I wanted to introduce you to my new boyfriend. TJ. He plays with Josh.”

  I roll my eyes, sneaking past them and heading into my office, hoping they get the point.

  “We’ve met,” I admit, hating every aspect of this conversation.

  “Well, TJ was just telling me how much Josh is struggling lately and I wanted to come in here and give you some advice on how to help him out.”

  Well I’ll be damned. They piqued my interest.

  “And what’s that?”

  “Well, sweetheart.” TJ sneers, causing every hair on my body to rise in distress. “Since your boy toy seems to be thinking a little bit too much about your pussy and not baseballs, I’d suggest breaking it off and give the guy a chance to get his game back.”

  I stare at both of them because what he just said makes absolutely no sense.

  “Tell me something, TJ, you want Josh’s job, do you not?” I question, already knowing the answer.

  “I don’t want it, it’s mine. Just give it time.” He smirks, causing every fiber inside me to recoil at the sight. Whoever looks at this man and sees anything but a creep has something seriously wrong with them.

  “What are you getting at, Harper?” Angela sneers and I give her my best smile.

  “Well, see, TJ has been after my guy’s job since he got called up, so what I want to know is why he wants me to break it off when according to your boy toy, that would cause him to get even better than he already is.”

  When they both look at me with confused faces, I roll my eyes and lean back in my chair.

  “If breaking it off with Josh will make his game come back stronger, then why would you want that if you want his job?”

  When TJ realizes his mistake, his eyes bulge and I chuckle softly.

  “Might want to rethink that strategy,” I say before I go back to my computer and try and ignore them. “You guys can leave now.”

  “Well at least my boyfriend doesn’t have to deal with a dead father, imagine dealing with that shit knowing her father didn’t even want to be around her before he died.”

  Everything in my body locks. What the fuck did she just say? I know my relationship with my dad in the later months of his career is public knowledge, thanks to my mother blabbing to every news outlet that would listen because the money stopped rolling in. But never, and I mean never has anyone dared talk that shit to my face. Ever.

  “Get out,” I spit at her, seeing TJ’s shocked face along with Angela’s and my entire body shakes with rage.

  “What?” She grins as I get up out of my chair and crowd her until her back hits TJ’s front. Our eyes lock and I don’t hesitate as the next words leave my mouth.

  “Get the fuck out of this gym before I make you.”

  Her eyes bulge in shock as I cock my head to the side and I lean forward.

  “You’re fired.”

  “What?” she repeats and I shift, making he
r retreat farther into her new boyfriend.

  “I want you out of this building, you can talk shit about me, about my relationship with Josh, but you do not ever, and I mean ever, talk about my father the way you just did. Not in his gym.”

  Angela looks around as I notice the panic starting to set in.

  “You don’t have the authority to fire me,” she says as confidently as she can in this moment.

  “She does now,” Henry says from the doorway of his office.

  “Seriously!” she screams. “You can’t do that!” She looks at Henry like she expects him to save her, when he doesn’t, she looks at TJ and I see the mirrored panicked look cross his face and she knows she’s fucked.

  “I just did,” Henry says. “Now leave before I get one of the guys to force you.” He motions to some of the bodybuilders that are watching from across the room. She storms out, taking TJ by the hand and dragging him behind her.

  I mouth thank you to Henry as he nods and heads back into his office. But the idea of TJ and Angela together sits on the back of my mind, and it doesn’t leave until I leave and head toward Josh’s house.

  10

  Josh

  “What the actual fuck is wrong with you, Anderson!” Coach yells as we walk into the locker room after another awful game. I couldn’t hit tonight, I couldn’t catch a ball tonight, I’m lucky I knew how to run because if not, I would be having a whole other conversation right now. “I mean, do you want me to bench you, because with that performance tonight, it sure as fuck seems like it.” I don’t say a word as I storm into his office and wait for him to follow. When he closes the door, he just looks at me.

  “What do you want me to say?” I start, feeling the anxiety creep into every limb of my body. “Do you want me to tell you why I played like shit tonight? Because I can’t. I don’t know what happened…” I stand there and wait for him to yell something else, but he doesn’t. His eyes lock on mine as he makes his way behind his desk.

  “It seems like you might be the only one that doesn’t.”

  “What the fuck are you talking about?”

  He gives me a look that says I’m a fucking moron and holds up a photo of me coming out of Hard Ball with Harper beside me.

  “What does Harper have to do with this?” I’m stalling because in the pit of my stomach I know exactly what he’s going to say and honestly, I don’t want to hear it. Not right now.

  “I’m starting to believe that her and her gym are becoming a distraction,” he states as I sit down in front of his desk. “I think you’re starting to realize that, I can see it all over your face, Josh.”

  My head dips and my fingers pull at the loose strands of hair that fall in front of my face.

  “You’re never here anymore. You used to live and breathe this stadium. Stay until everyone left and then get back here first thing to work on your game. Now you’re leaving early, getting here late and all because you’re getting some on the side.”

  My fist slams onto his desk before I can stop it and when my piercing eyes meet his shocked ones, I count to three and let out a deep breath.

  “You’re wrong and I won’t have you talking about her like she’s a warm place for me to rest my dick. I love that woman and from what you said to me when you met her? I thought you got that. I thought you understood that I might have found something bigger than baseball because as much as I love this game, as much as I want to win, I also want her.”

  Coach says nothing, leaning back in his chair, his eyes never wavering from mine.

  “You might think she’s the reason for me leaving early but in all honesty, I’m sick and tired of being the be-all and end-all of this team. We are a TEAM, and yes, I want to play my best and produce runs and all that, but what about Lopez? What about King throwing nothing but balls all fucking game? I don’t see them in here getting their asses handed to them.”

  My chest hurts after that outburst and when Coach leans forward, interlocking his fingers and staring me down, I know that whatever is about to come out of his mouth isn’t something I want to hear.

  “I’m benching you for tomorrow’s game. TJ has been looking really good these past few weeks and management wants to see where that goes. According to them, you need some time to regroup and figure out what your priorities are. Until then, you will be sitting on that bench and cheering your team on like the team player you so claim to be.”

  I slam my fist on the table once more, hating that this team is making me choose between my livelihood and the woman I love.

  “Are you serious right now? I was MVP last year and you’re just going to bench me because I’m having a few bad games? That’s ridiculous.”

  “Here’s the thing. Josh. You were last year’s MVP. This year you would be lucky if you make the long list.” With that shot to the ego, he motions for me to leave his office and I do, not wanting to hear any more of his bullshit. Storming out, I avoid any and all eye contact because I know every single person in this locker room heard every word.

  As I make my way back into the locker room, I roughly take my jersey and throw it in the bin sitting in the center of the room. My eyes connect with Will’s as I sit down and when he says nothing, I know I have to start this conversation.

  “I can’t believe he’s benching me and subbing in TJ. This dude does not need any more ammo for his expanding ego.” When Will stays silent, I peer over and see the guilty look on his face. “Say it,” I mutter, knowing what is coming.

  “Fine, but just know that I don’t agree with TJ being the one to take your place, but your game isn’t like it was last year, man, and most of us are noticing.”

  I roll my eyes, hating that he’s probably right but it doesn’t mean I want to hear it.

  “Coach thinks it’s because of Harper.”

  Will bursts out laughing causing a small smile to grace the edge of my lips.

  “That’s insane, your game was shit before she came along.” I throw a towel his way and he catches it easily. “Honestly? I think the pressure of being MVP last year messed with your head and you’ve been chasing those numbers ever since they handed you that trophy. Harper might look like the reason, but if you’re honest with yourself, you were struggling from spring training.”

  I give a slight nod because he’s saying truth after truth, and I can’t deny anything he just said.

  “Hey Anderson, how does it feel to be second best for the first time in your career?” TJ mocks from across the room.

  That shit-eating grin appears and it’s as if something inside of me snaps, and I can’t take it anymore. I stand, fists clenched as I head over to where TJ stands as Will lunges forward to hold me back.

  “Don’t do it, Josh. It’ll just cause more problems.”

  Logically I know he’s right, but all the anger is making my brain lose what little functionality I have left.

  I grunt, breaking free of his hold and stomp toward the fucking boy that needs a good beating. Once I get in his face, I take my hand and wrap it around his neck, pulling his face toward mine.

  “Listen, you little shit. You? You are nothing. Do you understand me? I am the one that has earned the right to be cocky, not you. You’ve earned nothing,” I mutter as a sly smirk crosses his face.

  “Really? Well it seems like I’m the one starting tomorrow night… not you.”

  And that’s the moment my patience snaps and my fist connects with his gut before I think better of it. I know I should be ashamed of my behavior, but the sound he made when he hits the floor sends a thrill through me and I can’t regret it.

  “Anderson!” Coach yells from the doorway of his office. “Get out of this locker room right now.” He’s pointing to the door as I give Will another glance and when I see the pity in his eyes, I shake my head and gather my things, heading toward the door. Once I’m in the hallway, I grab a shirt and pull it over my head as I head toward the exit as the events run through my head over and over and over again.

  This is a fu
cking disaster.

  11

  Harper

  I turn off the TV after the post-game interviews and take a deep breath. That was rough. Josh had a terrible game, made too many errors and I inwardly cringe at the number of times his Coach spoke to him throughout the game. I close my eyes and pray that these photos aren’t affecting his game like I assume they are. The guilt would swallow me whole if I was the reason this is happening to him.

  I peer over at the clock over the oven and see that it’s just after ten, so I have about an hour or two before Josh gets home.

  Home.

  It’s so incredibly weird to think of Josh’s apartment as home, but I do. I spend more time at his place than I do my own, and whenever he’s away on the road I stay here, because I’m a romantic at heart and want to be surrounded by his things. It makes the distance bearable.

  After I clean the kitchen, tidy up the living room and put away some laundry I decide to lie down on the couch for a minute and rest my eyes.

  I’m jolted awake by the sound of keys in the door. Josh doesn’t notice me right away and I frown at the exhaustion pouring off of him. His hair is a mess as if he spent the last few hours raking his fingers through it. I half expected him to come home in a suit with his tie hanging loosely from his neck, but instead he’s wearing his uniform pants and a T-shirt that he wore out of the house this morning. My eyes track him as he enters, toeing off his shoes and I notice that they aren’t the ones he left wearing this morning and I crumble a little inside. His night was rougher than I thought.

  He makes his way into the kitchen, opening the fridge and I know he’s grabbing a beer and that’s when I decide to say something.

  “Josh?” I question as his head pops up, a cold beer in hand.

  “I didn’t know you were here,” he mutters, closing the door and eclipsing us in darkness.

  I push the blanket off my legs and make my way toward him. His throat contracts with every sip of beer and I can’t help the heat that travels up my body at the sight, but when his eyes land on mine that feeling disappears and all I see is anger staring back at me.