Go Away, Darling - Alexis Anne Page 0,37

heard over the noise in the stadium, which of course only made things even more intimate.

I tried very hard not to be turned on but...I was. I was very turned on.

“Linc is here.”

“Show me the way.”

He kept his hand on my back as I led him over to the stands, only letting go when Linc started bouncing up and down.

“Hey bud!” They high fived and performed a handshake of some kind.

“Beau, thanks for helping out.” He shook Beau’s hand. “And Summer. Thank you so much.”

“Uh, I think I should be thanking you for tickets. Congrats, by the way.” They hugged.

“My boy!” Trent had been in tears most of the game, according to texts from Summer. So we all gave them some space to hug and cry together. It had to be just as big of a thrill for a coach to see one of his players reach the biggest game in baseball and win.

Chris returned to Linc, pulling him out of the stands and onto the field. “You want to come with me for a bit?”

My son’s eyes went wide. “Can I Mom?”

“Of course.” I watched as Chris gave him a used baseball from the dugout. He introduced him to Wes and Erik who were finishing up their interviews. Then he found a shirt that was entirely too big for Linc and draped it around his shoulders.

“He’s really good with Linc,” Beau murmured, watching me carefully.

“Linc started calling Chris his best friend. I can’t decide if it’s because of the championship or because he plays video games with him.”

Beau shrugged. “Maybe it’s both.” He didn’t say much more. Just kind of let his approval hang in the air while giving me meaningful looks.

If I wasn’t mistaken, my ex-husband was giving me the greenlight on Chris.

“So we’ll see you back at the house?” Summer asked very slowly. Hesitantly.

“Yeah of course. I still have to shoot the locker room celebration. I’ll be late.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Take your time. No rush at all.”

Before I could ask my sister and Beau what they weren’t actually saying, Chris and Linc returned, Linc on Chris’s shoulders.

“Aren’t you a little tired to be hauling around a kid?” I reached for Linc who batted my hands away.

“I haven’t been able to feel my arms for at least an hour. I’m fine,” Chris laughed as he bounced around on his feet, making Linc howl with delight.

“I know the feeling, but be careful. It will all come crashing down soon,” Beau admonished.

“Where’s your family?” I asked. The Kaine’s were in a box with the other close family members.

Chris finally put Linc down. “Scott’s already in the locker room and Ben took mom and dad back to the hotel. They fly out first thing so they don’t miss anymore shows.” His eyes lingered on me.

I felt a thrill shoot down my spine at the intensity of it. Then he returned his gaze to Linc. “Did you have fun?”

“Best day ever!” he howled, arms in the air.

I saw Beau frown a little. “Come on little man. We need to get you to bed.”

Linc let Beau pick him up. The minute his feet touched the ground he turned to me. “Good night, Mom.”

I gave him hugs and kisses. “See you in the morning.”

I left my favorite camera safely tucked away inside her case and bagged my second favorite camera with plastic bags and rubber bands before taking up a spot inside the locker room. The team was done with field celebrations and interviews, and was ready to storm the locker room to spray champagne and beer all over each other.

Before I moved inside I took pictures of the guys laughing and pulling ski goggles on to protect their eyes. Then I found a spot just off to the side where I could get shots of the guys coming in, of the speech in the center of the room, and the explosion of alcohol. I was prepared to be absolutely soaked by the time this was over and I was pretty excited to be part of it all.

I took hundreds of pictures as the celebration unfolded, constantly cleaning my lens. I got fist bumps from the guys and offered my own beer shower. After the speeches were more interviews from an equally soaked press corp, more celebrating, and just constant smiling. The Mantas locker room was a bubble of pure joy and I was carried away with it, too. I couldn’t remember the last time I took so many pictures. My eye became my