The Ninth Inning (The Boys of Baseball #1) - J. Sterling Page 0,63
up stories. It amazes me how little college has changed since they were here and now.”
“It’s not that college hasn’t changed,” Christina chimed in. “It’s that the people haven’t. The girls, I mean. The way they feel about the baseball team and how they all want to be a part of it in any way that they can. It’s been like that in one way or another since the dawn of time. It probably always will be.”
She reached for her burrito and took a hefty bite, pieces spilling out all around her, but she couldn’t have cared less. I almost dropped to my knees and proposed right there. Any girl who ate like that and actually enjoyed it I wanted to share every meal with until I left this earth.
When no one said anything in response, she looked up, almost unsure as she swallowed. “Don’t you guys agree?”
“Sorry, I was too busy watching you eat to formulate thoughts that revolved outside of getting you naked,” I said.
Mac laughed as she gave me a sweet look. I was being a total caveman, and she found it endearing.
“I think you’re right. That basic kind of human nature, I guess, hasn’t really evolved,” Chance said.
Mac cleared his throat. “Let’s be honest, and I’m not trying to be offensive.” He looked at Christina, and she gave him a face that told him to continue. “Girls want to hook up with guys they think are going to be successful. Especially guys they think are going to be rich or famous. They want a part of that.”
“You’re not wrong. They do,” Christina agreed. “Women are drawn to men they think are powerful.”
“So, you think I’m powerful?” I asked, nudging her leg under the table with my own as I took a bite of my taco.
“Who said I was drawn to you?” she fired back, and Mac and Chance both laughed, fueling her on.
“You don’t have to play hard to get. I already got you, remember?”
She playfully raised her eyebrows. “For now.”
“Okay, I don’t like what’s happening. Let’s get back to girls being cleat-chasers and you loving me,” I said quickly, and she practically choked on the drink she had been taking.
“Love,” she stuttered, and Mac and Chance both stood up at the same time.
“That’s our cue,” Chance said before Mac looked at the nonexistent watch on his bare wrist.
“Gotta go. See you at the field. Bye, Christina.”
They disappeared in a fucking instant.
“You scared them away.” I looked at her, pretending to be shocked.
“You scared them away with all your love talk,” she mimicked, emphasizing that the blame was squarely on my shoulders.
I shrugged. “Oh well. Not my fault if they can’t handle grown-up emotions.”
Her face scrunched up like she wasn’t sure if I was fucking around with her or being serious. And even though I was no expert on love, I thought about her all the time. When I looked to the future, my future, I saw her by my side. Or maybe I was by hers? Was that love? It sure sounded like it to me.
She dipped another chip into her salsa, watching me the whole time, before taking a bite and chewing it in slow motion. I grinned.
“You think I’m up to something, but I’m not,” I said before she could say a word. And just like that, my mind was in the gutter again. I wanted to be all up in her something. Hell, I wanted to be all up in her everything. “I’m coming over tonight after practice. Unless you’re working?”
“I can be done working by then,” she said, still eyeballing me like I might pull the proverbial rug out from under her at any moment.
“I actually do need to head to the field though. I’ll see you later?” I kissed her cheek first before turning her face and kissing her mouth, tasting the zing of hot salsa on her lips.
“See you later.” She smiled, her eyes so soft and filled with so much emotion that it fucking melted my insides.
No one—and I mean, no one—in my entire life had ever looked at me the way she did.
Practice had dragged by at a snail’s pace. I wasn’t used to feeling bored and wishing I were somewhere else during those hours. I had always wanted to be on the field, in the cages, or working hard to improve my game and chances in the draft. But not today. Today, I had been officially, one hundred percent distracted. I couldn’t stop thinking about my