The Ninth Inning (The Boys of Baseball #1) - J. Sterling Page 0,69

said, “So you know that I’m thinking of you, no matter where I am.”

Lauren snapped her fingers in front of me. “Earth to Christina,” she said.

“I’m right here,” I lied, not even caring that she’d caught me daydreaming with my mouth half-open.

It wasn’t my fault that Cole caused me to get lost in fantasies. There was something about most baseball players’ upper bodies, but there was especially something about Cole’s. Maybe it was because I was the one who got to run my fingers all over his biceps, tracing the curves of his muscles all the way up to his broad shoulders and then back down again.

“Well, pay attention. Your boyfriend’s up.”

Lauren and I had tickets waiting for us at every home game now, thanks to Cole. And even though we could get free tickets with our student IDs, those would put us in a particular section, higher up and farther away from the action. Basically, the seats that Cole got us were better and closer to the dugout. I’d only complained once, feeling bad that I was using his complimentary tickets, but he insisted, reminding me that his dad was swamped with work. We hadn’t even crossed paths at a single game yet, which seemed crazy to me, considering the fact that he only lived about twenty minutes away. But Cole reminded me that when you were self-employed, you didn’t really have days off.

“Let’s go, Cole!” Lauren shouted into the air as Cole stepped into the batter’s box.

I was too nervous to cheer for him out loud, my stomach tied into knots every time he was up to bat.

My hands folded in my lap, and I whispered, “Come on,” over and over. My silent mantra, if you will, to help my man get a hit. I knew how much pressure he was under, and I also knew how many scouts were watching him, wondering if he was going to head back into another slump or not.

When the sound of the bat making contact with the ball echoed in the air, I jumped to my feet and watched it fly hard into center field, smacking the ground before bouncing toward the wall. The crowd exploded, and Lauren and I clasped hands as we jumped up and down. Cole pointed at me from first base, and I decided that I would never get used to him doing that, but I also never wanted him to stop.

I knew I was blushing as I sat back down, and the crowd quieted enough that I could hear the girls in front of me talking. I hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but they caught my attention.

“Oh my God, I really think he’s pointing at you.” The girl leaned toward her friend, and she sounded so excited that I almost hated to ruin it for her.

Thankfully, the ruining didn’t have to come from me.

“You think the guy on first base is pointing at you?” Lauren leaned down to ask, and the two girls turned to face us.

“Cole Anders, right? I wasn’t sure, but he keeps looking over here, and I just thought maybe—” one of them started before Lauren cut her off mid-thought.

“He’s looking at this one.” She thumbed toward me, and I braced for whatever insult was about to be hurled my way. “She’s his girlfriend.”

The two girls’ expressions both morphed into apology and mortification.

“We’re so sorry. We didn’t know.”

I actually smiled because it was rare that other females weren’t rude or snide toward me. “It’s okay. You didn’t know. And he is looking this way. I would have thought the same thing.”

They both visibly relaxed.

“He’s really cute. You’re lucky.”

“I know. And thanks.”

They turned to face the game again, and Lauren gave me an incredulous look. “That didn’t go the way I’d thought,” she whispered, and I knew exactly what she meant.

I had been braced for an argument or for the verbal insults to start flying. I realized that I was so used to defending my relationship and myself at every turn, even before we were officially a couple, that I’d assumed it was always going to happen. It was so nice when it didn’t.

As the stands cleared out when the game ended, Lauren gave me a hug before throwing her arms in the air for an exaggerated stretch. We had a game day routine—she drove us both there, and then Cole drove me home after.

“I’ll see you at home,” she said, heading toward the parking lot as her long blonde hair swished