Page 3 of The Best Player
It earned me another grin, showcasing his impressive dimples, and I scanned the rest of the room. The walls had various baseball posters of the team and MLB teams. The sheets had been stripped from the queen-sized bed and the dresser drawers opened and emptied. I placed my bag on the desk and spun around. Tanner watched me with a curious expression and I refused to look at his mouth when his lips quirked up on one side.
“We need to talk about some ground rules.”
Shit.Butterflies formed in my gut and I felt foolish. I wasn’t sure what I’d thought he was going to say, but it wasn’t that. Crossing my arms, I scrunched my nose and asked, “About what?”
“Living here.” He stepped farther into the room and with that small action, the walls seemed to close around us. He took up so much space and his warmth crowded me. “I know you’re prettychill from everything Hilly’s told us, but I want to get it all out in the open, you know?”
I bit my lip to prevent myself from smiling. Was he going to give me thetalk?Holy shit.I hoped he was because I wasn’t going to make it easy for him. “Okay. I’m listening. Should I write this down?” I moved toward my backpack, but he shook his head.
“We share a wall and a bathroom. The foundation here isn’t great and I don’t plan on being a saint just because you’re here.” He winced and moved his hand to his neck, stress lines forming around his eyes. “I mean, I’ll be more discreet about it. I won’t…you don’t have to see anything.”
“Tanner, what are you talking about?” I asked, successfully keeping my face blank. He had to know what my life had been like with Aaron. Hell, everyone knew the baseball house was notorious for hooking up. I wasn’t dumb or naïve. But watching him struggle through this was worth it. “What do you mean bysaint?”
“Christ,” he said, then rubbed his hand over his face. Gone was the playful expression—uneasiness replaced it. “I don’t want you uncomfortable, but you might run into girls who…spend the night.”
“Ohhh, you have agirlfriend?” I whistled, getting another worried look. “Do I get to meet her?”
“Kenzie.” His cheeks turned just a little bit red and I pressed my lips together to prevent breaking character. “You might hear…stuff. I don’t want you to…Shit. I don’t know how to do this. I didn’t think it through.”
“Okay, enough. I’ll stop.” I laughed and enjoyed the myriad expressions crossing his face. They ended in curiosity and I closed the distance between us so we stood a foot apart. “I know you’ll have hook-ups. That’s fine. All I ask is that she doesn’thog the bathroom the morning after and that you don’t fucktooloud.”
He blinked. It was slow and telling, and I bit my lip, but it did no good. I burst out laughing at how uncomfortable he was and I hit his shoulder without real force. “I was messing with you before, but I appreciate you trying to warn me.”
“I thought—Aaron said… Never mind. I didn’t want to shock or upset you.”
His comment warmed me, but his use of my brother’s name did not. “Whatever warning Aaron gave you, forget it, okay? I’m not this naïve, innocent kid. Aaron Hill is my brother. You think I don’t know how he is? Please.”
“Okay.”
“Your tone doesn’t agree with your word.” I pursed my lips and gave him my best leveling stare. “Mean it.”
He gave me his signature crooked grin, narrowed those baby browns just a smidge and lowered his voice like a soccer coach. “Okay.”
We stood, not in a face-off or battle, but in a weird bubble of not really knowing the other person. He was the playboy with a bright future. I was theinnocentyounger sister of his best friend. Two months living with him, good or bad, would be an adventure, and my excitement for something new overshadowed the awkwardness. I held out my hand, grinning, and broke the tension that had formed in the last two minutes. “Thanks for letting me live here, roomie. I think we’re going to have a hell of a time.”
He placed his large hand against mine and shook, a slow smile forming on his too-handsome face. “I already regret agreeing to this.”
2
Tanner
I swear to god,if one more freshman whispers when I walk by, I’m gonna sock them in the face.A trio of them stopped stretching the second I stepped onto the baseball practice field, their panicked faces giving them away. I didn’t need to ask what they were talking about. Everyone knew. It was difficult not to when my life—all our lives—were plastered on social media. There were no secrets about MLB-bound athletes, and that entailed the good and the bad.
The latest and greatest obsession trending around our campus—I’d declined an offer after being picked in the tenth round in the MLB draft. Yeah, fucking crazy. But I had my reasons and while I felt it was no one’s business but my own, the world craved answers I wouldn’t give. Coach understood and encouraged me to make my decision for me and my family, and that was what I’d done. If I was okay with it, then why couldn’t anyone else be?
Life of the rich and famous, my ass.
“Yo, TJ. Let’s go to the cages,” Carter Bolt hollered at me. Yeah, he had a hell of a name for a ball player. The sophomore stood a couple inches shorter than me and had a killer arm for right field. It was his hitting that needed work and our hitting coach thought it would be good for us to pair up. Call it a stroke of ego, but I’d hit pretty damn good the year before—over three hundred—but it wasn’t enough to satisfy my goals.Tenth round isn’t enough. The signing bonus isn’t enough. Not for what my family needs.
I shook off the tension as best I could, but it lingered. It remained in my shoulders and neck, straining when I threw. It always persisted until my mom called me with an update that she was okay. She’d called the night before, letting me know my younger brothers were doing fine and that she’d call again in three days. It was easy to busy myself with baseball, parties and women until the worry stopped, but it was getting old and the answer to all my problems was so close. I needed to play better, get picked sooner in the draft and get a better signing bonus.That’s all. No big deal.
Carter gave me a look when I didn’t respond, and I jogged toward him. He adjusted his cap, sending his shaggy red hair all over the place, and picked up a bucket of balls. “Party too much last night, eh?”
“Nah, just thinking about how to fuck with the new guys.” I jutted my head toward the gossiping group stretching, their wide eyes still focused on me. “Know anything about them?”
“Peter is from an upscale prep school, but I don’t know about the other two. Let ’em gossip. They won’t get much playing time, so they need something to occupy themselves with,” he replied, letting out a loud whistle at his own quip. It took a lot of effort not to roll my eyes.
“Nice one.”
