Page 17 of Rain Delay

I did really well at refraining from looking at her social media throughout the years; I didn’t want to let my mind wander off, thinking about what life could’ve been like if I didn’t fuck everything up.

Scrolling through her pictures, I saw some of her time in Chicago. I never even knew she was the one who worked with them last year, but it made so much sense. She’s a hometown girl through and through; that much I know about her. But, there was a lot about her that I didn’t know.

How was her family? Did she like being back in Wisconsin? How did the end of college look for her?

How was she doing without me in the picture?

She’s built such an amazing life for herself without me in it. She looked so happy, surrounded by so many people who loved her.

Here I was, thinking about baseball. I had a good circle of people around me, but I didn’t let them in the way I probably should’ve. I closed myself off and put all my focus into my career.

That’s what fucked everything up in the past.

This was purely business.

At least that’s what I kept trying to tell myself.

I see a post of her at a Crafters game with her sister and my dumb ass ends up liking it. I quickly unlike it but knew it was too late. She’s probably already seen the notification.

Might as well like a couple more so it didn’t look too suspicious.

It looks even more suspicious if you like more than one, you idiot.

“God damnit,” I mutter to myself, getting off of her profile before I did anything else that made me look like an idiot.

* * *

THE MORNING CAME TOO QUICK. I had trouble sleeping, thanks to my brain decided to run a million miles a minute. All I could think about was Eliana being across the hall from me. No matter how tired I was, I knew I had to face the inevitable.

Eliana was officially starting her job with me today. I had a day game again, so it’s early when I found myself in the kitchen making some coffee.

While I waited for the machine to finish pouring my brew, I heard footsteps pad across the floor, nearing the kitchen.

I turned my head to see Eliana, her hair pulled back, dressed like she was already in work mode. Her eyes flicker over me for a second before pulling away.

She definitely saw that I liked her posts last night. There was no way she didn’t.

“Morning,” she says with a flat tone.

“Morning,” I reply as I take a sip of my coffee.

After I laid down my intentions with her, I didn’t talk to her for the remainder of the night. I didn’t need to. I said what I needed, and felt like that didn’t warrant any other conversation.

She was living in my house. Things were going to be my way.

I set my mug down, looking back at her.

“Look,” I started.

She froze. Coffee creamer mid-pour in her hand as she turned to look at me. I still knew how she liked her coffee.

What she didn’t know was I had already placed a grocery order with her favorite vanilla K-Cups and creamer.

“I meant what I said last night. This definitely wasn’t what I had planned on, but we’ve got a season to get through, and you’re apparently here for all of it.”

“Kind of what I was trying to tell you last night before you threw a fit,” she mutters, stirring her coffee before taking a sip.

“So we need some rules.”