Page 77 of Leave It On The Field (Grand Slam 3)
ChapterTwenty-Four
SEB
November 3, 2022
When I walk out of the dugout after the game, I don’t see Sophie. I take a few steps toward where the other wives are standing. They’re staring at me but look down quickly when they see me heading over to them.
“Hey,” I say, waving to try to get their attention. “Where’s Sophie?”
Paige finally looks up and nods her head across the concourse to where my dad’s standing.
“Dad. What? What happened? Is she hurt?”
“She’s not hurt,” he says, his face drawn. “A fan threw a beer in her face after the game.”
“Fuck!” I yank off my mask and throw it against the wall.
Everyone outside our clubhouse freezes. The hallway’s suddenly so quiet that I can hear Dad’s phone vibrating in his hand.
“Where is she?”
“She’s not hurt—just a little shaken up. Bob and Deb are with her. They’re headed back to the hotel.” Dad looks at his phone. “This is from Butch. They just arrived. She’s headed up to her room.”
I put my hands over my face and scream out the frustration that’s been building up inside me for days.
“She’s fine.” Dad puts his hand on my shoulder. “Just do your postgame stuff. We’ll see you back at the hotel.”
I take a deep breath as I lower my hands. “No. Give me five minutes. I’m going with you to the hotel right now.”
“Seb,” Joe says from behind me.
I ignore him. “Five minutes, Dad. Be here when I get back.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
I push past Joe into the clubhouse. I head directly to my locker and throw on my clothes.
“Are you going to take a shower?” Dane asks from the locker next to mine. “No one wants to ride back on the bus with you smelling like that.”
“Seb,” Joe says from behind me, “you can’t leave.”
I grab my bag. “I’m going to my wife. You can come with me if you want. That’s your choice, but I’m leaving.”
I head toward the door. Bud and Ken follow me.
“Seb, what’s up?” Bud tries to block my way. I push him aside. “What happened?”
I turn back around. Everyone’s staring at me.
“Someone threw a beer in Sophie’s face after the game,” I say loud enough so everyone can hear me. “I’ve had enough. I’m leaving to find her. Do what you’re going to do. Fine me. Bench me. Whatever. I need to be with my wife right now.”
Joe follows me and points at one of the LAPD officers guarding the clubhouse. “Hey. Seb needs to get back to the hotel in a hurry. Family emergency. Can you give us a lift?”
“Yeah,” the officer says, clicking the speaker on his radio, “give me two minutes.”
I head over to Dad. “Did they get the person who threw the beer?”
“Yeah, they got him. The cops said he was drunk out of his mind. I think it was just some random fan.”
