Chapter 40 Indie

Chapter 40

Indie

My hand flies to my mouth when Jensen collides with Dom at home plate. It’s a late hit. I don’t even know if that’s a thing in baseball, but it was fucking dirty. I vaguely hear Kelly gasp beside me and Daelyn clings to my arm on the other side of me, sliding Dottie under her arm.

“Oh, no.” Kelly sighs as the two of them get in each other’s faces. It’s like a slow motion train wreck.

“Don’t do it, son,” Nick says, his arms around his wife.

The sound of Dom’s fist connecting with Jensen’s face is louder than any hit in the park today, and I’m not even sure if it’s real or in my head. Tears prick my eyes when I see the anger twisting Dom’s face. This is not who he is, and I did this to him.

Oh god. I’ve ruined him. And even if I can forgive myself, will he be able to forgive me?

The ump signals the ejection that we all know is coming and I suck in a shaky breath, looking from his sister to his parents. All four of them have their heads hung .

I wipe my sweaty palms on my skirt, the same one I wore that first night. This is not how the night was supposed to go. Fidgeting I tug on the silky teal fabric that suddenly feels too constricting. Tonight should be a full circle moment. Me at the game with his family and wearing his jersey a year after I told him we had no future. The same outfit except instead of wearing a borrowed Harrison jersey, tonight I’m surprising him by wearing his for the first time.

“I’m so sorry. This is all my fault,” I admit quietly.

It’s Dottie who speaks first. “No, that was definitely my idiot brother.”

“I have to agree with my daughter. My son has never done something he didn’t want to,” Kelly adds, shifting away from Nick and placing both hands on my shoulders. “I don’t know what’s going on with you two. Dom has never been one to keep secrets. As a matter of fact, he’s pretty terrible at it. There might be things you two aren’t ready to tell us, and that’s fine.” She points at Dom, who’s disappearing through the dugout door. “But his feelings for you are written all over his face and he’s not trying to hide those.”

“He makes the same face I make when I see puppies,” Dottie says. “I think that means he loves you.”

“Dottie,” Daelyn scolds.

I drop into my seat so I’m eye level with her. “That’s a relief because I love your brother.” I look at Nick and Kelly, not sure what’s next. “Should I go find him?”

“No, sweetheart,” Kelly says, pulling me in for a hug.

“I know you want to, but he’s going to be busy for a while. He’ll watch the game from the locker room and have to talk with his manager and agent at some point. Give him time to sort those things out. We’ll go down after the game,” Nick explains.

“I’m sure he wants to see you more than anything, but it’s not a great idea,” Kelly adds.

My phone pings with a text.