Chapter 31

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Adriana

We’ve been showing Dani around the stadium since she’s never been to a game before. I now know how Heather felt showing me around. I love being able to see the stadium through someone who hasn’t.

We just finished showing Dani around the clubhouse when Heather looks at her watch.

“Let’s head out to the field before we go to our seats.” Heather says.

“Okay!” Dani says.

We step out of the clubhouse and into the dugout. We all just take it in for a moment before I grab Dani’s hand and lead her up the few steps up and onto the field.

Dani’s eyes widen as she takes in the view from the field of the stadium. She plasters a huge smile on her face while spinning around to view it all. She stops and her gaze lands on the team in the outfield. Some guys are stretching, playing catch or running.

“Whoa. This is nuts. It looks so different from this angle.” Dani says in amazement.

“It's an amazing view, isn’t it?” Heather asks with a smirk looking at Dani.

“Sure is.” Dani agrees.

I look over at Heather, and she nods at Dani. Turning my head to look at Dani, I see she is staring at King.

Oh shit.

“What ya staring at, D?” I ask Dani.

“Baseball pants.” She answers.

“Any pants in particular?” I ask, smirking.

“Nope.” Dani says, shaking her head.

Yup, she realized she got caught staring.

“Mmhhhmm. Let’s go grab food and go sit down in our seats.” Heather suggests.

We make our way to the side and walk up the stairs to the concessions. Twenty minutes later, we are sitting down in our seats.

“I might need to come more often with you two! These seats are amazing! Thank you for bringing me.” Dani says excitedly.

“After all these years, you’re telling me all I had to do was bring you to a game?” I ask Dani.

She wouldn’t watch any sports with me on tv. The thought of bringing her to a game never crossed my mind. I guess it should have is my thought as the game is about to start.

The Grizzlies win! Dani, Heather, and I jump up from our seats as Jett Adams strikes out the last batter. We sit and bullshit until the stadium is almost empty, since we have time to kill.

We make our way down to the friends and family lounge to wait for the guys. The girls and I decide which songs we want to sing at karaoke tonight.

“Oh, there is Laine. You two have to meet her! She’s one of the EMTs on site for the games.” Heather says before she walks off to bring her back to where we are.

“Laine, I don’t know how we’ve gone this long with you not meeting my right-hand woman! This is Adriana and our friend Dani.” Heather introduces us.

“It’s nice to meet you.” I say while I go to shake Laine’s hand.

“You as well.” She says.

“Hey there. I think it’s awesome what you do.” Dani tells hers as she shakes her hand.

“Thank you. It’s an interesting job for sure,” she tells us.

“Laine is going to be one of our Star Players off the field at the gala.” Heather informs Dani.

“I knew I saw your name before! That’s so exciting!” I tell Laine.

“Thanks, I’m a tad nervous. I’m not one for the spotlight.” She admits.

“At least it’s for a good cause.” Heather says.

We make some more small talk with Laine while we wait. She is funny as hell and we are all doubled over laughing when Cole, King and Ty walk up to us.

“What is so funny?” Ty asks.

“Laine. She has some hysterical stories.” Heather responds.

“Oh, I’m sure. She sees things I would never want to.” Ty says.

“Alright, I have to getting going and make one more trip around the stadium. I’ll see all next game,” Laine says as she walks away.

“Bye!” us girls say in sync.

The boys all laugh at us and we join in. I guess we really are a trio of best friends.

Cole is standing next to me when he elbows me and nods his head at Heather and Ty, hugging.

“No hug for a win?” He asks.

I roll my eyes and hug him.

“Great game tonight.” I tell him.

“Thank you,” Cole says.

“What about me?” King asks.

Ty and Heather pull apart, laughing. Cole and I can’t help but join in because the pout on his face is exaggerated.

“Dani, why don’t you give King a hug?” Heather suggest.

“Ma’am, nobody even introduced me to him. You want me to hug a stranger? Didn’t anyone tell you about stranger danger?!” Dani retorts.

King outstretches his right arm, puts his hand in Dani’s and shakes it.

“Hi, I’m King. These two knuckleheads are my best friends, along with Dean. The guy over there with a cast on his leg. It’s nice to meet you, Dani.” he introduces himself.

Dani lets him finish before removing her hand from his.

“Yeah, you too.” she says.

“So about that hug now that I’m not a stranger,” Kings says with a smirk.

“How about I still don’t know you enough to hug you,” Dani tells him.

Heather and I look at each other and then at King and Dani. We both smile and bust out laughing yet again. Dani is going to give her so much shit on the way to the bar. And I’m here for it.

“Well damn. Okay, then. Adriana?” King looks at me with puppy dog eyes.

“Fine. Only because you pitched one hell of a game tonight.” I tell King.

I give him a quick hug and I swear I hear Cole let out a small growl like noise.

Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who heard it because our little group in the corner all laugh at him. I stand in between King and Cole. I pat Cole’s arm.

“Don’t worry Casanova.” I tell him.

“Mmhhmm. Everyone ready to head out?” Cole asks.

“Let’s go.” Dani says.

Ty turns to everyone in the lounge.

“Who’s ready to serenade Dean and embarrass him tonight?” he shouts.

All the guys laugh and you can hear some of them nominate a few of the guys to do so.

“See you all there!” Ty shouts.

With that, Ty, Heather, Dani, King, Cole, a hobbling Dean, and I walk out to the parking lot.

Heather drove tonight, so Dani and I go with her to her car and the boys all head to Ty’s truck.

As soon as the doors are closed, Dani is staring daggers into the back of Heather’s head, and I know she is about to unleash on her.

“Miss ma’am! What the hell was that with King back there?” Dani asks.

“What? Like you weren’t staring at the man before the game? Plus, you were the only other person who didn’t get a hug,” Heather says with a smirk.

“Uh-uh. I don’t care if I’m single. No match making.” Dani says.

“Wait, hold up! Single? What happened to the fireman you were dating a few weeks ago?” I ask her.

I can’t believe she hasn’t said anything about this. Then again, I haven’t asked and I make a note to be more mindful.

“Well, it turns out he is very “old school”.” She says with air quotes.

“What does that mean?” Heather asks.

“He wants a woman who wants to be barefoot, pregnant, and in the kitchen.” Dani tells us.

I’m in shock. I didn’t know that was still a thing.

“Excuse me?” I ask.

“Yeah, he thought it was great that I have a career and all, but asked if I would be a stay at home mom and wife instead. Which I kindly told him that while I want a family one day, that would not work for me. We ended our date and haven’t spoken since. And I don’t plan on it either.” Dani explains.

“Fuck that shit!” I say.

“What A said!” Heather chimes.

“You worked so hard to get to where you are. If, and I say if YOU choose to stop working, it’ll be your choice and not some man’s.” I say.

“Damn right!” Dani agrees.

We are halfway to the bar when my phone vibrates in my lap. I see the notification is from Cole.

Cole: You look amazing tonight.

Adriana: I’m in nothing fancy Casanova.

Cole: I’ll always think you look amazing though.

Adriana: What are you buttering me up for sir?

Cole: Any chance you want to spend the night at my place tonight?

Adriana: Cole Evans! Are you trying to seduce me?

Cole: What if I just want to cuddle in bed with you?

Adriana: Cuddle?

Cole: I mean you like to cuddle right?

Adriana: I might.

Cole: And maybe I just want some time with you close to me. Since that’s not happening while we’re out.

Shit, now I feel bad. I know we both agreed to waiting to show the public we are together.

Cole: Don’t feel bad about that either.

Adriana: How did you know what was going through my head?

Cole: Because I know you. And for the record I like our bubble. I want to be in it as much as I can when I am not on the road.

Adriana: How am I supposed to deny you bubble time?

Cole: You don’t without good reason?

Adriana: I’ll see you in a few minutes. We can talk about it.

Cole:

I know I have a cheesy ass grin on my face because I feel how wide my smile is.

“What did Cole say?” Dani asks.

Busted. I was hoping since it’s dark out that neither of the girls would notice.

“He asked me if I would spend the night at his place tonight because he wants to spend as much time in our bubble when he’s not on the road.” I tell them.

“That’s fucking adorable. What did you say?” Heather asks.

“That we will talk about it. I think he forgets Dani is staying with me. I can’t ditch my girl.”

“Oh yes, you can. I can stay at your place just fine on my own. Besides, I have to leave early in the morning to get home to pack for my flight.” She responds.

“That’s right. Ugh, I’m sorry D, I’ve been such a terrible friend lately. Love you, adore you, and promise to be better.” I tell Dani.

She laughs at me. I knew she would. She doesn’t hold that stuff against me, ever. Nor me with her.

“Adri, you’ve had a lot of changes going on over the past six months. I don’t feel any type of way about it. We have gotten to spend more time together than we have ever before. I know you care. I don’t question that. We don’t have to talk every day for me to know that we are best friends. It’s not like I told you me and the firefighter were serious. We had just started dating. You know that if it was, I would have brought it up when we first talked about your date with Cole.”

I know she’s right, but I still feel bad that I didn’t ask.

“Stop it.” Dani demands.

“Stop what?” I ask.

“Beating yourself up. Don’t forget, I know you like the back of my hand. You always want the people you love to know you care. I get that. I know you care because no matter what you were doing, if I called at three am and said I needed you, it wouldn’t be a second thought for you to ask where I was. So, no, don’t beat yourself up over this tiny shit. We are good, babe. I love you.”

“I love you too. Thank you for being my sister from another mister.” I tell her.

“You are welcome. Now don’t ask me again if I’m okay with you staying at Cole’s tonight. If you don’t, we’re fighting.” She says and puts up her fists.

“Fine! I’ll let him know when we get to the bar.” I agree, shaking my head and laughing at her antics.

“Oh Dani, how about we have a sleepover at my place? We can watch the last two Twilight movies.” Heather suggests.

“Done deal. We can compare our commentary notes.” Dani says.

We all laugh at this just as we are pulling into the parking lot. Heather parks in the spot next to the guys. We meet them at the back of the truck where they’re waiting.

Cole holds my hand while we walk to the door of Lucky’s. Heather and I were excited to find this place because it has an old school feel. They do karaoke twice a month, have live bands perform throughout the month and always have a drink special running.

The rest of the team shows up in waves. Most of the guys head to the bar first. Not King though. He goes straight for the sign-up sheet. I chuckle to myself.

We find a table for Heather, Ty, Cole, King, Dani, Dean and I to sit at. Cole and Ty aren’t drinking even though there isn’t a game tomorrow. I commend their dedication to the game.

“What has you chuckling?” Dani asks as she sits down next to me.

“King going straight to sign up for a song and not to the bar. He isn’t what I expected him to be.” I answer honestly.

“Really? He seems like a fuckboy.” Dani responds.

“You know, I thought that too. I’m sure he isn’t celibate, but he’s actually a good guy. There is no way Ty and Cole would both be best friends with a douchebag.” I say.

“Yeah, I guess that’s true.” Dani kind of agrees.

Heather sits on the other side of me and the three of us just chat and sing along. King’s turn comes, and he gets on stage and belts out “Baby” by Justin Beiber horribly, with Dean being his backup vocalist hobbling around on stage in the background.

“These two.” Heather says laughing and shaking her head.

“I can’t deal.” I say.

“I think they’re hysterical.” Dani tells us, laughing.

“Be right back.” I tell the girls.

“Where are you going?” Dani asks.

“Bathroom.” I tell her and point in the direction where they are.

Dani nods her head and I get up and walk towards where I just pointed. I’m able to get into the bathroom quickly since there isn’t a line yet. I use the bathroom and wash my hands quickly so I can get back to my friends.

As I’m making my way back to the table, I hear my name being called. I look towards where it came from and find Dane Rivers at the bar waving me over. He’s with Sean and Dylan. I guess I won’t be alone with Dylan, and it would be rude to ignore Dane. I change my direction and head over to where they’re at the bar.

“What’s up Rivers?” I ask.

“Just enjoying the night since we have tomorrow off. You need a drink?”

“I’m good, but thanks.” I tell him.

“Did you enjoy the game?” Dylan asks.

“Sure did. You guys played well tonight.”

“Good. Are you going to sing at all tonight?” Sean questions me.

“I might. What about you guys?” I ask them.

Just as Rivers is about to answer, he and Sean get called up on stage. Well, that answers my question.

Dylan is standing next to me now.

It’s okay. You are in a bar full of people.

“How do you like working with Heather and the team?” Dylan asks.

“I love it. Heather is great. The team has been welcoming. How are you settling in with the guys?” I ask, even though I know where some of them stand on Dylan Crawford.

“I think it’s going pretty good. It was nice to hang out with them the other night in a relaxed environment and not on the field.” He tells me.

I don’t know if he’s trying to find out if I know what he said the other night, but I will not give him that. I know to be on guard around him.

“That’s great. It’s hard moving to a new place and being around new people.” I say.

“It is. It’s a part of my job though, right? I can be bounced around at any time,” Dylan responds.

“This is true. Nature of the beast and all.” I agree.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure?” I say unsure.

“Any chance you’d want to get lunch one day soon?” He asks me.

Okay, so he’s not heading to Ty’s warning at all.

“Just as friends. It’d be nice to not be around the guys all the time,” he says when I don’t answer right away.

“Can I get back to you on that? The next few weeks are just super busy with the gala happening and the few mini events at the stadium during the home games.” I answer him without giving him a direct no.

“Yeah, that’s fine. We can circle back after the gala.” He tells me with a little bit of an attitude.

“Sounds good. I’m going to get back to the girls. See you later.” I tell him and walk straight back to the table.

Cole and Ty are sitting at the table on the side that faces the bar. I see their faces and know they’re not happy. I take my seat in between Heather and Dani and no one says anything right away.

“You good?” Ty asks.

“Yeah, Rivers called me over and asked if I needed a drink. We were talking about getting on stage when he and Sean got called up. I didn’t want to be rude and just walk away when Dylan asked me how I enjoyed working with Heather and the team.” I offer the information, so I’m not peppered with questions.

“You sure?” Cole asks.

“Yes, Co. I’m good.” I answer him.

With that conversation out of the way, we can all go back to enjoying our night. I could shut down Dylan without being mean or saying no directly. If he approaches me again after the gala, I’ll let the guys in on the full conversation.

Hopefully, it won’t come to that.