Chapter Six

Ella had a passing interest in baseball over the years. Sure, she knew home runs and batters and pitchers, but she wasn't one to check sports websites early in the morning to see the standings or look over the scores, and she didn't have a favorite team.

All that changed when she met Quinn Thatcher.

Now she watched away games when the Detroit Sturgeons were on the road or tried to go to the stadium to watch home games in person. It helped that the Sturgeons' home field was within walking distance of her place -- and Quinn's place too.

Tonight was one of those home games.

She walked down the hall she had become familiar with the past few months to the friends and family lounge deep in the stadium. It was a great afternoon game that saw the Sturgeons rally late to finally get the win, but it had been a bit of a nail biter that afternoon. Luckily, Big Buck Bert lived up to his name and hit a huge home run in the eighth inning to give the Sturgeons the lead. And yes, Ella was particularly proud that her boyfriend caught the final out to end the game and secure a win in Detroit.

The room was buzzing with people including a few wives and girlfriends that Ella had met in the past few months. Contessa was a lifelong Detroiter so she was always giving Ella new restaurants to try or places to visit. Abby's boyfriend played centerfield and owned a bar in the city with a baseball theme where all the players would hang out. Gwen's husband was a veteran who had just announced he would be retiring at the end of the year, but Gwen promised everyone they could still get a discount at her clothing boutique in the suburbs.

Ella bought a little black dress there two weeks ago for date nights with Quinn. And like her other dresses, he requested she keep it on when he had his way with her in her bedroom.

A few of the players started wandering in and meeting up with friends and family while Ella hung back and talked to Gwen's daughters about the new bracelets they made for their friends.

"I hope I'm not interrupting."

Ella smiled and looked up from her spot on the sofa with the girls to see Quinn standing next to her, a drip of water threatening to fall from his damp hair after getting out of the shower.

"We were actually on our way out." Gwen came swooping in with two hands outstretched for the girls to take. Then she leaned in and loudly whispered to Ella, "I have a beautiful emerald green dress that just came in. You should stop by the store this week."

Then she gathered up her family with her husband and girls in tow and glided out of the room. Ella had to wonder how Gwen kept everything running so smoothly.

"Do you have any other girls you need to talk to before we go?"

Ella turned and smiled at Quinn. "Nope, I'm all set."

Quinn draped his arm around her shoulder, giving it a bit of a squeeze before gently directing Ella out of the room and out into the streets of Detroit. The sun was starting to set, turning the sky a bit pink and the traffic was still flowing as they wandered out into the streets of the city.

"So where are we going for dinner tonight?" she asked as he threaded her fingers into the hand on her shoulder.

"You're wearing my baseball jersey and jean shorts while I'm in a suit so one of us definitely isn't dressed properly for wherever we're going."

Ella laughed and turned to give Quinn a very obvious up-and-down assessment of his body. That man could make anything look good, even a baseball uniform on the field and a tailored suit an hour later off of it.

He knew it too.

"Ella, are you ogling me?"

"Most definitely."

"Which is fine, but I'm starving so we need ideas for dinner before you get me naked."

Ella sighed and looked ahead as they crossed the street towards Quinn's apartment. Sometimes she would have a preference about where they would stay after a game -- her place or his place. Other times she would just follow his lead. Normally, that would be fine, but tonight, none of their usual spots between here and his place appealed to her for dinner.

And then she came up with the perfect idea.

"OK, what if we combined those two and had a naked dinner?"

Quinn stopped right in the middle of the sidewalk with his eyes closed. He took a dramatic deep breath and stood for just a moment before opening his eyes again to give her a mischievous look. "This sounds like a dangerous idea."

"What's dangerous about it?"

Quinn turned to give her his full attention. "Hot food, naked bodies. You could get burned."

Ella shrugged. "I'll order a salad."

His grin got wider. "And what should I have?"

Ella pulled herself up and kissed him hard, catching him by surprise before he kissed her back. It was warm with just the right amount of pressure, right amount of everything. He was always the best kisser.

"I'll think of something," she murmured against his lips.

Quinn pulled back and smiled a huge grin at her. "Coney dog and fries!"

"Wait, what?"

"Keep up, pretty girl."

Ella rolled her eyes. "It's going to get very messy if I have to sit next to you as you eat a Coney dog slathered in chili while naked."

"Exactly," Quinn said with that stupid grin.

She couldn't help but laugh and shake her head as she grabbed his hand to direct him where to walk while he ordered from their favorite diner on his phone.

"Done." He slid his phone back in his pocket. "So, how did you like the game today?"

"Eh. You guys did good, but you cut it a little close."

"We did," Quinn replied. "But a win is a win."

"And you're still in second place in the standings and it's not crunch time yet so plenty of time to improve."

Quinn laughed. "Are you talking about baseball standings now?"

"My hot boyfriend plays for the Detroit Sturgeons."

Another laugh from Quinn made her heart skip before he gently laid a kiss on her head. "Your hot boyfriend must be one lucky man to have you."

She pulled herself closer, tightening her grip on his hand. When she first moved to Detroit all those months ago, this would not have been how she expected her life to go. Holding hands with her baseball player boyfriend after finding a naked picture of him in her new closet.

And yet, despite the very unconventional way they met, it led to the kind of conventional love she wanted. Walking down the street holding hands, eating dinner together after work, sharing their days and their beds with each other.

She had definitely scored a home run when she found that picture of Quinn Thatcher and she was going to enjoy it for a long time.