Chapter 27

27

Grady

The bus ride to the softball fields is rowdy tonight. Everyone's talking about how Pop and Bridget found me jacking off to mime porn, and celebrating the Fireballs' win last night, and asking if I got myself a better cup this week.

Sue and I give them all shit right back, because that's what you do when you're part of a team. Shipwreck Lager is being passed around, and we're ready to win this week.

Halfway to the high school, Sloane moves down the row of seats until she's next to me and Sue. "Move over, goat," she says.

" Maa! " Sue replies.

"Lovely to see you too, but I need to talk to Grady, so we're gonna get comfortable, mm-kay?"

Sue snorts, licks up his own nose, and scoots over to plop his bony butt onto my lap.

"Good goat," Sloane says. She drops into the seat next to me and gives me the spill it look. "What's the real story with you and the Sarcasm chick?"

"We were best friends and now we hate each other's guts." And as soon as I get two minutes of peace, I'm texting her to see if she'll meet me somewhere again tonight, because that four minutes in the shower was not enough.

Especially when I know I didn't leave her satisfied.

Also, if I'm going to be covered in something when I'm making out with Annika, I'd prefer it was cookie dough.

I'm about done with just getting wet while she's around.

Now, if we'd been naked in the shower with the hot water on…

"Cut the bullshit," she says. "Your pop wouldn't be trying so hard to dig up everything he can find about my family and health history if he wasn't worried you were going to do something like fall for the enemy again."

She makes air quotes around "the enemy." She's not from Shipwreck originally—she came for a destination wedding as a guest a year ago and never left—so she clearly doesn't get the pride we take in our rivalry with Sarcasm.

"I think he's more worried we'll start inbreeding," I tell her. "You're fresh blood."

"Do you know what I always hated about Romeo and Juliet?"

"That it's a tragedy that gets billed as a romance, even though there's no happy ever after?"

She squints at me like she wasn't expecting that. "Well, yes. But also that people couldn't just let love be love until it was too late."

"Are you trying to play matchmaker?"

"I didn't grow up with this kind of gossip. I'm trying to level up."

I hold out a fist. "Nice first try. Stay out of my love life."

She bumps. "Thanks. Also, if you like her, freaking ask her out. Give me some hope that someone in this town has the testicles to man up before it's too late."

I grin. "Ah, the newbie's crushing on someone, is she?"

"We're talking about you ," she reminds me primly.

I glance around the bus, because now I'm curious.

Who does Sloane have her eye on in Shipwreck?

Maybe Tillie Jean knows.

We spend the rest of the short drive trying to trick each other into talking while I answer the occasional call about if I prefer the male or female mime to be dominant in my porn.

When we pull up to the fields, the game before ours is in the sixth inning.

And Annika's up to bat.

She swings so hard she spins in a circle, and even from the parking lot, I can see her muttering to herself.

Uh-oh.

"Yeah," Sloane says with a smirk beside me, "she's just the enemy. Mm-hmm. If you say so."

"How much is Pop paying you to get dirt out of me?"

She laughs and tosses her bag over her shoulder. "Not a thing. I do this for fun. Also, if you like her, quit being a dick and do something about it."

We head toward the field as Annika swings again, and this time, there's a solid crack! and the ball goes sailing.

"Cover Grady's nuts!" Pop hollers.

Tillie Jean leaps in front of me like she's sacrificing herself.

"She hit it down the opposite baseline," I mutter.

"It's Annika . She's not to be underestimated. It might've hooked at the last minute."

"And flown all the way across the outfield to rack me in the nuts again here ."

Annika might be right.

I might have the soul of Sarcasm in my blood.

Sloane smirks.

Pop grunts.

And Long Beak Silver tells us all to go fuck ourselves.

That parrot needs some quality time in the brig.

We stretch and toss softballs off to the side while Sarcasm's GOATs kick some ass, and I subtly check out their cheering section. Maria Williams is in the bleachers with the plumber guy again. Bailey's not here—no, wait.

There she is.

By the snack bar.

Talking to a boy .

Oh, fuck, no, she's not.

"Forgot my water," I say to Tillie Jean. "You need anything from the snack bar?"

She scans the area quickly, like she's making sure there's not another bake stand set up this week before she shakes her head. "Nope. Thanks."

Sue trots next to me while we head to the little stand behind home plate.

Bailey side-eyes me as we get closer.

I pretend I don't see her.

The game's nearly over—one more out should do it—and then the Williams ladies will leave, and I'll find my game, and we'll school the Cedarton Sandbugs in the fine art of getting their asses kicked.

And then I'll text Annika and see what she's doing later.

If she wants to pick up where we left off.

"Yeah, my sister is getting the gym open so we can play volleyball at the high school tomorrow," Bailey's telling the boy.

Hereafter called the asshole who better not lay a finger on her .

He grunts in response.

It's a wimpy grunt. The kind coming from a kid who's discovered grunting is a thing, but hasn't finished puberty and can't really put the unt behind the gr .

I don't like him.

"I could text you when we get there?" Bailey says.

No boys. Boys cause pregnancy. I love my mama, and I wouldn't trade her for anything, but I'm not doing what she did .

It was Annika's mantra through high school, and here's Bailey, not even in high school yet, flirting.

With a boy.

"Two waters," I say to the woman at the snack bar, who's been staring at me for at least two minutes now.

"Can't. I gotta stay home and blow up my basketballs," the baby asshole says.

If he were talking to anyone other than Bailey, I'd be tempted to take the kid under my wing and teach him how to be interesting. And a gentleman.

But he's talking to Bailey, and my fingers are curling into a fist.

"Seven dollars," the snack bar lady says.

"Seven— what ? Are you serious?"

"We doubled prices to support the Maria Williams Foundation for the Blind. We've fixed the railing on her house, but we still need to upgrade the bathroom with safety rails."

Shit.

Can't argue with that.

I hand over a ten and tell them to keep the change, because Annika's right—I look like an asshole for having a bakery war with a blind woman and a teenager.

Good thing the rest of Shipwreck is so charming.

But if the end result is more sales for Duh-Nuts, I'll be the biggest asshole Shipwreck has ever seen.

I mean shithead.

Yeah.

I'll be the shittiest Shipwreck shithead to walk the plank since Thorny Rock himself lied about having a buried treasure to convince the four residents of whatever Shipwreck used to be that he could be their new leader.

If that's how it happened.

Considering people have been looking for Thorny Rock's treasure for a couple centuries now, odds are good he didn't have one, or if he did, he didn't bury it here.

Or maybe I'm getting cynical in old age.

"Have you been by Duh-Nuts?" Bailey's asking the guy while I inspect my water bottles. "I work there. It's my family's bakery. You know those galaxy donuts? Those were my idea. And I have the whole day off tomorrow, so it's all sleeping in and hanging out. We can use half the gym for basketball and half for volleyball."

"Is Adriana gonna be there?" the guy asks.

Motherfucker.

I look their way.

Bailey's lips are tipped down, her chin wobbly, but she squares her shoulders and her eyes narrow when she realizes I'm watching. "Maybe," she says.

"She's really pretty."

I start to growl as a cheer goes up from the Sarcasm stands.

Game over.

"So maybe I'll see you there," Bailey finishes softly. "I—I gotta go."

I just stare at the kid.

Don't know how old he is—fourteen, fifteen maybe?—but he doesn't watch her go. He's scanning the crowd.

The Sarcasm crowd.

Like he's looking for the other girl.

My heart cracks in two. I want to hug Bailey and tell her she's not allowed to date until she's eighty-five and also, when she's eighty-five, she deserves better.

And I want to ask that kid what the fuck is wrong with him that he can't see what's right in front of him.

It's like being eighteen all over again.

Annika. You know I love you. Let's do this. Be with me.

Except she was right to leave, and this kid is just being a dumbass.

Annika trots off the field. Her gaze goes immediately to Bailey, who stomps off toward the parking lot.

The plumber guy is saying something to Maria.

If he's as smart as I think he is, he's telling her they'll wait until the rest of the crowd clears out before they leave the bleachers.

Annika's gaze is darting from her mama to her sister.

And I can't just swoop in and fix everything for her.

I'm the enemy .

Here, at least.

But behind the scenes, I'm doing everything I can to make sure she and Duh-Nuts succeed.

No matter what.