Cautiously, her arms wrap around my waist. “I’m really sorry.”
I pull away and tip her chin so she’s forced to look at me. Tears pool at the rim of her glasses and her eyes are bloodshot. How late was she up last night? “Please stop apologizing. You did me a huge favor, so how about you give me a chance to say thank you?”
She tries to force out a smile, but it barely reaches the edges of her lips.
I bring the glove between us and give it a good once-over. The stitching is pristine, the leather feels smoother than when I first got it, and the pocket almost looks deeper, if that’s possible. I’m fucking impressed.
“I could have done a better job if I had more time, I would have—”
“Milly. This is perfect.” I wrap an arm around her and give her another hug. “Thank you so much. This means a lot to me.”
“Oh . . . you’re welcome.” She pushes her glasses up on her nose once we part. Her demeanor lightening. “So . . . you’re not mad?”
“Come on, Coach. How could I be mad at you? You have single-handedly switched my season around. I’m not mad, I’m fucking grateful.”
That beautiful smile appears, her dimples deepening. “Okay, good.” She lets out a pent-up breath. “Well, I’ll uh, let you get to—”
“I was telling Gunner about your wicked spin.” I don’t want her to leave just yet. “He said he wants to book a lesson.”
Her face softens as she looks at the ground and chuckles. “It’s pure luck whatever comes off my hand.”
“Pish, you and I both know that’s not the truth.”
“Well, maybe not entirely true, but my spin is a secret.”
“I think Gunner would pay heavily in tacos if you let him.”
Her face falls for a second and I wonder what I said that caused such a reaction, but I don’t have much time to think about it as she takes a step backward.
She points at my glove and says, “Have a good weekend. Remember, drive your hands forward, not down.”
With a half-happy smile, she goes to take off again. “Hey.” She pauses and I try to think of something to say to her, anything that will get her to smile at me one more time before I leave. “Uh, would it be okay if I text you this weekend?”
Her smile is gentle, but it’s still there, a small glimpse of what I crave. “Yeah, you can text me, Carson.”
Clutching my glove to my chest, I say, “Thanks, Coach.” I wave and watch her get in her car, wondering why I really wish I’d snagged one more hug from her before she took off.
Carson: Any wise words before the game today?
Milly: Hit the ball.
Carson: Wow . . . I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything so profound before.
Milly: A regular old Hemingway over here.
Carson: With such inspirational words, they might slap your quote up on a wall with your name beside it, something players pat before every game.
Milly: I could see it happening.
Carson: Are you going to watch online today?
Milly: I have a game with my little league team, or else I’d consider it. Watching the animated play-by-play is torturous. I don’t know why they can’t livestream the games.
Carson: The boys have a game today? That’s cool. Wish them luck for me.
Milly: Sure, I’ll let them know Carson Stone wishes them luck. They’ll all probably drop dead right before the game.
Carson: I wish my schedule didn’t conflict with theirs, or else I’d be there practicing with them. We do have the same coach after all.
Milly: Yeah and oddly, they listen better.
Carson: Bullshit. When have I ever given you any sass?
Milly: I can see it in your eyes.
Carson: What you’re seeing is pure appreciation. Did you know that, Milly? I appreciate you.
Milly: Well, prove it today with some hits. Good luck, Stone.
Carson: Thanks, Coach.
Carson: Two for three today with a triple.
Milly: I saw online. That’s so great.
Carson: Thought I was going to pull my groin running. I was really booking it.
Milly: And here you were talking to me about the importance of stretching for dipping a chip. Same goes for your legs, Stone.
Carson: The adrenaline got to me and my brain was telling my legs to move faster than they could.
Milly: But you didn’t pull it, did you?
Carson: No, thankfully. But I do have a bag of ice on my crotch.
Milly: Can’t read that enough.
Carson: Slightly terrified of getting a penis popsicle.
Milly: Just defrost it with your hand.
Carson: I literally just barked out in laughter, and now every one of my teammates it staring at me.
Milly: At least they’ll be staring at you for laughing like a crazy person, rather than having a column of ice poking out of your pants.
Carson: What have you done with my coach?
Milly: Same girl, same coach. You’re just getting to see the side my brothers do.
Carson: I like it.
Carson: Gunner snored last night. I chucked pillows at him at least three times. Claims it’s a head cold.
Milly: Were you sharing a bed?
Carson: He wishes. We shared a room. Normally I share with Jason but for some stupid reason, Coach switched it up on us. I wasn’t equipped to be sleeping with a snorer.
Milly: I’ve slept in a hotel bathroom tub once because all three of my brothers and my dad were snoring. Let’s just say my night was miserable. But, the moments on the road with them I wouldn’t trade for anything.
Carson: I wish I had moments like those with my dad. He couldn’t make it to a lot of games. Did you have a good night’s sleep?
Milly: Had to deal with some RA drama last night. Two girls were fighting over the same guy. It was stupid, but I caught up on some sleep. I forgot to ask, how was the glove?
Carson: Amazing. Thank you so much.
Milly: Sure. Anytime. I’m still really sorry I was late.
Carson: Milly, you were right on time. Thank you.
Carson: I’m exhausted.
Milly: Twenty-four innings in two games will do that to you.
Carson: At least we pulled out the win for both.
Milly: Three for four in one game, two for five in the other with five RBIs. I’m impressed, Stone.
Carson: Impressing my coach means a whole lot to me. Hitting the showers.
Carson: Are you up?
Milly: Yeah, are you still on the bus?
Carson: It’s the never-ending drive. We just finished watching a movie.
Milly: What movie?
Carson: Do you really want to know?
Milly: I kind of do.
Carson: Legally Blonde.
Milly: You are such a liar.
Carson: Swear on my bat. The guys have a thing for Reese Witherspoon. On the way to Indiana, we watched Sweet Home Alabama.
Milly: I am utterly shocked. I thought you would be watching movies like The Avengers, or something like that.
Carson: We watch those too, but it was a Reese weekend.
Milly: The secrets behind Brentwood baseball. Any other tidbits you might want to share that will make me laugh?
Carson: Gunner always wears pink briefs when he pitches. He washed a white load with a red shirt to make them pink. They’re his lucky charm.