“Meh, not really. I’m a baseball player. You work as a part of the training team. We work for the same facility, but technically not together.”
“Until you need me for something in regard to the game.”
“I need you for something now.”
“Oh, yeah?” I can’t help but ask. “Do tell?” I turn to face him and move to cross my arms over my chest. Cameron, however, is faster and captures my wrists, bringing one, then the other to his lips for a kiss.
“I just need your time, Paisley. I just want to spend time with you. That’s all.” The conviction in his voice has me reaching out to grip his shirt.
“Friends,” I blurt. It’s the first thing that comes to mind, and I’m reeling for a way for us to remain professional. We’ve both worked our asses off to get where we are. Sure, I had some family connections, but I’m not the least bit naïve to think that if I were not qualified, my dad or even my uncle Drew wouldn’t call me out on it. I’ve put in the time and the work to be where I am.
“That’s a start,” he concedes. However, when he leans in and presses his lips to my forehead, I want to take the words back. I want to tell him that I’ll be whatever it is he needs me to be.
“Let’s eat,” Willow says, bouncing back into the room. She doesn’t comment on our position. Instead, she finishes unpacking the food and setting out plates.
“So, Cameron, what a coincidence that you live in the same complex as we do,” Willow says once we’re all three seated in the living room with our plates full of food.
“I got lucky there was an opening. I thought it was fate, you know, with the facility being called Baseline Condominiums.” He chuckles.
“My dad thought so too. When we graduated from college, he insisted on finding us the perfect condo to move into since we refused to move in with him and Mom and my two younger sisters.”
“Hey, I would have had no issue with living at Casa de Monroe. Your mom’s cooking skills are on point.” Willow points her fork at me.
“Right. You say that, but we would never have any privacy, and it’s not just because my two little sisters would be running around. My dad, now that he’s retired, has way too much time on his hands. We would never have had a moment to ourselves.”
Willow shrugs. “There are worse things.”
“Stop!” I cringe.
“Wait? What am I missing here?” Cameron asks. His eyes flick from Willow to me and then back again.
“Oh, you know, just the fact that my best friend has a crush on my dad!”
“You’ve seen Easton in those pants, right?” Willow asks Cameron. The look on his face has me cracking up laughing.
“I’ve seen him play, but I’m sorry, Wil, that’s just not my team.”
“Oh, you’re a Blaze player now,” she reminds him.
“Oh, the Blaze is my team, but I’m more team Paisley than I am team Easton.”
Willow tsks at him and points her fork in his direction. “That is no way to win over the parental units. Let me tell you, bud, Easton is fierce when it comes to the ladies in his life.”
Cameron takes a pull from his bottle of water. “Good. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
“He’s not going to make it easy for you.”
“Nothing in life worth having is easy.”
“Like our girl here.” Willow nods to where I’m sitting.
“Like our girl.”
Something in his tone of voice, the conviction of him referring to me as his girl, sends tingles down my spine. “Cameron and I are just friends,” I tell Willow.
“I don’t kiss my friends like they’re the air I breathe. I mean, we could try it if you want, but to be honest, I’m just not feeling you like that, sweet cheeks.” She winks.
“You don’t know what you’re missing, Willow,” Cameron tells her.
“Thanks for dinner, Willow,” I say to change the subject.
“Always. So, tell me about your day. What was so rough about it?” she asks.
I subtly shake my head, but she just grins. “Cameron? Do you have any idea why our girl here had a bad day?”
“Hmm, maybe it’s because she refused to have dinner with me?” He poses it as a question, but all three of us know he’s being coy.
“Well, looks like luck is on your side.” Willow grins.
“That it is. In fact, my day turned out so much better than I could have imagined. It turns out that I live right next door to two pretty kick-ass neighbors.”
“Next door?” I ask him.
He nods. “Next door.” He takes a bite of his rice and swallows it before speaking again. “Although, there is this woman, she’s gorgeous and pretty much my dream girl, but she refuses to give me her number.”
“Oh, well, lucky for you, she has a best friend that can help you with that.”
“Willow!” I hiss.
“Hey, when you have a man like Cameron who wants your attention, you let him lavish you with it.”
“We agreed to be friends,” I remind both of them.
“Friends share numbers.” Cameron grins.
“And meals,” Willow adds.
“Maybe the two of you should exchange numbers.”
“You know,” Willow states, “that’s not a bad idea. Toss me your phone,” she tells Cameron.
I sit back and watch as he hands her his phone, rattles off the passcode, and then she types in what I’m sure is not only her phone number but mine as well. I’m in over my head with the two of them ganging up on me. I’m just going to have to try harder to keep Cameron in the friend zone. That’s where he needs to be.
Our jobs depend on it. At least that’s what I keep telling myself. Self-preservation and all that.
Chapter 6
Cameron
As I board the bus for the away game, I’m on sensory overload. I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I got called up, and tomorrow night, I’ll be wearing a Blaze uniform as I step out onto the field. That’s surreal within itself. From the time I was a little boy, I dreamed of playing in the big leagues, and now, here I am.
Then there’s Paisley. To say it was a shock to find out she and Willow are my new neighbors is an understatement. However, it’s good to know that I have an ally in Willow. She not only gave me her number last night but she also gave me Paisley’s. I’m sure that goes against some kind of girl code, which tells me that Paisley is more interested in me than she’s letting on. I feel confident Willow wouldn’t have given me her number if that were not the case.
Making my way down the aisle, I see Paisley sitting by the window with her eyes closed and her earbuds in. I have to bite down on my cheek to keep from smiling. Instead of making a scene, I drop into the seat next to her. I am the new guy, after all. I don’t have a bond with the other players, so sitting with the trainer, the sexy-as-fuck trainer, is an obvious choice. At least that’s what I’m telling myself.
I get settled and look across the aisle to see none other than Drew Milton watching me. I shrug as if to say what do you do, then close my eyes and rest my head back against the seat. I’m not thrilled he’s going to get a front-row view of my time with Paisley, but it’s only a two-hour drive, so it will be fine. It’s not like I plan to seduce her right here on the bus.