The Perfect Play by Cookie O’Gorman

CHAPTER 4: Chase

The team was downstairs celebrating.

Of course, they were. They'd earned it. Coming back to hang at Omega Beta house after a win—especially following a hard-fought game like that—was tradition. The enticing smells of bacon and pancakes drifted beneath the door, our typical post-win victory dinner made up of breakfast food. Voices and laughter hit my ears, too, trying to lure me.

But I was in the zone.

Eyes up, hand fisted, I lifted my arm straight out, held for ten seconds, and then lowered. I'd already done 40 reps. Another 20, and I'd be good to move on to the next exercise.

Was it strange that I'd rather be up here doing PT than down there with the Wolves and our fans?

Maybe.

My family mostly accepted my loner tendencies. They still tried to get me to socialize, which I didn't mind. I had to get out of my head sometimes. But they understood I was more bookworm than party guy. Unlike people, books weren't judgmental. They had no expectations. Books gave me a way to escape and asked for nothing in return.

They were magic like that.

I'd done more reading these past couple months. Actually, that was what I planned to do when I finished, kind of like a reward.

Archer, my oldest brother, had asked me to come down, be with the team, celebrate with them. But I'd declined. The PT was part of it. The exercises required my full concentration, even if they were easy. Another part was…I wasn't an integral part of that W. I wished I could've been. The Cougars never went down without a fight, and the game today was no exception. It had killed me to watch my guys struggle. Baylor's irritation hit me hardest. I knew it was all self-directed and could see how hard he was trying.

He'd had to step in after our number two pitcher, Tim Reams, nearly lost us the game. Tim was turning out to be a dud. The assistant coaches had had high hopes for the guy. Mom had recruited him based on their recommendation. But he just couldn’t get it done.

I focused and pushed harder.

Got through each exercise, no problem.

A knock at the door came just as I was finishing my final stretch.

"Come in," I said.

Baylor walked in and sat on my bed.

"You done yet?" he asked.

"Yeah, just finished," I said, wiping my forehead on a towel. "What's up?"

"Nothing. Came in here for a breather."

My eyebrows furrowed. "You needed a break from partying? Are you sick or something?"

I lifted my hand to his head, but he slapped it away with a laugh.

"Don't be a smartass," he said, his grin falling. "I was just down there, watching everybody be all happy, talking about how we destroyed the other team. And the only thing I could think was…we dodged a bullet tonight."

I nodded. That was exactly how I saw it.

"True," I said. "But you pulled it together in the end. Got the win."

He rolled his eyes. "More like the Cougars lost it. I've never seen Sellers' game fall to pieces like that. They left him in too long. That's what got us the win."

Yeah maybe, I thought, but my money was on Charlie.

Since Baylor was playing, I guessed he hadn't seen.

I did, though.

From the dugout, I'd watched her play Sellers like a fiddle, completely annihilating his focus with a wave, a smile, a well-timed stretch. She was dazzling, impossible to ignore.

"You think that's what it was?" I asked.

"What else could it be?" Baylor held his hands out wide, confirming the fact that he hadn't noticed her—which was probably a good thing. I loved my twin. But he was a total player and not just of the baseball variety. "We sucked tonight, Chase."

I tilted my head from side to side. "Eh, Reams' game sucked. You guys just couldn't make up for it."

"True, that guy chokes under pressure."

"It happens," I said. "They go from being a hotshot in high school to college ball and can't make the adjustment. But maybe he just needs time."

Baylor scoffed. "He's had time. Reams never got to play much before because you were there. Now he starts, and the team spends the majority of the game rescuing him."

I couldn't deny it. I'd noticed that, too, but didn't want to put the guy down.

"I hear he's dropping baseball next year to focus on being a lawyer," Baylor added.

"Seriously?" I said. "Who'd trade ball for a suit and tie?"

"Hell if I know."

Baylor ran his hands through his hair, and I saw his brows furrow.

"We need you, Chase."

"I know," I said.

"No, really. We can't do this without you. Reams' game is DOA. Snider shakes off Archer's signs—which you know aggravates the shit out of him. And I'm a hitter not a pitcher. Maybe if Mom had a deeper bench, another starting pitcher, but…"

I clasped my hands, nudged him with an elbow. "Hey, your fastball's looking good—not as good as mine, of course. But still."

He shook his head and met my eyes. "The whole team's counting on you."

I forced out a laugh. "No pressure. Right?"

"Nah," he said, slapping a hand on my back. "Just do you, brother. Everyone knows you're going to have a killer comeback."

"Yeah, I hope so," I mumbled.

My phone rang, and after pulling it out of my pocket, I picked up.

"Hello?" I said.

"Hi Chase, this is Jackie Conners from North Carolina Sports Weekly. You remember me?"

"Yes ma'am, I do. How are you?"

"Oh fine, fine," she said, "but that's not important. I called to see how you are. Do you have time for a quick interview?"

Hmm, how to answer? If I said no, she'd assume something was wrong, most likely with my recovery. If I said yes, it would prolong this conversation. Both options were unappealing.

"Sure, I have a minute," I said finally.

"How's that arm?" she said.

My shoulder tensed and rotated in response.

"Doing much better. Thanks."

"Was there any lasting damage? Will we be seeing you out on the field in the near future? Inquiring minds want to know."

"No, there wasn't, and yes, hopefully you will. My doctor should let me know something soon."

"So, your MLB hopes are still alive?" she asked.

"Alive and kicking," I said.

She hummed at that. "I noticed the Wolves had a hard time today against the Cougars. Your brother Baylor stepped in as a relief pitcher, but he seemed to have difficulty finding his stride. Do you think you could've done a better job than your twin?"

I frowned, holding the phone away from my face in disbelief.

"Chase?" she said. "Should I take your silence as confirmation?"

With a sigh, I answered. "No way. In fact, Jackie, I can't believe you just said that. Baylor was a huge part of the team's win today. The Wolves came together in the face of very bad odds. They killed it."

Baylor suddenly grabbed the phone.

"Hey Jackie," he said, "this is Baylor O'Brien. I'm pretty sure you know you're supposed to direct all inquiries to the Coach's office."

I heard her say something on the other end, and she sounded peeved.

"Yeah, yeah," Baylor said, "but what do you think Coach O'Brien aka our mother would do if she found out you're harassing her son with dubious nighttime phone calls?"

A squawk of indignation came through the speakers.

"Oh, I didn't mean Chase. I meant me," he said. "It was one date. Booty calls are fun, but I thought you understood that we're done. Quit being a stalker. You can include that in your article if you want."

There was a curse, and then the only thing I heard was dial tone.

"Guess she was done talking," Baylor said as he handed back the phone.

"Thanks for that," I said.

"No problem. Conners is the worst."

I gave him a look. "Says the guy who dated her."

Baylor balked. "Hey, we all make mistakes."

There was another knock at the door, and Archer poked his head in.

"Chase," he said and gave Baylor a nod. "Done with the PT?"

"Yeah," I said.

"Everything go okay?"

"Yes, Arch. It's all good. You don't have to check up on me."

"I wasn't," he argued, but I could tell it was a lie. Archer was naturally protective. In the days after my injury, he'd refused to leave my side.

"It's fine, Mama Bear," Baylor said. "I was here to deflect the gossipy reporter."

Archer frowned. "Call me that again and see what happens."

Baylor just grinned.

"If anyone's bothering you, let me know," he said to both of us.

I nodded to placate him but didn't mention the various other calls I'd been receiving. Jackie Conners was just the tip of the iceberg.

"I came to see if you guys want pizza."

Baylor lifted a brow. "They run out of pancake mix downstairs?"

"They did, but that's not why I'm asking." Archer grinned. "My girl sent me a text. She and her friends are at this place across town. Said the food's amazing."

I felt a smile forming on my lips. "Did she actually invite you?"

"Honor told me she missed me." He shrugged, but I saw his eyes soften. "I took it as an invitation. Thought you might want to come, get out for a bit."

"Right," Baylor said, walking to the door. "Let's head out."

Archer tilted his chin. "I was asking Chase."

"But I know you wouldn't want to hurt my feelings by excluding me, so…I'll come along."

Shaking my head, I followed after Baylor, and Archer fell into step beside me.

"Pizza sounds good," I said, tugging on my jacket.

"Thought you might want to get away, too," he muttered. "I know you don't love parties, even mellow ones like this."

"Thanks."

As we made our way to the door, people shouted to us. Several fans and guys from the team even stopped me. They all said some variation of the same thing.

"Can't wait till you come back."

"We need that arm, bro."

"The Wolves are counting on you, Chase."

"After all this time off, I bet you'll be better than ever."

"You're what we were missing tonight, man. Hope that doctor gives you the greenlight."

The air had gotten thicker by the second. I didn't even realize how tense I was until I got in the car and could finally take a breath.

"What are we doing?" Dex said as he jumped into the seat next to mine.

"Pizza with Honor," Archer said.

"Cool." Dex glanced across the backseat and gave me an odd look. "You okay, Chase?"

I couldn't wait to get out of there.

"Yeah," I said, "just hungry."

The further we drove from the house the more relaxed I felt. After five minutes, I was actually feeling normal. At ten, I couldn't remember what I'd been so anxious about in the first place. We drove for another few minutes, snagged a space in the small parking lot, got out and walked to the door.

"You sure this is it?" Dex asked, eyeing the small brick building. "Doesn't look like much from the outside."

Archer nodded. "It's right. Honor told me the name. I put Village Pizza in the GPS, and it led us here."

"Ton of cars," I said, pointing out the obvious. We'd circled the place several times, looking for an open spot before finding one as someone left. "Must mean good food."

Baylor reached the door first. "I don't care if it's good or not. My stomach's been growling since we left. I'm so hungry I could eat spaghetti out of one of Archer's stinky cleats."

"So dramatic," I said on a laugh.

"And disgusting," Dex added.

"As if yours smell like roses, Bay."

"Trust me, they don't. As his roommate I can attest to that," Archer said, pushing past us. "Come on. My girl's waiting."

We entered into a small lobby area. It was bright on the inside, open concept with tables and booths to the right, black and white checkered floors. There were Christmas lights strung across the ceiling along with colorful lighting fixtures, chandeliers and even a disco ball. The walls were covered with miscellaneous memorabilia, framed posters and pictures, one completely covered with stickers. My eyes moved up again to the guitars and pizza boards seemingly suspended in mid-air. There was even an actual life-sized suit of armor guarding the bathrooms.

"This place is amazing," I said.

"Smells good, too," Baylor added.

"I wonder how Honor found it."

Archer's eyes moved through the crowd in search of her. "I don't think she did. Pretty sure Charlie suggested they come here."

I didn't know why, but that surprised me. Village Pizza was eccentric, quirky. It was a charming hodge-podge of things that really shouldn't go together but did. I already wanted to come back at some point just for the ambiance. Charlie seemed to be more into the club scene. Then again, she was also turning out to be unpredictable.

"What…who the hell are those guys?"

I followed Archer's gaze to a small table in the back.

Honor, Charlie, Emmy and June were all sitting there together.

And four guys were with them.

They surrounded the table, their big backs to us as they chatted with the girls.

"They look cozy," Dex commented.

Archer hummed his agreement.

"Maybe you didn't come fast enough, so she replaced you," Baylor joked, but Archer's eyes narrowed as the guy closest to Honor touched her shoulder, and she shied away. "Or maybe not."

"Only one way to find out," I said, walking past him toward the table.

I wasn't afraid Archer would do something rash. He wasn't like Dex or Baylor, who both seemed to react first and ask questions later. Dex, in particular, loved a good fight—when the situation warranted it, which in his opinion was a lot. But Baylor sometimes stuck his foot in it without even meaning to. Before anything else could be said, I figured we'd better go over there, set the record straight.

Charlie caught sight of us first, and her eyes widened.

I couldn't tell what she was thinking.

When I was a few feet away, though, she smiled and suddenly stood.

"There you are," she said, striding toward me with purpose. Her light blue eyes were intent on mine. "I was wondering when you'd get here."

As she stopped in front of me and threw her arms around my neck, she whispered quickly, "Don't read anything into this. It's nothing. I just need you for a second."

But it wasn't nothing.

The thought flitted in and out of my head as her lips landed on mine.

A spark traveled through me at the contact. I wondered if she felt it, too. I was so surprised, that for a second, I couldn't move. That didn't seem to bother Charlie. Her mouth pressed against mine, soft and smooth, her fingertips feathering through the hair against my neck. My eyes closed, hands moving to her waist, clasping her gently. So good, I thought as she nibbled my lower lip. Dipping my head to meet her fully, I tried to prolong the kiss, not wanting it to end. But before I could do more than press back, she was already pulling away.

I opened my eyes and caught Charlie staring at me. I had no idea what she saw, but…

Holy wow.

My first kiss.

I couldn't believe it.

It came out of nowhere and left me stunned.

I could still feel her lips against mine, knew I'd be dreaming about it tonight.

Charlie's face was full of questions, but I only had a few.

Could she tell it was my first kiss?

Had it been good for her, too?

And most important: When could we do that again?