Rounding the Bases by Jaqueline Snowe

Chapter Five

Sarah

Cluck cluck.

I was being a chicken and avoiding any run-ins with my dear, sexy sports ball neighbor. The fact that I’d groped him still shocked me. I didn’t do that. Ever.

I was a twenty-three-year-old virgin and had acted like a hussy. “Ugh!” I stopped wiping the counter down for the third time and shook my limbs. The unsettled feeling took root in my gut and I didn’t know how to get rid of it. Apologize to him? Tell him it wouldn’t happen again?

Ask to touch him again?

No. No. Not that.

Pico whined by the front door and I growled at him. “We’re avoiding the hallway, boy. Get with the program.”

He whined again while Cassie perched herself on a pillow on the couch, obviously judging every move I made. The attitude of these dogs could give my best friend Megan a run for her money. I groaned while Pico continued to whine, then slipped on my Birkenstock sandals and a large sunhat. If these damn dogs needed to pee outside, I refused to let my neck get burned. I positioned the dogs safely in the stroller and I hustled down the hallway to the elevator with my heart practically beating at the base of my throat. No sign of Brigham. No accidental groping.

The day might turn out to be a good one.

The intense sun beat down on my arms and it felt good to be outside, even if for a few minutes. The sun always settled me. There was no way I could ever live anywhere outside Phoenix—I had a blue sky, bright sun addiction, so other cities like Seattle or Chicago wouldn’t do. If it was gloomy for three days, my mental health dropped low.

The dogs wagged their tails as others walked by and either laughed or raised eyebrows at the ridiculous get-up. It cheered me up from my brazen decision to touch someone like Brigham. Dogs were my happy place and this job was just one step closer to opening up my own business. The plans were there—a dog boarding site with an app where owners could check in on their dogs in their rooms with a camera. Ethan and Megan would help me get it up and running, with his finesse for finance and her marketing skills, and I just needed to find a groomer and another full-time staff member who would be okay not getting paid really great the first few months.

The down payment on a small house in north Phoenix was twenty thousand and this job would get me enough to jump head-first into it. Homeowner to pet boarder. I could do it despite my parents’ constant refusal to see my point. It would take hard work and time. Two things I had a lot of, without the choking amount of homework and student debt I’d said goodbye to.

There was no room in my life for a beautiful distraction like Brigham Monaghan. Content with my incredible ability to push thoughts of him to the back of my mind, I hummed to an upbeat pop song while I reentered the building. Fernie and I hadn’t improved our conversational skills, but he didn’t glare at me like he wanted me to drop dead. “Hey, Fernie, did you like the lemon squares I dropped off for you?”

He pursed his lips and sent an icy stare to the plate that sat on the front counter. “You made those?”

“Yes. I only put in a little poison, though.”

“I thought I tasted something off.”

“Did you just…joke with me?” I put a hand over my heart and gasped in a very dramatic fashion. One tiny side of his mouth quirked up and I couldn’t stop my bubble of laughter. “Holy damn, Ferdinand. Put that in the books.”

“You assume because I’m old that I do not understand humor?”

“No. Not at all.” I held my tongue and studied the curmudgeon of a man. “Where do you live?”

He looked offended. “I am not divulging that information, Ms. That is highly inappropriate.”

“Woah, I was asking to be kind. I’ll call it a day and head back up to my temporary residence.” I pushed the button and tapped my feet on the tile, sneaking another glance at him. I swore he had a shadow of a smile on his face. “I expect that plate washed and polished like I’m the queen before you return it to me with a kind handwritten thank-you note.”

“Is that all?”

“Leave a request for your next dessert.” The doors opened and I pushed the stroller in like I was a badass, and waved at him as they shut. It felt weird to enjoy our back and forth, and he might not admit it, but I thought he did too. I made a mental note to make him a batch of cookies the next time I needed to bake something sweet and was already planning my next trip to the grocery store. “Siri, put down baking supplies on my shopping list.”

“Will do, Your Highness,” the phone master replied.

After getting the dogs more water and doing a Facetime with Mr. Alexandre, I was about to fire up my laptop and try working on my website. There was a business in Denver that was essentially what I wanted to be, only they took cats. The Cattery had small rooms for each cat and was set up in the mountains. I loved their Instagram and scrolled through posts with a huge smile on my face. This was my goal.

To have that much joy and to give all my love to dogs.

Someone rang the doorbell and my nerves went to shit. I hadn’t ordered anything, so it was probably Brigham. Two days since the groping incident. My palms sweated an embarrassing amount and I wiped them on my bright blue romper. “Okay, be cool, be brave, Sarah.”

My pep talk didn’t help.

Without checking the peephole, I flung it open and hoped I looked calm, cool and collected. But it wasn’t Brigham and my disappointment conflicted with my relief. “Hello,” I said, scanning the man’s shirt. “Frank.”

“Ms. Blue?”

“That is I.” I frowned at the box and vase of flowers in his hands. “Did you bring me flowers? Frank, we barely know each other. That’s a little fast, don’t you think?”

He laughed hard and passed over a clipboard. Who still requires signatures? “You’re funny. I appreciate that.”

“Thank you.” I took the vase in one hand and the box in the other. “Any chance you know what this is about? I don’t have any pursuers and no one pissed me off enough to require an apology gift.”

“Don’t know, ma’am. Have a nice day.”

He left and I stared at the box far too long, and the door across the hall moved. I panicked and tried to escape, but the objects made it impossible and shit. Brigham stared at me, looking way too good to be true in a backward hat and a black shirt that showcased the chest I’d groped.

“Mr. Monaghan,” I said, sounding like a freaking weirdo. “Hope you’re having a pleasant day.”

He eyed the flowers and a line appeared between his eyebrows. “Nice flowers.”

“Thank you. They must be from Fernie. We are best friends now,” I replied, quite proud that my voice sounded normal. “Well, I should get inside.”

“Are you avoiding me, Blue Bell?” he asked, walking closer to me and smiling. The particles in the air seemed to move for him. “You are, aren’t you?”

“Avoiding? Hm. No. Don’t recall.” I tapped my free finger against my chin.

“I thought we were friends.”

Shit.He did look sad, and guilt consumed me. He was going through something with sports ball, and I did stop talking to him. “Damnit. We are friends. I…come on in. Let me set this down.”

His answering grin made me feel like I’d made the right move. I would own up to my foolishness and be done with it. He followed me as I set the flowers and box onto the island, and I placed both hands flat on the cool counter and stood to my fullest height before tilting my face up toward his. “I am sorry for avoiding you and for groping you. It was highly uncharacteristic of me and there are no words for how much I regret it. I am under no illusions with you and was embarrassed.”

He nodded and stayed on his side of the room. “Consider it forgotten.”

“Just like that?” I asked, hating the slight hit to my ego. “It’s not weird I touched you?”

“Blue Bell,” he said, rubbing a hand on the back of his neck. “No. I’m touched all the time with my job.”

“Oh.” I gulped, remembering all the women taking photos of him earlier in the week. God, I was an idiot. Of course he got touched. He was beautiful and rugged and lots of women—and men—had a thing for sports ball dudes. “Duh. Obviously.” I started fidgeting and grabbed a pair of scissors to cut the box open. I needed to do something with my nervous energy and hated how awkward the room felt. It had been so easy with him until I’d ruined it.

“Who sent the gifts?” He moved to my side and watched me open the box. He leaned forward and searched the vase. “No card in the flowers.”

I shrugged and carefully removed an envelope from the red tissue paper. It was addressed to me, so that was a good sign. I flipped it open.

Dear Ms. Blue,

Would you please accompany me to an upcoming charity event regarding rescue animals? It would mean the world to me.

Brigham

“Wait,” I said, looking back and forth between him and the note. “You?”

He blinked in surprise and I passed him the note. “Shit.” He groaned and a serious look came over his face, that it was safe to assume was anger.

Meaning he didn’t want me to get the flowers?

“Were you acting like you didn’t know who sent these or…?” I left it hanging open-ended. “Judging by your face right now, I wasn’t supposed to receive this.”

“You weren’t.” He made a fist and hit the top of the counter. “My agent must’ve sent this to you.”

“Oh.” I chewed on my lip as my stomach dropped. This was an accident. He did not want to attend a charity event with me. The flowers were not from him, to me. The woman who was awkward and groped him. “That’s okay. Don’t worry. I’m busy, anyway.” I shoved the box toward him and forced a smile. “Speaking of busy, I actually need to do some work.”

“Sarah.”

Not Blue Bell.“Hm?” I did not look at him and chose to get ingredients out to bake a cake. Cake sounded great and went with anything. Regret, sadness or birthdays. I grabbed the flour and cocoa powder and vanilla before a hand rested on my shoulder. He turned me around and put a second hand on my other shoulder, caging me into a position where I was forced to look at him.

His height was spectacular and having his bare hands on my bare shoulder almost felt sinful. The warmth of them spread to my fingers, but the seriousness on his face stopped all errant thoughts. “I fucked this up.”

“What…how?”

He sighed and his minty breath tickled my skin. “I hurt your feelings, and that was not my intention when I said you weren’t supposed to get this.”

“It’s okay. Don’t worry.” I blinked and tried to look relaxed.

“It’s not.” He rubbed my shoulders and pressed his lips together in a tight line. “My agent oversteps his bounds sometimes and he should not be doing this shit—sending things in my name to people on my behalf. He told me I needed a date to this thing and I said no—because I don’t want to drag anyone into this mess I’m in at my job—and he took that as a fucking invitation to…do this. Ask you.” He frowned and did look guilty. “I’m really sorry.”

“Thanks for explaining.” I tried scooting away from him, but he pulled me in closer.

“You won’t look me in the eye, and it bums me out you’re upset.” He released his hands on me, taking his heat with him, and he put them in his pockets. “How can I make it up to you?”

“You don’t have to.” I got the mixing bowl out and changed my mind. Last time I’d had batter with him around, it had led to ridiculous things. I needed to change the subject or get him out of here. “So, rescue animals?”

His jaw tightened and he looked pissed off again, and I flinched. “Sorry for asking. It’s just, with the business I want to start, rescue animals are so important. The whole ‘adopt, don’t shop’ thing needs more ground, and I didn’t know you were into helping them. It’s nice.”

“Would you be interested in going?” he asked, sounding like he’d rather take a bite out of the glass bowl.

“Don’t ask me out of pity, Brigham.” This time my voice came out stronger. I could handle brush-offs or misunderstandings, but pity was a no-no. I pointed the spatula at him. “The charity event sounds wonderful, but I will not go because you feel bad for me.”

“What? No. Damnit!” He took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair. “I keep making this worse. Jesus.”

“You really are,” I replied, getting a hint of a smile from him.

“Look, Blue Bell, I’ll be honest here. Full truth.” He waited for me to nod before continuing. “You coming with me to this event will help me out. You would be doing me a favor. I would love to have you come with me. Are you kidding? You’re fun and you make me laugh, and that is something that I haven’t done in a while. But I didn’t want you getting involved in my shitstorm life. So I wasn’t asking out of pity or guilt. I was curious because I’m being selfish.”

“It’d help you out?”

“That’s what you got out of that?” He laughed. “Christ, woman.”

I shrugged. “I do feel a bit better about the pity thing.”

“Good, because it is far from the truth.” He eyed the flowers and scowled. “If I were to get you flowers, they would be blue. Everything blue. Not red roses.”

“Noted.”

He gave me a shy grin this time and I matched it. “Ah, there’s your smile. I missed it.”

I blushed right in the open and didn’t care. “There will be people there who have pets, yes?”

He thought about it for a second before nodding. “I guarantee it.”

I can bring business cards and network and make connections.Butterflies took root in my gut and I could hardly contain my excitement. “Okay, we’re doing each other a favor then.”

He raised one eyebrow, which sent a wave of jealousy through me, because I envied those who had the talent to move one at a time. I looked like a creeper when I attempted the eyebrow-arch move. “How is this two-sided?”

“I told you about my dream job. There will be people there who’ll travel at some point and need a place for their fur-children. I can network, spread the word and start putting myself out there. Go big or go home, Brigham. I might as well dive in.”

He ran his teeth over his bottom lip and his entire face lit up. “Deal. We can hang out, eat nice food, and we both get something out of it.”

“What is the attire for this fancy charity? Will there be puppies to adopt there? Are you famous? You know, scratch that. You probably are and I’d rather not think about it.” I found my phone and looked up at him to see a goofy, full-face smirk. “Why are you laughing at me?”

“You’re cute, Blue Bell.” He took my phone from my hands and a ping went off a few seconds later. “You have my number now and I have yours. I’ll text you the information.”

“But you avoided my questions.”

“Wear one of your little dresses. There will be animals to adopt. And in the sports world, I’m kinda well known.”

“Thank you.” I smoothed my hand over my stomach. “When is it?”

“Friday night.” His eyes filled with something like tenderness and he reached out to squeeze my shoulder again. “I’m glad we’re okay now. I know this is only for a couple months, but I’m really glad you’re here.”

“Me too.” I blinked up at him and had the insane urge to kiss him. His lips were pouty and so kissable that it was getting hard to not stare at his mouth. He had stubble around his jaw. I had never kissed someone with facial hair and I was so very curious. But I’d ruined it the last time I’d acted on an urge, so I held out my hand. “It will be very fun being your friend, Brigham Monaghan.”

He snorted and shook my hand. “You are unlike anyone I’ve ever met, Sarah Bell Blue. I can’t wait for our date on Friday.”

“Date?” I gulped.

“I’ll bring flowers meant for you this time.” He winked and took off toward the door, leaving me a little breathless and nervous and excited all at the same time. Friday…damn. I had a date with a hot sports ball guy who I would make sure to stay in the friendzone with.

Awesome.