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I woke up the following morning, still sprawled on top of Jake, and said a prayer to the sleep gods that I hadn’t been drooling or snoring.

After a quick shower, I began digging through my bag to find clothes. Realizing I didn’t know what to wear because I didn’t know what we were doing, I called out to Jake to ask.

“Nothin’ fancy. And it’s gonna be fuckin’ hot,” he answered, setting a mug of coffee on the dresser. “Gonna shower. We gotta go soon, yeah?”

I pulled on a pair of dark washed jean shorts and a black tank top. After applying a little eyeliner and mascara, I attempted to tame my wild hair. I was tying my high-tops in the living room when Jake came out of the bedroom.

His hair was still damp and wavy from the shower. He was wearing a gray Red Sox tee with red, three-quarter-length sleeves, a pair of gray basketball shorts, and some sneakers. Pulling his hair into a knot, he threw on a worn and faded Sox hat.

You slept without drooling, Piper. Don’t start now.

“Got somethin’ else for you.” Reaching into the closet, he handed me a white, fitted, Red Sox jersey.

“Baby, I’m sensing a theme with the clothes today.”

“I did some work for a guy and got tickets, so I thought we might catch a Sox game. If you wanted.” Though his voice was indifferent, his eyes were bright as he watched me failing to contain my excitement.

I grinned up at him. “Totally.” I pulled the jersey on, but left it open.

His eyes darkened as he looked me over. “I’m thinkin’ maybe I don’t wanna go now.”

“Too late. Let’s go!” I bounced.

“Sweets, that isn’t makin’ me move any faster. Hell. Want one of my sweaters? A coat? At least throw some damn sweatpants on.”

“It’s gonna be unseasonably hot today so pants aren’t happening. Now, let’sgo.”

“You’re lucky we’re meetin’ Floyd and Nat there or I seriously doubt we’d be leavin’.”

“Hooray! Now I extra can’t wait. Dad used to take me to games a lot.” I flung the door open and headed towards the driveway. “You coming or what?”

*******

“Never again. Do you hear me, Piper? Never. Again.” Jake stormed through his condo, throwing his hat on the couch as he went.

I trailed after him. “Baby, it really wasn’t that bad.”

He stopped suddenly and turned to face me. “Are you kiddin’ me? You and Nat almost got us kicked out of the game.”

“Did not! The security guards thought we were hilarious.”

“No, the security guards thought you were hot.”

I rolled my eyes. “We weren’t even that bad.”

“Not even one day.” He held up his finger. “Not even one day with my ring on your finger and you were yellin’ your love for another man.”

“To be fair, Anderson is the catcher for the Red Sox, not some random guy.” At Jake’s warning growl, I quickly moved on to my next defense. “And that wasn’t even me yelling the dirty stuff. That was Natalie!”

“Never again. Not goin’ anywhere with the two of you,” Jake muttered as he headed into the kitchen.

Following him, I hopped up onto the island and tried to figure out why he was so exasperated. Since I was pretty tipsy, it was a difficult endeavor to focus on.

*******

When we arrived at the stadium earlier and I showed Dad and Nat my ring, neither of them were surprised. I found out that the reason Jake had called my dad in the first place was to ask for his blessing. Though I’d already told Dad, and more so, Nat, about him, that didn’t mean a phone conversation was going to suffice. Since my surprise birthday celebration was already in the works at that point, they’d decided the party was the perfect opportunity to meet Jake.

After finding our seats, which were so close I could reach over and touch the dugout, I looked at Jake with raised brows. He returned my unspoken question with a wink and smirk.