Page 17 of Last Fall

5

ERIK

Karma, man.Karma.

“Cassidy!”Wes said, slapping me on the back as we ran out onto the field. “Watch that squirmy little fucker. He’s dying to steal.” It was the fourth inning and the game was tiedatzero.

I glanced up at the man in question, Ernest Dario. He was on track for a record number of stolen bases this season so it wasn’t surprising he’d be gunning for me, but Dario was the kind of guy you punched in the face if you were out partying together. Total asshole. Kind of like Wes, except IlikedWes.

“I’ve got second under control.” I shoved Wes in the chest padding of his catcher’s uniform. “You just be ready for my incredibly accuratethrowshome.”

He spread his arms out wide pretending to be shocked. “When am I ever not ready? I know how to do my job.” Then he yanked down his mask and jogged behind home plate before I could tell him to gotohell.

“Fucker, telling me how to do my job? Whatever.” I admit I was in a bit of a bad mood since my unexpected kiss with Zoe Burke. It wasn’t the kiss that was the problem. That was amazing. It was everything else I learned. I’d always known Zoe was running from something and that it was probably bad, but seeing the level of pain she was carrying around, seeing that fear? My bad mood was a simple case of Wanting-to-Kill-an-Asshole-itis. The only known cure was abeatdown.

I shook all thoughts of Zoe from my head as dickwad Dario stepped up to the plate. As all consuming as Zoe could be to my brain, a line drive to my skull would be bad. Especially considering I was seeing her in a few hours at a unicornparty.

Sure enough the asshole tried three times to steal second before his teammate got him around to third. Based on the very large lead he was taking towards home plate, the fucker thought he could manage to stealhome,too.

Lucky for me his teammate ground out too high and fast. I caught the ball easily and sent it in to Wes at home plate. Our pitcher, Chris Kaine, dropped to the ground just as my throw whistled past where his headhadbeen.

Out, you littlefucker.

And that was pretty much how the entire game went. All. Thirteen.Innings.

It was a mess but we finally scored, ending the game at1-0.

“Bear, you fucking asshole. You almost took off my head,” Chris grunted at me as he yanked off hisuniform.

I had earned my locker room nickname for a reason. It started off as a joke—as all good nicknames do—because I was “Papa Bear-ing” all the out of control kids. But I also had this other side. The protective big brother side. Occasionally I got a bitgrizzly.

“Naw, he was just trusting you to get out of the way,” Wes laughed, wrapping a clean, white towel around hiswaist.

I flexed my right arm and patted my bicep. “Steady as a rock. Even if you hadn’t ducked I wouldn’t have hit you. Laser precisionrighthere.”

Chris rolled his eyes. “Let’s maybe try tonotkill me from now on,” he said as he moved toward theshowers.

“If Wes would pay attention it would really help,” I called after him, essentially daring Wes topunchme.

Which he did. Right in my left arm. “We got theWso I’m going to let the name-calling slide, just this once,PapaBear.”

“I told you I wouldn’t let himsteal.”

Wes grunted. “Dickwad Dario today, Makai the Maniac on Monday. I’m having a helluva week. I think I actuallyneeda unicornparty.”

“Pink, purple, gold, and glitter. Pretty much the opposite of black eyesandclay.”

“And don’t forget birthday cake.” He buttoned his dress shirt and slipped on hisshoes.

Wes never waited around after home games anymore which meant my window of opportunity was closing in three, two, one... “What can you tell meaboutZoe?”

He froze, his bag in his hand. “Pixie?Notmuch.”

Tiny fireball.Sounded like the perfect nickname for her. She’d given him the hell he needed while trying to woo Carrie. “You’re close though, right?” I knew the answer but I also didn’t know how else to break the ice on this conversation. Wes was my teammate and a good friend, but not that good of a friend that I could ask about his wife’s best friend out of the blue without getting a shotgun shoved inmyface.

He turned to face me with his hands on his hips. “I love that little troublemaker as if she were my actual little sister. Why are youasking?”

I probably deserved the big brother treatment considering how many times I’d given it over theyears.