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TWELVE

Holy hell. The air was electric in the stadium.

I’d never been to a professional baseball game, and I understood the appeal.

A Hawks fan filled almost every seat, many ripping the tags off their brand-new jerseys, purchased from one of the many gift shops inside.

There were a ton of Ramos ones in the surrounding space; from what I’d gathered, he was one of the most senior players.

“The Rebels traded him to the Hawks,” Ollie said from the seat next to me.

She’d introduced herself right away, noticing the shell-shocked look in my eyes.

“Damien’s got the most impressive stats coming into the season, so a lot of fans are here to see him.

” She scrunched her nose as she scanned the crowd, then pointed across the seats with a wide smile on her face.

“There’s also some with the other guys’ names.

Don’t worry—with the way your guy’s been performing, he’ll be selling out in no time.

” Ollie elbowed me. “In fact, there’s one now. ”

I smiled as I spotted the guy wearing number eight, Seda embroidered across their back.

It had nothing to do with me, yet I felt a huge amount of pride for Cam, knowing how hard he worked to get to this moment.

But as I tried to school my smile, Ollie’s words came back to me. “Wait, Cam’s not my guy. We’re…”

What even were we? Reluctant friends? Mutually parasitic houseguests? Cam didn’t fit in any of the usual assigned categories, so I picked the one that required the least amount of explanation. “We’re friends.”

Ollie shook her head. “Trust me, I get that.” She scanned the audience again and pointed out another last name on the back of a jersey.

But this one said Drobrek in all caps. “That’s Parker.

He’s been my best friend since we could walk.

” She lifted her can of beer and clinked it against mine.

“Welcome to the platonic baseball besties’ fan club. ”

“Is that a thing?”

“Nope,” Ollie said. “But I’m making it one. All the other women in these seats are wives and girlfriends. They give you strange looks if you say you’re friends with one of the guys. At least, that’s how it was with Parker’s old team. They never believed me when I said we’re only friends.”

I’d never say this to Ollie, but I got where the question came from.

The girl was objectively gorgeous. She had a chin length, bleach blonde bob and a smile that lit up the entire stadium.

Her green eyes were wide and welcoming, and insecurity washed over me in her presence.

Hell, I hadn’t even met Parker, and here I questioned his decision to stay in the friend zone.

Before I could ask more questions, music blared from the speaker. Ollie grabbed my arm. “Ahh, I love this part. Get ready to scream for your guy!”

As intros started, I whooped and yelled with the rest of the crowd.

All the other names were unfamiliar to me, but the excitement built as they each stepped out onto the field.

Ollie screamed when the announcer called out Parker’s name.

He rushed out to the field, and his eyes darted to the stands.

When he spotted Ollie, he smiled widely, making some sort of signal with his hands.

Ollie returned the gesture, then turned toward me.

“What was that?”

“Nothing.” She blushed. “It’s this thing we’ve done since grade school.”

I was dying to find out more about her past with Parker, but when the announcers introduced number eight, I couldn’t help but jump up to my feet. My eyes darted to the screen, where a large picture of Cam’s close-up smiled back at me.

The crowd went wild as he ran out onto the field, a ridiculously wide grin filling his face. It was so different from the Cam I knew—rigid about rules and always looking to put me in my place. Victoria always said he came to life on the field, but I never knew what she meant until now.

The announcers kept calling out other names, but my attention remained fixed on Cam.

I watched as he stretched, as he joked with his teammates.

He was magnetic, and I kept being pulled into his world, helpless to fight the attraction.

Cam only made it worse when his eyes scanned the crowd and he found me sitting in the seat he’d gifted me.

I half-expected the smile to fade when he caught me watching him.

Instead, he just kept grinning, and then he winked at me.

What the fuck was that?

And worse—why did I like it so much?

It was like there was a secret between us, a connection neither of us had ever acknowledged. Was this what it would be like if Cam and I were actually friends? Would I be in this seat more often, cheering him on at each of his home games? The idea appealed to me, much more than I wanted to admit.

As I leaned back, my smile still etched on my face, Ollie leaned into my side. “You sure you’re just friends?”

My baseball knowledge might have been minimal when I walked into the stadium, but that was no longer the case. Through each inning, Ollie explained the rules and all the calls from the umpire—a term I’d learned after I called him a referee during the first inning.

When the final score filled the board, the Hawks had won their first game by a couple of runs, and I had a new friend to add to my roster. Ollie gave me her phone number and made me promise I’d come to plenty more games this season.

After the team left the field, we hung back for a bit, finishing the last of our beers and the pretzel we’d shared. I had to admit—I loved the vibe of being at the field. Sitting among the fans, we were all a part of the team, rooting for our boys to bring home the win.

When we demolished the last couple of bites, Ollie’s phone rang. “The guys are almost done with press and showers. We should get going.”

“Where?” I asked, my mouth still stuffed with dough.

“The friends and family area,” she said. “Man, Cam needs to give you the tour before the next game.”

“You’re telling me,” I muttered as I climbed to my feet, tossing our trash in the garbage before following Ollie.

She grasped my hand as we went straight toward the elevators.

She showed them our badges, which, luckily, the attendant had given me before the game started.

I hadn’t asked what it was for, but apparently, select friends and family got them so they could wait for the team outside the locker rooms.

As we climbed off the elevators, Ollie burst into the crowd, jumping into the arms of one of the waiting players.

He didn’t even flinch as she launched herself, catching her with a practiced ease.

I recognized Parker from the image on the big screen earlier.

Now that he was off the field, he was wearing glasses that made him look like a blond version of Superman.

He held Ollie tight for a long moment, then pulled back.

He placed her back on the ground but stayed close. “What did you think, Oleander?”

“I loved it!” she squeaked. She turned around, finding me waiting behind her. “And I met a new friend. This is Hadley. She came with Cam.”

“Nice to meet you,” Parker said as he extended his hand. “He’ll be right out. Coach just wanted a word with him.”

I nodded, too distracted by the rest of the group to listen to his words. Excitement radiated through everyone in the crowd, an intoxicating mix of pride and relief. It was exactly how I felt, and suddenly, I was beyond excited to see Cam.

When he came out of the locker room only moments later, it took everything in me to stay in place, to not launch myself into his arms like Ollie had done with Parker. We were friends. At least, sort of. And friends hugged during moments like this, didn’t they?

As I overanalyzed my next move, Cam stepped closer to me, his eyes almost glassy with happiness.

“Hey, menace,” he said as he pulled me into a hug without pause.

I relaxed in his arms before placing my own around his waist. My head rested against his chest for a beat, taking in the subtle scent that would always belong to Cam.

I cleared my throat, then shifted away from him. “Good game, sarge. You killed it out there.”

“I did alright,” he said. “Gotta say, never thought I’d see you cheering for me in the stands.”

“You invited me,” I bit out, embarrassed by my enthusiasm. My cheeks flooded with heat, and all I wanted was for it to fade away before Cam noticed.

Cam shook his head. “Didn’t say it was a bad thing, Hadley. I liked seeing you up there.”

“You did?” I asked, my mouth dropping open at the insinuation.

He shook his head, taking my hand and leading me through the crowd. I looked down at our joined palms. Why did this seem so natural? After everything we’d been through, Cam should be the last person whose hand I held.

So why didn’t I want to let go?