Page 18 of The Game Changer (Knights of Passion #3)

Cody straightened, clearly thrown. His brows drew together as he scrubbed a hand across the back of his neck, looking both wounded and confused. “Wait. You’re laughing at me?”

“Oh my God, you were serious?” She gasped, hand covering her mouth to stifle the sound.

He straightened, wounded, but amusement tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Eventually, he joined in her laughter. “Man. That was cold.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, wiping at her eyes with her apron. “I couldn’t help it. You just looked so earnest.”

He pressed both hands over his chest and staggered back theatrically. “Savage. You’ve wounded me. Right in my tender, fragile ego. Don’t you know how hard it is for us guys to talk to beautiful women?”

She snorted. “Please. Your ego’s so over-inflated, I barely nicked it. And you’re clearly not struggling.”

She tilted her head, watching him more closely now. “Can I ask you something? Why do you call Dylan ‘Professor’ and ‘Old Man’? He’s only a couple of years older than you.”

Cody dropped onto a stool, propping his chin in his hand like a teenager being grilled. “Because he’s always lecturing me. Always so damn serious. Treats me like I’m twelve and he’s my dad. It’s like he lives to make me feel like an idiot.”

Savannah sighed and reached across the island, resting her fingers lightly on his forearm. “Cody, he’s not trying to put you down. He takes this seriously because he wants to win. He wants you to succeed.”

Cody pushed away from the counter and started pacing, hands gesturing with frustration.

“I get that. I want to win too. But does he have to be so... superior all the time? Like he’s the only one who knows how to pitch.

He gives me these looks—just for being five minutes late.

And this whole ‘hitter’s bible’ thing? He acts as if I committed a felony for not writing everything down. ”

She grinned and leaned against the counter. “Sadie actually chewed his book up when she first got here. You should’ve seen his face.”

Cody’s eyes lit up. “No way. And he kept her?”

Savannah nodded. “He did. But I don’t think you could apologize the way she did.”

Cody mock-shuddered. “I’m not even gonna ask. Still... I don’t know. I just don’t think we’ll ever click.”

She circled the counter and laid a hand on his arm. “Maybe if you stopped fighting him and started working with him, things would change. He’s trying. What do you think today’s about?”

Cody glanced toward the back patio. “He doesn’t really hang out with us on the road. Keeps to himself.”

“Probably because your idea of fun makes his eyes twitch.”

He grinned sheepishly. “Okay, true. But can I tell you a secret?” He leaned in, voice dropping conspiratorially. “I don’t even do half the stuff he thinks I do. I just let him think it—because it drives him nuts.”

The sound of the sliding glass door whooshing open broke the moment. Savannah looked up, her heart already sinking.

Dylan stood just inside, eyes narrowed and stormy, his gaze locked on Cody like he was a threat.

“What’s going on?”

Savannah recovered fast. “Cody was about to carry out the sweet tea for me. Right, Cody?”

She shot him a warning look.

He ignored it, of course. “Hell no. I don’t drink tea. I was asking your dog sitter if she does house calls.”

It happened fast. Dylan moved in a blink, slamming Cody against the counter with a force that made Savannah gasp. His hand twisted in the front of Cody’s shirt, knuckles white, face inches away from the pitcher’s.

Cody didn’t fight. Just laid there, loose and quiet, like a man used to pressure.

“For heaven’s sake,” Savannah snapped. She set the tea down and rushed around the island, tugging at Dylan’s arm. “We were talking. That’s it. Cody’s like the annoying little brother I never had—or wanted.”

“Hey!” Cody protested, voice laced with mock betrayal.

She shot him a look. “Shut up.”

She turned back to Dylan. “This isn’t helping. You break your hand or he breaks his jaw, nobody plays. Then what was the point of today?”

With a final grunt, Dylan shoved Cody back and stalked away, fists clenched, posture rigid. Savannah followed, laying her hands gently on his arm, his chest.

Cody slowly stood, brushing off his shirt. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”

Dylan’s voice was dark. “There’s a time and a place. And people you don’t mess with. Savannah’s one of them.”

Savannah bristled. “And what exactly does that mean?”

Cody added, smug as ever, “Yeah, what do you mean, Dylan?”

Without looking, Savannah pointed toward the door. “Sweet tea. Beer. Outside. Now.”

Cody smirked. “Man, I really am the little brother. Guess I’ll go play with the dogs.”

Once the door clicked shut behind him, Dylan relaxed by degrees.

Savannah cupped his chin, turning his face to hers. “What the hell was that?”

He looked ashamed, gaze lowered. “I didn’t want him bothering you.”

She folded her arms. “I can handle myself. And that’s not what I mean.”

He raked a hand through his hair. “I just didn’t like seeing him talk to you like that.”

Her anger melted, dissipating like mist under the sun.

He tugged her close, resting his forehead against hers with a soft sigh. “I don’t know what this is, Savannah. I’ll apologize to him.”

She kissed him softly. “We need to talk.”

He started to respond, but she saw it in his eyes before the words formed—a flicker of emotion that made her breath hitch.

Then the door opened.

“I was wondering if you had a ball or something for the dogs?” Cody said, hovering just inside.

Savannah held Dylan tighter, but he stayed still. Calm.

“No,” Dylan said, muscles relaxing infinitesimally. “But we can get the grill going. You want to help?”

A pause. Then, “Yeah. That grill looks as if it’s never been used. Don’t you know you have to season it, Professor?”

Dylan glanced at Savannah, smiling softly. “I’ve been told that a time or two.”

He kissed her lightly and walked off.

Savannah rolled her eyes, resting her hip on the table as Cody passed. “By the way? Lousy pickup line. Top ten worst, and I was a bartender.”

Cody grinned. “Still got me a front-row seat, didn’t it?”

He ducked outside before she could reply.

“Don’t drop the burgers,” she muttered. “Men. Just big kids.”

She stared around the kitchen, assessing her next steps. Candice and Gabrielle entered with a flurry of helpful energy. “Need anything?”

Tension bled out of her as the women accepted her presence and they began working on the rest of the food. Gabrielle began chopping vegetables. “Don’t know why I bother. We’re the only ones who eat them.”

Candice smiled, her sharp eyes missing nothing, as if she smelled gossip. “I heard you run a rescue. That true?”

Savannah nodded, grateful for the shift in focus but careful at how much she shared. “Yeah, small but growing. We’re trying to expand, but there are so many dogs in need—especially in the South. No facility yet, but we’re building up fosters.”

Gabrielle’s hand stilled on the lettuce.

“We don’t have a dog right now. We lost our Morgan, a sweet shepherd, over the winter and with our move, we decided to wait until we were settled.

Now, with the baby on the way, we’re waiting a little longer.

Having too much change in a house can be rough on a dog. ”

“About five months. We’ve kept it pretty quiet.

I lost a couple of babies, so we wanted to wait until we were at the five-month mark to be sure.

It was so hard with the trade to the Knights.

My family is all in the Pacific Northwest. I was terrified of losing this one too and being all alone.

Nick almost didn’t accept this invitation, but I’m glad we did.

” She smiled shyly at the other two women.

“There aren’t many wives on the team. It’s a young team, and most of the wives have young children.

They do some of the charity work, but they stick to themselves. It’s been a bit lonely.”

Candice grimaced. “I worry about that. I have a job here, and my family is all here. Alex’s contract is up this year.

Who knows where he’ll end up or even if he’ll be traded.

I was sweating during the deadline, worried that he would be.

Then where would I be? I mean, we’re not even engaged yet, so I would stay here, but who knows if our relationship would survive?

And if we marry, would I have to quit my job and start over somewhere else? I just got a big promotion.”

Savannah spooned potato salad into bowls and spread it evenly, listening to the women talk about trades, moves, wives, charity events.

Their lives were unstable, completely focused on the player’s highly changeable career.

Candice at least had a career, and it didn’t seem like she would be interested in following Alex without significant inducement.

Gabrielle easily flowed with her husband’s life, following where he led without question.

Savannah wasn’t sure she could do that, not that she’d been asked.

She spent too much of her childhood being yanked all over the South at a moment’s notice. She needed her roots, her foundation.

She licked the mayonnaise off her finger and rinsed the spoon and the empty container in the sink. Then she started on the pasta salad, trying not to think about what the women were talking about.

“What about you, Savannah? What’s the deal with you and Dylan?” Gabrielle asked. Savannah paused, spoon hanging over the bowl.

She froze, spoon hanging midair. Slowly, she lowered it. “I’m his dog sitter. He’s helping me with my charity.”

Candice laughed, sounding slightly brittle. “Sweetie, that man looks at you like you’re oxygen.”

Gabrielle grinned much warmer. “If his eyes were the sun, you’d be on fire.”

Savannah took a deep breath, not sure how to handle this whole conversation.

These were Dylan’s friends. What could she say?

What should she say to them? She wasn’t used to having girlfriends to talk to.

Even in high school, she was too busy taking care of her sister, her mom, and their house to hang out at the mall, gossip over boys, go shopping.

She was in unfamiliar territory and unsure of her next steps.

She went with the easy way out. “I think we’re feeling our way through this.”

Gabrielle grinned. “Well, if you end up with Dylan, he could be a powerful ally for your charity. I mean, he could seriously help your efforts in raising awareness about shelter animals. He has clout as a professional ballplayer.”

“Just remember, his contract is up this year too. If the team doesn’t get to the playoffs, they might just clear house and start again with new players,” Candice said, a hint of bitterness in her tone.

Gabrielle shot her a nasty look, then smiled at Savannah. “But it’s worth it. I have no regrets about marrying Nick, even with the move. It gets hard sometimes and a little lonely, but you make friends, and the teams help you make the transition.”

Dylan poked his head in. “Almost ready, ladies?”

Savannah nodded, but her voice wavered. “Yeah. Coming.”

Dylan gave her a puzzled look but closed the door and headed back for the grill.

The ladies gathered up the stuff and headed out to the patio.

Savannah joined in, mechanically eating and talking with everyone, but part of her mind was on the conversation in the kitchen, on the thought the women raised about life as a professional ballplayer’s wife, not that she had any sign that was where her life was headed.

But instinctively she knew this was more than a fling, and they were headed somewhere.

If she chose to continue, she risked getting her heart broken.

She had to consider her future and her dreams and whether this was really the right course of action for her.

She knew enough about rescue to know how hard it was on relationships.

Animal rescue required a lot of money, time, and focus.

She got calls in the middle of the night, had animals who needed round-the-clock care sometimes, and was on the road more often than not.

Heck, she had even lost a fiancé to her rescue.

Mark had accused her of loving her four-legged furry creatures more than him, and he wasn’t far from the truth, to be honest. He had called it her insane devotion to her stupid animals, but she thought he hated not being the center of her world.

Dylan’s career was enough of an attention hog that pulled him on the road, long hours every day, and focus everywhere but here.

Could they really have any kind of a future?

She’d already sacrificed a relationship for her rescue. Would she sacrifice her rescue for a relationship?

And if she stayed... would Dylan ever really stay too?

She wasn’t sure.

But she was beginning to realize—this wasn’t just a fling.

And her heart was very much in danger.