Page 6

SIX

PARKER

“ H ey, has anyone taken my lucky socks?—and my deodorant?—Anyone?—Guys?”

I opened the fridge and grabbed a protein shake, wondering if Tanner would wear himself out with all the yelling before someone told him his lucky socks were in the laundry room where our housekeeper had left them.

Where she always left them, in the little cubby with his name on it.

Snatching up an apple while I chugged the shake, I watched Tanner sprint across the living room and disappear down the hallway only to return thirty seconds later, skidding to a halt in front of me, socks held high in his fist.

“I found my lucky socks.”

“Were they in the place they always are?”

“Yes. Coincidently, they were,” he replied, hopping about as he pulled them on one at a time. “Now I just need to find my deodorant.”

“Dude, just get some from the club.”

“Nah, I like mine. I like the way I smell with it.” He lifted his arm, sniffing deeply against his armpit. “What’s more, I think Millie likes it too.”

I crunched on my apple. I hadn’t realized Millie had ever gotten close enough to smell him or his deodorant. I was about to ask if that was the case when Ace appeared from his bedroom, and Tanner’s attention was immediately taken.

“What about you? Have you seen my deodorant?” Tanner pounced, before Ace had barely taken a step.

“Yes. It’s in my bathroom where you left it this morning.”

“Next to your shower shoes?” I smirked.

“Shut up. I don’t have fucking shower shoes,” he snapped as Tanner once again sprinted across the living room. “That guy is going to forget his head one day.”

“Yup.”

“Are you ready to go?” Ace dropped his bag on the floor next to mine. “Six days, baby.”

“Excited?”

“Bet your ass I am.” He picked up the remains of my protein shake and finished it. “Aren’t you?”

“Yeah, totally. We’re going to win this year, I can feel it.”

Ace put down the bottle and held my gaze. “Me too. Me too.”

I had the impression he was about to add something more, when Lux appeared with his phone wedged into the crook of his neck. His bag was dumped next to Ace’s before he opened the fridge.

“…Yeah, Goldilocks. Call me later…yeah, love you, babe…work hard…you bet…speak to you later.”

“Is Radley coming to the game tonight?” I asked as he placed his phone down on the counter, connecting it to charge while simultaneously removing one of the three apples Ace had picked up.

“Dude, stop ruining the fruit. If you want to get better at juggling, use a ball.” He rolled his eyes when Ace huffed, and turned back to me. “No, she has a test tomorrow. She’s studying.”

“Radley’s studying?” asked Tanner, returning with a can of deodorant in his hand, which he proceeded to spray over himself like it was air freshener.

Given he was the nearest to Tanner, Ace took the brunt of the spray and simultaneously began choking while wafting his hand through the air.

“Dude, what the fuck?” choked Ace, frantically wiping his tongue with the hem of his shirt. “Couldn’t you have done that in the bathroom where you found it?”

“Sorry,” replied Tanner, though his focus was on Lux. “Dude, what’s Radley’s test?’

“Um, women poets.”

“Women poets and what?” pressed Tanner.

Lux shrugged. “Nothing. That’s it. They have five questions and three hours to answer.”

“Snooze.” Ace held his hand to me for a high five, which I hit hard in agreement. “Sounds boring as fuck.”

“Does Millie have the same one?”

I glanced back to Ace at the sound of a loud thud, to find him face down on the countertop and banging his forehead as it became clear why Tanner was asking so many questions about Radley’s class. Not because he had any interest in women poets, or whatever, but because the only thing he legitimately cared about outside of baseball was Millie Robinson, Radley’s BFF.

Lux nodded with an eye roll. “Probably, they’re in the same classes.”

Tanner snatched up his phone from the counter.

“What are you doing?”

“Texting Millie good luck.”

“She’s gonna block you one day,” Ace muttered with a shake of his head as he poured a massive bowl of Froot Loops.

“Nope.” Tanner shook his head. “I make sure I keep it on the right side.”

“What does that mean?” I scoffed, flicking on the coffee machine.

Tanner slid onto the stool next to Ace, his thumbs never slowing on the taps across the screen. When he was done, he placed the phone down with a broad smile. “I text her good morning, and good night. Plus, an occasional GIF during the day.”

The three of us stared at him. Lux’s eyebrows disappeared under his ball cap.

It was a combination of being not at all surprised at this behavior, while also being very surprised he hadn’t given up on Millie yet. Tanner wasn’t known for his staying power, but we were going on seven months despite Millie not showing the slightest bit of interest.

More than that, she’d not given him one sliver of hope that he was getting somewhere, like some girls did.

Some girls liked the attention even when they professed otherwise. Not Millie.

I got the impression Millie could quite happily live her life and not think about Tanner Simpson once. Maybe that was why Tanner was so determined to get her to notice him. It was still a mystery how he’d managed to get her number in the first place.

I glanced over to Lux. “Did you know about this?”

He shook his head. “Nope. Radley’s not mentioned it.”

“Tan, how often does she reply?”

“Dunno.” He shrugged, and his mouth curled down. “Not a lot. But she hearted a GIF I sent of a puppy sneezing the other day. She’d never done that before, so between the heart and the wave she gave me on Opening Day, I think I’m getting somewhere.”

Ace grabbed Tanner’s cheeks and squeezed. “Good for you, bud. There’s no way she can hold out against this face for much longer.”

“Right?! Thank you.”

“Always here for you, man.” He patted him hard on the back and turned to me. “But right now I want to know more about Parker.”

I picked up my coffee and sipped. “What about me?”

“It’s the first away series. Scout will be there. She’ll be traveling with us. What’s the plan?”

“Whaddya mean?”

“Well…” Ace glanced from me to Lux and then to Tanner, before back to me. “You asked her out and she said no. And now you’re gonna be ‘friends.’”

I ignored the way he air-quoted friends . “So?”

“You seem pretty chipper for a guy who got rejected.”

“I didn’t get rejected.”

“I think that’s what ‘no’ means.”

“By that logic, Millie rejected Tanner, he’s still chipper,” I shot back, turning to Tanner. “Sorry, bud.”

But Tanner shrugged it off. “I am chipper. Because I know Millie will come to her senses soon.”

Ace rolled his eyes and focused back on me. “But seriously, why?”

“Because…” I replied, pushing my fingers through my hair, and scratched hard on my scalp. “She likes me.”

“And this is based on her looking at a picture of you on her laptop.”

“Not looking. Staring .”

“Which you don’t do with a guy you want to be friends with?”

“ Just friends,” I corrected. “Exactly.”

I closed my eyes, bringing back the memory I had of her sitting at the table in the cafeteria.

I hadn’t even realized she’d be in there, but I’d spotted her the second I’d walked in. It hadn’t been hard. The place was virtually empty during mid-morning, and she’d been sitting at a table right in the middle, her back to the door while she worked away.

Except from the angle she was at, I could see her screen clear as day. I could see exactly what she was working on.

Me. My face. Wide on the screen. Whatever she was working on had something to do with me. Not unusual, yet as I stood there and watched I realized she wasn’t doing anything but staring at my face.

I waited for a good two minutes to see if she’d move on to another picture.

She didn’t.

Even if she had been “doing her job” no one stares at a photo of someone for over two minutes if they don’t also have other things on their mind. In a rare turn of events, Tanner was correct, Scout liked me. What sealed the deal was how badly she flustered when she spotted me, and her entire face turned a very sexy shade of pink.

A shade I wanted to see again, and more of.

Without sounding conceited, I know when a girl likes me, and Scout Davison fell right into that category.

“What’s the plan then?’

“The plan is…we’re going to be friends. Best friends. I’m going to be the best friend she ever had.”

“Can I be there when you tell Reeves to suck it and stick his friend zone up his ass?”

I laughed. “If it’ll make you happy.”

“You should give Scout your sweatshirt.”

Once again, the three of us turned and stared at Tanner, waiting to see if he was going to add any more explanation. “Girls like any shit that smells of guys. Give her your sweatshirt.”

“What? Like walk up and hand it to her?” I scoffed.

“No, just when she’s cold, give her yours. Then she’ll always have it and always be thinking of you. Smell is a strong association tool, I saw it on the Nature Channel.”

“Since when do you watch the Nature Channel?”

“Sometimes I can’t sleep.” He shrugged his response. “I’m going to do it with Millie. It’s part of Operation Strike Zone.”

My mouth held in a line, Ace stared, confused. In the end Lux was the one who spoke, with a barely contained smirk.

“Tan? What is Operation Strike Zone?”

“It’s my plan for Parker and me to get our girls.”

“The name is TBC,” I shot out.

“I like it, it has a certain ring to it,” Ace said, picking up his bowl of Froot Loops and draining the milk. “And I can’t wait to hear how exactly this is going to work.”

Not that I had one, but I didn’t get to answer before Tanner slung his arm around me,

“I can help you with this, I’ve thought about it a lot. You have to be everywhere Scout is. Not in a creepy way, obvs, but just be there. If she needs something, you’re there. If she’s carrying heavy bags and needs help, you’re there. She wants a volunteer for social, put your hand up, buddy. Until one day you’re not there, and she notices.”

Ace snorted. “Yeah, and she’ll be all, ‘ Huh, where’s Parker, I miss him and his big strong arms and cute little butt. ’”

“She doesn’t sound like that.” I threw him a scowl and turned to Tanner. “Is that what you’re doing with Millie?”

He shook his head. “Nah, I’m still working on her texting me back. But as soon as she does, then I’ll be helping her.”

“At least you have her number. I don’t have Scout’s, so maybe we’re even,” I replied and looked to Lux, who was generally considered the most sensible one of the four of us. “What do you think?”

“It could work.” He nodded, though it was a little too uncommitted for my taste.

“Scout likes me, I know it. I just need to be patient until she’s ready to date again, and make sure no other guy gets in first this time.”

Ace grabbed his phone and hit Speed Dial. “Hold up, let’s get a girl’s opinion.”

“Babe, I’m about to head into a meeting,” answered Payton, before the first ring sounded out.

“We’ll be quick, Parker needs your help,” Ace said, pushing the phone toward me with an overly enthusiastic nod. “Pleeeease.”

“Man, I knew I shouldn’t have answered,” she muttered, before barking out, “Parker…you’re on a clock. Shoot fast.”

“Oh. Hey, Payton…um…basically…” I began, trying to figure out exactly where to start. “It’s about Scout…”

It didn’t take long for me to explain the entire situation, mostly because she already knew I’d crushed on Scout for ages, which meant I could gloss over the finer details. But also because I talked so quickly it wouldn’t take up any of her time, plus it didn’t sound quite as lame when I strung every word together without taking a breath.

“Well, babe? What do you think?” Ace prompted after a couple of seconds of silence.

“Let me get this straight, you’re asking me if it’s a good idea to try and be a friend to a girl you have the hots for, in the hope that one day she’ll want to date you because you think she likes you.”

I didn’t correct her and say I knew Scout liked me, because the four of us were all mentally checking she’d summed it up accurately. From her tone it sounded like she thought we were all idiots.

“Um, yeah…I guess. You think it’s okay?”

“I think it’s good you’re all pretty.” She sucked in a deep breath, or maybe it was an exasperated sigh. “You know, guys, this is a learning opportunity for you. It’s how regular people get together and build relationships. Not everyone can walk up to someone in a bar, snap their fingers, and expect to get what they want.”

“Wasn’t that what I did to get you?” Ace snorted.

“Do you really want to go there right now, Lucky Aces?” Payton shot back.

“No, ma’am.”

I held my hand in front of Ace before he could say any more, because I still wasn’t clear on what she was telling me. “Payton, are you saying it’s a good idea?”

“Yes, it’s a good idea, Parker. Be Scout’s friend. I know you really like her, but don’t expect it to happen overnight. Remember, it might not happen at all.”

“It’ll happen,” muttered Tanner.

I breathed a sigh of relief. “Cool, yeah, thanks. Will do.”

“Anytime. Okay, Gotta go. Bye.”

“LOVE YOU,” Ace yelled into the phone, but she’d already cut the call. He clapped his hands together. “Great, we’re all set. The plan for Operation Strike Zone is in place. Parker is going to friend his way into a relationship with Scout, and Tanner will work on Millie.”

“Sounds good to me,” echoed Lux and Tanner in unison, before Lux added, “And now we need to leave or we’re going to be late. We’re not getting fined for tardiness this early in the season.”

“Parker, you coming?”

I pushed away any thoughts I had about whether my plan to date Scout had just been hijacked by my roommates, because that would only mean one thing.

It would go drastically wrong.