Dare You to Fall for the Catcher (Rock Valley High 3)

Including a certain boy with blue eyes.

Chapter Eleven

I’d never hated a fashion item so much as that boot. And that was saying something, coming from the girl who refused to wear Uggs or anything with a heel over four inches. Apparently, I’d been kidding myself when I thought I had an ounce of control in this life—and that black boot served as a reminder of my failures.

It was only Wednesday, but it felt like this week had dragged on to become a month. It hadn’t been so bad, until my physical therapist chewed me out this morning for working two waitressing shifts this past weekend at the diner. My ankle recovery was behind schedule. Everything I was doing was only making things worse.

Story of my life.

The only thing that had a chance to break me out of this terrible mood was the sound of Adele crooning passionately over the Rock Valley High baseball diamond. I sat hiding in the tiny announcer’s booth, elbows resting on the table with the sound system and controls to the scoreboard, my troubled gaze blurring as I watched the baseball team practice below.

A nagging voice inside me was telling me to be better, to show off the work ethic Coach Padilla had talked about, but I just didn’t have it in me at the moment. Besides, that work ethic was what had put me in this position to begin with. So instead, I was sulking.

The hesitant sound of footsteps coming up the staircase to the announcer’s booth was my only warning of incoming company. I didn’t bother turning around to see who it was. It didn’t matter. It wasn’t until Jayden slid into the seat beside me did my traitorous heart do a little skip.

“Um...hey, Amanda?”

I looked over at him, not feeling energized enough to spar. “Yeah?”

His eyebrows were drawn together and he stared down at a black water bottle in his hands, as if this were a painful question. “The guys are wondering if you could play something o

ther than Adele? It’s kind of putting a bummer on practice.”

I sighed and reached over to shut the sound system off. Silence was preferable to something peppy. “Better?”

“Yeah.”

He licked his lips and sighed, staring out the observation window at the guys practicing their swings with plastic Wiffle balls. We sat in silence for a minute as I tried to get up the motivation to go check on the inventory of the concession stand, but misery won out and I remained glued to my seat.

“Are you okay?” Jayden asked suddenly, shifting in his seat to look at me.

I rubbed the back of my neck and gave him a half-hearted smile. “Fine. Why?”

He squirmed a bit, rubbing a hand over his jaw. “I don’t know. I just thought I should check. I mean, isn’t blasting Adele like the universal female sign that something’s up?”

I snorted and turned toward him. “Says who?”

He scrunched up his face in thought. “I...I don’t know. Everyone?”

“Is that just what guys think?” I laughed. “Or do you have a sister that blasts Adele when she’s hormonal?”

He frowned. “No, it’s just me and my brother. No hormonal sisters.”

“Right.” I groaned and leaned back in my chair. “Fine. Maybe something’s up. But I’ll deal with it. I’m sorry if my female hormones disrupted your practice.”

“Screw practice,” he said forcefully. I could feel him studying the side of my face. “What’s wrong? Maybe I can help. There’s more to me than just my good looks, you know.”

I snorted again, but I couldn’t help the small smile that worked its way onto my lips. There he went, surprising me again. It was really hard to convince myself that my attraction to Jayden during the game last week was just a fleeting jumble of emotions when he was being so uncharacteristically sweet. I kept my eyes glued to the observation window, refusing to give myself the pleasure of staring at his good looks.

“I don’t think anyone can help,” I said. “Not unless you can reschedule the Hawarden track meet this weekend. It’s the best one of the season and I’m missing it. Oh, and while you’re at it, heal my ankle. Because, according to my PT, it’s not getting any better. Better yet, I might have made it worse. So there, that’s why I needed a little Adele in my life. Aren’t you glad you asked?”

I wanted to bite into my tongue until it hurt. Why was I confiding anything in Jayden? He was only going to tease me about it. That was the last thing I needed right now.

“Wow, that sucks.” He stretched his long legs out beneath the announcer’s table, his cleats resting against the wall. “I’m really sorry.”

I looked at him from the corner of my eye, searching for a hint of irony. Nothing. He simply stared out the window, wearing a deep frown. I found myself relieved that my sudden confession wasn’t going to cause me any more trouble.

I’d honestly never taken the time to study him this closely, so I took advantage of his solemn stare. He had the perfect masculine jawline, sloping and strong, with the beginnings of some stubble. His lashes were longer than I’d realized and there was a little ring of yellow around the pupil of his blue eyes. I didn’t really have a type, but I’d be lying if I said Jayden wasn’t attractive. Maybe that was what made everything about him so much more confusing.