“Possibly, but I don’t think I can get to where he is. I have a general admission ticket.”
“Yes, but didn’t you tell me that your boyfriend insisted that he put you on the approved guest list for the entire duration of spring training just in case you were able to get down here to see him sooner?”
“He did, but I think that’s just tickets at will call. My schedule with classes and softball just never seemed to match up. I hate that we’re only here for four days, and I have to get back for a practice and a game.”
“Then why did you buy the ticket today?”
“I don’t know.” I laugh. “I got caught up and forgot he had added me to the approved list.”
“Well, let's go see if we can find him. The worse they can do is kick us out. Most of the fans are gone, so I think we can make it happen. Come on.”
“Where are we going? The locker rooms are that way.”
“I love that you know your way around most stadiums.”
“I came here a lot to visit my dad during spring training,” I remind her.
“Then this is going to be a piece of cake.” She hits the button on the elevator, and the numbers change. Excitement stirs in my belly. I can’t wait to see him. It’s been too damn long.
As soon as we exit the elevator, I hear voices. Autumn stops so we can see if we need to hide from whoever it is, but when we hear my name, we glance at one another and then step a little farther down the hall to listen.
“Pussy whipped,” a male voice says with a laugh.
“Never seen anything like it,” another adds.
“Harp on me all you want. I’m the one who has a beautiful woman warming my bed at night.”
Holden.
“Yeah, well, I do too. Only I get the variety,” one of the voices comments.
“Been there done that, fellas. Not interested.”
“Come on now, what we really need to be talking about is the bet,” a new voice chimes in.
“Bet?” Autumn mouths, and I shrug. I move to step around the corner, but she grabs my arm to stop me and places her finger over her lips. With a roll of my eyes, I move to stand next to her again and indulge her in this little stakeout session she’s got going on. I’m not sure what kind of juicy gossip she’s looking for, but I’m giving her two minutes tops, and I’m going to my man. It’s been too long, and I don’t think I can wait a second longer than that. He’s right there!
“What in the fuck are you talking about?” Holden asks.
“Come on, Bailey. Don’t play dumb.”
My stomach sinks. I don’t think I’m going to like whatever is about to go down.
“We all heard you that day. Hold on. I even recorded it. Here, listen to this,” the guy says as the recording begins to play.
“What do you think, Bailey? Think you can execute the play?” a male voice asks.
“I’m not only going to execute it, but I’m also going to fucking excel at it. Watch and learn, boys. Watch and learn,” a voice I know without a doubt is Holden’s replies.
My eyes instantly burn with tears. How could he do this to me? I thought it was real. I thought what we had was real. “Oh God,” I cry out, slapping my hand over my mouth.
“Come on.” Autumn slides her arm around my shoulders. “Let’s get out of here.” We turn to leave, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t keep the tears at bay. The floodgates of my broken heart have opened, and I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to make it stop.
“What the fuck?” I hear shouted behind us, then heavy footfalls. “Parker!” Holden calls out, but I don’t look back. Autumn and I keep facing forward as we wait for the elevator to open its doors.
“Parker, sweet pea, what’s wrong? What are you doing here?”
“What’s wrong? What’s wrong?! It was a bet! A fucking bet, Holden! You win. You played me like I originally thought you would. I fell for it. Every whispered word, every touch, every promise of the future. Every. Fucking. Word. I fell for it, and look where that got me.”
“Parker” He reaches for me, but I move out of his reach.
“Don’t fucking touch me. You don’t get to touch me. Not anymore. I’m not yours, and you’re not mine.” My voice breaks as the elevator doors slide open, and Autumn leads me inside. He moves to step on with us, but I scream, “No!” at the top of my lungs. “Forget you know me,” I say as the doors slide closed. I hear his screamed, “Fuck!” as the elevator carries us to our next destination. Anywhere but here.