Grand Slam (The Boys of Summer 3)

“It’s only a hockey game, Saylor. And my teammates are here. It’s not like I’m going to take advantage of you.”

She blushes at my comment, and I want to reach out and stroke her cheek but keep my hands firmly planted on the armrests. The Garden erupts, and Lucy jumps off my lap and starts cheering right alongside Cooper.

“I think she likes hockey,” I tell Saylor, who shakes her head.

“She likes everything. Ballet, dance, gymnastics. If someone is taking a lesson, she wants to sign up.”

“What does she do now?”

Saylor looks down at her jeans and brushes her hand along her leg. “Nothing.”

“Why not?”

Her eyes close briefly, and I already know the answer before she says it. “Those activities cost money, and right now, I’m not in a position to pay for them.”

The only thing I can do is nod. I know I could offer to pay for Lucy, but Saylor would tell me no. And it’s not the same type of no as when she tells me that we can’t be together or when she tells me that I shouldn’t kiss her. This would be crossing the line and could very well ruin the relationship I’m trying to build with her.

“What about her dad?”

She shakes her head, and her eyes go from me to Lucy. Lucy is busy talking to Cooper and Ainsley and not paying attention.

“Sore subject?”

“You can say that,” she says.

The buzzer sounds, and I scoop Lucy up into my arms and put her over my shoulder, much to her squealing delight. She’s laughing so hard that I start to as well. I set her down, and she pushes her hair out of her face.

“That was fun, Travis. Let’s do it again.”

I kneel down to her level. “After I introduce you to my friend. His name is Shaun, and he’s here visiting his dad for a bit, so he doesn’t know anyone, and I thought you guys could be friends.”

“Okay,” she says, shrugging. Life as a five-year-old is simple. I take her over to where Branch is still talking with Stone and introduce Lucy to everyone.

“Shaun, this is my friend Lucy.”

“Hi,” he says quietly.

“Hi,” she replies, grabbing my hand.

“Shaun’s dad plays baseball with me. Do you remember Branch?”

“Hey, Lucy.”

She waves, suddenly shy. Well, this isn’t going like I thought it would.

“Shaun brought his iPad if you want to play a game with him,” Branch says, pointing to the table. She nods and follows them, climbing up into the chair next to Shaun.

“Lucy, I’ll be sitting by your mom, okay?”

“Yeah.” Lucy never looks up as Shaun starts scrolling through his games. Within seconds, they’re deep in conversation about who knows what.

Branch pulls me close and nods toward Saylor. “You banging her?”

Oh, how I want to lie right now but don’t. “Nope; she’s my publicist. Saylor actually works for my manager, and she’s been assigned to babysit me until this shit clears up.”

“She’s actually really good at her job, Branch,” Stone says, joining in on our conversation. “You may want to consider setting up a meeting with her and Jeffrey. He’s expressed an interest in you, and Saylor has done a lot for Travis’s public persona. Jeffrey’s firm does more than public relations. He runs a full-scope business management firm.”

I look at Stone oddly, wondering why he would encourage one of his players to seek another agent. Everyone knows that Branch got screwed on his current contract, saving the Renegades a shit ton of money. Of course, that benefited the organization but not Branch.