“You got my brothers traded to a different minor league team! Believe me: that’s bothering me.”
I lower the heat on the dashboard. For how freezing it is outside, it’s a little too warm in here.
“I didn’t get your brothers traded to another team.”
“Then why did Kayla Carville tell me you put them on her radar? You may not have pulled the string, but you pushed the first domino that led to the others falling.”
“While I appreciate the imagery and your faith in the power of my persuasion, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I met Kayla Carville one time, and all I told her was that she needed to get a great GM and great pitching, because the Mudflaps suck. That’s it.”
“So you’re telling me you didn’t mention my brothers at all? I find that hard to believe.”
Cooper’s tongue pushes against the inside of his cheek, making it pop out like a whack-a-mole I want to smack. “Okay, yeah, she asked me about getting good pitching, and I said something like, ‘Don’t ask me. I’m torn about the Fischer brothers.’”
“You planted it in her head!”
“I’m not a gardener!”
My laugh slips out before I can stop it. I clear my throat. “You planted it in her head. You mentioned my brothers because you didn’t like the plan we agreed on.”
He puts his head on the head rest. “You know exactly how I feel about your brothers. They’re hotheads who act like they’re already in the show when they need to focus more on getting there. But theycanget there. That’s not news.”
“Then why did you mention my brothers to her at all?”
“Because we—” He stops and huffs.
“Yes?”
“Because we were talking aboutyou.”
“You and Kayla were talking about me? Why?”
He drops his arm, evidently too exhausted from our discussion to even continue his light stretching. “She caught me looking at you and made a comment about how pretty my ‘girlfriend’ was, and I said you wouldn’t like being called that.”
“Pretty or your girlfriend?”
He snorts. “That’s exactly what she asked. The latter, for the record.”
“Correct,” I say.
He gives me a wary smile. “So when we talked about her dilemma as the new owner, I told her that I’d deny it ifyouasked me, but she should focus on pitchers over hitters.”
“You’re not wrong. Pitching wins championships.”
“I know. So when she asked about how to get good pitching …”
“You made the comment about my brothers.”
“Bingo.”
It’s not as nefarious as I thought. “You shouldn’t have mentioned trade info like that,” I say.
“Yeah, you’re right. But it didn’t occur to me she’d do anything about it. It’s almost impossible for a Triple-A team to acquire players from another Triple-A team. They’re not in the same organization.” He’s right. This acquisition is a testament to the powers of Kayla Carville. Also of money. “How did you two meet, anyway?”
“In the spa.” I tsk, frowning. “Shoot. Did she orchestrate that whole meeting to get information from me?”
“I think Nate and Juliet’s paranoia is coming out in you in unexpected ways.”
I eye him. “I’m serious. I really liked her. If she was using me to get information, that hurts.”
