“Dude. You shoulda seen the bomber Sin hit off my curveball. Holy shit, it was amazing, straight shot out to center field, homer for sure. It was a thing of beauty.” He keeps yammering on as more clothes come off. “Someday, Lark, I’m gonna get you in front of my balls. I bet you’d hit a slammer.” He snorts, realizing what he just said as I turn bright red. “Shit, that sounded bad. Sorry, Lark. You know I don’t mean it that way, right?”
Of course, he doesn’t, and while I know that’s because Kai’s a decent guy, I guess I’m feeling sensitive or something, especially coming right after Rhett and his gross shoes, because I don’t say that. Instead, I say, “Of course, you don’t. Because I’m just one of the guys, right? Fine to joke and tease with.”
I guess the guys hear the bite in my voice, because the locker room falls silent.
“Everythin’ okay, darlin’?” Rhett says cautiously, and I close my eyes for a second to gather myself. I don’t do this, get all sensitive and crap. It’s notprofessional.
“Yep. Fine,” I say, the words sounding forced.
“Okay, because you know Yami’s harmless. He’s just bein’ an idiot.”
“Mm-hmm. I know. We should go get your assessment done.” I turn on my heel and walk out of the locker room, not giving any of them a chance to say anything else.
I should’ve known he wouldn’t let it go. As soon as we’re in the gym, empty of anyone but the two of us, he crosses his arms over his chest and stares at me.
“Talk, woman.”
I pretend to be very much occupied with pulling up Rhett’s file on my tablet, not meeting his gaze.
“Fine, you wanna do this the hard way? I’m gonna have to guess at what’s eatin’ ya.”
I swallow, my mouth suddenly dry. In all the time I’ve worked for the team, I’ve never once let it slip how it sometimes bothers me to be treated like one of the guys. After all, shouldn’t I be happy sexism has no place on the team? That I’m treated with professionalism and respect above all else?
But sometimes, a girl just wants to be seen as a girl, damn it. I see how the guys treat Willow, still with respect but also charm and the occasional flirty words. At least before Ronan showed up. Me? Nothing.
“I’m thinkin’ it had something to do with Yami being a dumbass. What I can’t quite figure out is what he said that made you react. Especially since he apologized for his ridiculous comment about his balls.”
I whirl around, ready to lash out. “That’s just it. He was a dumbass around me, you all are dumbasses around me. Andthat’s fine, because that’s the way you are with each other, so why be any different around me? I can handle the dumbass behaviour just like one of the guys, right? That’s what he meant by hisapology.” I bite out the last word, fully aware I sound like a lunatic. But now that I’ve started, there’s no stopping the crazy train. “But maybe it’s okay to say something dirty or flirty to me. Because I’mnotone of the guys, I’m a woman. A red-blooded woman, fully capable of handling a baseball player making a flirty comment. But you guys don’t seem to remember that I. Am. A. Woman, and while I want to be respected, I’d also like to be seen as who I am, not just a buddy, or worse, a nobody. Which means, stop shoving stinky shoes in my face, talking like dumbasses, or dropping towels and waving your dicks around.”
When I finally stop ranting, Rhett stares at me, his mouth half open, arms hanging by his sides. I heave out a sigh, and he lifts one hand to rub his jaw.
“Damn, Lark.” He shakes his head, those big brown eyes I’ve witnessed make many a woman swoon filling with understanding and compassion. “I hear ya. And I’m sorry we made you feel that way. Can I explain somethin’ that might help?”
I gesture over to the treadmill stiffly. “Only if you can do it while you run.”
He gives me a smirk. “’Course I can.”
He doesn’t say anything more until he’s hooked up to the sensor, on the machine, and at his warm-up pace. In those few moments, I run the gamut of emotions, from mortification to vindication. I finally said my piece, crazy as it may have sounded to him. And if he really does have an explanation, I’ll listen.
“Alright, darlin’, you listenin’?” he says,turning his head slightly to me. I nod, and he continues.
“Good. Here’s the thing, when I joined the team, you were already workin’ here. And I was pulled aside by Pops and Gomez on my second or third day and told a few things. Not just about you, but about every woman who works here. Pops made it clear that Mike ran an organization that put equality and respect first and foremost among players and staff. It was drilled into me, and every player, that everyone from the trainin’ staff to the janitors deserved as much respect as the players. Your job puts you in close proximity to us every day. Hell, half the time, we’re near-to-naked around you. Makin’ sure you and all your female colleagues felt comfortable was a priority.”
He’s saying all the right things. Statements that women working in male dominated fields dream of hearing. And yet…I feel like there’s more. That feeling is confirmed after I increase his pace to begin his cardio fitness assessment, nodding at him to continue.
“But with you, there’s a second reason.” He huffs out the words, and I can’t lie, internally, I gloat a little at making him suffer through his workout while he tries to explain things to me.
“And that is?” I say acerbically.
He gives me an incredulous look. “You really can’t figure it out?”
My brows draw together and I frown. “No, Rhett. If I could, do you think I would have gone off on you like that?”
He chokes out a laugh. “Damn. I thought men were the oblivious ones.” He sees my frown turn to a glare and holds up his hands. “Come on, Lark. Just about every single personin this building knows that Monty is obsessed with you and has been since day one. And we all love, and more importantly, respect the guy, just as much as we love and respect you. This part was never said out loud, but there’s been an unspoken rule in place to never cross any lines with you, out of respect for his feelings. That meant no flirting, nothin’.”
“Are you freaking serious?” I shriek, making him stumble. He recovers quickly, of course, and continues running, shooting me nervous glances as I start to pace in front of the treadmill. “You’re saying Dan Montgomery has had feelings for me for years and everyonebut mehas known that, andthatis the reason you’ve all been treating me like one of the guys this entire time?” I come to a stop, crossing my arms across my chest, and stare at him. “That’s…that’s…ridiculous.”
Rhett lifts his eyebrows. “Is it?”
