Page 61 of Curveball

"Seriously, though, Farrah. It’s really good to meet you, and for this guy's mental stability," Cohen pointed a thumb over his shoulder at me, "I'm really glad you guys are back together."

Note to self: probably should ask Farrah to be my girlfriend again.

The comment from Cohen didn't seem to faze Farrah, and they fell into easy conversation. Watching her laugh with the guys—comfortable, confident, unbothered—I realized how easily she belonged here. How she always had.

“You actually watch the games?” Beckham asked, surprised.

Farrah lifted her drink. “My little brother is the first baseman for Chicago, and growing up with this guy…" She tipped her head in my direction. "Baseball was a big part of my life."

Beckham's mouth hung open as he turned his attention to me. "Dude, you never said her brother was Nate King."

I shrugged. "Does it matter?"

Beckham rolled his eyes. "The guy got rookie of the year last year!" he said, waving his hands around dramatically.

Farrah and I both laughed at his theatrics. Farrah and Beckham continued to talk about baseball, with Shane joining in. Drake leaned over toward me and clapped a hand on my shoulder. "I really like her, and you look happy, man. Good to see. Took y'all long enough," he joked before joining back in on the conversation.

I grinned, because yeah, it had.

"Where's Elle tonight?" I asked Drake. I hadn't seen his girlfriend around in a while.

"She's traveling for work again."

I nodded in understanding when my phone vibrated in my pocket, pulling my attention away from the group. I glanced down to see that Scott was calling.

I leaned down to speak against Farrah's ear. "My agent is calling, you good here? I'm going to go take it outside really quick."

She flashed her radiant smile while nodding. "Yeah. I'm good."

I quickly answered the call as I walked towards the back exit. "Hey Scott, what's going on?"

" So I just got a call. The team is chomping at the bit for your retirement decision. With the playoffs quickly approaching, they want to make an announcement if you’re coming back next year before they kick off."

And in one phone call, I was brought crashing back down into reality.

I knew what Farrah had said, that she could handle the lifestyle of a baseball player this time. But would it really be different? How could I know for sure?

Or was I just setting myself up to lose her all over again?

Today felt easy. Too easy. Like the quiet before a storm I knew was coming. Like we were pretending—just for one day—that nothing stood between us.

Chapter 28

Walker

Her long hair blew in the wind as we approached the part of my property that gave way to the best views. We stopped the horses and sat in comfortable silence as we watched the sun begin to slowly slip behind the hills, creating a stunning golden sky painted with long strokes of rose and amber. Farrah glanced over at me. "It's beautiful out here." She ran her hand along Ranger's copper neck.

I held her gaze for a moment and smiled. "This is what I’ve always wanted." I turned my attention back towards the sunset and stroked Tex's black mane. "You and me riding together, being able to come out here and watch the sun go down."

She let out a contented sigh and grinned. "I'm glad we finally found our way back to each other."

I was too… I just didn’t know if finding our way back meant we’d figured out how to stay.

It had been a few weeks since Farrah had shown up at my place in Austin, and we’d been making up for lost time every chance we got… in and out of the bedroom. Today, we’d spent what felt like hours exploring my property on horseback. I loved finally being able to show her this piece of land I’d always envisioned her being a part of.

We decided to take the horses back in, and as we were untacking and giving them a good brush, I peered around Tex, clearing my throat. "So, uh… I know this is probably lame, but we’ve been spending a lot of time together since Austin, and I want to be really clear—I’m not seeing anyone else. I don’t want to. I want you to be my girlfriend… again."

Why was I so nervous? Like one wrong move would send everything unraveling again.