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“Not sure I’ll ever get used to you holding some girl’s hand,” Brett added, his gaze locked on their joined hands.
“Get used to it, BT, she’s not just some girl.” Jack planted a kiss on Cassie’s cheek, and we collectively groaned at them to get a room, and tossed other good-natured insults their way.
Jack asked to be dealt in and the banter continued, the usual guys being guys and teammates giving each other shit because they could. He was lucky to get along with his teammates. I knew quite a few guys who had left the state to play ball and couldn’t stand half of their team. Jack never had that problem. Ever since freshman year, his teammates had welcomed him, and now they were some of his closest friends.
We played a few more hands, and every time I had to drink, I barely sipped my shot. No one else noticed, thank God, otherwise I’d have been too plastered to walk anywhere later, let alone make sure Cassie stayed safe. I had no idea how half these guys still had their eyes open.
When it was time for him to leave, Jack stood up from the table and headed for Cass. What followed was a ridiculous display of affection, including things I wished I could un-see and un-hear.
Once they’d said good-bye, Jack headed for the front door but stopped to address the group. “Make sure she doesn’t walk alone to the game.”
“I don’t need a babysitter,” Cassie said, echoing what I’d said earlier.
Jack frowned and shot a look my way. “Dean?”
“I got her, J. I promise we’ll all go together. She won’t be alone.” I smiled at him and Cassie, hoping to ease his worries.
“See you guys at the game.”
When Jack closed the door behind him, we all turned toward Cassie like vultures.
“What? Don’t look at me, I’m not the crazy one!” she yelled.
“Just so you know, I’ve never seen him act this way about anyone other than Gran,” I told her, hoping she knew that he was just looking out for her. Jack was protective of those he loved and wanted to make sure she stayed safe.
• • •
We wrapped up our drinking game a little while later and left for the softball game. Cassie had her camera with her, something I hadn’t noticed earlier when she first came in.
“Are you taking pictures of Jack tonight?”
“I plan on it,” she said with a smile.
“Cool.”
Matt and Jamie held hands as the seven of us walked in a group toward the far end of campus where the softball field was located. Even though I had no idea what Jack was so concerned about, I wanted to keep my word, so I walked close to Cassie or kept her in view at all times. But then Brett started messing around with me, tapping my shoulder as he ran by, trying to get me to chase him, which I did.
When I realized that Cassie wasn’t next to me anymore, I stopped and turned to see her squatting and removing her lens cap. She waved me ahead, signaling t
hat she wanted to shoot pictures of us, so I rejoined the group and let her go to work. I knew she’d yell at me if I tried to stop her. Photography was as important to her as baseball was to Jack.
Figuring I’d give her something to shoot, I knocked Brett’s hat off his head and he chased me, trying to punch me in the arm as I ducked and weaved around everyone else to avoid his fist. I glanced back to make sure Cassie was getting all of this when I noticed a man standing way too close to her. Cassie’s eyes were huge and she was frozen in place, clutching her camera to her chest.
Shit.
I was too far away to hear what was being said so I walked toward her, wondering what the hell was going on, when I saw her head snap to one side and her hair whip around.
Stunned, I halted in my tracks, unable to believe what I’d just seen.
“That guy just hit Cassie! Hey!” I shouted at Jack’s teammates and started running, not knowing who else was following me, but hoping they all were.
Rushing toward Cassie, I watched helplessly from a distance as the stranger struck her again and she stumbled, knocked off-balance from the force of the punch. My mind spun, not able to comprehend exactly what the hell was happening, but one thing was certain. Jack was going to kill me for letting Cassie get hurt. And I was going to kill this guy for hurting her.
I started sprinting at full speed when the man tore away from her and gunned for me. I came to an abrupt stop, expecting the two of us to collide, but he stopped as well, dangerously close to me. I looked past his shoulder to see Cassie holding her cheek, and furious, I shoved him, wanting to get to her.
“You wanna die?” He was holding something in one hand as he pointed to his hip with the other, which was covered by an oversized shirt. A bulge underneath it looked like it could have been a pistol.
It only took a second of my taking my eyes off him for him to catch me completely off guard. The sound of glass breaking followed by excruciating pain in my head took my breath away. My head snapped back as beer spilled into my eyes, blurring my vision, and my knees buckled. I tried to scream for Cassie to run, but I couldn’t formulate the words as the rest of the world went black.
