AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Ben worked with Cammie, then Hunter, on their pitching. I loved that he included both of them.
Cammie’s pitches tended to be lobs that rarely made it over the base. Hunter went second. As we watched, his pitches became harder and more accurate.
After the last one, Ben whistled. “You’ve got an arm on you. It’s pretty impressive.”
Ben shot me a look like I’d been hiding something from him.
I shrugged. I’d never seen him pitch like that before, but it was only his second season playing ball.
“I can throw harder, but when I do, it goes a little wild.”
“I can work with that. We can fix accuracy, not speed.”
I took that to mean that Hunter had potential. Hunter stood straighter, his expression serious, as he threw again.
Afterward, the kids gathered their things, and Ben moved over to me. “He’s a good pitcher.”
“He looked great out there.”
“Most of his fastballs are strikes, and he even threw a few perfect curve balls.”
“What are you saying?”
“He’s got real potential. You should work with him every night. Warm up and have him throw some pitches.”
“I’m not with him every night.”
“You want to come over and play with us? Cammie loves it, and it’s more fun with more people.” Ben’s expression was earnest.
“Please?” Cammie asked, her hands clasped in front of her chest.
“How can I say no?” I asked.
“Yes!” Hunter added.
A slow smile spread over Ben’s face, and for the first time, I wondered if I’d just walked into a trap. “It’ll be fun.”
I watched as Ben walked around the infield, picking up the balls strewn around the dirt. Hunter followed, picked up one, then threw it into the air over and over again.
Cammie sat on the bench, swinging her legs while drinking water.
I’d had fun with them. Even when I didn’t know what I was doing, even though my relationship with Ben had always been adversarial. The one thing that held me back from acting on my attraction in high school was the idea that we’d never get along. But we’d proven it was possible.
He’d pushed me to do better, but he hadn’t put me down. He’d only been encouraging. Ben Monroe was showing me a different side to him, and I wasn’t sure I was ready for it.
“You ready to go?” Ben asked.
I’d just been standing there, watching him without seeing him. “Sorry, yeah.”
“What were you thinking about?” he asked, moving closer.
“What a good day it was.” For a couple of hours, I wasn’t worried about the coffee shop. I didn’t feel pressured to call and check in on my employees. I wasn’t worried that Ben was trying to distract me from my goals. I was present, and it had been great.
“For me, too. I cherish these moments with Cammie.” His expression softened.
“And me with Hunter.”
He raised his brow, and I knew he was thinking about my declaration about not wanting kids for myself. But he didn’t know my history. That I couldn’t trust my judgment when it came to men. I’d already taken that leap. I trusted Levi when he said he loved me and wanted a family. When I said it was too soon, he convinced me there was no need to wait when you knew you were right for each other. But I’d been so wrong.
