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“Yeah, I’ll call it. But only on one condition.” He grinned, while the boys behind him snickered.
“Luca, let’s go!” the coach hollered. “We don’t have time for this.”
“One sec, Coach!”
“You better go,” I yelled.
“Nope. Not yet. You didn’t ask me what my condition was.”
“Coach, you’ve got one second—” the ump started.
“Luca!” Coach shouted, his face turning a frightening shade of beet red.
“Okay, okay. What’s the condition?” I asked, breathless, and I could all but feel everyone's eyes on us.
“If I hit where I call, I get a kiss.”
My cheeks burned, and I bit my lower lip just as the coach started screaming again.
A knot of panic tightened in my chest, and I waved him on. “Okay, fine. Go!”
He started to back away, but his eyes remained laser focused on me as he angled himself toward the plate and pointed into the outfield. “Dinger. Left field.”
My smile exploded. “I’ll be watching.”
“I’ll be watching,” Mia mocked once he was gone, and I shot her a dirty look.
“Stop.”
“What?” she asked, all innocence.
The pitcher wound up and launched the ball. It whizzed past Luca, slightly above his knees, and the ump called out, “Striiike.”
“A dinger.” Mia snorted beside me.
She fell silent again, while I pursed my lips and did my best to ignore her, when Luca swung at another pitch and missed.
“Uh oh, lover boy might not get that kiss, after all. Poor guy.”
I narrowed my eyes at her, which only made her chuckle.
“Sorry. But, come on,” Mia said, motioning toward home plate. “You really expect me to sit here after watching that nauseating display of male machismo and say nothing? It was like a cheesy afterschool special.”
When I glared harder, she turned to Barry. “Am I wrong?”
Barry lifted a shoulder. “Itwaspretty bad.”
“See!” She turned to me, validated. “Even Barry thought it was lame.”
“Well, I think it’s totally adorable,” I said haughtily. “I want a boy who will go out of his way to win me over. Someone whotriesto sweep me off my feet. A boy who proves he wants me.”
“Foul!” the umpire yelled from behind the plate, and I realized I missed Luca taking another swing.
Barry and Mia were distracting me.
“Does striking out prove anything?” Mia snickered under her breath, and I bit my tongue, focusing on Luca once more.
“Looks like Babe Ruth is having a little trouble,” Barry mumbled, and my jaw dropped.Not Barry, too.
