Page 36 of Feel My Love


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I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. She wasn’t dating him. Then I tried to remember his question. “I want him to train with a pitching coach before he starts throwing other pitches. Besides, the kids in this league will have a tough time hitting his fastball. He throws hard.”

Ben nodded, seemingly appeased. “He’s eager to learn.”

“I can tell. He did good. Anything else?” I asked.

Ben smiled easily. “We’re good.”

Ben wasn’t angry, just curious. I wondered if he practiced with Hunter at all. Or if Abby did. I liked the idea of Abby practicing with her son. It was a nice image.

I jogged to the outfield and asked the team to take a knee so we could talk. I went over the expectations for practice, arriving early, putting their stuff away, and what they’d do for warm-up. I wanted it to be a routine. I made a point to call them young men and insisted their eyes were on mine. I was teaching them respect and responsibility as much as the fundamentals of baseball.

We worked on fielding and base running. I’d leave batting for another day. We had a lot to learn. The kids were still a little raw when it came to situational decisions on the field and bases.

Once we’d gotten into practice, I’d focused on the kids, noting who was best at throwing to first, who got down and blocked the ball from going into the outfield, who hit their cutoffs, who needed more work.

I blocked out the other parents entirely. The nerves dissipated at some point, and I got into the groove. I liked teaching the kids baseball. When practice was over, I dismissed the kids, telling them to watch one major league game this week and come prepared with a question about it for the next practice. I packed up the bases, prepared to rake the field before I left.

When I loaded everything into my truck, I noticed Hunter’s family was on the smaller ball field, playing.

I headed over with Brody.

Hunter stood on first, so I asked him, “You didn’t get enough in practice?”

Hunter grinned. “Somewhere the other kid is practicing, and when I meet him—”

“He’ll win.” I knew he’d watched the movie, but I loved that he’d retained it enough to take the lesson to heart.

I could feel Ben’s gaze on us.

Did he know I had a thing for Abby? Did he see right through me? I’d be interested in any of the kids, but not like that. Something drew me to Abby and Hunter. Something more than him being another kid on my team.

“You’re practicing a lot, huh?” I asked him.

“All the time,” Hunter said.

He reminded me of myself at his age. I loved baseball. I threw a ball or swung a bat whenever I could. It drove my mom crazy because I’d do it in the house until she kicked me out.

Abby smiled from her spot on the sideline. “I have to remind him to eat.”

I refocused on Hunter, telling myself I was the coach, not someone interested in his mother. “Eating, sleeping, and giving your muscles rest is just as important as practice.”

“Yeah, okay,” Hunter said as he dug his toe in the dirt.

I wasn’t sure if he was listening, but I knew Abby was. I moved over to stand next to her.

“Can I play?” Brody asked, and I waved for him to go in the field. He took his face mask and glove to play catcher. I should have insisted he put his full catcher’s gear on, but the little girl was on the mound. I didn’t think she’d be throwing any fastballs I’d need to worry about. Abby’s sister stood at short.

Abby pointed to everyone. “That’s Cammie, Ben’s daughter, and my sister, Brooke.”

I nodded, appreciating her telling me who everyone was.

“How he’d do in practice?” Abby asked as Cammie lobbed a ball to Brody, her tongue between her lips as she concentrated.

“Great.” He’d looked even better today than in the tryouts. “I can tell he’s practicing.”

She smiled at me, and it felt like we were the only two on the field. “He soaked up everything you said in tryouts and has been applying it at home.”

“Some coaches just observe at tryouts, but if I could give a few tips, I thought it would help.”

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