Page 20 of Out of His League

Callum cuts me off, his tone short. “We know that already, get to the point.”

Forging ahead and ignoring the irritated man, my words are rushed in an attempt to smooth things over. “The coach passed out the schedules for practice, pre-season, and regular season.”

“Okay,” Gareth says, drawing out the word. Confusion is evident on his face. “Why would any of that upset Kassidy like this?”

“Withoutmy prior knowledge, the coach and my father arranged for Kassidy to travel with the team so that she can continue to tutor me. I wanted to make sure that she found out about this from me. The entire team and staff already know. She didn’t answer her phone last night when I tried calling.”

“Fuck!” Kennedy blurts out. She doesn’t seem the type to use that kind of language, and it surprises me, one side of my mouth quirking up one side.

“Can you get me a copy of the schedule?” Gareth asks, bringing my focus back to him. He seems like he leads this group, a take-charge kind of guy.

“Yeah, I will have it to you by the end of the day, if not sooner.” Pausing, I look at each member of their group so theyknow my sincerity. “I am sorry about all of this. None of this is my doing.”

“We will figure it out. Thanks for the heads up,” Gareth replies.

“Is she going to be okay?” I ask, my head nodding in Kassidy’s direction.

Before Gareth can answer, a brunette approaches. The woman is wearing a pair of skin-tight pants, a low-cut blouse, and cowboy boots. Her pants are so tight that when she walks, her whole body moves, unable to bend her knees.

“Son of a…” Gareth’s words trail off, and my head snaps in his direction.

“There she iiiiissss, my baby sister,” the unknown woman coos, cutting off any answer Gareth might have given to my unasked question.

Looking over at Kassidy, my eyebrows reach the sky. Not knowing it is possible, all the color leaches from Kassidy’s face at the woman’s presence, making her look almost transparent. My eyes flick between each member of the little group, and every single one of them is on alert.

Who is this woman?

“And who is this yummy piece of man meat?” she says, looking at me like she wants to eat me for breakfast.

Deciding to improvise, I step up next to Kassidy, pulling her away from Kennedy and into my arms. Kassidy’s body is stiff as a board.

“Brock Adams, Kassidy’s boyfriend.”

Gareth gives me a sideways look but thankfully keeps his mouth shut.

“Really?” she says, drawing out the word. “Karoline Heartwell… If you decide you get tired of playing with the little girl and want a real woman, you just let me know, Sugar.”

Now it’s my turn to stiffen. Unsure how to respond to her, my mouth opens and closes, with no words forming. Getting a closer look at Karoline, she is skin and bone. She wears too much makeup and has a cloud of perfume surrounding her. Desperation seeps from her pores.

Trying to break the ice a little bit, my snarky statement has our group laughing, breaking the tension.

“Danica might have a new friend.” Karoline looks confused, being excluded from the inside joke. Some of the tension eases from Kassidy’s body at the joke.

“Let’s go grab something to eat before classes start,” Gareth orders.

He and Rodney flank Kennedy. Keeping Kassidy tucked into my side, Callum steps up on the other side of her, and Ashton trails behind us. Karoline runs to catch up to us. Her voice has a whiny tone to it. “What am I supposed to do?”

“Go home?” Kassidy says just loud enough for Callum and me to hear, causing us both to laugh loudly. Kennedy, Gareth, and Rodney look back over at us, and Callum waves them off.

Bending down slightly, bringing my lips next to Kassidy’s ear, I ask, afraid to hear the answer. “Are you okay with this? It seemed like a good idea at the time.”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” she answers, looking over her shoulder to where her sister is distracted, trying to chat up Ashton. “We can talk about it later.”

Finally making it to the dining room, it becomes painfully obvious that Karoline is going to be a pain in the ass. It’s no wonder Kassidy is strung tight.

Stepping into the room, I suppress a groan. What seems like the entire baseball team is here, all eyes focused on us. Doing my best to ignore them and play the role of dutiful boyfriend, I stay glued to Kassidy’s side.

“Who’s buying?” Karoline shouts, causing Kassidy to toss her head back with a groan.

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