Chapter Fifteen

The Slammers beat the Whalers in Nashville eight to three. Addie did her best to watch without worrying herself sick every time Sawyer popped up to throw a ball or had a runner sliding directly toward him. It was his job. And he was damn good at it. But every now and again, she noticed the hesitation in his step and wished he’d open up to her. They hadn’t been on an official date since deciding outside his Grams’ home that they’d give things a try, and the truth was, the time apart from each other had only made her more nervous.

When the team went back to Seattle for game five, Addie learned that looking up the hot catcher she was supposedly dating on social media or the internet was not a good idea in his absence. Some of her least favorite headlines had been:

Slammers catcher has his hands full with his ex.

Sawyer McBain and brother in vicious battle over his ex who just announced she’s marrying the star’s older sibling.

Sawyer McBain caught in the arms of his baby mama.

Bases are loaded for the Slammers’ catcher. Is his career over?

She didn’t expect him to text or call while he was away and she wasn’t the kind of woman who needed constant check-ins. But she also wasn’t used to having a high profile…

“What? Boyfriend? You two haven’t exactly labeled things,” she said to herself. She leaned back in her chair and stared at the office ceiling. Addie hated feeling distracted and out of sorts.

The team was due back from Seattle this afternoon and there was a party at Salvation. Though she hadn’t expected him to break focus on the trip, she hoped Sawyer would let her know if he was going tonight.

“Hey,” Isla said, popping into her office.

“Hey. You look good. Bright and sunny, like the owner of a winning baseball team.”

Isla laughed and came all the way in, taking a seat on the couch. “Can you believe it? If they win the next one, we win the series. We’ll be that much closer to the World Series.”

Addie joined her friend on the couch. “It’s incredible.”

“In a couple months, it’ll be a year since we came to Nashville. I never would have imagined we’d be here now.”

Isla’s eyes went a little misty and Addie squeezed her friend’s hand. “I’m not even a little bit surprised.”

Laughing, her friend leaned into her. “Thank you for standing by me.”

Putting an arm around her shoulders, she absorbed the warmth of her best friend. Her family. Her person. “Back at you. You’ve done so much for me. There’s nowhere I’d rather be.”

Isla continued to grip her hand but leaned away. “Really? You don’t miss home?”

Addie’s throat tightened. “I do. I miss my family. But I’m happy here. Really happy. In fact…”

Isla’s gaze sharpened. “In fact?”

Standing, she searched for something to do, something she could busy herself with. Don’t be a coward. She stopped by her desk and turned to face her friend. “I sort of have a little thing going with Sawyer.”

Isla’s brows arched straight up. “McBain?”

Addie nodded, her stomach tightening as well. “The one and only.” Wasn’t that the truth.

“Wow. I did not see that coming. I didn’t think you knew life existed outside of this organization, your family, and charity work.”

Unsure what that meant, Addie worked not to go on the defensive. “There’s no policy against it.”

Isla grinned, crossing one knee over the other. “And if there was?”

“There isn’t.”

“You really like him.”

Stopping short of rolling her eyes, Addie nodded. “I wouldn’t have said anything if I didn’t. But if we’re…going to move forward, I wanted you to know.”

Because she needed the space, Addie took a seat behind her desk. Isla sat up and leaned forward, pinning Addie with her gaze.

“There’s no policy against it, and I’ll always have your back. But are you sure? Sawyer is known for being closed off and aloof. He’s your polar opposite, from everything I’ve read and seen.”

The headlines from earlier snuck into her brain. “You know as well as I do not to believe everything the media says.”

“You’re right. We do know that. But it doesn’t make it easier to see or deal with. I’m happy if you’re happy, Ads. You know that. I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

Addie leaned back and sighed. “I haven’t been so far. Because I rarely take the risk. I’m tired of sitting on the sidelines with everything I do, Isla. This gorgeous, funny, and yeah, surly man finds me attractive and interesting. Sometimes we’re like oil and water, but I want to see where it goes. There’s something about him that makes me want to put myself out there. Maybe because I feel like no one else in his life has done that for him.”

Isla stood and walked to Addie, wrapping her arms around Addie’s shoulders from behind. “I’m only going to give you one piece of advice, okay?”

Addie braced but nodded.

“What he says is what matters. Not what anyone else says. If you’re going to fall for someone who gets spotlighted whether he wants to or not, you need to drown out the chatter.”

“That’s good advice.” And she knew her friend was speaking from experience. “Thanks, Isla.”

“Always.”

Regardless of what happened with Sawyer, she wasn’t alone. Maybe knowing that, she could just enjoy whatever played out between them. She didn’t have to think about forever love or picket fences. She was in a town she loved, with people she loved, doing a job she was great at. Addie spent so much of her life worrying about what she couldn’t control and trying to figure out ways to make an impact, maybe it was time to just stop and steal a little piece of the pie for herself. Especially since that pie came in the shape of Sawyer McBain.

…

The bar was crowded by the time Addie arrived. She’d been to Salvation several times over the last year. Isla had actually stayed in the apartment above the bar for a quick minute when she’d arrived. She’d met Liam there when she’d shown up after learning she not only had a grandfather but that he was on his deathbed and wanted to see her. She hadn’t made it in time but Addie could still remember Isla’s face and the way every drop of color slipped away when she’d ended the phone call.

Seeing people in pain gutted Addison and sent her into action mode. She’d booked Isla’s flight, helped her pack, and got her on the plane to Nashville, promising to deal with everything that needed attention in Colorado. It had been a surprise when Isla stayed and the adventure of it—the idea of starting over in a city she’d dreamed of visiting—was too tempting to ignore. Isla hadn’t had to work very hard to convince her to join her, but leaving her parents had been hard.

As she slipped off her jacket, she decided it was time to head home for a visit. She missed her family. They were coming for Christmas, but she didn’t want to wait that long.

“Hey,” Talia, Liam’s sister, said from behind the bar. Liam was at the other end laughing with a customer.

“Hey yourself. How’s it going?”

Talia, who was a tall, shapely brunette with defined biceps that suggested ample time at the gym, glanced around. “Busy. We’ve got a guy singing tonight who’s garnering some attention here in Nashville. People have come to see him.”

Taking a seat at the bar, Addie looked around to see if she could find Isla. “What’s his name?”

“Damon Sutter.”

Addie turned back to Talia. “Oh my gosh. I love him. He had that song, ‘Make me Listen.’ It’s one of my favorites.”

“That’s the guy. He’s here with his girlfriend working on an album.”

“That is so cool,” Addie said. Her excitement meter—and inner fangirl—ramped up.

“Uh-oh, did you tell her about Damon?” Isla, seemingly coming out of nowhere, slid onto the stool beside her.

Talia’s brows scrunched. The music went lower and Addie wondered if that meant Damon was coming on stage. “Should I not have?”

“Addie gets a little starstruck. She once joined me and my father in a meeting with John Elway, who used to play for the Broncos, and told him she thought he was ‘really neat’ and then turned the color of a ripe tomato.”

Addie cringed at the memory. Who told a sports all-star he was ‘neat’?

Talia laughed. “Do you even like football?”

Addie shook her head, making both of them laugh.

“Something funny here? And shouldn’t you offer Addie a drink? Do I need to retrain you?” Liam leaned on the bar, pushing himself up and revealing his own very defined and sculpted biceps, to kiss Isla. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Isla replied, her voice breathy.

“You two are going to scare off the customers,” Talia said. “What do you want to drink, Addie?”

A tall, dark-haired man took the stage and the crowd went nearly quiet. The spotlight gave him a majestic glow as he strummed his guitar and went straight into a beautiful ballad. Couples moved to the dance floor immediately.

“I’ll have a beer,” she answered, just as she felt heat behind her and a hand on her shoulder.

“Make that two,” Sawyer said.

Though his gaze sparked with heat, he lowered his hand and didn’t lean in to kiss her. Addie’s stomach twisted. They hadn’t even been on a date yet, so they hadn’t discussed whether or not they were a public item. She knew Sawyer didn’t much like anything to do with publicity.

Talia rolled her eyes. “Two beers coming up and can I just say,” she said, pointing at Isla and Liam. “If I ever look as lovesick as the two of you, smack me in the head.” Addie knew she was joking when Talia not only grinned but winked at her before walking away.

Isla laughed, crumpled up a napkin and tossed it at Talia’s back. “You should be so lucky.”

Addie found her voice. “Hey,” she managed, knowing she sounded every bit as breathy as Isla had.

“Hey,” Sawyer said, the corners of his lips twitching.

“Excellent job tonight, McBain,” Cruz said.

They shook hands over the bar, Liam eyeing Addie with an arched brow.

“Thanks, man. It was intense. Rogers is out for the rest of the season,” Sawyer said, his eyes darting to Liam, but Addie felt like his attention was still locked on her.

Rogers was on the other team, but Addie knew they all understood—well, the players did—how much it meant to the athletes to get where they were. To lose out in the final hours because of an injury was devastating. Sawyer would know. He’d almost been there.

Addie looked down, her eyes stopping at his knee. She bit her lip to keep from questioning him on how it held up. She wanted to reach out and touch him. As he and Cruz greeted the other players and high fives and beers were passed around, Addie got lost in listening to them.

It was a while later when he slid onto the stool on the other side of her. She lost her train of thought and Isla stared at her expectantly.

“Uh. Anyway, I have a list of local businesses that are willing to provide services to the players for sponsorship.”

Isla bit her lip like she was holding back a laugh then leaned in. “Maybe we should put work aside for tonight. This is a celebration. Celebrate.”

Liam wandered over from helping a line of customers. It amused Addie, and Isla, that he hopped behind the bar every chance he got. Even tonight when his team was riding high on victory. He took a long drink of Isla’s rum and cola, then set it down on the bar and winked at his fiancée.

“Let’s dance.”

Isla tilted her head. “Are you sure your shift is done?”

He laughed and walked away, coming around the bar to grab her by the hand and pull her onto the floor.

While Damon Sutter sang about love and happiness and how both were hard to find but worth the fight, Addie ran her fingertip along her empty beer mug.

“You okay?” Sawyer asked, his breath tickling her ear.

She turned to face him, her nose almost bumping his. “Absolutely.” Her voice came out loud and squeaky.

He chuckled and finished off his beer. “You’re quiet. That’s not usual.”

She shrugged. What could she say? I don’t know how to act. “It’s a bar. It’s loud.”

He eyed her, one brow lifting. “You look good.”

Her heart flipped. “So do you. The game was great. Congratulations. One more win.”

He nodded, his eyes locking on her mouth, sending flutters through her chest. “I missed you.” He said it so low, she almost didn’t hear him.

Licking her lips, she pressed her hands to the bar to keep from fidgeting or reaching for him. “You could have called. Texted.” She cringed. Addie was used to being what other people needed, not asking for things. Though her track record with this man suggested otherwise.

His fingers inched closer to her hand. “Distractions on the road aren’t a good idea. Especially not during playoffs. And privacy is non-existent.”

Right. Privacy. Why was she so nervous? She felt like her heart might bust out of her chest. “Makes sense.”

She knew she was much further gone than she would admit when his pinky touched hers and a jolt of electricity whipped through her system.

“Doesn’t mean I didn’t think about you. Or that I didn’t miss the sound of your voice. Or wonder whether the next time I kiss you, if it’s going to bring me to my knees again.”

Whoa. Okay. Seems like we might be on the same page. She let out a shuddery breath and turned her head. “I don’t recall you on your knees.”

His eyes went impossibly dark and all but danced with sexy mischief. “I’ll rectify that when we’re not in a crowded bar.”

A couple of people pushed in on their conversation, asking for autographs and replaying the highlights of the game.

When one of the players came up and asked her to dance, she waited for Sawyer to say something. For him to suggest they dance. For him to send her a look, a signal, anything. When he didn’t, she decided dancing with someone other than him was better than letting him see the disappointment likely radiating in her gaze.

Shortly after the dance, Addie slipped out of Salvation. She’d looked for Sawyer and hadn’t seen him. This so-called relationship with him was, so far, not at all what she expected. She couldn’t do this if she was the only one ready to jump in with both feet. And when the hell did you decide you were ready to do that? As soon as he’d kissed her.

Addie got out of the cab, thanking the driver, and walked into her building, her heart heavy. Maybe she wasn’t cut out for dating a professional athlete. Especially one who didn’t seem ready to admit he was into her unless they were alone. Stepping out of the elevator, Addie was brought up short by the sight of Sawyer leaning against the wall next to her apartment.

Like a helium balloon released, her heart soared. She walked toward him and was almost toe to toe when he hooked a hand behind her neck and yanked her against him, covering her mouth with his own. Addie pressed her body to his, her hands roaming over his chest, up, around his neck, into his hair.

A low growl left the back of his throat as Sawyer moved them, pressing her back to the door. When he pulled back to stare down at her, both of them were breathing rough.

“We need to establish some ground rules,” he said.

“Like you not pretending you don’t know me when we’re out in a crowd?” She wouldn’t hide her feelings. She could respect his need for boundaries but didn’t want to be a secret.

“Every time I get close to a woman in public, it’s photographed and misrepresented. I don’t want that for you.”

“I didn’t like sitting next to you feeling like I wasn’t allowed to touch you,” she whispered, taking her fill now.

Sawyer pressed his forehead to Addie’s. “Noted. I’ll work on it. I didn’t like watching you dance with someone else.”

“Then next time dance with me,” she replied.

His low growl was muted by her going up on tiptoes to kiss him again. This time, she pulled away. “Are you coming in?”

Sawyer inhaled sharply and then stepped back, shoving his hands into the pockets of his well-worn jeans. “I haven’t even taken you out on a real date.”

She smiled. “You know we’ll need to be in public for such a thing, right?”

He laughed. “Yes. I’m sorry. I didn’t know how to act or how you wanted to play things with the team there. With Isla and Liam.”

Addie stepped closer, putting her hands on his biceps. His hands came out of his pockets and gripped her waist. “I don’t want to play. I like you. When you’re not being grumpy or stubborn. If we’re together, I’m not into pretending we’re not.”

His mouth tensed, but he gave a curt nod. “You’ll hear things. They’ll print things.”

“I can handle it. I don’t care what anyone else says.” She thought, again, of the headlines. You’ll just have to get better at steering clear.

“Then I need to take you out.”

Addie was careful about who she let get close to her, physically and emotionally. She knew what she felt for Sawyer was bigger than anything she’d felt in the past. She didn’t want games and she didn’t want to wait to be with him in every way possible.

“We’ve been out several times, actually.”

He tilted his head, his face moving closer. “That is true. There was the night you kidnapped me.”

“The night you made me hold your balls,” she added.

Sawyer snorted out a laugh. “The racy poker game.”

She moved closer, looping her arms around his neck. “Your agent’s party.”

His eyes widened. “We’ve been dating without my even knowing it.”

Addie laughed. “Some things slip into your life seamlessly, making it feel like they were always meant to be there.”

Sawyer’s gaze darkened, making Addie realize what she’d said. The depth of what it revealed about her own feelings.

“Ask me again,” he whispered, brushing the tip of his nose along the bridge of hers.

“Are you going to come in?”

He picked her up, held her against him, her feet off the floor. “Yes. Now ask me to stay.”

“You’re bossy,” she whispered, pressing kisses along his cheek.

“You started it,” he whispered back. He put her down long enough to let her find her key, and when they went in, he pulled her close again.

Sawyer smoothed her hair back from her face and pressed his lips to her forehead. Addie’s heart shook at the tenderness.

“You’re something special, Addison Carlisle.”

“Back at you, McBain.”