Adam was surprised. “You still play softball?”
“I did in Arizona, yeah. We played in this really cool place which has 8 fields decorated as different stadiums from across the country. Amber loved going. Probably because everyone doted on her.”
“The stadium sounds pretty cool.”
“It was. I’d actually love to try to find a league for next year.”
“I’m on a beer league. I could get you some info for it, if you want.”
“Sure, I’d appreciate that.”
He smiled and wondered if he could get her on his league now. She’d always been a great player and they could use an extra pitcher.
“For tomorrow, I figure we can park at the Elk River station and take the train down to the game. I thought that might be fun for Amber?”
“That sounds fun. And you’re right, she’ll love it.”
“She will.” He nodded his head even though he knew she couldn’t see him. “The game’s at 3:15, and the train leaves at 1:45. That should give us plenty of time to get there. Does Amber eat hot dogs? Popcorn?”
“You have it all figured out, huh?” Jennifer chuckled. “She’s a kid. Of course she loves hot dogs and popcorn. I’m sure she’ll love dome food, although I guess it’s no longer considered the dome, huh?”
Adam laughed. He still referred to them as dome dogs too, for the old Metrodome stadium the Twins and Vikings used to share. It was nothing like the new stadium for the Twins.
“Will it work for me to pick you up at 1:00?”
“Sure. Unless you want us just to meet you there? I have Amber’s booster seat and all.”
“No, it’s fine. I’d rather we ride together.”
Jennifer rattled off her address.
“Hey, you’re not too far from me.”
“Oh, yeah? Where do you live?”
“I live on Elk Lake just a couple miles from you.”
“Oh. You live on a lake?”
“Yeah. You and Amber will have to come over and I’ll take you out on the water.”
“Amber would love that.”
Adam smiled and tried to keep his voice under control.
“Well, I’ll see you both tomorrow. Be sure to wear sunscreen! It’s supposed to be beautiful.”
“Will do.”
“Bye, Jenn. Hope you have a great day.”
Her reply was soft. “You too.”
Adam smiled at the phone he still held in his hand. Jennifer was still into baseball and softball, and it sounded like she was also getting Amber into the sport.
He couldn’t help but think about how much time they spent together in high school watching each other play. One game in particular always came to mind. It was the first time she ever came to watch him play. She brought him luck that day.
Thirteen years ago…
Tom, Adam’s best friend, shook his head. “Dude! Why are you so jumpy today?”
“I don’t know.”
Adam didn’t want to admit he was nervous as hell that his girlfriend was at his game. It was the first time she came to watch a game since they began dating.
“Chill out, whatever it is.”
Tom was right. He had to calm down, especially because he was almost up to bat. He was just after Tom in the batting order.
Adam hit third in line…he was one of the strongest batters on the team. It was bottom of the first inning and the other team hadn’t scored.
Jason hit and got on first. As Tom walked up to the plate, Adam took his place in the batter’s box. He practiced his swing as each pitch came in. The kid was a fast pitcher, but it didn’t worry him. They were playing Princeton, a team that beat them earlier in the season. They needed to win this one.
Tom hit a nice double and it brought Jason to third base.
Adam was up. He quickly glanced at Jennifer and then walked towards the plate. She was smiling wide and staring right at him.
He got into his batting stance and waited for the first pitch, trying to focus. He watched it come in and could tell it was a ball. The second pitch was a strike and he watched that one go by him too. He didn’t let it bother him.
When the third pitch came in, he could tell it was perfectly right down the center.
It. Was. His.
Adam swung and he could feel the bat hit right on the sweet spot. This could be it – his first home run of the season.
He heard the crowd go wild as he threw his bat off the to side and began to run. He ran hard, but watched the ball the whole time. He was between first and second when he saw the ball make it over the fence. He grinned and threw his hands in the air, but kept running.
As soon as he made it home, he gave his teammates high fives and then looked over to Jenn. She was jumping up and down, whooping and hollering and clapping wildly.
She was here for him. It felt really good.
He gave her a big grin and then was pummeled by his teammates.
*****
Adam smiled at the memory, thinking of how much they had in common.
Jennifer attended his games whenever she could and he went to hers when he wasn’t working or playing baseball himself. Mandi teased him because he never bothered to attend her games before he met Jennifer.
Their love of outdoors, whether summer at the lake or winter with snow tubing and skiing, they found fun no matter what activity they did. The summer before he started college and before her senior year, they volunteered at an animal shelter. They worked there a couple times a week. She always had a hard time leaving the animals behind, especially the last shift they worked.
It made him wonder if she still loved animals, if she had any of her own and if her daughter was anything like her.
He couldn’t wait to see her the next day and find out.
Chapter Ten
Jennifer
Is it a date?
As she stood in her bathroom applying the last of her makeup, Jennifer heard the doorbell. She dropped the sparkly pink lip gloss on the counter and stared at her reflection.
Breathe, Jennifer. You can do this.
The doorbell rang again. She started walking towards the front of the house and yelled, “Coming!”
As soon as she opened the door, she sucked in a breath.
Holy shit.
Adam stood on her front porch with a pair of aviator sunglasses on his handsome, smiling face. He was wearing a loose-fitted Twins jersey with faded designer blue jeans and a pair of dark blue Converse. His blonde hair was still a little wet from what she assumed was a very recent shower.
He was naked not a half-hour before.
Stop!
Jennifer’s cheeks burned and she had to stop from fanning her face with her hand. As she continued to stare, it took her a minute for her to register he was speaking.
“Earth to Jenn. Did you hear me?” Adam was laughing, waving his hand in front of her face. “Are you and Amber ready to go have some fun?”
Jennifer laughed. “Oh, sorry! Hi.”
“Hi yourself. You look gorgeous.”
She smiled and gazed into his milk chocolate eyes. Oh yum. “You’re not so bad yourself.”
Adam grinned and gave her a wink. He was positively swoon-worthy.
It’s official. I’m screwed.
“You ready to go?”
“Yep.”
Jennifer looked down at her shirt to hide her smile.
She and Amber ran out to Target that morning and found matching pink Twins T-Shirts. Amber looked adorable in hers, but Jennifer’s was tight, pink and very girly, showing off her curvy body. She paired her new t-shirt with her favorite jeans with sparkly bling on the back pockets.
Her butt looked awesome in those jeans.
She turned away from Adam and cupped her mouth with her hand. “Amber, honey, can you come here, please?”
Jennifer turned back in time to see Adam’s eyes glued to her butt. When he met her eyes, his were sparkling and the corner of his mouth twitched into a crooked smile.
<
br /> Her tummy flipped and she tried not to smile, but her lips curved up on their own.
Amber came running down the hallway towards them. Jennifer giggled when she saw the huge smile on her daughter’s face. It gave her a warm feeling that Adam wanted to take Amber to the game, too.
Her daughter jumped up and down. “Mommy! Are we going now?”
“Oh, you still wanted to go? I was just going to tell Adam you changed your mind.”
Amber frowned. “Mommy, stop teasing me.”
She could tell when Amber noticed Adam because she grabbed Jennifer’s hand, stepping slightly behind her leg.
Adam knelt down to eye level with her. “Hi Amber, I’m Adam. I met you when you were a lot younger, but I’m sure you don’t remember. You’ve grown up quite a bit since then.” His laugh was warm and comforting, making Amber smile. “It’s very nice to see you again.”
“Nice to meet you. Do we get to go to the Twins game now?”
Amber’s voice was high-pitched, sounding almost like a little munchkin. Jennifer covered her laugh with her hand.
“Yep! We’re going to the train station with Adam, and then we’ll ride the train to the game. Sound good?”
“Yay! Let’s go!”
Jennifer motioned towards the booster seat sitting on her front step. “Could you grab Amber’s booster seat? Just set it in the middle of your back seat.”
He nodded his head and grabbed it, giving her a smile. “Of course.”
After Jennifer locked her front door, she grabbed Amber’s hand and led her out to Adam’s car. He was already in the process of putting the booster seat in the back of his BMW, his sexy butt up in the air.
Well, damn. I couldn’t have planned that better if I tried.
*****
The train ride was a lot of fun. Amber sat in awe as they went from station to station, picking up passengers. There was a sea of fans wearing various Twins gear, from jerseys to T-shirts and hats.
It wasn’t long before they made it downtown Minneapolis to Target Field. As they made it into the gates, Adam took out their tickets, handing them to the workers scanning people in the doors.
Adam nodded his head towards a store with Twins paraphernalia.
“Before we head to our seats, I want to stop by this store quickly.”
“Okay, sure.”
Amber’s eyes were wide, looking around the Twins stadium. There were tons of vendors selling everything from hot dogs to Twins themed giant foam fingers to mugs of beer.
“Are you going to buy something, mommy?”
“No, honey. I think Adam’s getting a hat.”
Amber and Jennifer went to one side of the store and started looking at the t-shirts. The prices were a lot more expensive than Target, even for the same shirt. She glanced over towards Adam just in time to see a worker approach him.
“Are you looking for something for your wife and daughter?”
“Yeah, can you show me some hats?”
Jennifer smiled and it gave her warm fuzzies to know Adam didn’t bother to correct the guy.
Don’t read into it, Jennifer.
Amber wandered further away and she followed so she couldn’t overhear anything else they were saying.
A few minutes later, Adam walked over to where Jennifer and Amber were standing, a bag in his hand. “You girls ready to go find our seats?”
“Yay!” Amber clapped her hands. “I’m ready.”
“Well let’s go!”
Adam led them to their section and they followed him down the stairs. They were just to the left of home plate, row 18, which would be perfect viewing to watch the Twins hopefully pound the White Socks.
Once they found their seats, Jennifer whistled and she gave him a wide-eyed look. “Geez, Adam. These seats must have cost a pretty penny.”
He gave her a shy smile. “I wanted Amber to have the best possible view of the game.”
Jennifer’s heart melted. Sigh. My heart is toast.
She glanced down as Adam pulled open the bag, taking out three hats. The first was a small pink hat with Twins on the front in pink rhinestones.
Amber’s eyes lit up when he showed it to her and then he plopped it on top of her head. “Oh! For me? Thank you!”
He touched the tip of her little nose with his finger. “You’re welcome.”
The next hat he put on his own head and gave her a huge grin. Jennifer’s mouth dropped open and she couldn’t peel her eyes away. He looked hot as hell and she was pretty sure he knew he was getting to her.
The last hat was exactly like Amber’s, only a little bigger. Adam leaned in close to Jennifer, gazing into her eyes and put it gently on her head. The corner of his mouth turned up and she could see his straight, white teeth peeking through his gorgeous lips.
“Adam, this is too much. First the tickets and now this?”
“It’s too sunny not to have a hat on today.”
Amber’s voice was high and bubbly. “Mommy got the same hat as me. She looks so cute!”
Adam smiled. “Yes, she sure does.”
Jennifer groaned inwardly. How could he already be making me feel this way?
“Are you hungry yet?”
“No, not yet.” Jennifer shook her head and looked at her daughter. “Amber, are you?”
“Not yet, mommy.” Then she lifted up her arm and pointed towards the field. “The game is starting! Look!”
When the Twins came out on the field, Amber jumped up, clapping her hands and cheering for the players. She started yelling to the field “Get a home run! Get a home run!”
Jennifer and Adam looked at each other and laughed. Her excitement was infectious and made it impossible for them not to share in her joy.
“Honey, the other team is up first, so we don’t want them to get a home run,” Jennifer corrected Amber gently. Amber was still learning the game, so Jennifer wasn’t sure if she completely understood, but it was adorable to watch.
“Oh.”
A little over an hour into the game, the girls shared a foot-long hotdog, popcorn and root beer.
Amber started rubbing her tummy and she let out a contented sigh. “I think I’m full now, mommy.”
Jennifer chuckled. “Well I should hope so.”
Adam looked serious and said, “Are you sure you don’t want some peanuts or ice cream?”
“I’m sure. But maybe some ice cream later.” Amber giggled. “When is the game going to be over?”
“It’s only the 4th inning, sweetie.” Jennifer answered her quietly, hoping she wasn’t ready to leave already. “That means there are still 5 more innings.”
“Are you ready to go home?” Adam’s voice held no irritation.
Jennifer held her breath for her reply. Please say no!
Amber was looking up at Adam and he was looking down at her. It was an adorable sight, and she could feel the shivers run down her spine. “No way! I’m watching the whole game.”
“Okay, just checking. You let me know if you get too tired and want to go.”
Adam’s sincerity made Jennifer look at him with newfound respect. Throughout the whole game, she watched his interaction with Amber. He took time to explain the game to her, telling her all about bases, the players and the plays. He also answered several questions she asked about the game with utmost patience.
Jennifer was having a hard time concentrating on the game. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him look her way several times. At one point she looked over and caught him staring. She didn’t look away for several seconds and his crooked smile caused her heart to pound.
What is wrong with me? It’s not like he’s interested. Is he?
The rest of the game flew by as Jennifer watched the Twins win the game. She laughed while she watched Adam and her daughter high-five each other, cheering loudly.
Amber surprised them both when she did a fist pump, yelling “Woop! Woop!”
Adam chuckled and looked at Jennifer. “Where’d she pick that up?�
��
Jennifer shrugged her shoulders and grinned.
*****
After the game, they headed back towards the train. Jennifer was surprised Amber didn’t fall asleep on the ride home. Instead, she watched people get on and off the train at each stop, and watched the scenery speed by.
By the time they got back to the car and were on their way back to Jennifer’s house, it didn’t take long for Amber to crash.
She glanced at Adam and sighed. “Today was really fun.”
“You sound surprised.” He chuckled. “But yes, it was. I really enjoyed spending time with you both.”
She nodded and they rode in comfortable silence for several minutes.
“So…I…would you go out with me again? Maybe just you and me?” Adam’s voice carried hesitation.
Jennifer searched his face.
What does he want from me? Friends? More?
“Um...hmmm.”
Adam raised an eyebrow and cocked his head. “Is that a yes, or…?”
She almost snorted. She wasn’t even sure what her answer meant. She just knew she was nervous and had so many conflicting feelings. “Okay, sure.”
Adam’s smile lit up his face. “Really? Great! How about Saturday night?”
“Well, you’re sure not wasting any time, are you?” Jennifer laughed when he shook his head. “I’ll have to check with either my parents or find a babysitter.”
“Let me know if for some reason it doesn’t work out. Otherwise, I’ll plan on picking you up at about 7:00.”
“What should we do?”
“Leave that to me.”
Adam gave her a wink and a grin wide enough to show his dimples and it just about did her in.
Well, it’s official. I’ve gone crazy.
*****
The week leading up to their second date was the longest Jennifer could ever remember having in her life. She had to find things to keep her busy to try and keep her mind off Adam.
She was missing her friends from Arizona, so she called Tera and Lily on a 3-way call. Jennifer filled them in on things that were happening at her new job and they told her how it was without her there, including what her sexy doctor was up to. She had to admit she’d thought about him a few times since leaving, wondering if he missed her. For the most part, however, Minnesota kept her pretty busy, especially now with her impending date with Adam.
Second Look (A New Beginning Book 3) Page 10