by Sara Daniell
He put his finger to his lips again and pointed up.
I looked up and gasped. It was an owl.
“She never leaves. Millie says it’s her mommy watching over her,” he whispered.
I couldn’t take my eyes off the bright white owl. “But this is a Snowy Owl, right? Isn’t Georgia too hot?”
He nodded. “Yeah. That’s why it’s so weird it stays here in Georgia, and we pretend like it’s Millie’s mom reincarnated. Don’t tell anyone though; animal rescue would be on this in a heartbeat, and it’d crush Millie if they took her away.”
“I won’t,” I whispered.
“You showing her Sam?” Zach asked as he came over to us.
Dane smiled. “Yeah, I think I’m weirding her out though. I really think she thought I was bringing her out here to kiss her,” Dane teased.
“I’ll break your face if you ever try that,” I assured him.
Zach mumbled something under his breath that sounded like “so would I” before he walked off quietly. I watched him go onto the deck and start grilling. When I turned back to Dane, he cupped the back of my head and kissed me. I shoved him so hard, he stumbled backward.
He burst into laughter. “If you’re going to have a chance with Zach, you’re gonna have to get better at that!”
I wiped my lips. “Excuse me? Why the hell did you just do that! Ugh!”
“To see if you’d really break my face!” Dane was laughing so hard, but I didn’t find it funny at all.
I rolled my eyes. “Jerk.” I smiled a little. “And if you ever want a girlfriend, you’re gonna have to do better than that too.”
He laughed. “You are so into Zach.”
“Am not.”
“Hales, it’s so obvious.”
“Would you pipe down? He’ll hear you!”
He smiled. “Sorry.”
I ran my fingers through my hair. “He’s way older than me, Dane. Yeah, he’s hot, but I know not to pursue him.”
“What if I told you he’s really not that old?”
I raised both brows. “What?”
“How old are you, Hailey?”
“Just turned eighteen a week before we moved.”
Dane’s smile grew. “So, see? It’s completely legal. He just turned 26.”
“Ummm, that’s still an eight-year difference! Totally not okay. Plus, he’s the assistant coach. Wrong on so many levels.”
Dane grabbed my shoulders. “Don’t take what I’m about to say wrong, okay?”
I waited with a raised brow.
“You’re not a typical high-school girl. I know the guys at school, and you’re way more mature than, well, everyone. You have that pretty head of yours on straight, too straight, might I add.”
I laughed and blushed a little. “Oh.”
“Oh?”
I laughed some more. “Yeah. Oh. I’ve never heard that before, but thanks, I guess? Also, for my first kiss, that sucked, man.”
“First kiss? Are you for real?”
I shrugged. “Not allowed to date.”
“Dinner’s ready!” Zach yelled across the yard.
We grabbed our drinks and started walking.
“Okay, I get not being allowed to date, but you were on an all-boys baseball team in Florida. You were around guys all the time, and you’ve never been kissed?” Dane asked in shock.
“With a dad like mine, boys are really scared to come near me. He’s intense.”
Dane chuckled. “Yeah, you’re right about that.”
“He means well though.”
We walked up the stairs and onto the deck.
“Who means well?” Coach Elliot asked as he handed me a plate.
“My dad.” I smiled.
“Dane turned on the lights, so I thought we’d eat out here.” Zach came out with his arms full of condiments.
Coach smiled. “I like that idea.” He turned his attention back to me. “Dads usually mean well, but sometimes we can be psycho,” he said, pulling Millie onto his lap.
Zach put a burger on my plate then handed me a little salad; he didn’t have one fixed for anyone else. I smiled. I noticed Coach watching Zach’s movements closely, but Zach refused to look at anyone.
I laughed. “The salad is perfect, but there is bread on my burger. My dad is gonna kill you.”
He shrugged. “I can take care of myself,” he smiled a little and then sat down.
“Are you ready for school?” Dane asked me.
“Yes and no.”
I took a bite of my burger and, oh sweet baby Jesus, it was heavenly. I moaned a little. “Wow. So good.” I smiled at Zach.
He opened his mouth to say something, but Coach spoke up. “Think before you speak in front of your niece, and remember, Hailey is a kid on the team.”
I scrunched my nose at his emphasis on the word kid. I was eighteen. Not a damn kid.
Zach closed his mouth but smirked a little.
“I’m confused,” I said looking at Zach and Coach.
“Zach was about to say something highly inappropriate I’m sure. He had that look on his face,” Dane said with a chuckle.
Zach shrugged. “Maybe.”
I laughed. “Oh. Okay.” I turned a little red and then continued to eat.
Zach smiled bigger and took a bite of his cheeseburger. Coach Elliot helped Millie but didn’t take a bite of his own food
“You need to eat,” Zach said firmly to his brother.
“I know. I know.” Coach grabbed his burger and took a small bite. “Happy?”
Zach nodded.
After we all finished eating we went in and turned on a movie, except for Zach. He volunteered for cleanup duty. Millie sat between Dane and I and was out before it started.
Dane looked at Coach. “You need to rest.”
He nodded. “I’m going to go tuck my little trouble in. Night.” He picked up Millie and headed up the stairs.
“Where’s everyone going?” Zach asked as he came into the living room.
“To bed,” Dane said as he yawned. “Guess I’m headed there too.”
I nudged Dane before he stood. He smiled, winked, and left the room.
“I guess that means I should head out.” I looked at Zach.
“You’re gonna bail on me too?” He asked, looking depressed.
“I don’t have to. I have been wanting to see this movie.” I felt weird staying, but I honestly wasn’t ready to leave.
His smile came back full force. “Good!” He plopped down on the couch next to me and started the movie. “I haven’t seen it either.”
I got comfy and kicked off my shoes. Zach stretched out his legs, crossed them at the ankles, and rested his arms on the back of the couch.
He smelled amazing. Like charcoal and cologne. What was this movie even called again? Being this close to him was making my brain stupid. I wiped my sweaty palms on my jeans. I was going to kill Dane.
“You okay?” he asked as he looked over at me.
I nodded. “Where’s your bathroom?”
“Down the hall and to the left. You want me to show you, or are you good?”
I stood. “I’m good.”
He moved his legs to let me by, then looked back to the TV.
I went to the bathroom and stared at myself in the mirror. I’m eighteen. He’s twenty-six. Seriously, Dane was going to die.
“You’re such an idiot,” I said quietly to myself. He was the assistant coach. There were laws against that kind of shit.
I washed my hands and went back out.
“Zach, I think I’m just gonna head home.”
He stood. “Oh, okay. I’ll walk you to your car.” He walked to the front door and opened it for me.
“Thanks.” I walked out, and he walked beside me.
He opened the car door for me. “Drive safely.” He looked down at me, and it looked like a battle was going on behind those brown eyes of his.
“Yeah...” I smiled. “Thanks again for dinner. It has to be our se
cret though.”
He nodded and smiled. “I’d keep any secret for you.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Good to know.” I tucked my hair behind my ears. “I have a lot of secrets.”
He brushed a piece of hair out of my face that I had missed. “Like?”
“I think you’re hot.” I turned beet red. “Okay, so that wasn’t supposed to be said out loud. I meant to say something safer like ‘I hide Twinkies under the bed’. Dammit. Sorry!”
He looked stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing. “You’re an odd one.”
I laughed to cover up how stupid I felt. “I guess I should go.”
“Be careful. I’ll see ya at practice.” He watched as I pulled out of the driveway, then headed back inside.
School was still three weeks away, so summer practice was in full swing. Dane texted me and offered to pick me up so we could ride together, and I took the offer because I really needed to get to know people here.
I went downstairs and grabbed a banana from the fruit basket on the table. I heard Mom talking to someone in the living room, so I walked into the kitchen that was open to the living area. I smiled when I saw Dane drinking a cup of coffee with my mom.
“Hey.” I smiled when he looked at me.
Mom turned her head to look at me. “Hey, honey. Why don’t you join us? Dane was just giving me the low-down on Stockbridge.”
I cringed and laughed a little. “Mom, never use the term low-down again.”
We all laughed.
I sat down on the chaise lounge and kicked my feet up while I ate. “So, what do I need to know about this place?” I asked, looking at Dane.
Dad had already gone to work, thankfully, because he would be reading into this kid like it was his job. Dad didn’t want me in a relationship at all, so he’d think Dane and I were more than just friends - which he probably already thought anyway.
“It’s small enough that everyone knows everyone else’s business. So, if you want to hide something, it’s really difficult. People tend to hold onto grudges and the past. It’s very gossipy here.” He shrugged. “And the place to hang out is Quinn’s Pizza. The baseball team gathers there a lot for meetings.”
“And it lacks a beach,” I added with a pout.
Mom took a sip of her coffee. “The closest one is four hours away. Maybe we could take a weekend trip?”
My eyes lit up. “Yes! And Dane gets to come.”
Mom chuckled. “Of course. Now talking your dad into that is another story.”
I smiled at Dane. “He’ll warm up to you.”
Dane smiled. “I’ll win him over,” he said confidently. “And we have a lake a little closer. I know it’s not the same, but you can still get some swim time in there.”
“Really? Does it have a beach area, or is it just grass?” I asked as I folded the banana peel and set it beside me.
“It has a beach area, but it’s privately owned.”
“Oh, so we trespass? Sounds fun.”
Mom raised a brow at me. “No way.”
Dane laughed. “You don’t have to trespass. I know who owns the private spot.”
Mom smiled. “You will have to take Hailey then. She practically lived at the beach in Gulfport.”
I looked at my cellphone and saw the time. “We should go. Practice starts soon.”
Dane stood and cleaned his cup, then placed it with the other drying dishes.
“Thank you for the coffee.” He smiled at Mom.
“Anytime. I really enjoy your company. I can see why Hales likes you so much. As a friend, of course.” She smiled.
I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Let’s go.” I threw the banana peel away and grabbed my backpack on the way out.
When we got to his truck, I put the backpack in the back and got in. I looked at Dane. “I did something really stupid last night. I was gonna text you, but I didn’t want to wake you up.”
He smirked. “And what was that? Did you lay one on Zach?” he teased.
I put my head in my hands and groaned. “Might as well have.” I sat back up and looked at Dane. “I told him he was hot.”
Dane burst out laughing. “That’s nothing major. Girls tell him that all the time. He’s used to that.”
“But you don’t understand. I’m not that kind of girl. I don’t want to be that type of girl. I sounded so fucking juvenile. It was disgusting.”
He chuckled. “Well, then just contain that next time. At least you didn’t say worse to him.” Dane’s smile faded. “You should hear some of the stuff women say to him.”
“I can just imagine. But today, I have to see him. He looked annoyed. I’m so stupid.”
When we pulled up, I got out and grabbed my backpack.
“Just act normal. He’ll probably pretend like you never said it.” He grabbed his bag, and we headed toward the field. Zach was already there setting things up. “He must be avoiding the restaurant.” He laughed. “He hates that place.”
I adjusted my ballcap and tightened my ponytail. I grabbed a glove from my backpack, and Dane tossed me a ball. The other guys were walking over and getting ready to go out on the field. Zach looked at me out of the corner of his eye, and I smiled a little. I saw a girl with long dark hair in the stands texting on her phone. Trevor walked over and put his arm around my shoulders.
“How’s the star of the team today?”
I scoffed. “I’m not the star, and don’t you dare treat me like I am. We’re all in this together.”
Trevor broke out in song, singing the theme song from High School Musical. I cracked up when the entire team joined in.
“Wow, that’s almost as bad as my dancing,” I teased. I smirked when I saw Zach laugh. “So, who is the girl?” I asked Trevor.
“That’s Sadie, Gabe’s cousin. She likes to come watch us practice and not in a creepy way. She just loves baseball.” His smile was undeniable. She was important to him. “She’s awesome. She’s kind of like you in a way.”
“How so?” I asked as I looked at the girl in ripped jeans and a Red Hot Chili Peppers t-shirt.
“She’s driven. She beats to her own drum. Like you, she does what she wants instead of trying to fit into the status quo.”
Trevor took his arm off my shoulders and walked over to get his glove.
We all made our way out to the field, and Zach started walking toward me.
I stared at my glove. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to look at him or not. When he stood in front of me, I forced myself to look up at him.
“Hey.” I was so thankful that thoughts were private because the provocative thoughts invading my mind about this man were numerous. He held out his hand near my left hand that held the baseball. I handed it to him. “Why are you taking the ball?”
“We stretch first, Hales,” Dane said from home plate.
“Oh.” I looked up at Zach again. “I could’ve just set it down.”
“I’m going to use it after everyone stretches.” He turned and headed to the front of the group and started stretching like everyone else.
“He usually does whatever we do. If we run, he runs.” Dane sat on the ground and started stretching.
“Where’s Coach Elliot?” I sat beside him and started stretching too.
“He had treatment today. He tries to stop by after.”
“Oh. That really sucks that he’s battling cancer. He’s going to be okay, right?”
“I hope so.” I could tell by the look on Dane’s face that he was worried.
“You stayed the night at their house; you guys are obviously super close. Are you related to them somehow or something?”
“Nah, I’m not related. He’s like a big brother to me though. They both are.” He motioned to Zach who had stopped stretching and was looking at his phone.
“I haven’t met your parents yet, and I’d like to. What if we hang out at your house later or something?” We both stood and stretched out our arms.
B
efore he could answer, Zach blew the whistle, and we got into positions.
I SAT ON the pitcher mound completely pissed off at myself. I wasn’t on the top of my game today. The sun was going down, and everyone but Dane and Zach had left. They were cleaning up the dugout while I pouted.
“You guys go ahead. I’m going to stay here and throw into the net for a while.”
Zach grabbed a glove and went to home plate. “Throw to me.” He squatted down and waited for me to throw.
Dane looked at me and then at Zach. “Can you bring her home? I need to go get some homework done.”
“Yeah, I’ll take her home.”
When Zach looked away from me I cut my eyes at Dane who proceeded to laugh as he walked to his truck. When Zach looked at me I smiled, but it was forced.
“I can just call my dad to come get me. You don’t have to stay.” I stretched my arm, getting ready to throw.
“It keeps me from having to go talk to my idiot manager. Now, send me a curveball.” He didn’t smile as he looked at me. His face was impassive.
I threw a perfect curveball. “Why couldn’t I do that earlier? I was so off today.” I caught the ball when he threw it back.
“We all have off days. You need to relax more. You’re too tense.”
“You don’t understand; I can’t have off days.” I threw another flawless curveball.
“I get that. But you’re putting too much pressure on yourself. Probably because you’re new, but you need to relax. With everyone gone, your throws are perfect.” He raised an eyebrow at me. “You need to take a breath and just be yourself.”
He was right. I was trying too hard to prove myself to everyone. I nodded. “I will.” I looked at the ball in my hands. “I wanna go pro.”
“That’s cool. From what I’ve seen you have a good chance at it.”
I threw a few more, regaining my confidence, before we packed up and headed out to his truck. I texted Mom and Dad letting them know what I was doing and that Zach was bringing me home.
On our way to my house, I picked apart the inside of Zach’s truck in my mind, trying to learn anything I could about him. I saw a picture of Millie on his dash near the speedometer, an old dirty Brave’s cap on the middle of the dash, and in the backseat, was a folder and a flour covered apron. I turned up his radio to see what station he liked. Nothing came on, and that’s when I noticed he had a AUX cable in the stereo.