But I had faith that whoever took my starting position could handle it.
“Be on the lookout for something from Chase,” I said. “He said we’re having a party to celebrate my retirement.”
King grinned. “Hell, yeah. I love a good party that doesn’t involve the geriatrics at the community. I love them, but I’ve seen more flabby ass in the last few years. I need something different.”
I snorted and shook my head. I still couldn’t get over the fact that he worked at a senior community in the off-season. Of all the people, he wasn’t one I’d think would be there.
“I guess we should all get ready to party,” Derek said with a grin.
Epilogue
Zoe
“When Chase said a party, he really meant it,” I muttered, taking in the players, their wives, and families.
I didn’t know how Chase had gotten the owner to agree, but Jacob’s retirement party was being held on Spartan Field. There were tables scattered through the outfield and tables laden with food along the third base foul line.
There was even a small table at third base with his jersey on it plus a bat, ball, and a few other Spartan themed items.
“This is insane,” Noah muttered from Jacob’s other side.
He grinned and threw an arm over Noah’s shoulder. “It is. But you’ll get used to it. You still have two years until college, but you’ll be here one day.”
He glanced at Jacob, hope shining in his eyes.
“Let’s introduce you two around.”
I threaded my fingers through Jacob’s as he led us into the thick of the crowd, introducing me and Noah to everyone.
It was insane. I hadn't been around the entire team before, only the ones who were dating or married to the girls I was friends with.
I never realized there were so many people associated with the team.
By the time we reached Chase, I’d forgotten a good portion of the people I’d been introduced to, and was glad I likely wouldn’t see a lot of them again.
“Congrats, man,” Chase said, pulling Jacob into a bro hug.
“Thanks. Have you met my nephew, Noah?”
My heart swelled in my chest at hearing Jacob refer to Noah as his nephew. That was a recent development, one Noah and I loved.
“Hey, girl,” Emma said from behind me.
I turned to see her and my other friends standing there with smiles on their faces.
“This is insane,” Charlotte said, looking around.
“I’ve never known them to have a party on the field before.”
Emma and Preston shared a look. “We might have had something to do with that. The owner refused, initially. But we worked our magic and showed him how much money we could save by doing it here instead of somewhere else.”
I chuckled, shaking my head. “Always comes down to money, doesn’t it?”
Preston nodded. “You have no idea. I’m ready for him to sell already.”
“Why hasn’t he?” I asked.
Emma shrugged. “I don’t know. Neither of us are privy to that stuff. I keep hoping that one day we’ll come to work and we’ll hear that he was able to sell it to someone else. The stress of working with him constantly looking over our shoulders is getting difficult.”
“For real,” Preston said. “He’s constantly going on about cutting costs and I don’t know where else we can cut. We make a good profit from sales, so I just don’t get it.”
I shrugged, not sure what I could contribute to this conversation.
I’d heard a lot in the recent weeks about the owner and how he was placing pressure on the team to cut costs, cut corners, yet still perform in a way he wanted.
It was crappy, and I was with them in their hope that he could sell sooner rather than later.
“Aunt Z,” Noah said from behind me. “They’re about to do a presentation.”
I turned to see Noah looking toward a makeshift podium I hadn’t seen.
I looked back at the girls and smiled. “I guess I should head over there.”
They nodded, and I followed Noah to the podium where Chase and Jacob were standing.
Chase had his arm slung around Jacob’s shoulder; he was holding a microphone.
“Testing, can you hear me?”
His voice boomed out of the large speakers set up behind him, and the talking quieted down.
“I know we all know why we’re here, but I didn’t want to let it get too late before I gave a little speech about Jacob Vaughn. If I waited too long, we’d all probably be too drunk to talk coherently.”
Laughter rang out around us, and I shook my head. He wasn’t wrong.
“Vaughn has been with us since the start of his baseball career almost ten years ago. It’s crazy to think it’s been that long.” Chase paused and shook his head. “I remember getting him fresh out of college after playing on the lower teams for only a few weeks.
“He was still wet behind the ears, and oh so peppy about it.”
More laughter.
“But he quickly fell in line and showed his worth when he realized he had to earn his starting spot. And he did. He earned it by the end of that first season. He was one of the youngest players I put on the field, but one of the absolute best I’ve seen play.
“We had a good run together, and I hate to see him leave. But his new job is lucky to have him because I know he’s going to work his ass off to prove himself. Let’s raise a glass to Vaughn, then anyone who would like to come up and say a few words can.”
Belatedly, I realized I had nothing to drink, but then Callie nudged me and handed me a flute of champagne. Trust my friends to have my back.
I smiled my thanks and turned back to Chase, who was holding up his glass.
“Congrats on retiring, and good luck on your next adventure. To Jacob Vaughn!”
The crowd echoed Chase’s toast.
A few moments later, King took the microphone from Chase and started talking about what it was like to play with Jacob.
When he was done, Derek went up.
Then Alvarez.
Bob, the assistant coach.
And many others.
By the time the toasts were done, I was on my second glass of champagne and thankful they were finally over. I’d float away if I wasn’t careful.
Jacob rejoined Noah and me, throwing his arms over both our shoulders.
“Now that the boring part is done, you ready to eat?”
“Heck, yeah!”
Noah tore away from us to head to the buffet, and I laughed. “That kid.”
“Always eating.”
We watched as he piled his plate with food and found an empty table.
“You happy?” I asked Jacob as we walked toward the food.
“Yeah. I’m ready to start my new job next week. What about you?”
I grinned. “I am. I’m ready to have a live-in handyman.”
Jacob laughed, and I joined him.
Before we reached the table, he stopped walking and pulled me into him. “I’m ready to be your live-in handyman.”
Then he kissed me.
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Also by A.M. Williams
The Boys of Summer
The Changeup
The Fastball
The Screwball
The Knuckleball
The Slider
The Curveball
Sport Standalones
Blitz
Short Stop to Love
Hearts Penalty
Marching Offsides
Holiday Standalones
Hometown Christmas
The Christmas Spark
It’s Always Been You (Holiday Springs Resort Book 1)
Standalones
Vetted: An Everyday Heroes World Novel
Acknowledgments
&n
bsp; Whew. So many people to thank here.
First, Jess P., my alpha. Thank you for always being up for some voice messaging back and forth to bounce ideas off of. I wish we still lived close to each other so we could do our lunches! But this is the next best thing.
Melissa, my editor, has worked just as hard as I have on these books and I seriously couldn’t have done it without her. Thank you for letting me vent and working with me to get things shuffled around so I could finish all this.
Amy at Indie Pen PR, you seriously rock. You’ve been such a big help getting things settled for cover reveals and releases. I couldn’t have done half of what you do. Thank you.
About the Author
A.M. Williams is just a simple girl from the south that found herself living abroad. When she’s not annoying her cat or reading, she’s spending time with her husband and traveling as much as possible. She has a serious case of wanderlust and wants to go as many places as possible while she can. She loves Cheerwine, sweet tea, and North Carolina (eastern style) BBQ as well as those crystal clear waters on the North Carolina coast.
Follow or like A.M. Williams on the following platforms:
Website: https://authoramwilliams.com
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The Slider (Boys of Summer Book 5) Page 21