Chapter One – Gunner

“Do you see his eyes?”

“Do you see his body? I don’t think he realizes how hot he actually is.”

Glancing up, I took in the two moms standing there on the sidelines of their sons’ Little League baseball practice. The one waved her fingers at me, and I forced a smile back and said, “Ma’am, y’all do realize I can hear everything you’re saying. If I can hear, the boys can hear it.”

Their faces turned as red as their kids’ T-shirts. Both turned and walked over to the bleachers and sat.

With a sigh, I focused back on the kids.

Thank fuck. I was ready for this day to end.

“Mathews! Round them up!” Coach Adams called out.

I clapped my hands and called for the team to huddle up. “Come on, y’all . . . huddle up time.”

We got in a huddle, and Coach Adams leaned in. “Wednesday is game day. What are we going to do?”

They all yelled, “Have fun! Play hard!”

“Yes! In that order,” Coach said.

Coach leaned in more. “What are we going to do when the parents start yelling from the stands?”

I had to force myself not to laugh. Coach Adams couldn’t stand it when the parents screamed and yelled for him to do things a certain way. It was Little League baseball, and he wanted the boys to enjoy the game first off and winning the game secondly.

“Listen to Coach only!” they all yelled out together.

“Coach Mathews, will you be there?”

Damn. My heart melted as little Robbie looked up at me. “Of course I’ll be there.”

They all cheered. As much as I would have loved to volunteer for Pop Warner coaching, it didn’t work with my own football schedule at the University of Texas, so I did Little League baseball. I enjoyed volunteer work, and our own football coach insisted we do it, so it wasn’t that big a deal for me to work it into my schedule.

I glanced over my shoulder and saw a small group of moms standing there watching. I was pretty positive they were staring at my ass. When one of them walked up and slapped my ass last week, I nearly choked on my own damn tongue.

The one mom waved again.

Focusing back on the team, I listened to Coach telling the boys they did a great job today and to go home and eat a good healthy meal.

“All hands in!” he shouted as we piled our hands on each other.

“Go, Vipers!” was shouted out as we lifted our hands and clapped. The boys all scurried off as Coach and I started to get things picked up.

“You ever get tired of them women falling all over you, Mathews?”

I took a chance to peek back out toward the moms.

“All the time, sir. Some don’t even care that their husbands are standing next to them when they do it.”

He laughed, pulled me to a stop, and looked at me. “I’m pretty positive that if you wanted to, you’d be having a different girl every day. Hell, twice a day . . . but don’t be that guy.”

I nodded my head. “I’m not, Coach.”

“Good. Because someday there is going to be a woman who makes you stop in your tracks and has your breath trying to find its way out, and all those women you slept with will disappear in the blink of an eye. ”

I laughed. “Part-time pleasure?”

“Sure. You get to have them in your bed for a little bit, but how do you feel when they’re gone?”

“The same as before they were in my bed.”

“Exactly. Don’t let your dick run your life, and for fuck’s sake, wrap it all the time. You’ve got a promising future ahead of you, Gunner. ”

I chuckled again. “Yes, sir. I won’t.”

“What can I get ya to drink, handsome?”

“Hey, Patty, I’ll have the Harp Lager.”

“Your boys meeting you? Should I wait on your dinner order?”

I nodded. “Yes, please.” She winked and headed back toward the bar.

Patty was a pretty woman, with bright red hair that she always wore up in a bun on the top of her head. If I had to guess, she was in her midthirties. Happily married to her husband, John, for six years. She made that clear the first time Josh hit on her.

“What’s up, Mathews?” Josh said, slapping me on the back.

I sighed. “Not much. You?”

Josh signaled for Patty. She would already know he wanted a Guinness.

“Long damn day. I thought that after football season, things would slow down.”

Laughing, I shook my head. “You out late last night or something?”

“I wish! I can’t even blame this one on a hookup. Shit’s just insane right now.”

“Tell me about it,” I mumbled.

“What’s up, gentlemen?”

Josh and I both watched as Jeff sat down and let out a long sigh.

“Long day for you too?” I asked.

“Nah, just issues at home, that’s all.”

“Your hot sister you won’t let us near giving you hell?” Josh asked.

“Fuck you, Hayes. You ever come within three feet of my sister, Ellie, and I’ll crack your skull open and eat your brains.”

Josh and I both snarled our lips.

“Goddamn. You give new meaning to the words protective brother,” Josh finally said with a laugh.

I’d only ever seen Ellie from a distance. Jeff had put one picture of her out once when we’d first moved in together. I made one comment about how cute she was, and that was it. No more pictures of Ellie. No meeting Ellie, no being home when she stopped by the house. She was off-limits. Ellie did, however, glance up at me from the front porch of her mom’s house a few weeks back. The only thing I could remember were her eyes. Her blue eyes haunted me for a few days after that.

I shook my head to erase the memory and pulled out my phone. I sniffed the air and frowned. Taking in a few more sniffs, I asked, “What in the hell is that smell?”

Josh followed and jerked his head back. “Smells like dog shit.”

Jeff lifted one foot and then the other. “Ah, damn it. I must have stepped in it.”

He got up from the table and headed outside.

“Where’s he going? Leaving?” Patty asked as she set down our drinks.

“Stepped in dog shit again.”

She rolled her eyes. “He want his usual, ya think?”

“Yeah, I’m sure he does,” Josh answered.

Jeff’s beer was waiting for him when he walked back in. He must have walked to his truck and changed into his sneakers because the awful smell was gone.

“Dude, as long as you’ve been volunteering at the shelter, when will you learn not to step in shit?” I asked as Jeff sat.

Jeff had been volunteering at the Town Lake Animal Shelter for a while now. I hadn’t ever really known him to love dogs, and I had a feeling there was a girl behind it, but I never pushed it and asked.

“I took four dogs for a walk on the trail. Do you know how many women that attracts? I have a harder time trying to control them than I do the dogs!”

Josh and I both laughed.

“What is it with women lately? One lady actually grabbed my ass before she took off running again. One tried to give me her number to take her dog for a walk, and another asked me if I took care of pussies . . . as in pussycats!” Jeff frowned. “At least I think that’s what she was talking about. Hell, I’m not even sure anymore.”

We lost it laughing again.

Josh shook his head. “Trust me, dude. She wasn’t talking about her cat!”

Patty came back over to get our order. Once she walked away, I let out a sigh and said, “I’d rather have some hot jogger hit on me than a bunch of moms.”

“At it again, are they?” Jeff asked with a wide smile.

I shook my head. “They talk like I’m not within earshot. I don’t get it. One asked me if I would please start wearing baseball pants to practice . . . with her husband standing right there! Of course his nose was buried in his phone, and he didn’t hear a damn thing she said.”

“Are any of them good-looking?” Josh asked after taking a bite of his burger.

I half shrugged. “Yeah, some are pretty hot actually.”

“They’re lonely; clearly their husbands don’t give a shit about them . . . Flirt back with them, but don’t fuck ’em,” Josh stated.

Staring at him, I replied, “I would never fuck them. Christ, Josh.”

“Have a little fun with them. All they want is a little bit of attention, and if getting it from a young dude gets them hot and bothered, what’s the harm? They might actually jump their old man when he gets home from work. Could be good for their marriage.”

Jeff shot Josh a dirty look. “So let me get this straight. You’re married to a hot chick. She flirts with a younger guy and gets off on it and then fucks you when you get home, but you know she’s actually thinking about the young guy who she really wants to be screwing. You’re okay with that?”

With his brows pinched together, Josh pointed to Jeff. “First off, I’m not getting married. Second, if I was married, fuck no, I wouldn’t be okay with that. Besides, I know how to please a woman. My wife wouldn’t be flirting with Gunner. She’d only have eyes for me.”

Jeff and I both laughed.

“I don’t know what’s funnier, picturing you married and with one woman or your future wife flirting with Gunner,” Jeff said.

Josh gave Jeff the finger. “Neither will ever happen, so this conversation has turned stupid.”

Josh’s phone buzzed. Pulling it out of his pocket, he smiled.

“You got a date you’re gonna blow us off for?” Jeff asked.

“Nah, it’s my little brother. He’s asking if we can go for pizza this weekend. Y’all feel like going to Dave and Buster’s with me this weekend? I think Dominic would love it there.”

“I don’t have any plans,” I said, looking over to Jeff. “You got plans?”

“Sunday afternoon. I need to help them at the animal shelter repair a couple of pens.”

Patty walked up and asked if we needed anything. We all smiled and replied with a no.

Josh smiled at me and Jeff. “Perfect. I’m sure Dom’s mom will be okay with Saturday, say around six.”

“Six works for me,” I said as I took a bite of food.

Jeff lifted his beer. “Then here is to spending a Saturday night with a ten-year-old kid.”

We all paused, laughed, then clinked our drinks together.