I was taking a significant risk. I knew that Aaron might be furious, but I was worried my baseball performance would soon start to suffer if I didn’t do something. Eric was already concerned about me. He said, “It’s way too early in the season to be distracted, buddy. Get your act together. Keep your eye on the ball.”

After Eric’s comments, I sat in a corner of the locker room to think things over. I was trying to lead the team like Huggins requested, but my teammates didn’t all respond to my confidence with warm, fuzzy thoughts. On top of that, my inability to sort out the relationship with Aaron was a distraction. I had to take action to settle everything down.

I made up a story about something urgent that I noticed in a game, and I asked Eckert if he knew the number of the hotel room where Aaron was staying. I felt guilty and a little bit dirty when he told me room 817. In fact, I stopped in the lobby, ordered a drink, and tried to talk myself out of it.

It didn’t work. I knew that Aaron was only a few hundred feet away. It was 8:00 p.m., and the next day was a free one before we traveled to Pittsburgh. I had hours ahead of me with nothing to do, and I wondered if Aaron did, too.

As I stepped out of the elevator on the eighth floor, my breath caught in my throat. I rubbed the front of my shirt to try and smooth any wrinkles. It was one of three new ones I bought a day earlier. I told myself I bought them to help reflect well on the team when I was in public. Deep down, I knew that I bought them to try and please Aaron.

They were patterned dress shirts that would work well for a night out at an expensive restaurant or in a club. They were the highest-priced shirts I’d ever owned. The one I wore to Aaron’s hotel was purple with intricate geometric patterns. I took a long, deep breath and knocked on the door of room 817.

There was no response. I wondered if Aaron thought someone had the wrong room. Or maybe he’d gone out, but I quizzed a few of my teammates earlier in the day, and they never saw him out at restaurants or clubs in Charlotte. I think he turned into a hermit after he joined Eric, Javier, and me for the one night out.

I knocked again. This time I heard movement from beyond the door. It opened as far as the chain would allow. I saw one of Aaron’s eyes and half of his mouth. He exclaimed, “Chase! What are you doing here? How did you…”

I interrupted and asked, “Would you let me inside? It’s cold out here.” I rubbed my arms like I was standing in a snowstorm and laughed.

He pushed the door shut, unlatched the chain, and then pulled it open again. He said, “I guess it would be rude to make you leave now that you’re here.”

I slipped inside and offered a hug. Fortunately, Aaron reciprocated. He smelled good. His cheek was smooth against my stubble. Aaron was freshly showered and shaved. I wondered if he was planning on going out even though he wore only jeans and a Rock City Ramblers T-Shirt.

I asked, “Are you going somewhere? You smell good.”

He stepped back from the hug. “I’m not going anywhere. I had room service and jumped in the shower after. Cleanliness is a good thing, isn’t it?”

I prowled through the room taking it all in. “Yes, it is.” It was a large room, and the bed was king-sized. It was perfect space for play.

Aaron kept the room neat and tidy. Some of my teammates were living in rooms in the same hotel, and they turned them into dumps. The housekeeping staff piled the players’ stacks of dirty clothes on chairs so they could have space to vacuum the carpets.

Aaron asked, “I think I have an obvious question. How did you know this was my room? I don’t give that information out to players.”

I said, “Eckert was kind.” I rubbed my chin as I turned back toward Aaron. “Oh, I almost forgot. There is a reason for my visit. I was thinking about this afternoon’s game, and I remembered watching Harry Grimes batting today. I wanted to ask if you noticed, too. I think he’s dropping his elbow. He’s in a slump, so I wondered if we could help.”

Aaron frowned. “How much of that are you making up?”

I sighed and held up a finger and thumb gauging the amount. “25%, maybe.”

“I’d say closer to eighty.”

“Can we settle on seventy?”

Aaron lowered his head and laughed. It wasn’t a belly laugh, but I heard echoes of the laughter that turned me on in Chattanooga. We were stepping directly into a danger zone, and I knew it. Aaron said, “God must be testing me. That’s the only explanation.”

I held out my arms again. “As long as it’s just a test, how about another hug? I’ll grade you. I promise that I’ll score it on a generous curve.”

Aaron folded himself into my arms. He asked, “Does anyone else know you’re here?”

I shook my head. “Nobody does. Eric and Javier went to a movie. I even told Eckert I was stopping here before dinner. Everyone thinks I’m enjoying a quiet night in my apartment watching Bull Durham for the twentieth time.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad. It’s a great movie. Do you have a nice couch?”

“Is leather nice? You’ll have to stop by, Coach. I think it’s a good one for cuddling.”

I didn’t expect what happened next. Aaron initiated the first kiss. He slipped a hand behind my neck and pulled me closer until our lips met. I inhaled the masculine scent of his aftershave as we kissed. My knees wobbled, and I gripped him tighter in the hug.

When we came up for air, I said, “You kissed me, Coach! Is that allowed?”

Aaron stared into my eyes and rubbed both hands over my shirt. His fingers kneaded at the muscle beneath. He mumbled, “It’s not allowed, but it’s not my fault either. You made me break the rules. I’m blaming this all on you.” He rubbed and kneaded more and said, “This shirt is amazing. It must have cost a fortune.”

“You’re the first to see it. I curled the corner of my mouth up into a half-smile. I sorta bought it for you.”

“Damn, Chase, you can’t do that kind of thing. Maybe we should just sit over there on the couch and watch TV. I had to kiss you, but I think I can stop there.”

I gave him a gentle shove on the chest and pulled back. “Should I feel insulted? You really think you can stop here? I don’t believe you. Anyway, I don’t think that’s a couch. It’s called a love seat, and that tells us what’s supposed to happen there. You’re the one that kissed me.”

Aaron didn’t say anything in response. He grabbed the TV remote control and sat on the love seat. He patted the cushion by his side. “You can choose. Watch with me, or you can go. I’m not trying to insult you. If I wanted to do that, I’d call hotel security and have you thrown out for stalking me.”

Trying my best to look like I was sulking while fighting back the impulse to laugh, I stumbled over toward the love seat and planted my ass on the opposite end from Aaron.

He flipped the channels of the TV and said, “You’re not fooling me. What do you like to watch?”

“I’m taking the remote away from you if you stop on sports. What about one of those remodeling shows? We could think about the house on the beach. Maybe it’s an old one that has weathered a few storms, and it needs some work.”

“Oh man, watching sports at home is like an accountant taking a stack of work home so he could play a game with the numbers. I get bored sometimes with the renovation shows. Do you like the cooking stuff?”

I tried to surreptitiously move closer to Aaron as I stared at the TV and said, “I like to watch those because the food all looks so yummy, but I don’t know how to cook much.” My fingers crept toward his thigh.

“I saw that, and I do know how to cook.”

“Saw what?”

“Your slick little moves.”

I turned my head, “Coach?”

Aaron stopped on a show where people were baking cakes. “Yes?”

“Can I lay my head on your lap?”

He smirked. “Do I have a choice?”

I grinned and snuggled up with my head in Aaron’s lap. I gasped when I felt his hard dick pressing into the back of my head. There was only one thing to do. I ignored the TV and turned my head to grind my face into his package.

I heard a hiss as Aaron sucked in a breath. He did nothing to stop me, and he didn’t say a word. I reached for his jeans and massaged the bulge with my right hand while I tugged his T-Shirt up with my left hand and kissed his bare belly.

Aaron’s fingers tangled in my hair. He whispered, “I missed you.”

The sound of the zipper opening on Aaron’s jeans filled the silence in the room. I whispered, “I’m here,” as I kissed the outline of his cock in his bright red boxer briefs.

He mumbled, “We can’t let the rest of the team know you’re here. You have to leave early in the morning.”

“Are you inviting me to sleep with you, Coach?” I closed my fingers around his balls and mouthed the head of his cock through the fabric of the boxer briefs.

Aaron moaned, “Should I be the one sucking you? You’re the t…”

“I don’t follow the rules. Remember?” I peeled the boxer briefs down and stared at Aaron’s perfectly formed cock. I licked slowly along the length of a protruding vein. It was like tracing a route on a road map with my fingertip.

Aaron’s breathing quickened. He helpfully pulled his T-Shirt up and off over his head. I rubbed the stubble on my chin against the skin covering his balls. He whispered, “Maybe the bed would be more comfortable.”

I wrapped my fingers around the base of his cock and made it point straight up into the air. I looked into Aaron’s eyes. “Are you taking me to bed, Coach?”

A few short minutes later we were both naked on Aaron’s hotel room bed. The talking heads on the TV rattled on about fondant and raspberry filling. Aaron handled my shirt with reverent care draping it across the back of a chair.

I slid up beside Aaron pushing my naked body against his. Resting my cheek on his bare chest, I asked, “Can we lay here just like this for awhile? I could be happy here with you forever.”

Aaron wrapped his arm around my torso. “It’s so amazing being with you, Chase. Why do you have to be so excellent?”

I laughed softly. “It’s a test, Coach. It’s a nefarious plot. I’m here to try and throw you off track.” I turned my head slightly so I could kiss a hard nipple. I listened to his steady breathing as I licked the nipple before exhaling against the damp skin.

“Ooh, damn, I can feel that in my toes.”

“I have all sorts of tricks up my sleeve.”

Aaron groaned. “I think I’m failing the test.”

“Or passing with flying colors.” I rolled over and checked the drawer in the nightstand. “Are you still prepared, Coach?”

“Always, but I didn’t expect it would be you.”

I grumbled and asked, “Do I have competition?”

“Cool your jets, Chase. The only person who’s set foot in this room other than you and the housekeeping staff is Mo.”

“Mo? Don’t tell me you’re sleeping with Mo.”

“No, I’m not. I think Mo’s straight, and yeah, he was here, and we watched some game film clips together. He was a little nervous about watching with me, so he asked if we could do it somewhere else other than the stadium. Mo is a real student of his game, but he likes others to think he does it all himself. He wanted my commentary on a range of batters so he could do a better job of programming his pitches.”

I poked at Aaron’s chest. “See, you bring your work home. You can’t do that, Coach. Home is a sacred space.” I retrieved a condom and a bottle of lube from the nightstand. I tried to look stern, but in the back of my mind, I was thrilled that Aaron didn’t have a line of other men visiting his hotel room.

“Damn, we really shouldn’t do this,” whispered Aaron.

I held out the condom packet to him as I slipped between his legs stroking my cock to full erection with my right hand. “You don’t want to do this?”

“I didn’t say that.” He tore the condom package open with his teeth.

“And you’re not stopping me.”

“No, I’m helping. We’re both to blame.”

I pushed Aaron’s legs back so that his knees were bent. I knelt between his legs and stared into his eyes while he reached out for my cock with the condom in his hand.

It was as earth-shattering as the first time. I pumped Aaron’s cock in my fist while I pounded him hard. When I sensed we were both close to the edge, I stopped. Then I slowly ramped it all up again until Aaron was howling.

“Damn, make me cum, Chase!” He reached out a hand to wrap his fingers around mine and encouraged me to stroke him again.

“Maybe I should tie you down, so I’m completely in charge.”

Aaron groaned, “You wouldn’t…” I started to stroke again, and he yelped, “Oh, damn!”

I brought him to the edge more times than I did in bed in Chattanooga. He loved to hate it, and it drove me crazy, too. It was like riding hill after hill on a roller coaster. Each one was higher than the last.

I growled, “Ready, Coach?”

He whimpered, “I’m so close…”

I had a surprise in store. I pulled out of his ass, stripped off the condom and stroked our cocks together with both of my hands. Aaron’s eyes opened wide, and he pounded the bed with his open palms. I ordered, “Cum with me, Coach…”

He exploded on command. His cock was like a fountain or a small geyser. Seconds later, I threw my head back and came, too.