The past week days have been a total whirlwind. Between press conferences, media days, signings, team bonding, practice and all of the travel…I’ve barely had time to think.

We’ve won three games straight so far against the other finalist, a college team from Arkansas who was rated number one. Everyone is freaking out — the media, our fans, even the team — no one expected us to sweep this team. Now we are one game away from being the best college team in the country, and I can hardly believe it.

On the field, I just feel so ON. There is nothing that can distract me, it’s like I can read every player on the field before they even react. I have some sixth baseball sense and nothing is going to come in between me and this trophy.

In all of my spare time, the only things I’ve done are sleep and eat. Which is why, when I finally flop down on my bed Saturday night, I have 11 unanswered texts from Kelsey.

“Fuck…” I hadn’t even remembered to keep checking my phone.

The rest of the texts are much of the same, until I come to the last one.

This last one is from a couple of hours ago, and my heart plummets straight into my feet. I dial her before I realize I’m even doing it. She picks up on the third ring.

“Hello?”

“Please tell me you didn’t burn the house down. I left my favorite pair of sneakers there.”

I hear her throaty laugh. “Nice to know your best friend and cat don’t mean one thing to you. Fine, let us burn. We don’t care about your stupid bats and balls either.”

God, her voice warms my chest up. I’ve been going full throttle, hitting, catching, throwing and watching film every damn second of the last four days. I hadn’t realized just how much I missed her.

I leaned back on my king size hotel bed and wished she was cradled into the nook of my shoulder. “Seriously, why did you need the fire extinguisher?”

“Oh, I didn’t. I just wanted to get a response. I was starting to feel like you’d found some other hot redheaded best friend with a great ass out in bumfuck Omaha. Either that or you took a bounce up pitch to the head and were bleeding in some two-bit ER in a cornfield.”

Shit, I’d missed her humor. I stuck my hand under my head, stretching my sore body out. I’d stripped down to nothing but my boxers after sweating my ass off in my uniform this afternoon. My dick was already beginning to form a tent in the material, just from her raspy voice.

“I’m sorry I haven’t really been by my phone. It has been so crazy out here. You know, you had the option to come out.”

“I know. But then who would have taken care of this damn cat. Did you know that when you live with an animal full time, you have to take care of it full time? Who knew a little orange fluff ball needed to be fed so many times a day? And have you ever smelt a litterbox? Gross.”

“This coming from the girl who stuck her hands up a zebra’s ass as it was in labor.”

“That’s different. That’s a medical miracle. Science. This? I never knew a tiny kitten could shit so much.”

I hear Marnie in the background. “Well, I wish I was there to help. I miss you.”

There is a beat of silence. “I miss you guys too, it’s too damn quiet here. I have to blast my music just to feel sane. You’ve all domesticated me. Christ.”

I know she’s avoiding saying she misses only me. That she can’t let herself openly admit it.

“So, are you nervous for the big game tomorrow?” She’s changing the topic. But any reason to stay on the phone with her to hear that sexy voice, I’ll take it.

“To be honest, a little. It’s the closest Grover has ever been. I don’t want to let anyone down.”

“That’s just so Clint of you.” I hear the warmth in her voice. “You say nothing about winning or being the best. Doesn’t a small part of you want to be a champion? To bring home the trophy?”

I thought about what she’d asked, and didn’t miss the fact that she knew exactly why it didn’t matter whether I won a trophy or not. “You already know that answer. You know baseball has never been about winning or losing for me. I love to play the game. And if that means winning and my teammates being happy, then great. But I’m going out on that field tomorrow to give the game I love my all. Maybe for one last time. The outcome doesn’t matter.”

I heard her content sigh through the phone. “So, have you made up your mind then? No majors like we talked about?”

We’d had this conversation a couple of times before when she was in Africa. She was so all over the place that she could never predict what she’d be doing the next day, so we always ended talking about my future.

“I don’t know. Do I dream about it? Sure. But it’s a lot of work. A lot of hard, challenging, time-consuming work. My body is worn down. I feel like an 80-year-old trapped in a 22-year-old’s body. And when I think about doing it, I just don’t feel happy. I don’t need huge sums of money. I just want to do something that will help someone. Give someone the chances I got.

“Well that, Mr. Bellows, is definitely something I can relate to. It will come to you, what you want to do.”

“I guess.” I rolled over onto my side, imagining her laying on her box spring set on the floor with Marnie milling around her. “So what are you doing?”

“Oh, trying not to blow my brains out because I’m so bored. I used to be fun. What the hell is happening to me?”

I didn’t want to attribute her change to me, but I couldn’t help feel the ego jump in my body that she wasn’t out partying right now.

“Let’s play.”

“Oh my god, yes!” I can hear her shuffling on the bed, getting comfortable. “Would you rather have to shave off your eyebrows for a whole year, or live your entire life with nose hair down to your upper lip?”

Of course she knew I wasn’t talking about phone sex. We’d play “Would You Rather” when she was in Africa and couldn’t sleep.

“Um, eyebrows. I would look surprised as shit for 365 days, but no one would come near me with epic nose hairs. Your turn. Would you rather sit in the DMV with Parker for five hours, or have to sit with the WAGS at one of my games without Minka as your buffer?”

“Fuck that is a tough one.” I hear her grumble. “Alright, alright…the WAGS. Because I would make fun of them in my head. I think Parker and I, and the entire DMV staff, would end up murdered by the end of that visit.”

I let out a boom of a laugh, thinking about the two of them spending even five minutes together in the DMV.

“Would you rather be forced to eat seven cockroaches, or drink a glass full of someone else’s sweat?”

“Ew, Roo. I think I’m going to puke. I can’t even answer that.”

“HA! If you don’t answer, I win. And then you have to do something for me.”

“Oh, I’ll do whatever you want.” My tone is raw and sexual.

I hear her sharp intake of breath. “Not fair. Distracting me with phone sex will not get you out of answering.” Her throaty voice was barely above a whisper.

“Fine. The cockroaches.” I shuddered audibly and Kelsey laughed. “I wish you were here to watch us tomorrow.”

She’s silent again. I wait her out, wanting a proper acknowledgement this time. “Me too.”

Those two words make my heart beat so loudly I can hear it in my ears.

“I think I’m going to get to bed, Marnie is falling asleep as we speak.”

I let her off the hook, just happier than anything that she even admitted that. Because it was more than just wishing she was here with our friends. I knew, just from her quiet confession, that she wished she was here in this bed with me.

“Well, sweet dreams. I’ll see you in two days, Roo.”

“Night, Clint.”

I hung up and hugged the phone to my chest like some lovesick puppy. The only reason I knew I was still all man was because my cock was now begging for attention from my hand. With just our phone conversation, just hearing Kelsey’s voice, I knew I was ready for tomorrow.