Chapter Eighteen
Nick
“What the hell are you swinging at, Bronson? That wasn’t even close to the strike zone, you fucking bum,” Sawyer hollers through the glass wall before bringing his beer bottle up to his lips.
The view from our Sky Suite at the ballpark is something. So is the language from the groom-to-be as he watches his former teammates on the Rangers get their asses handed to them by the Nationals. Of course, it doesn’t help that the current batter is the one he caught his ex-wife in bed with not too long after his career-ending shoulder injury.
“Tough game,” Stuart whispers beside me as we watch the Rangers continue their downward spiral in the fifth inning.
“No shit,” I mumble, taking a pull from my own beer.
This place is pretty sweet. I’ve attended a couple of pro baseball games over the years, but never in a suite. The chairs are luxurious and leather, and there’s a wall of food and drinks. The guys spared no expense when it came to today’s bachelor party, and until the Rangers started to fall behind in the third inning, it was proving to be a good day. Now? Now everyone is screaming obscenities at the glass and drinking a little faster.
“You guys get enough to eat?” Linkin asks as he comes over to where Stuart and I are seated.
“We have. Thanks for inviting us,” I say to the big guy married to one of Meghan’s sisters.
“I’m afraid if the Rangers don’t pull their heads out of their asses, Sawyer is going to come unhinged,” Linkin replies with a laugh.
“You think?” Stuart teases as we watch the former ball player rant in front of us.
“Come on, Joel! We need a hit,” he commands with a hard handclap as he watches his friend approach the plate.
We all seem to hold our breath as Joel Cougar steps up to the plate and takes his stance. The first pitch is a little high, and the batter doesn’t swing. Ball one. The next pitch clips the inside corner. Strike. “Come on, Cougar!” Sawyer bellows at his good friend.
The third pitch is low, but is apparently right where the batter likes it. He swings hard, the sound of the bat smacking the ball filling the suite through the speakers. It sails high over the center fielder’s head and falls into the bleachers. Home run!
“Yes! That’s what I’m talking about,” Sawyer cheers with the rest of the guys, walking around and throwing out high fives like party favors. Even though the Rangers are still down by two, the home run by Joel seems to lighten the mood of everyone in the room, especially the groom.
“Hey, guys,” Sawyer says, dropping into the chair beside me. “Having fun?”
“We are,” I answer, glancing over and noticing Sawyer’s eyes are already a little glassy and heavy-lidded. He’s definitely well on his way to buzzed.
“Sorry about my language. I can get a little worked up,” he says, taking another drink of his beer.
“You don’t have to apologize to us,” Stuart replies.
“But if you think I’m bad, you should see my future wife,” Sawyer adds, a big smile breaking out on his face. “She once cussed an ump out for a bad call and almost got herself ejected from the game.”
“Really?” I ask, laughing.
“Oh, hell yeah. My Alison has a mouth that would make a sailor blush,” he says with a smile. The way he grins lets me know he’s probably thinking about something very specific that she has said or done recently.
“I’ve only known her in the school setting, and there wasn’t a lot of cursing going on,” my brother-in-law says.
“No, she’s pretty straight-laced when it comes to school. Except for that one time under the bleachers,” Sawyer replies. The look he gives us lets us know exactly what went down under the bleachers. Or specifically, who went down. “Anyway, make sure you get plenty to eat and drink. The guys bought enough booze to get half the bleachers drunk by the seventh inning stretch.”
“The only one we’re focused on getting drunk is the groom,” Levi adds when he joins our group.
“Don’t get me so sloppy drunk that I can’t perform tonight,” Sawyer says with a laugh.
“Not my problem,” Ryan tosses in when he comes over to where we’re seated. “My job is to get you drunk. Not worry about the status of your dick later tonight.”
“As long as I stay away from the hard shit, I’ll be fine,” Sawyer replies.
“So noted,” Ryan says before turning around to Linkin. “Hey, Link! Our man Sawyer needs a shot of something strong!”
“No, he does not,” Sawyer hollers.
A moment later, Linkin joins us all with a tray of shot glasses, each one containing amber liquid. “One shot won’t give you whiskey dick,” Linkin says as he passes around the shot glasses. “It’ll be the fifth or sixth one that does it.”
“You guys are assholes. I’m not sure I want to be related to you,” Sawyer mumbles.
“Yes you do. We’re fucking awesome. Besides, you should be thanking us. We could have let Orval plan the party the way he wanted,” Levi says, causing us all to glance over to the food table where the family patriarch is talking to Brian and Sawyer’s dad.
“Good call,” Sawyer concedes.
“A toast,” Dean says, pulling everyone’s attention in the room. “To Sawyer and AJ. May their marriage be full of laughter and love.”
“And plenty of the sex!” Orval exclaims from across the room.
“To the sex!” we all reply, raising our shot glasses high in the air before throwing back the liquid. It burns like fire as it slides down my throat, immediately warming my stomach.
As we watch the rest of the game, my thoughts drift to a certain brunette with alluring green eyes. We’ve spent the better part of a week and a half together, flirting and enjoying ourselves. The kiss from last Saturday night hasn’t been repeated, but it’s not from a lack of wanting. We’ve just always found ourselves either in a social setting or at work. And it’s not like you can steal a kiss via late night FaceChat or text.
“What time are the girls going to Lucky’s?” Stuart asks as we watch the Rangers take the field in the bottom of the ninth inning. They’ve managed to tie it up with a series of base hits, followed by another solo homerun from Joel Cougar in the eighth.
“Anytime,” Dean answers after glancing down at his watch. “They were going to have dinner at the Mexican restaurant at six, but should be heading up to Lucky’s after.”
“Why? You missing your wife already?” I tease my brother-in-law.
“Knock it off or I’ll tell you about this thing she does with her tongue,” Stuart (the bastard) replies, making bile rise in my throat.
“Don’t you dare, asshole,” I reply with the shake of my head. “You’ve been hanging around her too long. You two are perfect for each other.”
“I wanna know,” Orval says beside me, an ornery look on his face. “My Emmie has learned a few tricks over the years. I might be able to share some secrets with you, boy.”
The look on Stuart’s face is one of horror. “No, I’m good. I was just teasing Nick, since I sleep with his sister.”
Fucker.
“Suit yourself, but if you ever want to know all about the sex, you let me know. I’ve got stories for days…” Orval adds, gazing out at the baseball field. Though, I don’t think he actually sees the field at all.
“I’m about ready,” Ryan says, coming over and standing beside me.
“Let me guess, you miss your wife too?”
“Hell yes, I do. She’s also due soon, and I hate being this far away from her,” he says, glancing down at his watch.
“The game’s about over,” Linkin chimes in, patting his brother-in-law on the shoulder. “Then I’m gonna drive like the wind to get home to my firecracker.”
“I’m ready to head out,” Levi says, walking over and tossing his empty beer bottle in the trash. “You think the groom is ready?”
We all glance over at Sawyer, who’s now visiting with a few of the big wigs from the Rangers front office. They are in town for the game, and once they heard Sawyer was in a suite for his bachelor party, they all headed over to say hello. “Yeah, but we can’t leave until Joel and a few of the others come up after the game,” Dean adds.
They mentioned in the limo ride to D.C. that since Joel and another teammate were in the wedding, they got permission to stop by the suite after the game. They can’t make the trip back to Jupiter Bay with us, since they have another game tomorrow, but they wanted to see Sawyer and at least help him celebrate for a bit.
The game ends and soon the suite fills up with players, coaches, and suits. It seems like most of the team has filed in, all eager to congratulate their former teammate on his upcoming wedding. Of course, many of them take the opportunity to help clean off the food on the tables too.
An hour later, the party finally starts to wind down and everyone who’s not riding home in the limo takes their cue to head out. The guys all give last fist bumps and shoulder slaps to Sawyer, who was constantly handed either a fresh beer or a shot of something throughout the entire evening. He’s well intoxicated at this point.
The guys all start to make sure everything is in order with the suite before we leave.
“Hey, I almost forgot! I brought brownies,” Orval says to me, holding a tray and wearing a too-wide smile.
“No!” Linkin, Levi, Dean, and Ryan all bellow at the same time. Linkin runs at us, swinging his arm and knocking the tray of chocolate brownies onto the floor.
Everyone is silent for a full minute, no one really knowing what to say.
Orval glances down at the mess at his feet before finally speaking. “I bought those.”
It takes a second, but the guys bust up laughing, and since I’ve heard the infamous Viagra brownies story from Meghan, I join in the laughter. We laugh the entire way down the elevator and out to the awaiting limo. Everyone falls into a seat in the car, huge smiles on our faces.
“I miss my Alison Jane. Take me drunk I’m home,” Sawyer slurs, which only makes us all crack up laughing once more.