Getting Wound Up: A Sapphire Falls/ Love Between the Bases Novel-- PART ONE

Getting Wound Up

A Sapphire Falls/Love Between the Bases Novel

by

Jennifer Bernard

Erin Nicholas

PART ONE

A fun and flirty crossover novel from bestselling authors, Jennifer Bernard (Love Between the Bases) and Erin Nicholas (Sapphire Falls)!

Caitlyn Murray has never let on that she’s had fantasies about her brother’s friend Eli Anderson for years. She’d do anything for the sexy baseball player who walked away from stardom to stay in Sapphire Falls and take care of his family. But she and Eli are friends.
Just
friends.

So when her brother hatches a plan to get Eli to the pro baseball try-out for the Kilby Catfish and another chance at his dream, Caitlyn is all in. After all, what’s a little kidnapping among friends?

A spot on the pitcher’s mound for the Catfish isn’t the only tempting thing about the spontaneous road trip. Eli already knows that Caitlyn is as sweet as the candies she makes for the Sapphire Falls bakery, but alone with her overnight in the tiny motel room in Kansas, it’s impossible to resist the urge to take a little taste.

But when that taste leads to falling for the girl next door just as his front door is moving hundreds of miles away, can Eli really have it all? Or do they have too many strikes against them?

Getting Wound Up

Copyright © 2016 by Erin Nicholas and Jennifer Bernard

All Rights Reserved.

No part of this book, with the exception of brief quotations for book reviews or critical articles, may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by an means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Editor: Kelli Collins

Cover artist: Valerie Tibbs

Digital formatting: Author E.M.S.

Getting Wound Up

PART ONE

“Bottom of the ninth, two out, here comes the fastball…”

Eli Anderson snagged the spinning object inches from his face.

“And it’s in for a strike! Nice play, boss!” called the stock boy from the plumbing aisle.

Eli looked down at the roll of plumber’s tape in his hand.
Riiiiight.
He wasn’t on the mound at Royals Stadium, the University of Nebraska campus, the Sapphire Falls community park or even his backyard. He was behind the counter at Anderson’s Hardware. Where he spent about eighty percent of his waking hours.

He flipped the tape back to Jimmy. It hit the stock boy square in the chest, dropping into his grasp with a sweet little dip.

Jimmy whistled. “That knuckleball ought to be knocking ’em dead in Royals Stadium.”

“Yeah right. Come on, we have to get that box unpacked by the time Dad gets here. You don’t want the Glare of Doom, do you?”

“Rather get a fastball to the head,” Jimmy groaned.

“I’ll distract him with my sloppy purchase orders.” Eli winked at the kid. Truth was, his father, Chip Anderson, didn’t do much at the store these days. The massive stroke he’d suffered six years ago had taken away much of his mobility and his independence. It had taken three years of hard work before he could even speak. Eli had left college after the stroke and had been running the store since then. Eli knew how tough it was for Chip to rely on him, so he made sure to find ways his dad could feel useful. Like correcting purchase orders. Eli could do the P.O.s in his sleep, but instead he’d let his father grump his way through them.

Right on time, his father’s wheelchair whispered down the ramp that led from the back entrance. He shot a look at Jimmy, whose unpacking immediately became ten times more industrious, then wheeled to Eli’s side. Eli pushed the pile of orders toward him and crossed his arms over his chest, letting him look them over at his leisure.

Eli used the time to mentally retrace the “pitch” he’d thrown to Jimmy. Imagine throwing that during the World Series.
Perfect pitch, right in the corner, but what the heck did Anderson just throw across the plate? Is that…plumper’s tape? Another first for Sapphire Falls’ finest, Eli Anderson, who is flat-out revolutionizing the game of baseball, one bizarro pitch at a time.

Eli started at the jab of his father’s elbow in his side. “Yeah, Dad?”

His father was scowling at the paperwork. “You left out a decimal point.”

“Oops. Thanks for catching that.” Eli fixed the error that he’d put there on purpose, then met his father’s eyes.

Damn. Busted. Judging from the way he rolled his eyes, his father knew exactly what he’d just done.

“You don’t fool me, Eli.”

“Sorry, Dad,” Eli muttered. The chime at the door rang, and he looked up eagerly, anxious for a rescue.

Rescue had never looked prettier than it did in the form of Caitlyn Murray. Jimmy must have thought so too, because he dropped a roll of tape on his toe, then hopped up and down with a grimace. Poor slob. Eli gave a moment of thanks that he’d grown up with Caitlyn, that she was the little sister of his good friend Bryan and therefore he was automatically immune to her. Being a red-blooded American male, he could appreciate every bit of her petite, bright-eyed, blond-haired form. But he, unlike Jimmy, could enjoy the sight of her without any pesky inappropriate thoughts.

“Hi Eli, Mr. Anderson,” Caitlyn called as she waltzed through the door. She wore a short denim skirt and a white blouse tied in a knot at her tiny waist. She always complained about the size of her butt, but try as he might, Eli couldn’t find a single problem with it. “Hey Jimmy.”

Jimmy, still hopping on one foot, toppled backwards and stumbled against the shelving that held the plastic elbow pipes.

Eli cringed.
Get a grip
, he mouthed to Jimmy, who turned bright scarlet. Way to represent the male gender.

As usual, Caitlyn didn’t seem to notice the effect she had. Eli admired that about her. She was a down-to-earth sweetheart of a girl. A good friend…the best. She proved it once again by bending down to kiss Eli’s father on the cheek.

“I have a special surprise for you,” she told him. “Should be ready by tomorrow.”

His eyes lit up. Caitlyn worked at Scott’s Sweets, Sapphire Falls’ candy shop, and her specialty was one-of-a-kind concoctions customized for the lucky recipient. Chip had a hard time chewing, so she made him special peanut butter truffles that melted in his mouth with no effort on his part.

Eli smiled at her, his heart lifting. When Caitlyn was around, the burden of Anderson’s Hardware, his father, his family, and his entire responsibility-filled life felt lighter.

She was such a good friend.

“So what are you up to, Candy-girl?” He shuffled the purchase orders back into their file. “Did the temp gauge go out on the oven again?”

She kept a hand on Chip’s shoulder. “Can’t I come visit my favorite guys without a hardware emergency?”

“You’re welcome anytime. Heck, you can move in.”

Something flickered across her face, and he suddenly realized how that statement might be interpreted. He scrambled to cover up his error. “Truffles twenty-four seven Dad. How’s that sound?”

Chip was enjoying his embarrassment. “Pretty girl and candy. Hard to say no to that.”

Jimmy made some sort of whimpering sound from the plumbing aisle.

Caitlyn, who was looking adorably pink-cheeked, hurried past the moment. “Actually, I came to borrow you for a little while, Eli. I need your help. I found a car on Craigslist, and I need an expert opinion but Bryan’s got a full day of PT and work and can’t look at it with me.”

“First of all, Sapphire Falls has Craigslist? Second, hell yes, you need a new car.” Caitlyn drove a godawful mustard-colored Ford Focus that singlehandedly kept the Sapphire Falls mechanics in overpriced motor oil. “But I can’t go until—” He broke off at a jab in his ribs from his father. “
Ow
. Dad, I can’t. I’ve got orders to place and a couple of lumber deliveries. And it’s two hours until closing. Can you wait until later, Caitlyn?”

She shrugged, her blond hair bouncing on her shoulders. “It’s okay. I can handle it. I already talked to the guy on the phone and he seems totally cool. He says it’s in excellent condition and drives great. I have a really good feeling about it.” She turned to go, then added over her shoulder, “Oh, what does ‘salvaged’ mean? That’s a good thing, right?”

Eli was out from behind the counter before he knew it. “Caitlyn, you can’t do this alone. Just wait two hours, would you? The shop’ll be closed, and—”

“I’ll be fine,” grumped his father. “You go on, you two.”

“I’ll help him out, boss,” Jimmy piped up. “Between me and Mr. Anderson, we got this. Can’t let any Craigslist creep take advantage of Caitlyn.” Just saying her name, he turned bright red.

Caitlyn tossed her hair. “You guys are being ridiculous. I can absolutely handle this and I’m sorry I even asked. The invitation is revoked.” She marched toward the door, with Eli scrambling behind her.

“The hell it is. I’m coming with you, Cait. Cait!”

He rushed out the door after her, into the bright sunshine of July in Nebraska. Main Street was crowded with afternoon shoppers, and he nearly lost Caitlyn in the crowd. Good thing he’d recognize that hideous yellow Focus anywhere. He sprinted after her, sliding into the passenger seat at the same moment she hit the driver’s side.

Oddly enough, she didn’t seem as irritated as he’d expected. In fact, she wore a slightly smug expression as she started the car. Eli wondered if he’d been played, but then decided he didn’t mind. Buying a new car was a very important job and he was the perfect guy to help her with it.

“I’m glad you came to me, Cait. Bryan would kill me if I let his little sis go car shopping alone.”

Her smile vanished. She looked as though she was about to say something, but held herself back. “I really appreciate it,” she said in a sweet voice. “You have no idea how much.”

Something was strange in her tone, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. “So where are we going? Where’s this guy located? What kind of car is it?”

In answer, she turned up the volume on the speakers. The sound of Beyoncé filled the car, singing something about girls running the world.

Hell, Eli had no objection to that. A girl was certainly running his world at the moment. Two minutes ago he’d been facing more hours at the hardware store. Now, he was suddenly and unexpectedly free, as if school had let out early. He relaxed into the pleasure of the breeze whipping through the open window, the tunes rocking the car, Caitlyn’s whistling in time to the music.

He glanced over at her and got momentarily lost in the way her lips pursed together to form the tune. Caitlyn had a very sexy mouth—why had he never noticed that before?

“So what ever happened to Dude-face?” he asked her.

“
Dude-face
?”

“You know, what’s his name. With the beard.”

“Ross. And FYI, beards are in right now. It’s the whole lumbersexual thing.”

“The what?”

“Lumbersexual. Have you been living under a rock? It’s the new trend.”

Eli laughed long and hard. The things Caitlyn found on Facebook cracked him up. “I sell lumber. Do I qualify?”

“No. You need a beard.”

“I could grow a beard. Dare me?”

He, Caitlyn and Bryan had always dared each other to do silly crap like drink an entire bottle of Tabasco sauce. He’d almost always won those dares, because he’d been a reckless goofball until the age of nineteen. That’s when his father had suffered the stroke and everything had gotten very serious, very quickly.

“Absolutely not. I kind of OD’d on the facial hair thing. Not that… I mean, it’s totally different because you wouldn’t be giving me whisker burn or making me sneeze when I kiss you or…” She snapped her mouth shut, her cheeks the color of carnations.

He laughed some more. Caitlyn was such a darling. It was really shocking no one had snatched her up yet, permanently. Of course, it would have to be someone worthy. Would
anyone
be worthy of Caitlyn? He wasn’t at all sure about that. Hopefully she’d allow him to scope the guy out the way he was doing with this car they were about to see.