Too Hot to Handle: A Boys of Summer Novel (23 page)

Now as he pounded the bat into the dirt, he leaned back and let go, connecting with the pitch. But again the ball veered off behind him.

“You’re catching it with the top of the bat,” Matt said, watching intently. “Try leaning a little closer to the plate.”

“Yeah, and get nailed by some hothead pitcher out to make a name for himself,” Jake said, but he took a step forward and lifted the bat.

The next swing was a little better. He made contact, but his frustration grew when he saw the ball once more fall into foul territory. “Shit!” he swore, seeing the fruits of his effort trickle down the left-field line. Turning to the coach, he threw his helmet to the ground in anger.

“What the fuck! I’ve got to start hitting—we’re running out of time. If we don’t make the playoffs, were done for the season. And it will be my fault.”

“It’s never any one guy,” Matt said firmly. “Jake, I think with you this is all mental. You need to get out of your own head.”

“Great. Maybe you should just tell me not to breathe.”

“I know it’s frustrating. Why don’t you take a break and I’ll go pull some video. We’ll take a look at what you’re doing in the last couple games. See if that helps.”

Jake nodded. He didn’t mean to take it out on the coach, but his frustration had reached a boiling point.

“I think with you this is all mental.”

Something about that resonated with him. Pounding the bat once more, he thought about Nikki. He’d been in this slump since she left; he could finally admit that to himself. He didn’t want to realize how much she meant to him, how much he needed her.

Pete had seen it immediately, as had Ryan. The coach’s words came back to him, and the bat froze in his hands.
The right girl comes once in a lifetime
.

Nikki was it for him. He knew it as one knew all true things. It had taken him a while to get here, but he suddenly realized he was fighting himself. As he lifted the bat, he thought of Joaquin battling from the hospital bed, and he realized that was real courage. If the kid had guts enough for that, he could do what his heart demanded.

As Matt walked up with the videotapes, Jake nailed the next pitch and sent it four hundred feet over the bullpen. The batting coach’s mouth fell open as Jake attacked the next ball and hit a line drive down center field that would have scored a double. The next one went over the wall into the upper deck.

“I guess we won’t be needing these,” Matt said, grinning from ear to ear.

“Guess not,” Jake said dryly. He tossed the bat to the ground just as Pete approached to offer his encouragement and appreciation.

“Where you going?” The head coach looked at him in confusion.

“To get my girl,” Jake said simply.

“I’m coming…!”

Natalie opened the door, holding one toddler in her arms while another little boy peered at the man on their pavement, finding this hilarious.

“I came to see Nikki,” Jake explained.

He had checked into a hotel at three in the morning, where he picked up a clean tee shirt as well as a toothbrush. He was grateful for the gift shop, and to grab a couple hours of sleep after the flight. But he woke up early, showered, combed his hair, and then utilized the rental car GPS to find Natalie’s address.

“Hey, is the coffee on?” Nikki came into the kitchen, and then her mouth fell open as her sister gestured to the door.

“Jake?” She stared at him in disbelief. “But what are you doing here? The Sonics are home this week. You should be in Trenton—we’re playing Boston.”

“Screw the game,” Jake said impatiently, and then grimaced when he realized Natalie’s son was all ears.

“He said a bad word,” the little boy said, fascinated by the ballplayer taking up their sidewalk.

“Can I come in?” Jake looked at Natalie, who hesitated as if deciding whether or not she wanted him crossing her threshold. Instead, she looked behind her to Nikki, who nodded. Only then did Natalie step aside and allow Jake to enter.

“I’ll take the pirates to the playroom,” she said, giving Jake a less-than-friendly glance as she disappeared into the other room.

Nikki stood with her back to the kitchen counter as Jake approached. “Nikki, I need to talk to you. What you overheard that day in the locker room isn’t the whole truth, and none of us meant to hurt you.”

“I know,” Nikki said softly. When Jake looked at her in surprise, she continued. “Ryan called me.”

“He did?” Jake looked astonished.

“Yes—that is, Sophia did and put him on the phone. He explained that the whole thing was his idea, not because he was trying to make a fool of me, but he honestly thought we’d be good together.” She managed to smile, as Jake looked more surprised by the moment. “Pretty silly, huh?”

“No, it isn’t.” He took a step closer, and had to fight the urge to slide his hands into that crazy-sexy hair and kiss her until she was once more his. “Is that why you didn’t take my calls? Ryan did my talking?”

Nikki shook her head. “No. I needed some time away, some distance to think about everything. It wasn’t just about the bet, although that was pretty bad. Overhearing the conversation made me realize…I felt I was out on a ledge, and I was there by myself. I needed to decide what I was going to do.”

Something inside Jake froze at her words. “I hope you didn’t make any decisions yet, because you are missing a key piece of information. Something I should have told you a long time ago. I love you. I think I’ve loved you from the moment you walked onto the field with your clipboard and your librarian hair. I can’t stop thinking about you. I want to give you everything you deserve, and with a little time, I believe I can.”

Nikki’s eyes filled with tears as Jake put his arms around her. She tried to push him away, but her attempt was halfhearted. “See? That’s why I couldn’t talk to you. Because you say things like that, things that make it impossible for me to leave you.”

“Don’t,” Jake said, feeling as if the next few moments would make or break his world. “Please don’t. I know I’ve been a jerk, and I’m sorry. And while Ryan’s bet egged me on, I would’ve noticed you anyway. Would’ve pursued you with the same intensity. Because our first baseman was right about one thing: you are the girl for me.”

At that she dissolved in his arms, and Jake kissed her, his mouth taking hers with a passion that demonstrated everything he had just said. His fingers tangled in her silky black hair, and when his mouth eased from hers, pressing a tender kiss on her neck, he looked her in the eyes.

“I admit, I was devastated when I first heard about the wager,” Nikki said, taking a deep breath. “But once I thought about it, I realized that’s not the kind of man you really are. I thought about the way you take care of your mother, Joaquin, the players…and I knew it wasn’t in you to do something so callous.”

“So why didn’t you call me back?”

“I was getting there,” Nikki sighed, nestling in his arms. “Ryan’s call helped. As did the notes and calls from Darcy, Brian, Cody, Pete…”

“They all contacted you? Damn. Sounds like you have a few good friends of your own.”

Nikki laughed. “Yes, I do. I just needed you to say it, to know this was for real. You coming here did all that.” She glanced up at Jake. “So what flight are you on?”

“Three o’clock. Think you can make it?” He grinned, a tremendous flood of emotion and gratitude filling him. She was back.

Nikki nodded as her sister reentered the room. Natalie looked from Nikki to Jake and sighed, shaking her head.

“So I lose the best babysitter in the world.” But her eyes met Jake’s. “Take care of her, hotshot.”

“That’s the intention.”

They got back in the early afternoon, in time for Nikki to return to the ballpark to a standing ovation from the team. Jake laughed and she blushed furiously as the players, engaged in batting practice and stretching, stopped their activities to clap as she walked by. Pete was equally thrilled, and he came up, put his arm around her, and warmly expressed his pleasure at her return. The only person who didn’t seem happy was John. The communications director stormed off at the sight of her, slammed his door, and remained in his office.

No one seemed to notice. It was as if a cloud had lifted. Nikki watched proudly from the stands as the Sonics soundly thrashed Colorado, winning 10–0.

Of course there was a party afterward, and the team insisted she join them. Nikki protested that she was way too tired, but they wouldn’t hear it. She looked helplessly to Jake, who shrugged, laughing.

“I think you’ve become the unofficial mascot.” He gestured to Tommy McCarthy, who waved to the crowd from inside his rocket costume. “I’ll get you out of there early. But they miss you, and everyone feels bad about what happened. Let us make it up to you.”

His eyes met hers, and a sexual shiver went through her. She’d only been back in his company a few hours, and already that spark between them threatened to ignite into a full-blown blaze.

But she knew what he meant, and she was touched. Jake had texted ahead when they’d left Florida, and when she returned to her office, it was filled with flowers. Darcy came by and hugged her. Chase personally sought her out and expressed his appreciation that she had returned. Sophia called and told her she would take care of her husband personally if he ever participated in a harebrained stunt like the wager again. And Jeffrey telephoned her, thanking her for all of her work and reminding her it was August.

The team needed to pick up the pace if they were to play October baseball.

If tonight’s game was any indication, Nikki thought as she followed Jake to the bar, they were well on their way. It seemed something had been missing all season; between the brawl, Chase’s injuries, and Jake, their rhythm had been off. But now, things were different. They had made it to the show the year before, and they knew they could do it again.

The spark was back.

When she entered the tavern, fifteen beers were hoisted in her honor. Jake came to stand by her side and put his arm around her, claiming her as his own even as a couple of the guys booed. A few of the players, encouraged by what had happened in the past week, had thought to make a move, but Jake preempted that. Nikki was his, and he made sure everyone knew it.

There was a live band, a gentle breeze, and a full moon. Brian, it turned out, had a decent voice, so he joined the band and sang Tom Petty’s “Here Comes My Girl” to Nikki. Jake laughed, as did Chase and Ryan, as tears came to her eyes.

It was perfect.

Her cell phone rang the following morning. Jake was in the shower, and Nikki didn’t recognize the number. Glancing at the clock beside her bed, she saw it was barely eight.

Good news never comes first thing in the morning
, she thought, and quickly answered the phone.

“Nikki Case?” The voice was brisk and businesslike.

“That’s me.”

“This is George McIntosh from the
New York Times
.”

Nikki sat up straighter in bed. “Right. Okay. What can I do for you?”

She had submitted a couple of press releases the day before, but the paper usually ran an original. What they didn’t usually do was call.

“I understand you are the lead PR rep for the Sonics, is that correct?” Before she could answer, he continued. “I heard something yesterday that interests me about one of their key players, Jake Baldwin? That he is mentoring a young kid who got hurt because he was wearing his jersey? We’d like you to do the story.”

Nikki froze. The shower was still running, so she was aware that she couldn’t be overheard. “I don’t really know what you’re talking about. Can I confirm and get back to you?”

“Make it ASAP. We would really like to run with this one, maybe do an interview with the boy, give it the attention it deserves. It’s a real human-interest story. More than that, it really shows the team in a different light, that they are more than just a bunch of hotheads on steroids.”

“That’s right, if it’s true,” Nikki said cautiously.

“And if you do a nice job on it, this could really help your career. I’ve seen your work, so I have no hesitation about giving you the byline. I’ll expect to hear back from you by noon.”

He hung up. Nikki stared at the cell, a million thoughts racing through her mind. What had happened while she was gone? Jake had mentioned something about Joaquin being hurt, but he had left out the part about the jersey, the apparent reason for the fight.

It wa
s
a great story if it was true. And George McIntosh was correct; it would do wonders for the Sonics’ tarnished image. It had all the right elements and broad appeal. It would even help Joaquin. Nikki had seen what good press could do: offers of help would pour in, along with money and resources. It could change the boy’s life entirely.

And from a selfish standpoint, the story had the potential to be picked up on the AP wire and go national. It was the kind of thing that could take her from doing ordinary PR work and catapult her into the limelight.

It also had the potential to do the same thing for Jake. Nikki had heard Pete say that Jake’s contract was up. And of course while everyone hoped he’d re-sign with the Sonics, this kind of publicity would open the door to a floodgate of offers.

So she thought he should consider being interviewed for the story. But when he came out of the shower moments later, a towel wrapped around his lean hips, that broad expanse of bare male chest staring right in her face, she found it hard to think clearly.

“What’s on the agenda today?” he asked, pulling her into his damp embrace. Nikki squealed as her body absorbed water from his.

“Was going to ask you the same thing.”

“I’m going to take a run over to the hospital to see Joaquin. Then I want to get to the park early and take extra batting practice.”

“Jake…” Nikki struggled with how to bring up the subject of the call from the
Times
. She took a deep breath. “I got a call today from out of the blue. Somehow the
New York Times
found out about Joaquin and they want to do a story. Actually, they want me to do it.”

“What?” Jake appeared stunned.

Nikki nodded. “The word is out. I was thinking that at least if I did the article, we could control the content. And it would be great PR for you and the team, and could help the boy. I’m sure donations would pour in as a result.”

“No.” Jake’s eyes blazed and she saw his jaw tighten, but he gentled his tone. “I know this is a great opportunity for you, and it would help your career. You are also right in that a good story would result in a lot of positive things. But there are times when you just have to listen to your heart.”

“But—”

“What are you doing right now?”

It was Nikki’s turn to look surprised. “Nothing special. I was heading to the ballpark later…”

“Get dressed and come with me.” Jake took her hand and looked into her eyes. “I’m taking you to meet Joaquin. You talk to his mother, see him, and then tell me if you want to do the story. If you still think it’s a good idea, I’ll listen.”

“Okay.” She couldn’t ask for more than that.