Page 32 of Rain Delay

“So, in other words,” I start. “You want them to get a team so you have an excuse to hook up with girls…” I arch an eyebrow at him.

“Don’t knock my niche because yours is being hung up on your ex.”

I scoff, sitting up and putting my hand behind my head. “I…That’s not…”

“Cat got your tongue? Or am I right?”

“I…” I shake my head. “You’re insufferable.”

Liam chuckles, pulling something out of his suitcase. He holds it up, tilting his head from side to side a couple of times. “Y’know, I was hanging around Hannah and some of the girls, and I overheard Eliana talk about how you’ve changed.”

I sat up straighter, his comment immediately getting my attention. “Repeat that?”

“That one game against Seattle when you had an off night and ended up grounding into that double-play?” He recalls, causing my mind to circle back to a game I’d like to forget about. “She was saying how you play like you’re scared to fail and it shows. I didn’t catch everything she said, but I definitely heard that part.”

I’m stunned into silence. The nerve of her to speak about me like that. Nothing’s changed in the years since I last saw her. She knows how seriously I take this game. If anyone knew how hard I worked when it came to baseball, it would be her.

“And you’re sure she said all of this?” I ask again for confirmation.

He nods. “I don’t pay attention to a lot, but when it comes to hearing people talk about my teammates, especially my best friend, I pay attention.”

“And you didn’t say anything to her?”

“I barely know the girl, man. I would’ve felt like I was overstepping something.” He puts his hands up in defense. “I was just trying to hang out with Hannah, and Eliana just happened to be there as well.”

I stood up, grabbed my phone, walked out of our room, and made my way up to her room.

I shouldn’t let it affect me as much as it was. People said shit about how I play all the time—hearing that she would ever say something like that about me, though? That’s what was bothering me the most.

She knew how hard I worked in this sport. She knew what I had gone through to get here…She always knew how bad I wanted to be the best. How much I wanted to prove to everyone that doubted me growing up that I was more than capable of being one of the best, if not the best.

I knock on the door aggressively. She opens the door and looks at me, confused. “Can I help you?”

“You think I play scared?” I snap at her.

She holds her hands up. “Whoa. Who told you this?” She asks, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Liam said he overheard you talking with some of the girls,” I tell her. “You really think that?”

“I said that you play like your life is on the line, and when a mistake happens, it’s like the world is over and there’s nothing that can be fixed about it.”

I step closer to her, heat curling in my chest. “You of all people should know how fucking hard I work in this sport.” My jaw twitches. “You don’t think I hear that enough already? From coaches, from fans, from the media, and now you?”

“Maybe if you’d stop acting like you’ve got the weight of the world on your fucking shoulders, you wouldn’t have to worry about people saying it,” she matches my gaze. “Ever since I got here, you’ve been playing like you always have something to prove. It’s like one fuck up and you’re going to be the worst player in the world. When that’s far from the truth.”

I stepped closer, nearly backing her against the door.

“You really think you know everything, huh?”

Her breath caught, but she didn’t move back. “I know you better than anyone on your damn team does, Wyatt.”

I exhale hard, stepping back. “Yeah, sure,” I mutter, running my hand through my hair. “It’s like you’re wanting me to crack.”

“Oh, I think we’re already past that point, bud,” she replies, putting her finger on my chest. “But hey, what would I know? You’re a different Wyatt than the one I originally knew.” She shrugs her shoulders up, her hands going up in the air at the same time.

I take a deep breath, letting those words sit between us. I’m a different Wyatt. I didn’t see anything different about me. I was still the Wyatt she knew years ago. Just grown and professional.

“Also,” she continues. “Maybe that’s what you need. Maybe you need to be pushed. Maybe you need to be pushed so far beyond your limits that you don’t know what to do with yourself.”