Page 119 of Pretend for Me

Recently, he’s taken his hands offMenon Inc.—working only as an advisor to Dev—and using his time to get more involved doing community projects and charity work.

We’ve started weekly family dinners, which have helped usall stay connected. Deepak hasn’t just made a big effort to reconnect with his kids—something I know they appreciate—he’s also been incredibly caring and supportive of me, which is a far cry from what I can say about my own father. The last I heard, he ended up in jail, serving a long sentence for embezzlement and fraud.

I turn to connect my eyes with the man I love more than life itself, giving him a smile that he returns before he leans in for a kiss.

“I love you,” I say, because those are three words I’ll never tire of saying to him.

“I love you, too,meri jaan.” He plants another kiss on my lips before our gazes are snagged by Rome turning another page in his book.

Now, I’m not a huge baseball enthusiast myself, but Dev’s helped me learn the game better over the past few months, given he’s always loved it. But more recently, he’s been trying to get Rome excited about baseball as well, given Sarina has expressed her concerns that her son wants to do nothing but read all day. She’s worried he doesn’t get enough time in the sun and wants him to learn a sport.

Dev leans around me to grab Rome’s attention. “Hey, buddy. Want me to explain what’s happening? Don’t hesitate to ask if you’re wondering what’s going on.”

Rome shrugs, but I don’t miss the flicker of curiosity in his eyes when he lays the book back down on his lap to watch the players take their positions.

“Is that Troy Winters pitching?” my nephew asks, pointing at the man jogging toward the pitcher’s mound. “The player whose jersey I’m wearing?”

Dev beams proudly, his adorable dimple in full display. “Yep! You’ve been memorizing those baseball cards I got you!” He nods, looking back at Troy. “He’s one of the best pitchers in the MLB.”

Rome nods. “He had two-hundred-forty-one strikeouts last season and pitched one-hundred-ninety innings.”

Both Dev and I exchange wide glances before I look over at Sarina with the same look of amazement.

“Holy moly, little man!” I say, poking my nephew on the side of his stomach and making him giggle. “How are you such a little encyclopedia of everything?”

He just shrugs again before we all watch Troy throw his first pitch.

One after another, Troy sends the ball flying toward the batter, only for them to strike out, making the crowd inside the stadium roar.

But the most interesting reaction to take place inside our little space in the owner’s suite isn’t the way Rome drops his hardback on the ground and jumps with both hands up, cheering for Troy, but the look on Sarina’s face as she stares at the picture that just appeared of the Blazers’ pitcher on the TV monitor. Her face is drained of color as if she’s seen a ghost.

My brows draw together. “Sarina? Is everything okay? Why do you look the same way you did before I made you go skydiving with me?”

Her startled eyes collide with mine. “Is that reallyTroy Winters?”

I nod, flicking my gaze from the TV to hers. “Why?”

Her elbows find her knees before she rubs her face, but I don’t miss the way her lips form the word, “Shit” so that her son doesn’t hear.

“Sarina?” I say again, worried I’m missing a clue I should have seen earlier. “What’s this about?”

She shakes her head just as the crowd goes wild again, along with Dev and Rome, for another play, not paying attention to us. “I’ll tell you later.”

The innings go on until the final out is called,with the Blazers clinching a narrow victory. Dev and Rome exchange high-fives, and I know I definitely show my enthusiasm too, but my mind has been whirling around my best friend and what she hasn’t told me. Throughout the game, she’s been biting her thumbnail like it’s a snack.

As we all get out of our seats, I’m hoping to ask Sarina more about why she’s acting like a freak when Dev turns to Rome and says, “So, what do you think about meeting the players up close?”

Rome’s eyes light up. “Really?! Even Troy Winters?”

Dev shrugs. “I mean, you are wearing his jersey, after all.”

Rome starts to bounce on his feet when Sarina interrupts, “Actually, it doesn’t look like we have time. I have something I need to get back for, so maybe next time.”

I squint at her. Yeah, she’s not telling me something, and it clearly has something to do with the pitcher for our MLB team. “What do you have to get back for?”

She swallows. “Uh, cheerleading practice.”

Dev, Rome, and I all stare at her with various expressions of surprise and concern.

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