Page 165 of Off Pitch

I glance down at them in time to see the traditional cooler of Gatorade poured over Cole’s head—Knox, Lane, and Josh doing the honors.

“Can we go down?” I ask Rory excitedly.

“Hell yes, we can!”

I hug my parents quickly before Rory, Sage, and I dash from the box. The team passes we have on us allow us to get there easily.

Two minutes after leaving the box, we step onto the field and run alongside the other family members doing the same.

Knox sees me before I’m halfway there and sprints to me, picking me up and spinning me around, kissing me the moment my feet are back on the ground.

“You won!” I shout. “You fucking won the World Series, Knox!”

“Couldn’t have done it without you, Harlow. God, I fucking love you.”

He lifts me again, this time taking me over to the rest of the team to join in on the celebration.

Once the on-field celebrations end and Cole is named World Series MVP, the festivities move inside. The clubhouse is usually reserved for athletes only, but the team is making an exception, allowing family and friends to join the team.

When we’re all crowded inside, the bottles are brought out, ready to be popped for the classic champagne shower.

As several of the guys start working on the corks, Lane holds Sage to his chest. “Keep that alcohol off my fucking daughter, please.”

“We’ll just get you instead,” Knox says deviously, popping the cork from the bottle he’s holding and spraying it all over Lane’s legs.

“This Fort is a hell of a lot more fun than the old one,” chimes Josh, joining us with Ella under his arm and taking a swig from his own champagne.

Lucia finds us now. “Congratulations, guys! World Series fucking champions!”

“Duck,” Sage says in her adorable little toddler voice.

“Oh, I’m fucked,” Lane groans. “Kids who run around swearing are cute, right?”

“The fucking cutest!” Ella replies, leaning over and pinching Sage’s cheek.

Josh starts looking around curiously. “Where the hell is Cole?”

I try to find him when I notice something else. “Rory’s missing, too.”

“That’s interesting,” Lucia smirks.

“What do you think is happening?” I whisper to Knox.

Knox picks me up again. “Don’t fucking know. Don’t fucking care. We won the World Series, and I have the most beautiful woman in my arms right now. I don’t care about anything else.”

I just smile and nuzzle into the crook of his neck. “I’m so happy for you.”

He leans down and kisses my temple as Simon fights his way through the crowd to us. “Knox,” he says, flagging him down. “I need you to come with me.”

Without setting me down, Knox follows Simon out of the clubhouse and into the hallway, where we find Matt, the man from Axis I met during the game, waiting for him.

He puts me on my feet and looks to his agent. “What’s this about, Simon?”

“Knox,” he says, gesturing to the man beside him, “this is Matt Trelon. He’s the VP of Marketing at Axis.”

“Oh!” Knox grabs his hand and shakes it heartily. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir.”

Matt laughs. “Please call me Matt. Sir makes me feel old.” His tone turns more professional. “But the other Axis executives and I thought now would be a great time to give you some good news.”

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