Page 10 of Love's Home Run

They ate breakfast together in companionable silence, though Melissa’s mind raced, wondering if she should wear her new sexy top for dinner with Dirk. Maybe he needed a little encouragement in that direction.

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When Melissa returned to her house, she decided to walk through the neighborhood. It wasn’t as effective as jogging, but she still felt full of her breakfast. Crystal had sent over some hot cinnamon scones, and she hadn’t been able to resist.

She put on sneakers and decided to see what new construction was taking place. She and Ross were in two of the first houses to be built, but others were under construction in the far reaches of the development. She’d heard the governor and his wife were building on a double lot in the woods.

Primary paved roads had been put in throughout the development, though Dani had assured her they would install a smooth top coating to the road once they had finished most of the houses.

Melissa walked past two houses that were similar to but not like hers. She liked that all the houses had different exterior designs. She knew the houses shared many of the same amenities inside them, but with Dani’s architectural help, a buyer could easily change the basic design.

She moved past some open lots until she reached two houses under construction at the far end. One on a larger plot of land was obviously for the governor and his wife. She didn’t know who’d bought the other one. Aaron had talked of building here; maybe it was his.

She walked down to the waterfront, contemplating taking her canoe for a solo spin.

When she arrived, Dani and Brad were standing on the dock and gazing around. Dani had a notebook in her hand.

Melissa joined them. “Planning something new?”

Dani held up her notebook. “Jotting down a few ideas to build some small cottages near the water. It’s just in the thinking stage now. What are you up to?”

“Enjoying a morning walk. I didn’t take my usual jog this morning, and I needed to work off some scone and muffin calories from Crystal’s café.”

Dani chuckled. “Me, too. We’re through here. I’ll walk you back to your house on my way to the office.”

“Deal,” said Melissa, pleased.

“I’ll meet you at the office later,” Brad said to Dani and then kissed her.

Observing them, a pang of envy hit Melissa in the solar plexus. She caught her breath and turned away, giving the lovers some privacy.

Moments later, Dani came up behind her. “Ready?”

Melissa turned to her with a grin. “Are you?”

Dani laughed. “We’ve been working hard, and Brad and I need every moment alone we can get.”

“You two are great together,” said Melissa, hoping she and Dirk could be like that one day. She’d heard he was very good with his patients—competent and gentle, with a warm way about him. So perfect.

Melissa and Dani chatted easily about the development as they walked together. As they approached her house, Ross looked up from his front yard, waved, and headed toward them.

“You two are just the people I want to talk to,” Ross said, smiling at them. “At Jake’s, Mike and I talked about the fundraiser baseball game we’re setting up, and now we’ve decided we need women on both teams. You both are perfect. Will you join us?”

Melissa glanced at Dani.

“Sure,” said Dani.

“Okay, but I haven’t played baseball in a long time,” said Melissa.

“You’ll have to help me,” Dani said to Ross. “I’m usually okay at sports, but this is something new for me.”

Ross smiled at them. “I’ll train you and anyone else who wants practice sessions.”

“It better be in the early morning when it’s cooler, and I haven’t worked all day,” said Dani.

“Yes, that’s a convenient time to do it before I head to work,” Melissa agreed.

“Okay. We can do it then. When do you want to start?”

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