Page 54 of The Moment They Can't Forget

Ally had somehow maneuvered herself so she was holding the junior Heckler’s hand. Brody would have kittens if he saw her.

“Should she be holding that boy’s hand? He’s sending her looks like he wants more,” JD hissed.

“She’s eight. I doubt she knows what boys even think about, and the same goes for Heckler Junior. Anyway, we’re not talking to each other.”

JD grunted something under his breath.

Zoe threw him a look. The dark circles under his eyes told her he really was in pain.

“Okay, let’s try this,” she said. “A truce. No jumping to conclusions, no kissing, and definitely no touching.” She spotted Tripp heading their way. Actually, he was dancing their way with Jed, another local.

“I can do that,” JD said slowly in that way some people in pain spoke. “Truce,” he gritted out, not turning his head to look at her.

“I’m sorry about Betsy. It’s a failing of mine that I leap to conclusions.”

“Just the one?”

“Yes. What does she actually do for you?” Zoe asked.

“She cleans my house because I’m a hopeless rich man.”

“Nice. Tripp!” she yelled and JD winced. “Sorry.”

“Hey, Zoe.” The Mayor of Lyntacky wore a big smile that his people were all dancing.

“Take JD’s place. He’s feeling sick. Go sit in the shade and drink some water,” she ordered him. “We are letting him do that, Tripp, so he doesn’t puke on us.”

JD gave her a tight smile and did as she asked. Friends, she thought. They could try that again. Be friends, and nothing more. Or go back to being frenemies, but what they couldn’t do was have sex, touch, or kiss.

Big no-no’s, she reminded herself as she watched his really nice ass walk away from her.

Chapter16

The Saturday they were to play the Rattlers dawned gray and cloudy with the promise of rain, which thankfully didn’t eventuate. JD was now standing on the field surrounded by excited Leaders, who were smack-talking while they threw around a ball.

“Now, JD, you know what one of these is?”

“Fuck off, Brody,” he said as the Duke brother waved a baseball glove in his face.

“That’s the spirit. You get all riled up, and it will work in our favor. I hear you have a temper, but only Sawyer has seen it.”

He could see Zoe out of the corner of his eye tossing a ball into the air and catching it. Her long legs were in shorts, the fitted exercise kind, and she wore her team shirt. She had on a cap, just like him, with the tail of her hair pulled through.

Her greeting was like it had always been with just a little something extra. There was that between them now. The lick of heat and excitement because both of them knew what the other felt like. The taste of her—Jesus, he was standing surrounded by her brothers for pity’s sake.

“Go, Leaders!”

He looked to the bleachers and saw her friend Lil dressed from head to toe in lavender. She sat with Robyn Duke and Ally, and around her were the supporters from Lyntacky.

“What the fuck is Beau Keller doing wearing a Rattlers uniform?” Sawyer snarled.

JD found the Duke enemy throwing the ball around at the opposite end of the field.

“Being a ringer is my guess,” Zoe said. “What’s the deal?” she then asked Bart Matilda, who was the umpire today.

“If a team travels and someone gets ill or injured away from home, they may bring a ringer in.”

“That’s bullshit,” Sawyer snapped.

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