Page 48 of Baseball and Shifters

“So what,” I roll my eyes and slump back in my seat. “She wasn’t at the last home game and she won’t be at the next one either.”

Lucas goes quiet, which is unlike him, so I know something’s up. Giving in to my curiosity, I turn to look at them, only to see them having some sort of unspoken conversation.

What the fuck is going on?

“You assholes wanna hide shit from me then wonder why I get pissed off all the time.”

“No one’s hiding anything,” Bas counters, always the damn peacemaker.

“Sure. You have silent conversations without me all the time.”

Lucas sighs and turns to me. “It’s about Rachel.”

“It’s always about Rachel,” I grumble.

“She wasn’t at the game last week because she was worried her father would be there.”

“Who’s her father? Why would he be at our game? And why would that stop your mate from coming?”

If he doesn’t just spit it out, swear to God I’m gonna lose my shit.

“Ranger St. James,” Derrick spits the name, seething just at the thought of the man.

“And that means what? I’m supposed to know who the fuck that is?”

“He’s a Shifter Tribunal member for the Eternal Counciland an all around despicable piece of trash,” D growls, smoke pluming from his nose.

Well, okay then. D definitely doesn’t like Rachel’s dad. And it looks like Bas and Lucas agree.

“Again, I ask you, what does that have to do with Rachel coming to the games?”

“Are you paying attention at all? Her father is an abusive asshole and she is terrified of him. He could come to our games because well everyone comes to our games and he graduated from Eldergrove and is now a Tribunal member so it wouldn’t even seem out of place. She’s terrified and from what she’s told me it’s almost like she’s accepted what he will do to her and she is more worried about us.” Lucas says.

“Yeah her asshole father had her convinced that having only one mate is the norm because he’s a tiger shifter and we typically only have one mate,” Bas adds with a sneer. “Hell, she still covers my mark most of the time. It guts me but I understand, she’s afraid he’ll pop up on campus like before.”

“Wait, what do you mean before?” I ask my eyes darting between the guys I thought I knew everything about. “He’s been on campus outside of the games? I thought that wasn’t allowed? Didn’t Mrs. Ashford complain about that for like six weeks before we left?”

“He came with my father, some sort of meeting with the dean.” D’s tone is all I need to know how that went.

“Wait a minute. Is he like six threeish, dark hair, suit, cold eyes?”

“Yeah, sounds like him.” D responds.

“I think I saw him the other day. You guys were all having a picnic and I was going to come over to try to get to know Rachel like Lucas suggested. I passed him, he was standing peering around the side of Sorgman Hall. I thought it was weird but I was on a mission until I lost the nerve. Then when I went back towards the dorms, he was gone.”

I guess this explains why my wolf went on alert when I saw him. Didn’t even know who the creep was, but of course my wolf knew he wasn’t to be trusted.

“He was there?” D seethes.

“That must have been who was watching us. Remember when Rachel froze? She said she felt eyes on her. Right after, we saw you, so we assumed it was you,” Bas sighs, shaking his head.

“You thought my mate was afraid of me?”

“I didn’t sayafraid. I said she felt eyes on her,” Bas grumbles, rolling his own. “You have those, don’t you? You use them to look at people from afar, because you’re too chicken shit to get close to them?”

“I am not-”

“Oh, shut up. Yes you are. You admitted as much yourself,” Bas huffs.

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