Page 69 of Baseball and Shifters

“Right here, Firefly.” Bas’s deep voice rumbles behind me just before his warm hands slide around my waist. I swear he’s got a sixth sense for when to sneak up on me. He chuckles at my reaction to his sudden appearance and wraps his arms around me. “I missed you, too,” he murmurs in my ear, making me shiver.

“I knew I heard my Moonbeam!” Lucas appears with his usual bedhead and easy smile, but there’s still a shadow of worry lurking beneath the surface. “What are you doing here so early, baby? Not that I’m not happy to see you,” he adds on quickly.

“Can’t a girl just come see her mates on a Saturday morning?”

“A girl can, sure. But it’s a little early for you to be up,” Lucas chuckles.

Rolling my eyes at my smart ass mate, I huff, “just for that you don’t get a good morning hug.”

“What the-”

“Can I get one of those?” Liam asks as he too joins us.

I give him a blinding smile. We’ve come so far from one of us always running away from the other to giving morning hugs. Our bond strums inside, bright and warm, as I wrap my arms aroundhis waist. It’s the first time we’ve touched since our explosive first kiss in the library and my fox practically purrs in my head.

I reluctantly pull away, not wanting to come on too strong, even though he’s the one who asked for a hug.

The softness in his eyes as he looks down at me has the bond heating even more.

“Thank you, Shadow Girl,” he murmurs, his husky voice going straight to my core.

“Well. Since we’re all up, I’ll make breakfast,” Derrick offers and my stomach growls at the prospect.

By the time Derrick whips up breakfast, the apartment smells like heaven. There’s bacon, cheesy scrambled eggs, and a huge stack of french toast. We gather around the island and for a little while it’s just laughter and teasing, but as we dig into our food the tone of the conversation shifts.

“So,” Lucas starts around a mouthful of french toast, “any updates from your Dad, Derrick?”

Derrick nods, setting down his fork, a serious look overtaking his face. “He’s still digging. He called me last night. Said there’s something seriously off about Ranger. His record is too clean. Like ‘powerful people hiding their messes’ clean.”

Bas frowns. “Makes sense. No one gets into power without pissing someone off. The fact there’s not one complaint, no smear campaign, not even a tiny scandal… seems fishy to me.”

“That’s not just clean,” Liam replies. “That’s scrubbed.”

Lucas’s jaw tightens. “Someone like that is someone with enough power to make the school take this bullshit report seriously…”

We all go quiet letting the weight of that sink in.

“Do you really think it could be him?” I whisper

“No idea,” Bas mutters. “But it wouldn’t surprise me. If he got wind of Lucas’s bond with you maybe this is his way of breaking up our pack.”

A chill runs down my spine and I push away my plate having suddenly lost my appetite.

“Which means we need to find out more info,” Derrick says firmly. “Starting with your mom, Emerald. My dad said that he thinks that learning more about her could lead us to Ranger’s dirty laundry.”

“I want to know who she was,” I whisper. “More than ever now. She’s the only real family I might’ve had, and I can’t continue pretending I don't desperately need answers.”

Lucas nods solemnly, then leans closer and whispers, “and we still haven’t talked about getting back at Trent.”

“Please tell me you’re not going to put yourself at risk of expulsion over revenge.”

“We’ll play it smart,” Derrick assures. “Maybe it’s time for a little public humiliation. Something creative. Something that can’t be traced back to us.”

Bas smirks. “I’m already brainstorming.”

“Oh, I’ve got ideas,” Liam grins darkly. “But we’ve got to do it right. We’re not risking our asses, especially with that report still hanging over Lucas’s head.”

Once everyone finishes eating, the guys head off to get ready for the game. Bas lingers behind just long enough to place a kiss on my cheek.

---