Page 1 of Sweet Spot

Prologue

10 years ago…

Willa

It’s hard being the only girl in a group of friends. First of all, you had to really like guys—which I did, so that part was fine. You also had to be perfectly fine with fast food, cheap beer, really bad comedies, and sentences that consist of a single word. Things like “bro” don’t just mean brother. Based on the inflection and hand gestures that accompany the partial word it can mean anything from “what the actual fuck” to “I love you, man.”

Luckily, I was well versed in all of these things. I liked fast food, cheap beer, and really bad comedies. I also enjoyed serving as interpreter for the women they dated.

One of my very best friends, Seth Butler, had his arm slung around a slender woman with perfect blonde hair, perfect makeup, and the absolute latest “it” look. We all sat around one of those high-top tables next to the bar. While most tables were covered with pitchers of beer and wings, ours had pitchers of soda and burgers. Nineteen-year-old baseball players didn’t drink alcohol and consumed massive amounts of red meat.

Seth’s free hand waved through the air. “And then the fucker threw a slurve. I swear I got a chubbie before it left his fingers. I knew that baby was gone.”

Lori blinked, sitting frozen beside Seth.

I leaned closer and lowered my voice. “He said the pitcher threw a pitch that Seth figured out immediately so he was able to adjust his swing and hit a home run.”

Her perfect mouth with the perfect lip liner made a soft O. She nodded slightly and pulled at her sweater even though it didn’t need adjusting. “Are they always like this?”

“Yes,” I said emphatically, leaving off the “hell yes” that I didn’t think she’d appreciate as much. I couldn’t tell if she wasn’t used to being around guys in general or ballplayers in particular. “So what’s your major?”

“Fashion design.” She fingered the sweater again.

Everett Anson, my other very best friend, started pounding the table with his fist while making a barking noise.

Lori’s eyes rounded and she jerked back.

All the guys started chanting “Isaac, Isaac, Isaac!” Then Everett jumped up out of the chair and threw his arms around a slightly older version of himself. His older brother Isaac was a former member of the same team Seth and Everett both played on now. The brothers had the same dark, shaggy hair and dark eyes. Both had straight, long noses and strong jaws. I knew that Everett was desperate to grow a beard, but it was still too patchy to be worth it. I suspected that one day, once he finally grew that first full beard, he’d never shave it again.

“One night only,” Seth’s voice boomed like an announcer, “the one and only, Isaac Anson!”

Even though Isaac was now a minor league player for the Mantas organization, I knew him almost as well as Everett and Seth. I wouldn’t call him one of my very best friends, but I did consider him a good friend, especially because he was Everett’s brother.

He took the open barstool on my right, across from Lori. “Hey, Willa. How’s it hanging?”

“Good. How are the minors treating you?”

“I play baseball for a living. I can’t complain.”

“And how’s Amanda?”

“Halfway through her graduate program already. No surprise there. She’s happy though.”

A traveling ballplayer and a future member of the Foreign Service would never make it as a couple, but the two of them continued to pretend it wasn’t true. Love and relationships made people crazy, which was why I was carefully avoiding getting tied to anyone. At least not yet. I was enjoying college and freedom too much to do something stupid like that.

French fries were thrown around, love disguised as insults were traded, a few arms were punched before Lori hopped up out of her chair and said she needed to “powder her nose.”

Once she was out of ear shot Everett shook his head. “Who the fuck says that anymore? Willa doesn’t say shit like that.”

“That’s because I know you morons don’t care if I have to take a shit.” Not only were the guys very open about their bodily functions, they were surprisingly aware of female bodily functions and very cool about it all. If I said I had my period, they bought me ice cream and pet my hair. If I needed tampons, they added it to the grocery cart without blinking. When I say they didn’t care about bodily functions, I meant they really didn’t care.

It was part of why I liked them so much.

“Willa’s too good for us.” Isaac said with a smile. “She puts up with all our shit.”

The truth was I grew up with a single dad. My mom wasn’t anywhere in the picture. We were a team from day one, best friends for life and all that. I hung out with his friends, went to his ball games, and spent every weekend watching sports and cooking at the grill. I always felt more comfortable around guys because I understood them.

It wasn’t a surprise when I got to college and found myself hanging out with the baseball team by accident. Honestly, I didn’t know that’s who they were when I met them. My roommate said she knew of a party. We went. Next thing I knew I was chugging beer with Seth.

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