Page 57 of Sweet Spot

Someone knocked on my door and I realized it was not the first time. All that banging in my dream was knocking. I rushed out of bed, threw the locks, and pulled open the door, ready to thump whoever was on the other side.

Gordo stood there with a large plastic bag and four cups of coffee. “Let me in.”

“What the hell? What time is it?” I used my whole body to bar the door.

“It’s just after eight and we need to talk. Now.”

“I’m not awake. Go back to your room and I’ll meet you there in a few.”

Gordo cocked his head to the side. “I know.”

“Know what?”

“Why do you think I have this much food and coffee?” He raised his eyebrows expectantly. “She should be part of the conversation too.”

The fuck? Now I was really confused. And tired.

“It’s okay,” Kate said as she came up behind me, pulling her robe back on. “You better have good coffee, Gordo.”

I relaxed a little when she rested her cheek against the middle of my back and wrapped her arms around my waist. “Fine.” I turned, keeping Gordo blocked. “You’re sure?” If I saw even a little bit of doubt on her face I would shove Gordo back into the hallway without an ounce of regret. I cupped her face, already pissed off that our morning on the cloud wasn’t real.

“I’m sure.” Then she turned and went to the windows to open the curtains while Gordo unloaded the coffee and breakfast.

“Sorry about this. I wanted to get here while you were still sleeping.”

Kate snorted.

I glared at my friend. At least I thought he was a friend. This had me rethinking our relationship dynamics. “Funny.”

“Accurate.” He looked around. “Your room is nicer than mine.”

Since we were in town for five nights they put us up in a nice hotel with good security. The team was on two floors and guest access was restricted. My room had a view of the city with enormous windows, a king-sized bed, a swank bathroom, and a sitting area with a comfortable couch and two armchairs.

Kate grabbed a blanket and curled up in one of the chairs, yawning as she took the coffee Gordo offered with his apologies.

“I brought an extra, figuring one or both of you would need it. This is my second.”

He really did look sorry for waking us up. And the food he brought smelled delicious, so at least there was that. “So what is so damned important you had to ruin our morning?”

Gordo frowned. “We have two problems, actually.”

Kate sat up straighter. “Two?”

Gordo quickly explained the things Paredes did yesterday and everything Rhett told him last night. Of course I was angry one of my coaches blatantly acted out during a game, but I was also damned curious as to why. It was one of my flaws. Always wanting to know why. I would wait until I knew more before I decided to be mad.

“And the second thing?” I ate the last piece of bacon and washed it down with coffee just in time to choke on it when Gordo answered.

“Seth Butler left last night and I don’t think he’s coming back.”

I wasn’t even a week into this gig and I had a rogue coach and even more rogue left fielder. And I thought being a single dad was hard. Managing a team was more like being a single dad to twenty kids at once.

“Gordo will find him.”

I shook my head. “Everett will find him.” But Gordo would be the one to talk sense into him.

“They are close?”

“Used to be. They played together in college. Thick as thieves. As far as I can tell no one else is closer.” Erik and Wes were friends with Seth, but neither of them got Seth the way Everett did. “He said some things the other night. I knew his head was a little messed up, but I didn’t realize he was this upset.” I should have followed up. This sport could be brutal on the mind and the effects show up in a lot of different ways.

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