Page 35 of Stealing Forever

Catching sight of one of my players, Max Callahan, approaching, I close the bottle and toss it on top of my duffle.

He wears a timid smile as he comes up in front of me, raking his hand through his short hair. “Hey, uh, Coach. Can I talk to you for a second?”

Great. Something must have happened before I got here.

Max is one of the most serious players on the team with his no bullshit, high-drive work ethic. He’s closer to my age, in his early thirties, and tends to be my eyes and ears when I can’t be. He’s played on the Bears for a couple of seasons now, but Blake was considering trading him, and I sincerely hope that doesn’t happen anytime soon.

“Of course, Callahan. What’s up?”

“Hey! There’s the internet sensation!” Austin shouts, jogging over to us. He’s wearing a shit-eating grin when he stops in front of me.

“What?” I ask, confused.

“Yeah…that’s what I wanted to talk to you about…” Max trails off, pulling his phone from the pocket of his baseball pants.

“You’re a viral hit! I’m surprised you haven’t heard about it yet,” Austin teases me, coming behind me to squeeze both of my shoulders. I shake out from his hold.

“Someone explain.Now,” I bark, annoyance growing quick like a poison within me.

Max pushes play as he hands his phone to me, and my voice carries from the device. “Where’s Doctor Waggoner?” Then cuts to some rap song I don’t recognize as the video changes to me carrying Hailey across the field.

One point eight million likes. Six million views.

What. The. Fuck.

“What is this?” I growl, thrusting the phone back into Max’s chest. “Who did this?”

“My cousin recorded it, then obviously posted it on her social media. She had no idea it would go viral, she just thought it was sweet.”

“Sweet,” I repeat slowly, nodding my head. “And now it’s been seen by millions of people.”

“On the bright side,” Max says through his teeth hesitantly. “The Bears are trending. We’re the hottest team in the MLB right now.”

“With the hottest coach,” Austin adds. I glare at him.

“So what exactly does this mean?” I ask, not knowing what the fuck to expect. Or do for that matter. Am I supposed to put out a statement or something?

“Absolutely nothing, Coach. Now you just sit back and enjoy being internet famous. I bet this will increase ticket sales, too.”Austin pulls out his phone and starts looking at something. Then, he laughs, and turns his phone around. “Check it out.”

Through narrowed eyes, I look at the screen. It’s a map of Coit Stadium showing available seating for our upcoming home game.

Only, there is none…

I whip my eyes up to his. “The game sold out?”

What?

“The nextfoursold out.”

The fuck.

“Holy shit.” I exhale a breath, and with a surprised chuckle, I grin. “Blake’s going to fuckinglovethis.”

“Fuck yeah, he is!” Austin holds his hand up for a high five, and for once I don’t hesitate.

As much as the idea of being viral on the internet nauseates me, I know this type of exposure is going to do amazing things for the season.

“So… You’re not mad?” Max raises his eyebrows in question.

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