Page 62 of Pitcher Perfect
And didn’t she deserve a stiff drink or two after this afternoon?
Robbie was not coming back.
She knew that in her gut, the way she knew the sound of a home run as soon as it connected with the bat. The knowledge that she’d given up a home run usually filled her with the sametype of hollow dread. This felt different, however. Not simply disappointment in herself and a growing drive to do better next time. More like a horrible sense that she’d missed something or hadn’t paid enough attention. The feeling also happened to be more concentrated in her chest than usual, too. A horribly uncomfortable sensation that made her desperate to numb the feeling. Or better yet, get rid of it entirely.
Not easy when she could still feel Robbie’s fist in her hair, his lips skating up the side of her neck. The possessive way he’d licked her. Kissed her.Bither.
“What the heck,” Skylar whispered into her first sip of the lime-laced cocktail. Thank God for the way it burned on the way down, distracting her from the heat she still felt everywhere else.Annoyingheat that only seemed to multiply her confusion.
Why did she have to be so attracted to Robbie?
Did he kiss every girl like that? In a way that was starved and conflicted at the same time? What had caused his sudden need to leave (apart from her highly functioning dysfunctional family, that is)? And most importantly, why did the thought of never seeing him again put her in a state of mourning?
God, she almost felt... disoriented from the sudden loss of his chuckle—
“Skylar,” someone said to her right. “Hey.”
No, not someone. Madden.
Madden was there. In the Gilded Garden. His dark hair had turned blue black in the lighting, his jaw set with tension, along with his wide shoulders. So handsome. Almost... debonair in black jeans and a fitted white T-shirt.
When a weighted flop would normally happen in her belly at the sight of him, so tall and intense, now Skylar only experienced a tiny zing that translated mostly as... fondness? The events of the day had obviously taken a lot out of her if she was too spentto get excited at the sight of her forever crush in such a romantic setting, right? The alcohol could be to blame, too, of course.
“What are you doing here?” she asked Madden.
He shoved both hands into the pockets of his slacks. “Elton mentioned you were coming to see Eve tonight.”
“Okay...”
“I thought I might join you.”
Two, three seconds ticked by during which she tried to make sense of that answer. Had he come... because he wanted to spend time with her? As a friend? Or... more?
She didn’t have time to dissect his behavior because he pulled out a hammered brass stool for her, then himself, signaling the bartender with a curt nod. Somehow the man seemed to know his drink by heart, sliding a frothy beer in front of Madden within seconds. Was the guy a psychic or something? Or had Madden been here before?
“Robbie left for practice tonight, so?”
A little chisel hammered her in the throat. “Yes. Playoffs start next week, so they’re mostly resting, but not enough to lose their conditioning.”
Madden took a thoughtful sip of his pint, that characteristic furrow locked to his brow. “Would you say things are going well between the two of you?”
Skylar’s pulse started to race, but she couldn’t tell why. Because Madden was showing interest in her love life and finally seeing her as an adult? Or because her relationship with Robbie was a fabrication and she’d have to lie? “I don’t... know, actually,” she said, finding she spoke the truth. “How did it seem to you?”
It seemed to take him an hour to respond, and she couldn’t help but compare Madden’s thoughtful manner to Robbie’s instantaneous quips. “Sure, isn’t it natural for me to feel protective of you, Skylar? I’ve known you years. And this Robbie...”He paused. “The sports world is small and in Boston, it’s even smaller. People talk. Men talk. I’m sorry, but Robbie has something of a reputation. With women.”
Skylar already knew that. Hearing it out loud, knowing Robbie’s playerhood was a definitive fact, lined her stomach with lead, nonetheless. “Yes, I’m aware.”
Madden nodded, apparently satisfied. “I couldn’t let it pass without saying something to you. You’re not likely to listen to Elton.” Ever so briefly, his eyes twinkled. “For good reason. He can be a right arse, as you well know.”
A laugh bloomed in her throat. Suddenly, there she was, drinking alcohol with this devastatingly hot and mysterious man, in a smoky burlesque club. It was an odd moment of clarity—oh, I’m truly an adult—that she probably should have experienced long before now, considering she’d been through almost four years of college. But still. This was a sex situation. A situation where the right moves could lead to sex. With Madden.
The possibility flooded her with panic.
Too fast. This is moving too fast.
She hadn’t even finished her lessons with Robbie.
Dammit, Robbie. Are you coming back?
