He must, when he uncrosses his arms and laughs.
But then he lifts a single finger and spins it in a circle.
“You’ve gotta be fucking kid—”
“Oh yeah, I forgot. The man wants a twirl,” Luisa says absentmindedly as she types something ferociously into her phone.
I whip my stare back to Mateo as I shake my head. “Nuh-uh. No way, pal.”
He taps at his imaginary watch as he mouths, “Ticktock.”
That motherfucker.
The teams are switching positions, the Monarchs heading to the bases and outfield. If I take any longer, the crowd and cameraman are going to wonder why the pitcher hasn’t made his way to the mound.
It’s as if I’m in some fucked-up game of chicken, except he knows exactly who’s going to lose. Me.
I’ll get him back for this.
I take a deep breath as I tuck my defiance in my back pocket and give a half-assed twirl. And I end it with a curtsy, just for shits and giggles.
The smile on Mateo’s face could light up the stadium brighter than all the lights here combined.
And for a moment, I forget that he’s public enemy number one once we get home.
Well, actuallyhishome. Where I also happen to live, for the time being.
“Huh. Interesting,” Luisa muses beside me.
I break our eye contact and hope Mateo takes that as his cue to get his ass back to work. “What is?”
Luisa looks me over, a look of respect taking over her features. “It’s almost as if you just slayed the dragon with your merepresence. That guy had a real attitude problem down in the dugout. But one jersey swap and twirl later, andpoof. All gone.” She smiles warmly for the first time now, her mask of authority taking a breather. “It takes a good woman to deal with a powerful man like Mateo. I’m happy you guys found each other.” She lowers her voice for my ears only. “Although, if you guys could keep me out of your foreplay in the future, that would be greatly appreciated.” She squeezes my arm tenderly.
“No, we’re not—I’m not—” I stammer.
“Sure, sure. This was fun and all, but I have my own dragon to slay upstairs, so I’ll leave you guys to it. Hope to see you around more often. Enjoy the game.” She goes to move away, but I reach out and softly grab her forearm.
I don’t know what it is about her, but Luisa Álvarez is a powerhouse that I instantly admire. She’s a woman taking charge in a male-dominated sport, and she does so with bigger cojones than anyone I’ve ever met.
So without much thought, I blurt out a question. It’s as if I’m trying to collect new girlfriends like infinity stones today. “How do you feel about girls’ night out and group chats?”
twenty-five
The Monarchs won, fiveto zero.
A shutout. Not a single home run was made by the other team due to Mateo’s relentless pitching.
As if it were even humanly possible, Mateo played even better after I put on his stupid jersey, except this time, he played with a smug look on his face.
I swear they’re going to make a million posters of his facial expressions tonight and plaster them all over the city.
The man even smized throughout an entire inning.
Since tonight was such a standout game for him, he texted us to go home with Hank and Charlie.
Mateo:
Hey, I’ll have to stay back and handle media for a while, so you guys go ahead and head home. I mightnot make it before Anna’s bedtime because I need my strength and conditioning team to help work out my arms before I call it a night. Please text me before she tells bedtime story number three so I can catch her before she passes out and wish her good night.
