“No, but my mother does. I had to make some arrangements…” She glanced up at Allie, who he noticed gave a slight shake of her head. “With my decision coming so late, I wasn’t able to get everything done so she’s agreed to see to it.”
Casey was apologizing to him with her eyes, but he had no idea what it was for. And Allie wasn’t going to let her tell him. Was her secret bigger than theirs?
He knew he’d be chewing on it until he found out, and if they had to tell him before he stayed overnight in the women’s condo, he’d make his promise not to say a word. And keep it.
The Uber driver dropped them off, and Mateo carried as many bags as he could manage, stumbling along until they reached the curbside check-in. He was surprised it took so little time. He’d only been on flights where he had to wait in line to show his passport and his visa. Here they were released within minutes of showing their ID’s. He noticed Allie slip the man some bills before heading through the revolving door and into the terminal. He let Casey go ahead before following.
The gate was a beehive of activity when they arrived. Players were milling around in small groups. Women were standing off to the side, whom Mateo had to assume were girlfriends or wives tagging along. Larsen was talking to DeLorenzo, and Mac was wandering the area, shaking hands as if in welcome.
Mateo turned to Allie who was doing a head count.
“Is everyone taking the same flight?”
“Everyone who lives in the area should be here. Pitchers and catchers left a few days ago. They’re always the first ones to go down. I have to check in on some things. I’ll be back.”
He watched her go, admired the confident stride until Rique’s slap on the back interrupted the moment.
“It’s happening. I still can’t believe it.”
“You’ve been to spring training before. Why is this unbelievable?”
“I’ve never been this tight with a team before.”
“Too busy bitching?”
Casey’s voice caused Rique to jerk his head to where she stood.
“You’re here.”
“Not for long. I’ve got to catch my…Mac up on some things.”
She gave Mateo a kiss on the cheek and whispered, “You’re doing great. See you later.”
“What was that about? Did you know she was coming with us?”
“I knew it was a possibility. Her dad wanted her along, but she didn’t decide until this morning.”
“Seb?”
“Among other things.”
He noticed Seb walking toward them, a bag thrown carelessly over his shoulder. His eyes were riveted in Mac’s direction, or rather Casey’s. It was only when he bumped into Reyes that his stare was diverted.
“Sorry.”
Reyes just laughed. “Hope you pay better attention to where you’re going when you’re in left field.”
He nodded distractedly and then caught sight of him and Rique. He walked briskly over to join them.
Rique pointed out the obvious. “You saw.”
“I was hoping….”
“That she did or didn’t?”
“I don’t know.”
The flight attendant’s voice came over the speaker, announcing it was time to board. After she called the last ten rows, Mateo stood to the side so others could get by. He knew he was somewhere in the middle of the plane, sitting with these two guys, not Allie. She’d have work to do on the flight down, and he had a feeling that Casey would be occupying the seat next to her that should have been his. Who’d be on her other side was anyone’s guess, but he envied whoever it was. She’d already begun to distance herself and he kept telling himself he couldn’t blame her. She had a job to do, an important job, and as she’d explained, she couldn’t afford any distractions.
There wasn’t a lot of conversation during the flight down. The three of them had their minds on something else, or rather someone else. Rique had grown somber as he boarded the plane, saying that he already missed Fiona. Seb had his eyes trained on the last row of seats, where Casey sat, until he’d reached his. Then he’d plopped his head back and closed his eyes, the slight frown on his friend’s face expressing his mood. And he was busy working out ways to get back into Allie’s bed. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to sleep without her, not if she were around. He knew most of the men here would be sleeping solo for most of the season, and it would have been doable if she wasn’t visible. To see and not touch might be too much for him. And he couldn’t afford to waste his energies on anything but the season. He was here for a reason and she was counting on him to get it done. He was the clutch hit waiting to happen when the need arose, and he was not going to disappoint her.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Allie had watch as the rest of the team boarded. She always made it a point to sit at the back of the plane so she could observe the interactions without being obvious, but today her eyes were peeled for one specific player. When he finally appeared, and began walking down the aisle to his seat, his eyes met hers in a heart-rendering smile. When she emitted a soft moan, Casey patted her arm and asked, “You are going to spend time with him when we get there, aren’t you?”
“I… I am. I just have to figure out how and when.”
She was staring at the back of his head. It was tilted up as he talked with Reyes, who’d stopped to talk as he walked past him. She wondered what he’d said to put the grin on the second baseman’s face. She should be pleased that he was getting comfortable with his teammates, but it unsettled her for some reason. He was much more outgoing than she’d initially thought and that might prove problematic, especially with the opposite sex. Latin men loved women, all
