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“I can’t believe you’ve lived in Chicago your entire life and never been to a baseball game.” Ryan had placed a hat on her head very carefully. “Our seats are in the sun for a little while,” he’d said by way of explanation.
Once he’d gotten them to their seats, he’d taken off to get beer.
So there she sat, in the bleachers at a game she knew nothing about, waiting for her date to return.
She took out her phone and read the texts from Al but didn’t respond because she still wasn’t happy about having to text with her left hand.
She was probably making a bigger deal out of it than she needed to.
The voice of her dad echoed in her head, telling her to stop pouting and try to enjoy herself.
She smiled to herself.
She needed to go up north and see him before the end of summer. Sure, she’d just been up there a month ago, but when your parents were as cool as hers, missing them was a byproduct of the relationship.
Maybe Dad would have some words of wisdom for how to deal with André working just down the hall from her.
Ryan shuffled back to his seat with three beers in his hands. He held them out and waited for her to take one.
“Beer at a baseball game is the most American thing in America,” Ryan said, sitting down and watching the field as the players warmed up.
Nikki smiled as she watched his enamored expression.
There was something incredibly wholesome about Ryan. She could see why Al had set them up.
He hadn’t been rude or creepy. He’d always been on time, paid for her food and drinks, opened all the doors. Fundamentally, there was nothingwrongwith Ryan.
Not really.
Except that baseball appeared to be his entire personality.
But you know who he wasn’t?
He wasn’t André.
And that gave him, like, a thousand more points in the personality department as far as Nikki was concerned.
Ugh.
She needed to stop thinking about André.
She had successfully avoided him all day.
Mostly.
He’d already been working on the lounge when she’d arrived and so she knew what areas to stay away from.
Though she’d taken a peek in the afternoon when he’d left to get something at the hardware store.
What? She was only avoiding having toseehim. She couldn’t do much abouthearinghim.
He’d cleaned out the rest of the equipment in there and cleaned it up in half the time it would’ve taken her.
Probably because of those glorious muscles he had all over his body.
Which she’d gotten a good look at after he’d returned from the hardware store.
He’d walked into the lounge and had taken off his shirt without realizing she was in there. Or at least, she assumed he hadn’t known she was in there.
