Intentional Walk: Dating Mr. Baseball Book 3 Read online

  Intentional Walk

  Dating Mr. Baseball Book 3

  Lucy McConnell

  Orchard View Publishing LLC

  Copyright © 2019 by Lucy McConnell

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  Intentional Walk

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

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  About the Author

  Invitation

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  Intentional Walk

  Brayden Birks, starting pitcher for the St. George Redrocks, can’t wait to propose to his girlfriend. Tilly Creswick may not be perfect; but, she’s perfect for him. Tragedy strikes before Brayden can put the ring on her finger and he’s stripped down to his core, unsure of his place in the world of baseball and his ability to be a good husband.

  Tilly wasn’t looking for love. Love found her on a rocky outcrop one afternoon and it sank roots deep into her soul. Brayden may have broken her heart, but she’s made of cliffs and mountains and desert wind. She’ll weather through with the help of her friends, a matchmaking team owner, and prayer.

  As these two try to separate their lives, they’re drawn together over and over again as if their love is written in the stars they spent so many lazy nights gazing at as they planned their future family.

  A fiery kiss from Tilly awakens Brayden from his post-injury fog and the first thing he wants to fix the biggest mistake of his life: intentionally walking Tilly. He’ll go to great lengths to get her back, even if it means letting go of baseball and the dream he’s carried for a lifetime.

  Chapter One

  Brayden

  If Brayden Birks lived to be a thousand years old, there wouldn’t be a better day to propose to the most amazing woman on the planet. From the day they’d met, Tilly Creswick had captured his heart. She was the one. The. One. He didn’t need to date other women to see if there was something better out there. There wasn’t. Tilly may not be perfect, but she was perfect for him.

  And he couldn’t wait to slide a ring on her finger.

  With a win in his back pocket and his girl waiting for him in the parking lot, Brayden couldn’t get out of the locker room fast enough.

  “Good game,” said Dustin, the shortstop. He slapped Brayden’s shoulder as he walked by on his way to the showers. Brayden had already showered and dressed in an athletic shirt and a pair of climbing shorts covered by a loose pair of basketball shorts. Tilly was taking him climbing; little did she know he had a surprise for her at the top.

  “You too.” Dustin had made a game-saving catch. A line drive to his right, Dustin had to dive, roll, recover, and send it back to first for the double play. Exceptional baseball! It was these moments of greatness that told Brayden the team was shaping up under Coach Wolfe. The guy had a way of making you feel like you were part of something big, that success was just around the corner. He hadn’t moved on to the “next-season” pregame speeches yet. Good thing, because as long as there was a game to play, there was a game to win.

  “You were on fire out there.” Blake Rygs, the closer who had finished out the game by holding the opposing team at three while the Redrocks scored two more runs, plopped down on the bench next to Brayden and shucked off his cleats.

  Brayden hated being taken out when he still had juice in his arm, but his stats would reflect the win. His baseball brain absorbed all of that, but his heart was thrumming for Tilly.

  He was on fire, all right, and it burned deep in his heart for his girl. Tilly was different from other women—in all the best ways. She wore her hair in dreadlocks, and it smelled like cactus flowers. Which would be strange, except that was the only way to describe the scent of the desert that clung to her skin. She could have been a desert gypsy the way she was at home in a climbing harness or on a mountain bike trail. He was constantly amazed at her ability to scramble up a cliff or find her way over any obstacle. Where most people saw the impossible, she saw the beautiful challenge and rose to it—every time.

  “Whatever you’re drinking, share some of that with me,” added Blake. His long legs took up all the space between the bench and his locker. Brayden looked around the room for a moment, grateful he’d landed on the Redrocks. Not only were these guys his teammates; they were his friends.

  “And me,” added Dustin, toweling off his hair. No one lingered long in the shower stalls around here. That set you up for a prank. Ice water dumped over your head, Kool-Aid packets emptied into the stream of water, whipping cream showers when you stepped out—he’d seen them all.

  Brayden glanced around once more to make sure no one was watching. He reached into the top shelf of his locker, the very back corner, and pulled out a small white box. Crouching down so Blake’s body shielded him from view, he said, “This is what I’m drinking.” He opened the box slowly, the light catching the diamond ring.

  Dustin let out a low whistle. “The stone’s a little flashy for my taste, but I think I can make it work.”

  Brayden stood quickly. He cuffed Dustin on the back of the head. “It’s for Tilly, you idiot. Like I’d want your sorry self.”

  Dustin laughed. “I have all I can handle with Clover—she keeps me on my toes.” His grin said he loved every second they spent together. Clover had been raised on the streets. She worked at a hotel and volunteered at the local food pantry. “It’s all I can do to keep her from wandering parks and parking lots at night, looking for the homeless and giving out those essential bags. It drives me crazy to think of her walking around town meeting men who may be in desperate circumstances and offering to drive them to the shelter for the night when we’re on road trips.”

  “What’s going on?” Jimmy Holt strode in, a towel wrapped around his waist. He was a starter, had an excellent sinker, and hadn’t said a bad word about anyone in all his life.

  Brayden flashed him the ring.

  Jimmy’s eyes lit up and he flapped his hands in front of his face like a beauty pageant winner. “You shouldn’t have.”

  Brayden snapped the box shut and glared at Jimmy and Dustin. “You two should start a comedy club.”

  “Wait, this is legit?” Blake stared hard at him. “You’re asking Tilly to marry you?”

  “No, I’m asking Juan.” Brayden hooked his thumb towards the right fielder, who was busy giving Ross
Ketcham, their newest catcher, a rapid-fire rundown of his night taking care of this three daughters, who all had the stomach flu. Ross looked like he might be sick if the conversation continued much longer.

  Dustin waved away Blake’s surprise. “Don’t listen to him. He’s just mad because you’re proposing first. That’s awesome, man.”

  “How long until you and Elise …” Brayden wiggled the ring box in the air at Blake.

  Blake ducked his head. “A while now. I have to ask her dad first. Maybe the end of the season.”

  “Dude! You should do it big. Like, on the field during a game big.” Dustin threw his hands out to the side, his arm span filling the space around them. “That way, she’ll be too embarrassed to tell you no.”

  Blake half-heartedly swung at him. “Like she would tell me no. That girl is so in love with me.”

  “Only because I was off-limits,” called Juan, proving that he always had half an ear on the conversations happening around him. He jerked his chin at Blake, teasing him. In reality, Elise had had eyes for just Blake from day one. Kind of like how Brayden felt for Tilly. Okay, not kind of like—exactly like.

  He tucked the ring box in his pocket. “I’m in such a good mood, not even you yahoos could spoil it.” He tucked his keys into his gym bag. “I’m outta here.”

  A chorus of catcalls and congratulations from his teammates followed him out the door. Before he made it to the parking lot, the whole locker room would know what he was up to tonight. That was fine with him. These guys where the closest thing he had to brothers.

  Tilly was waiting in her Jeep in the private parking lot behind the stadium. Country music blared from the speakers. He paused to take in the sight of her. If she wasn’t so active, she would be a stick figure, but for her, life was a workout, and she had the muscle definition to prove it. Not that she could beat him in a dead lift competition or anything; she was just curvy in a sexy sort of way. Her dreads normally fell halfway down her back, but she had them pulled up into a messy bun. It was safer for climbing, but he loved the slope of her neck and the access to that sensitive spot behind her ear. His lips warmed at the thought of kissing her there. Her olive skin was dark—a product of her love for the desert. The sun was her friend, and Tilly couldn’t seem to go a day without having a conversation with her bestie.

  He got his feet to move and headed for the Jeep.

  As beautiful as her body was, it was her green eyes that he fell for over and over again. They say that the eyes are the window to the soul. He hadn’t known what that meant until he’d met Tilly. Her soul shone right on through those minty green eyes, and it took his breath away.

  Tilly waved to her friend Clover as she pulled in to wait for Dustin. Clover wouldn’t be waiting long. He couldn’t stand to be away from her.

  Brayden knew exactly how he felt. The last few weeks of kissing Tilly good night and walking away from her doorstep were the hardest two weeks of his life. Even though she only lived a few doors down from him, the distance was too much. He wanted to hold her all night long, to wake up to her beautiful face, and to know that at the end of a road trip, she’d be the place he called home. His heart was so full of this woman that it took extra effort to breathe at the sight of her smile.

  “Hey, babe.” He tossed his gear bag in the back and leaned across the passenger seat to kiss her hello. He took his time, cupping the back of her head and moving slowly, savoring each touch, each soft caress. When he pulled back, her eyes had glazed over.

  She pressed her lips together and hummed. “Hello to you too, babe.” Her voice was husky and intimate. If he didn’t have a plan for the evening, he’d suggest they find a nice overlook and make out for a few hours. “You ready to climb a mountain?” she asked.

  He chuckled as he climbed into the seat and buckled up. “Life’s always an adventure with you.”

  “What other kind of life is there?” She lifted a toned shoulder and put the Jeep in gear.

  “I love you.” He couldn’t keep from smiling.

  She smiled, wrinkling her slightly freckled nose. “Love you too.”

  Yes, she did. She loved him with all of her—he could feel it just as clearly as he could feel the dry August heat beat on his shoulders in the open vehicle.

  They rolled out of the parking lot, waving at players and family members as they crawled through the post-game traffic.

  The game had started at 12:30 in the afternoon. They were through the worst of the heat and down to hot tub temperatures instead of baking oven temps. The built-in dugout misters and gallons of ice water had helped as he’d stood on a pile of red dirt in the middle of the field throwing 98-mile-an-hour fastballs. He hadn’t complained when Juan dumped a cup of ice down his shirt after he’d come out of the sixth. By the time he’d stripped off his uniform, he didn’t know what was sweat and what was melted ice. He felt bad for the guy who had to do their laundry on days like today.

  He rested his arm on the open window, letting the warm evening air brush his skin. “This is nice, ya know?”

  “What is?” Tilly turned onto I-15 and accelerated. They had to shout to be heard.

  “The team’s really coming together. We’re starting to feel like a family. I haven’t had that on other teams.”

  “You were in the minors. If you’d gotten comfortable there, you wouldn’t have been called up.”

  He nodded in agreement and settled in for the rest of the drive. It didn’t take long for them to get to the Snow Canyon exit and through the rangers’ station. Tilly flashed her season pass, and a woman in olive-green shorts with a Smokey the Bear hat waved them through.

  Tilly leaned back in her seat, her body visibly relaxing. She was like that, more at home in the hills than she was in the valley. This place called to her—sang her theme song, as she’d often told him. Was there anything more attractive on a woman than knowing where her peace was found?

  A half a mile up, she pulled off the side of the road and hopped out. Brayden did the same, stealing another kiss at the back bumper.

  “You’re feeling frisky today.” She giggled as he moved to kiss her neck. “I like it when you guys win.”

  “I like winning too.” His grin was so wide he had to stop kissing her. The secret tucked into his pocket screamed to be let out. His body argued to go to one knee right here on the side of the road. He fought against all of that, intent on sticking to the plan. They’d climb this cliff—together—and then he’d ask her to be his wife as they were baptized in the reds and golds of a southern Utah sunset.

  They spent the next few minutes getting into their harnesses, checking the gear, and hauling the ropes to the base of the cliff. This was a regularly traversed rock. There were anchors sunk into the rock face for safety. Tilly did free climbs and all sorts of dangerous stuff Brayden didn’t have the skills to try.

  “So I’ll hook both clips as I climb.” She always climbed first. She had more experience and had done this climb several times before. And he didn’t mind the view. Yeah, his girlfriend had a tight rear. “You just have to hook on as you go.”

  He put his hand over hers, his heart racing. This was it. This was the climb that would take them to new heights—a new place as a couple. Up top, they’d be the only two people in the world. “I can’t wait to see the view.”

  She grinned. “You’re gonna love it. Just remember to check your carabiner before you start to climb. Red is dead, right?”

  “Right.” The carabiner had to be twisted shut like a screw to keep it from slipping as you climbed. The threads were painted red, and the phrase red is dead meant that if you could see the color red, you weren’t secure.

  She placed the rope bag on the ground. It had been coiled so that it would come out without entanglements. A knot could be trouble. He watched her movements, mesmerized by her confidence. “Okay, I’m free climbing. You’ll have to release each anchor, slide your rope through, and reattach as you go. Got it?”

  He kissed her, wanting one more
taste of her lips before they were separated by the climb. “Yes.” His spirit soared. They were making it all the way to the top tonight.

  She kissed him back, turned towards the cliff, and paused. “Are you sure about this?” she asked over her shoulder. Her pink climbing helmet slipped a little, and she straightened it.

  He knew what she was asking. Technically, he shouldn’t be participating in any form of extreme outdoor recreation. His contract spelled it all out. However, tonight was about making this special for Tilly. To be in her world, and then invite her into his for as long as they both shall live, was … His plan was as perfect as her lips and as beautiful as her tan legs. “I’ve never been more sure about anything in my life.” He hoped she remembered he’d said that one day when she was telling their children their engagement story.

  Tilly shivered as if a cold breeze had swept through the canyon. “Okay, then.” Her hand reached for the first hold and he stepped back to give her room and belay. He’d only belay for the first half of her climb, and then he’d go up behind her. The anchors, drilled into the cliff by the forest service, would be their safety net.

  Brayden watched, amazed at her concentration and physical abilities. He could throw a 98-mile-per-hour fastball, but she moved like a gazelle. She clipped onto another anchor, already halfway up the face. “Okay, that should do it if you want to start climbing.”