Do Not Fall For The Baseball Captains novel Chapter 71

Do You Have a Boyfriend?

Victoria’s POV

The kitchen smelled like burnt butter and maple syrup.

Adele and I were navigating the narrow space between the stove and the island, trying to coordinate a massive batch of blueberry pancakes without knocking each other

over.

It was peaceful, right up until a loud, booming voice cut straight through the morning quiet from the front door.

“Where is Elijah motherfucking Carter?”

I scrunched my eyebrows, pausing with the spatula mid–air as I wondered who that uncharacteristically loud voice belonged to.

I turned to Adele, expecting her to look just as confused as I was, but her face was scrunched up pure annoyance.

She let out a long, heavy sigh.

“You know who that is?” I asked.

“Yup. Allison Gates,” Adele muttered under her breath.

The name instantly clicked.

My memory flashed back to the girl I’d seen a while ago; the one I had initially, stupidly mistaken for Elijah’s girlfriend before I actually learned his real circle.

Before I could even set the spatula down, Allison burst into the kitchen.

She had a leather jacket swung over one shoulder and her sunglasses pushed up into her messy hair.

“What smells so… Whoa. Adele?” She stopped dead in her tracks, her boots sliding slightly on the hardwood as she blinked at us. “I didn’t expect to find you or anyone else here, honestly.”

Then, her gaze shifted away from Adele and landed squarely on my face.

Her eyes dropped immediately, fixing on the fabric of the oversized black baseball jersey I was wearing.

It completely swallowed my figure, the hem hanging down to my thighs, but it clearly didn’t hide the giant white CARTER printed across the back.

“Oh,” Allison said as amused smirk spread across her face. “Are you two married now or something?”

I pressed my lips together, feeling the telltale warmth rise to my face.

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i opened my mouth to scramble for some kind of logical explanation, but Adele bea me to the punch.

“Wow, Allie. I didn’t realize wearing a piece of clothing meant two people legally filed for a marriage certificate. Good to know your logic is still completely broken

Adele shot back, rolling her eyes as she slapped another stack of pancakes onto the platter.

Allison rolled her eyes dramatically, stepping fully into the kitchen and making herself

at home.

“You know exactly what I mean, Addie. Besides, I’m just surprised to find our dear Carter’s girlfriend here.”

Within minutes, Allison and Adele were taking playful shots at each other. I couldn’t help laughing under my breath at some of their exchanges.⚫

Watching them banter was like looking at a mirror image of Miles and Elijah.

Allison possessed that exact same loud, unbothered, chaotic energy that Miles used to push everyone’s buttons, while Adele stepped right into Elijah’s role–dry, irritated, and completely unimpressed.

Allison hopped up, swinging her legs over the edge of the marble island countertop and making herself completely at home.

“Get your boots off the stone, Allie,” Adele snapped, grabbing a clean dish towel and swatting at Allison’s shins.

“Oh, come on, don’t be a fun sponge,” Allison laughed, leaning back on her hands. Her eyes drifted to a glass bowl of fresh strawberries sitting on the counter.

The second her fingers reached out to steal one, Adele’s hand shot across the space, smacking her wrist away with a loud crack.

“Ouch! Cruel,” Allison complained, sucking on her knuckle.

“Get your own fruit.”

Despite the constant bickering, making breakfast turned out to be incredibly fun. It was a chaotic dance of dodging Allison’s attempts to steal food and helping Adele flip the pancakes before they turned to charcoal.

By the time we finally carried the massive platters over to the dining table, it felt like we’d been working in a commercial kitchen for days.

Right on cue, as if an inner alarm clock had gone off simultaneously in their heads, the bedroom doors upstairs began to open.

Within minutes, the guys gathered around the kitchen island.

The room instantly filled with life; chairs scraping against the floor, plates clattering,

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and a steady mix of groggy morning voices talking over one another

I sat down next to Adele, a genuine smile pulling at my lips as I watched the room

The presence of Adele and Allison made the luxury condo feel so much more lived–in, turning the sleek, cold modern edges of the space into something warm.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed against the wooden surface of the table.

I picked it up, checking the screen. My father’s name was flashing across the display

My chest warmed at the sight of his name, and I immediately stood up, intending to slip away into the hallway to answer it in private.

“Hey, where are you going?” Miles asked around a mouthful of bacon, stopping me before I could take two steps. “You don’t have to leave, Tori. Just answer it here. We’ll be quiet for you.”

“Yeah, stay,” Nate added, waving his fork. “We promise not to swear for at least five minutes.”

I hesitated, looking over at Elijah. He was sitting at the head of the island, a coffee mug caught between his large hands, watching me with a small, relaxed smile.

I swallowed my shyness, slid back onto my stool, and swiped the screen to accept the FaceTime call.

My dad’s face popped up on the bright display, his familiar, weathered features instantly filling the screen.

“Victoria! Finally,” he complained, though his tone was entirely fond. “I feel like I haven’t heard from you in years, kiddo. How are you doing?”

Initially, the number of eyes locked onto me made my throat tighten with nerves.

I opened my mouth to answer, but before a single word could come out, Leo leaned over my shoulder, completely crashing the frame.

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