Do Not Fall For The Baseball Captains novel Chapter 78

Victoria’s POV

The interior of the massive rental minivan was packed to absolute capacity, filled with the loud, overlapping voices of ten people trying to survive a road trip.

Leo was up front, both hands gripped on the steering wheel as he navigated the interstate toward the outer suburbs of Chicago, while Jace sat in the passenger seat, acting as the designated map reader.

Behind them was a complete puzzle of seating arrangements, but the real commotion, was happening right in the middle row.

Nate had managed to sandwich himself perfectly between my sister, Willow, and her friend, Betty, whom we had picked up on our way out of town.

He was currently leaning into Betty’s space, flashing her a devastating smile while resting his arm along the back of the seat.

“So, Betty,” Nate said, his tone dripping with effortless charm. “You’re telling me you’ve lived in Illinois your whole life and you’ve never had a real city tour? I might have to personally volunteer for the job.”

Before Betty could even giggle, a hand shot forward from the row behind them.

Adele reached between the headrests and firmly smacked the back of Nate’s head.

“Ouch! What the hell, Adele?” Nate complained, rubbing the spot as he glared over his

shoulder.

“Behave yourself, Nate,” Adele warned, pointing a strict finger at him. “They are literally out of your league. Stop trying to run your greasy playboy routines on Victoria’s big sister and her friends.”

“Hey girl, don’t be our attorney, we’re completely enjoying the free entertainment!” Willow chimed in, laughing loudly.

Despite being the older one, she and Betty were thoroughly amused by the attention, tossing knowing glances back and forth as if Nate was a live comedy show.

They leaped right into his flirty orbit, completely unfazed by his flirting.

Down in the very back row, the space was much tighter. I was squeezed into the corner seat, with Elijah sitting right beside me.

His long legs were bent at an awkward angle to fit into the cramped footwell, but he didn’t seem to care, his shoulder pressed firmly against mine as the van cruised down the highway.

I leaned closer to him, keeping my voice down so the rest of the car wouldn’t hear.

1/6

Coul out

“Has Nate always been like that?”

Elijah let out a quiet chuckle, the sound deep and dry.

“Always. Since the tenth grade, at least. The guy doesn’t have an off switch when there’s an audience.”

I looked at him, curious. “Did you know all of them back in high school?”

“Not all of them,” Elijah answered, resting his arm on the small plastic ledge beneath the window.

“I’ve known Miles and Nate since we were kids–we basically grew up on the same baseball fields. And Allison is actually a family friend, so I’ve known her my entire life, too. Adele was Allie’s friend from home, but I didn’t really get to know her until our freshman year of college. Same with Leo and Jace–we met them through the athletic department.”

I pushed out my bottom lip, nodding slowly as I processed the information.

“Don’t do that,” Elijah said suddenly.

I blinked, breaking out of my thoughts.

“Do what?”

“That,” he murmured, his gaze dropping significantly.

Before I could ask for clarification, he shifted his weight, leaning forward into my personal space.

The movement caught me completely off guard.

My breath hitched in my throat and I tried to lean back, but there was absolutely

nowhere to go.

My shoulders were already pinned against the hard plastic interior of the van.

He loomed over me, his dark eyes fixed on my face with intense focus.

Slowly, he stretched his hand out. His thumb brushed against my mouth, the pads of his fingers warm as he gently rubbed the center of my lower lip, forcing me to stop

pouting.

“Don’t pout your lips out like that,” he whispered, his voice dropping into a rough, private tone meant only for me. “It does things to me, Victoria. Things I don’t want to act on in the back of a crowded vehicle.”

My heart began to race at a terrifying speed, a sudden flush of intense heat rushing straight to my face. I could feel my pulse spiking in my throat.

My eyes involuntarily rolled down from his gaze, tracking the movement of his throat as he swallowed, before snapping back to meet his eyes.

“Like what?” I asked, a sudden spark of boldness taking over my tongue. “What exactly is it that you want to act on?”

Elijah stared at me for a long, agonizing second, his thumb lingering on my skin before he slowly drew his hand back.

A lazy, wicked smirk curled the corner of his mouth.

“You really do not want me to answer that right now, Victoria. It’s going to completely ruin whatever boundaries we have left.”

I opened my mouth to shoot back a response, but before the words could form, someone loudly cleared their throat from the front.

“Are you two quite finished back there?”

We both snapped our heads toward the middle row. Nate, Willow, Betty, Allison and Adele had all twisted around in their seats, staring directly at us with massive, teasing

grins.

My face burned an entirely new shade of crimson, and I instantly looked down at my lap, wishing I could disappear into the seat cushions.

Elijah, however, didn’t look even remotely flustered. He just leaned back, fixing Nate with a cold, unimpressed stare.

“Mind your own business, Nate. Turn around and watch the road.”

“I’m just checking on the passengers, Captain,” Nate cackled, though he wisely turned back around, letting out a dramatic sigh as the rest of the girls giggled.

Gradually, the teasing died down, and the atmosphere in the van returned to normal.

Soft pop music drifted from the dashboard speakers, and the casual chatter faded into quiet, hushed conversations as the long drive continued.

Elijah settled back into his seat, but after a few minutes of silence, he turned his head toward me again.

“Can I ask you something about home?”

“Sure,” I said, shifting slightly so I could see him better.

“Did anyone back there actually know about your crush on Caleb?” he asked, his expression perfectly neutral.

“When we get to your dad’s place, am I going to be dealing with a bunch of family members asking awkward questions about him?”

I let out a soft, relieved smile, shaking my head.

“No. Honestly, my parents might have suspected something over the years because I was always around Caleb, but I never outrightly admitted it to anyone. I kept it

completely to myself. You don’t have to worry about that.”

3/6

Dora Pout

Elijah nodded slowly, seemingly satisfied with the answer. He went quiet, staring out the window at the passing cornfields.

I watched him for a beat, a heavy question weighing on the tip of my tongue, but I hesitated, biting my inner cheek.

He didn’t even turn his head, but he noticed anyway.

“Just say whatever is on your mind. You’re giving yourself a headache staring at me like that.”

“I don’t want to ruin the mood,” I admitted quietly.

A small, genuine smile touched his lips, and he finally looked at me. “I’ll be the judge of

that. Go ahead.”

I took a quiet breath, bracing myself. “I’ve heard a lot of rumors on campus about Trinity Woods. Will you ever tell me what actually happened with her?”

The change in his demeanor was instant.

Elijah tensed, his entire posture freezing for a fraction of a second at the mention of the name. It was a very brief, passing reaction, but it was there.

Then, he let out a long, heavy exhale, the tight lines around his eyes softening as he ran a hand over his face.

“Yes,” he answered, turning to look at me with complete sincerity. “I’ll tell you whatever you want to know about Trinity. I promise. But this isn’t really the right time or place to delve into my past, alright?”

I understood completely. It was a heavy topic for a cramped car ride, and I didn’t want to force him into a dark place while everyone else was happy.

I offered him a warm smile and nodded.

“Alright. Whenever you’re ready.”

Up front, Leo suddenly raised his voice to counter the music.

“Alright, listen up! My stomach is eating itself. Is anyone else hungry?”

The entire van erupted into a chorus of enthusiastic yeses.

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