Maid For Beckett Catching The Baseball Legend’s Heart novel Chapter 25

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2:17 pm

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

-Beckett-

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Sloane always picked the most conspicuous restaurants, with gold light, glass walls, and overpriced fusion menus that made influencers foam at the mouth. This line of restaurants in the city was a celebrity go–to place, the kind where there was always media waiting to catch the latest gossip on who dated whom in this place.

I pulled into the spot right across from the place, killed the engine, and sat back. For a second, I almost convinced myself this dinner would be normal–civil. Sloane never did anything without a hidden agenda, but I stupidly hoped that would change.

That was a foolish hope, though, because I saw them.

Two men pretending to be diners on the patio, both with cameras tucked under their jackets. Another one across the street. leaning against a lamppost like he’d been cast in a bad noir film. And three more by the entrance, pretending to check their phones but keeping their lenses angled right at the glass.

I hadn’t even gotten out of the SUV yet.

Of course, they were here. Sloane posted a photo of her shoes this morning, and the media spun it into secret date theories. They lived for this–fed on it. And Sloane enjoyed the attention.

She chose a seat right by the glass wall. Right next to the prime photo–op angle.

I grabbed my phone and dialed her. She picked up on the second ring. “You’re late.”

“There are paparazzi everywhere,” I said, watching one adjust his camera. “I’m not walking into that.”

Sloane sighed, sharp enough to cut glass. “Beckett. They’re just doing their jobs-”

“Sloane.” My patience snapped. “You know exactly what they’re doing.”

I couldn’t help that the fans made celebrities out of us players. I liked playing baseball, not the attention of the media. This

was not my scene.

As though she knew where I’d parked, she looked up and easily found me. Then she tilted her chin, giving the photographers the perfect angle of her profile. Anyone with eyes would see that she was pissed.

“I’m not doing this,” I said. “Not tonight.”

Her lips thinned. “Fine.”

She hung up on me,

I let the phone drop to my lap and exhaled, tension burning through my shoulders. I rolled my left one, trying to relieve the tightness. The nerve down my arm pulsed in warning. It had been flaring up a lot this week. It was getting harder to hide it from the people around me.

Before I could shove the phone away, a notification slid across the screen.

Jace: bro, you seeing this???

Attached was a screenshot.

I tapped it open. Jace wouldn’t send me anything if it weren’t important. When I saw what it was, my hand froze.

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Chapter 25

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It was one post on those gossip pages, which thrived on rumors and pixelated photos of athletes.

Mystery Girl spotted with Rising Baseball Superstar Carter Benette.

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The shot was grainy, as if it had been taken from a mile away. The girl’s head was turned, half hidden by her hair, but I would recognize her anywhere.

Andi.

A surge of emotion crashed into me. It was confusing to say the least. Why would I recognize Andi in this grainy shot? And why did I want to punch a hole in Carter’s face right this fucking moment? Why did I give a shit?

My annoyance at Sloane’s petty attention–seeking act had been overshadowed by this. My jaw clenched so hard it hurt.

Carter Benette? The rookie? How did he know Andi, and why didn’t Siobhan tell me anything about this?

I was never one to dig into the flooding comments, but when I scrolled down, my chest tightened in ways that made me want to slam my fist into the steering wheel.

I knew nothing good came out from these gossip pages, but I never really cared, not until they were talking trash about. Andi. They didn’t know shit about her.

“Homewrecker.“”

“She looks cheap enough to cheat with.””

“Sarah is too classy for him- no wonder he’s slumming.“”

“Mystery Girl? More like desperate fangirl.””

She was none of those things. She was my Super Andi. Strong and feisty, she fought back, and she cared too much for her family. I’d known her for a week, and I was already a fan of hers.

Why did Carter drag her into his mess? The trolls in the comments were tearing her apart.

My body moved on autopilot. I was already pulling away from the parking space, driving in the direction of the trailer park.

Why? I wasn’t sure either. But I wanted to make sure that Andi was okay. She didn’t strike me as someone who would take publicity in any form, good or bad. That was Sloane, not Andi.

The drive blurred by, my grip tight on the wheel, mind racing with every worst–case scenario imaginable–Carter trying to apologize to Andi, paparazzi flocking the park, Andi crying, scared, overwhelmed-

Why the hell did I care this much?

I didn’t have an answer. I didn’t want to look for one. By the time I pulled into the gravel lot, my pulse was pounding.

And then I saw him.

Carter Benette was hounding Andi. He was blocking her path, and Andi wore a glower. She was one second away from punching Carter in the face.

That’s right. She was never one to back down from a fight, but she was also in pain. It was in her eyes. I hated that I understood her just by looking at her posture and expression.

What the hell was happening to me?

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Chapter 25

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When Carter lifted his hand, I saw red. I slid out of the car and inserted myself between Carter and Andi, dipping my toes into a situation I knew nothing about.

Andi looked cornered–hands shaking, breath uneven, shoulders tight like she was trying to disappear into the metal siding.

Everything after that blurred. Words were said–sharp ones. Carter tried to play it off. I didn’t let him. Andi’s eyes were wide. terrified, and all I wanted was to get her out of there.

So I did.

I put her in the passenger seat. Shut the door. Shut the world out.

And I didn’t breathe properly until we were halfway across the city.

The small coffee shop near the bay was quiet, tucked between a bookstore and a bait shop. Nobody here cared about baseball or gossip feeds.

We slid into a booth on the balcony. She sat across from me, arms wrapped around herself like she was holding in all the pieces from shattering.

I wasn’t used to wanting to protect someone this badly. I never really cared about anyone outside of my circle, much less someone whom I had just met and who was working for me.

Andi wasn’t supposed to mean anything. She was supposed to be long gone by now, dammit!

The server brought coffee. Andi looked at it as if there was poison in that drink. She didn’t mean it, though. Her mind was not at this café. She was lost in her thoughts, worried, conflicted.

For a minute, the only sound was the tide rolling below us.

Andi finally let out a shaky breath. “What were you doing at the trailer park?”

“Ah, nothing,” I shook my head. Should I lie? Should I tell her the truth? She looked like she needed some kind of break after everything that she had gone through today. ‘What did Carter do to you, Andi?‘ I thought.

“Oh, did you want anything?”

I shook my head again, sipping my coffee. “I know about the photo. Jace told me,” I said honestly.

She blinked, like she wasn’t expecting honesty. Or maybe she wasn’t expecting it from me. “It’s that bad, huh?”

I shrugged. “Jace always worries about everyone.”

“Is that it?” she said dryly, her shoulders slacking.

I cleared my throat. “Me too. I was worried.”

She blinked at me. “You were?”

“Yes!” I snapped, annoyed that she was pressing on this matter.

“Uhm, why?” She blinked at me with those pretty blue eyes.

I simmered. She can’t know that she’s growing on me, so I said the first thing that came to my mind, “I was worried 1 would

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Chapter 25

lose my maid if this went south.”

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And there it was. I ran my mouth before I could think. This always happened when I was around her. I was a mess, and I couldn’t help it.

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