Maid For Beckett Catching The Baseball Legend’s Heart novel Chapter 81

eak. These thoughts drummed in my head as I took each heavy step towards the ladies‘ room. When I walked inside, I was relieved to see it was empty. I can finally release the lump of breath in my throat that was choking me

The bathroom was clean, thank God. Citrus cleaning agent and the fresh gardenta in a vase on the countertop filled my

senses.

I leaned on the counter and splashed my face with water, not caring if it ruined my makeup. The soft lighting and the marbled walls behind me amplified how pale my checks had been Dread washed over me when I heard the sincerity in Beckett’s voice when he said those things

‘My love. Let’s do this more often. Best dinner I’ve had in a while.

My hands were shaking as I gripped the gold–rimmed sink My stomach turned over, and I had to sneak into the nearest stall and empty my stomach It’s a shame 1 had to spew the best meal I just had and watch it circle down the toilet, the water gargling as it cleaned every bit of my dinner I closed the toilet lid and sat on it, pressing my hand flat on my thighs as I lowered my head and willed my head to stop freaking spinning

It was to no avail. Beckett’s words replayed in my head with the force of a jackhammer pounding on concrete, determined to punch a hole through it.

Oh, what have I gotten myself into?

Beckett… I was a fool to think I could handle this fake relationship with him. This was only our first dinner date, and it felt like a wrecking ball had crashed into the pillars of my being.

His words, they weren’t casual, and they weren’t unintentional.

This is real, Andrea. You and me. This is as real as it could get. That was the point where everything in my head started to spiral. I tried to keep myself intact, to get a hold of my sanity, but Beckett just kept acting like he was competing for the best boyfriend in the world award, while waving a huge green flag right in front of me.

I had been trying and failing to focus on the fact that this should be a fake relationship, but Beckett kept erasing the line with each grand gesture.

And I had been sitting there, smiling, laughing, pretending my heart wasn’t forcing its way out of my chest the entire dinner.

I wrapped my arms around myself as I stared at my blurry reflection on the aluminum door. The woman wore makeup that her friend bought for her, wearing a dress she couldn’t even have afforded a month ago, a woman I barely recognized.

This was supposed to be a show. Fake smiles, fake dates, borrowed affection. Temporary. Contained. Something I could step out of once the storm passed. But this date no longer felt fake.

That realization settled in my stomach like a stone.

I pulled my phone from my bag even though I knew better. I don’t know why I want to add more headache to my already throbbing head, but curiosity has always been my worst habit. One glance wouldn’t hurt, I told myself Just to see what people were saying. Just to be prepared.

The screen lit up, and as soon as I searched for Beckett’s name online, my stomach caved. Blurry photos. Side angles. The curve of Beckett’s shoulder. My hair caught mid–laugh. Headlines speculating, guessing, inventing.

Beckett Hale Spotted on Romantic Dinner Date.

1/3

10:53 am

Chapter 81

Mystery Woman Identified?

We planned this. These were taken by Siobhan’s paparazzi friends, but the comments were already crazy.

Some were sweet, some were excited, but a lot were still cruel and unkind.

To rauchen

They dissected me as if I were an object left out on a table. My dress. My posture. My face. My background–how long before they dug that up again?

Carter and Sloane’s names resurfaced, too. One post shared a story on Sloane’s Insta. It was a cryptic message defining gaslighting. How someone manipulates another person into questioning their own sanity and reasoning.

The hits just kept going on and on.

I dropped the phone into my lap and stared at the stall door until my sight blurred. My throat burned, but I refused to cry. Crying felt like permission for all of this to matter more than it should, more than it already did.

This is what being with him meant. This was supposed to save me, but why do I feel like I’m drowning deeper into the pits of no return?

Beckett Hale’s world is not peaceful. It was loud, chaotic, and came with cameras and opinions with claws and teeth.

Am I really prepared for this? Is it too late to circle back to the time when my only problem was bills, mom’s medication, and Caleb’s school?

I pressed my palm to my chest, feeling my heart thudding too fast. Beckett could handle this. He was born into it. Trained for it. He’d been famous long enough to grow armor thick enough to stop bullets. While me, I didn’t have armor. My life was simple, strained, but mundane. I had routines. I had anonymity. And I was already losing all of that.

I stood abruptly, splashing cold water on my face at the sink again. The woman in the mirror looked determined and composed. Lips pressed into a line. Eyes a little too bright. Spine straight.

practiced the face I always wore when things got hard.

The one that said: ‘I’m fine. I can handle this. They can’t see what’s on my mind.’

By the time I walked back toward the dining area, my steps were steady. My smile was small, but it was composed. I reminded myself that this wasn’t real. That whatever Beckett was feeling didn’t require me to feel it back. That I could keep my side of the line clean no matter how much he tried to erase it.

The server caught my eye as I returned, concern flickering briefly across her face before professionalism snapped back into place

Beckett looked up the moment he saw me.

Relief crossed his face so quickly it almost undid me.

“There you are,” he said softly, like he’d been holding his breath the entire time I was gone.

I slid back into my seat, smoothing my dress. “Sorry. The line was long

His gaze lingered on me, perusing. “You okay?”

He asked the perfect question, giving me the perfect chance to tell the truth. To admit I was traveling under the weight of his world and his words and the way my heart kept betraying me.

Į

didn’t take it. He didn’t have to know.

2/3

10:53 am

Chapter S1

610

“Yeah, I said curtly. “I’m fine.”

He didn’t look convinced, but he nodded anyway, respecting the boundary I had just slammed into place between us

The paparazzi flashes were more obvious now. I noticed them immediately–flickers of light beyond the edge of the patin watchful eyes in the shadows. Beckett followed my line of sight and reached for my hand.

I pulled mine back before he could touch it. A flicker of surprise in his eyes, then it morphed into the hurt of rejection

I hated myself for it–and did it anyway. This was me rebuilding the wall of boundaries, protecting myself from the storm Beckett Hale has brought into my peaceful life.

3/3