As if on cue, laughter erupted and AJ glanced up from where he stood getting his catcher’s gear on. Travis had joined the circle of guys fawning over the groupie. Once again, she glanced up to catch him gazing her way just as Travis reached over and touched her ball cap playfully.

AJ slipped on his mask and walked away to do some practice catching. He’d had enough of the doe-eyed groupie who seemed to have his teammates all vying for her attention. No thanks. He’d sooner take up the blue-eyed sweetheart who at least claimed she was only here for him.

~~~

Rushing out of the locker room, AJ muttered under his breath. Against his better judgment, he’d gone to that stupid VIP thing the night before after all. Miranda, the blue-eyed groupie who’d told him about it, was there. As promised, she kept him busy, not just there, but after the party, back at his hotel room. He’d stayed up way too late and then had trouble getting rid of her in the morning. Now he was running late, and, worse, he got the feeling she might become a clinger because she said she’d be at the game again today. He was glad he’d had the presence of mind to get a room and not take her home since this was a home series and they could’ve easily gone back to his place instead.

As he turned the corner in a hurry, he nearly collided with someone who gasped and froze like he did in an effort to avoid the collision. Seeing the doe-eyed groupie this close was a bit breathtaking. Neither said anything for a moment; then she finally spoke.

“I know you,” she said with timid smile.

This wasn’t the first time he’d heard a girl or even a guy he’d never met say these words to him, but it was by far one of the most electrifying. For the life of him, he couldn’t understand why. Gazing into those sweet eyes this close, he was already giving into the temptation to smile big with appreciation.

“Addi!” Someone called out, making her turn, and AJ’s eyes followed.

Travis, who also appeared to be in a hurry to get to batting practice, waved, smiling big. “I’ll see you tonight, right?”

“Yes, of course,” she said not quite as loudly. “I’m so glad you’ll be there.”

Her response and the way she smiled at Travis wiped the smile off AJ’s face. He was instantly reminded of why he should not be getting any ideas about this girl. Least of all be smiling like an idiot just because she said she knew him. Of course she did.

When she turned back to face him, she was obviously surprised to see the scowl replacing the smile AJ wore just seconds prior.

“Yeah, I’m sure you know all the players on this team very well.”

Before he could get caught up in the adorable way her eyebrows pinched together at his comment, he circled her and rushed out into the field, feeling like a dumb ass. He hated to admit it, especially minutes later when he saw her on the field again yapping it up with other players, but the only reason he’d gone to the stupid VIP thing the night before was out of curiosity. His curiosity about her. He figured since this was Travis’s thing she might be there.

Watching Travis behave like the douche he could be, was what made him leave earlier than he’d planned with Miranda. Addi hadn’t showed up yet. But every time Travis said something annoying, AJ was reminded that he couldn’t tolerate being with someone the guy had previously nailed, especially because AJ rarely felt that curious about any girl.

Something told him that his ignoring his usual rule of not socializing outside the field with Travis and some of the other douches on the team was a sign. If he did give into his curiosity about the girl, she might not just turn out to be another notch on the bedpost that he shared with one of the other guys on his team.

Knowing she was going to be somewhere with the guy later tonight had just confirmed he made the right call last night. He knew nothing about her except that something about her eyes had caught his attention: something more innocent than your typical groupie.

Clearly he’d been wrong.

It irritated him that, even knowing this, he still couldn’t fight the annoying urge to glance her way when he heard the laughter erupt again. She was wearing something similar to what she’d worn the day before, only with her hair down today, she looked even more provocative. More like a damn groupie. The moment their eyes met, she said something to the group of guys and started toward him on a mission.

Amused by the disdain in her eyes as she continued toward him, he smirked. “Can I ask you something?” she said the moment she was close enough.

“You can, but if it’s something you’ve already asked all the other guys on the team, I’d save my breath.”

“What?” she asked, upping the disgust already present in her glare.

“So I see you finally got to meet my mom,” Clair said as she walked up from behind AJ and slipped her hand into Addi’s.

AJ’s insides bottomed out as his eyes shifted from Clair’s smiling eyes to her grandmother’s standing next to her and then to Addison’s—the coach’s daughter—Clair’s mom. That’s when it hit him. Those eyes. He’d recognized them but hadn’t put two and two together. All three pairs staring at him right then had that same familiar sweetness. The coach’s wife’s eyes were well worn while Clair’s were, as usual, full of curiosity and adorable. Addison’s eyes were breathtaking. Only at the moment those sweet eyes were glaring at him.

Well, shit.

“Not formally,” he said in response to Clair’s comment. He took off his batting gloves and turned to Addison. “I had no idea,” he said, praying she wouldn’t say anything about what an asshole he’d been to her in front of Clair and Coach Lara’s wife.

He held his hand out to Addison. “I’m AJ Romero. I really had no idea you were Clair’s mom.”

Her brow rose, but mercifully, she shook his hand. “Yes, I know. I’m Addison Lara, your coach’s daughter. I tried to introduce myself yesterday and again today.”

“Yeah,” he said, shaking his head and feeling like a bigger douche than Travis. “About that, I was under the impression that . . .”

He glanced down at Clair, who was sucking on her Popsicle and looking up at him inquisitively. No way could he admit what his first impression of sweet Clair’s mom had been. This was not how he’d pictured Clair’s mom to be at all. He’d expected older—much older. Given the coach’s and his wife’s ages, AJ thought for sure late thirties, early thirties at the youngest. Addison couldn’t be much older than AJ, and he was only twenty-five.

“I just . . .” he said, meeting Addison’s eyes. “I had you mistaken for someone else. I apologize.”

Addison’s expression softened a bit; though her brow was still arched as if she were still unsure what he meant exactly by mistaken her for someone else. But she didn’t ask.

“You look just like Clair,” he said, gazing into those sweet eyes as something else suddenly dawned on him.

Travis must’ve been talking about the birthday surprise for Clair after the game, not a date. At least AJ could hope, not that he was getting ideas about her even now.

“Technically, I look like her,” Clair pointed out. “When they put photos of us together when mom was my age, we could pass for twins.”

“It’s the eyes,” AJ said, breathing in deeply as he turned back to Addison, whose gaze had definitely softened now. “You both have the same big dark eyes.”

He stopped short of saying they were beautiful for the same reason he wouldn’t start getting any ideas about her. Staring into her eyes now reminded him of something. Those same eyes had sparkled just as beautifully as she’d chatted with all the other guys. He may’ve been way off when it came to who she was, but one thing he’d been certain of even when he’d watched her from afar. Her body language had said it all. Not only was she comfortable around all these ballplayers noticeably competing for her attention, but she enjoyed the attention. Too much.