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“I can pull out of this. I know I can.”

“I know you can, too. That’s why I’m sending you on a mandatory break—just like the ten-day DL. We need you to find that spark, that love for the game that shines through when you’re all in. Especially if you’ve still got your eye on Kate’s position.”

“All in,” Britt whispered, her throat constricting. “Right.”

“Gretchen will arrange a flight. The Bay Area, someplace tropical … wherever you need to go for some R and R.” Marne patted her hand in a rare display of empathy.

Britt imagined sitting on a white sand beach all alone and shuddered. No thank you. There was only one place she wanted to be. But that was impossible. Because she’d done everything in her power to mess things up.

“I’ll be in touch.” Marne drained her glass and got to her feet. “Enjoy.”

Britt waited until Marne was out of sight before she let the tears spill over. “This is a disaster,” she whispered.

Wendy passed her a napkin. “Well, now you have an opportunity to make things right.”

Britt dabbed at her eyes with the corner of the napkin. “What do you mean?”

“I have it on good authority that there’s a certain house in Colorado that could use a woman’s touch.” Wendy held up her phone.

Britt examined the picture on the screen. It looked like a living room with stacks of moving boxes lined up in neat columns. “What are you talking about?”

“This is Caleb’s new living room. Ben says he could use some help.” Wendy waggled her eyebrows.

“Whatever. He’d probably slam the door in my face. Why is Ben texting you?”

“Let’s just say we agreed it was time for an intervention. You’re too stubborn to admit when you need help. So we put the wheels in motion. Want me to text you the address?”

This was crazy. She couldn’t just drop by his new house uninvited. Could she?

“Don’t over think it, girlfriend.”

“All right. I’ll go. But when he tells me to get lost—”

“That’s not going to happen. Now let’s get Gretchen on the phone. You need to be on the first flight to Denver.”

Hope began to rise inside, like a butterfly taking flight. “I’m all in.”

Caleb leaned down and kissed Mom’s cheek. “Thanks for coming.”

She slipped one arm around his waist and patted his chest with her other hand, her head barely grazing his shoulder. “You’re welcome, honey. We’re all so happy you’re within driving distance now.”

“Come back for a game sometime, when things slow down.” Caleb released her and followed her toward the front door, side-stepping yet another stack of moving boxes in the hallway. Man, he detested the unpacking.

Mom smiled over her shoulder, her brown eyes crinkling at the corners. “You know your dad, things don’t ever seem to slow down. But I know he’d love to see a game. Maybe later this summer.”

“Let me know so I can get the tickets, okay?” He opened the front door and followed Mom out onto the wide front porch. One of his older brothers, Ethan, slumped on the porch swing, cowboy hat tipped down over his eyes. Mom continued on down the steps to the driveway. Caleb drew in a deep breath, filling his lungs with fresh air. Blue Colorado skies stretched as far as he could see. His Realtor hit the jackpot when she found this rental. An ideal bachelor pad, situated on a large lot in a secluded, gated community—perfect for when he was at the baseball field or on the road. The water feature in the front yard was a bit over the top, but he already felt calmer listening to the waterfall trickle over the rocks and into the tiny pool.

Ben stood at the bottom of the long, sloping driveway talking to someone in a beige sedan. Caleb shook his head. Ben made friends wherever he went. Leave it to his twin to meet the neighbors before he did.

“Are you expecting someone?” Mom asked.

“Not that I know of.” Ben motioned for the car to come up the driveway. Caleb groaned. “I’m not in the mood.”

“Maybe it’s just a friendly neighbor?”

The car pulled up beside Ben’s rental. They were all packed and ready to go. If Ben and Ethan shared the driving, they could be back at the ranch before dark. Except Ben wore that impish grin that meant something was up. He didn’t look like he was in a very big hurry to leave now.

Caleb stared at the driver in the beige car.
No way.
He must be hallucinating. The blonde hair, the tilt of her head—those eyes meeting his through the windshield—what was she doing here?

His stomach twisted in an anxious knot. How did she find him? Not one single phone call or message was even acknowledged. Unless … He glanced at Ben, mentally connecting the dots. Of course.

“Son? Isn’t that—” Mom turned, eyes giving him a careful appraisal.

“Yes. But I’m not the one who invited her.” Adrenaline coursed through him. She had some nerve. And an accomplice. Ben shot him a look before opening Britt’s door.

“Hey, Britt. Welcome to Camp Scott.” Ben took her hand and helped her from the car.

Ethan’s cowboy boots clomped across the porch and he came to stand behind Caleb. “Well, shoot. I fall asleep for a few minutes and miss all the fun. Who do we have here?”

“You don’t want to mess with her. Seriously high maintenance,” Caleb growled at his brother.

“Easy, there. From the look on your face, I’d say you’re kinda into high maintenance these days.” Ethan nudged him in the ribs with his elbow, then readjusted his cowboy hat.

“Whatever,” Caleb said, fixing her with his iciest, most unwelcoming stare.

“Caleb?” Ben tipped his head in Britt’s direction. “Look who I found wandering through the neighborhood.”

He stayed rooted to his spot on the top step, despite the meaningful glances from his twin and his mother. Britt’s smile wobbled as she looked his way. In a pale blue T-shirt, dark blue jeans that were made for her and K-Swiss tennis shoes, she looked like the perfect All-American girl. His heart sputtered when she flipped her hair over one shoulder. Ignoring her for long was going to be a tall order. But he didn’t have to let her know that. At least not yet.

“Hi,” she said, her eyes flitting away from Caleb’s.

“This is a pleasant surprise.” Ben led her up the driveway, eyes darting toward Caleb and giving him his very best
dude, come on
expression.

“Well?” Ethan murmured, taking it all in. “Are you going to give her a warm welcome?”

Caleb’s tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. A slow heat crawled up his neck. He wanted to both pull her into his arms and demand some answers.

“Britt, I’d like you to meet our mother, Meredith Scott.” Ben carried on with the introductions, oblivious to the tension crackling between Britt and Caleb.

“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Scott. I’m Britt Bowen.” Britt extended her hand toward Mom, a broad smile spreading across that gorgeous face of hers.

Dang it.
His resolve was fading fast.

Chapter Thirty

She’d conjured up her most charming smile for Meredith Scott, like she dropped in to visit her son unannounced all the time. Like it wasn’t totally ridiculous what she was trying to pull off right now.
Don’t mind me, I’m just the girl who broke your son’s heart.

Caleb just stood there, glaring daggers, while the guy next to him watched the whole scene unfold with complete and utter amusement. Same jawline, broad shoulders—must be one of his brothers.

“What brings you to Colorado?” Mrs. Scott asked. “Are you reporting on a game tonight?”

“Not exactly.” She cast a quick glance at Caleb again. “I have some details to work out … with Caleb.”

Mrs. Scott’s eyes narrowed. “Is that right?”

“Well, I’m sure he’s glad to see you.” Ben cleared his throat and grasped her elbow, steering her up the driveway toward the porch. Her heart hammered in her chest. She dragged her eyes up to meet Caleb’s. A muscle twitched in his jaw. Not a good sign.

“Let’s go, Ethan. We should get on the road,” Ben called out from behind her.

“Why? Things are just getting interesting.” The one with the cowboy hat sauntered down the steps. “Ethan Scott, Ben and Caleb’s older, wiser and most handsome brother. You must be Britt.”

Britt shook his hand, his calloused fingers rough against her knuckles. “Yes. Hi. I am.” Heat scorched her cheeks. This was getting worse by the minute. She wanted to whirl around and beg Ben to stay. Help her sort this out. He’d crack a few jokes, tease them both about what a crazy misunderstanding this was.

“Sorry we can’t stick around. I’d love to give you a behind the scenes look at what life is really like with this guy.” Ethan winked, jerking his thumb over his shoulder at Caleb.

“Maybe next time,” Britt mumbled as he walked away, leaving nothing between her and Caleb but two porch steps and a very awkward silence. “Aren’t you going to say hello?”

“Hello. What are you doing here?”

She tucked her fingers in the back pockets of her jeans, scuffing the pavement with the toe of her tennis shoe. “I had some things I needed to say. In person.”

“Is that right? You came all the way here to finish an interview?” A stormy expression brewed on his face. “This isn’t the best time, you know.”

Britt squeezed her eyes shut. Bad timing. Seems like there was a lot of that going around these days. His flip-flops slapped against the steps and she opened her eyes as he brushed past her, the sleeve of his T-shirt tickling her arm. Her skin tingled, craving his touch.

Britt pivoted and watched him say goodbye to his brothers and his mom.

“It was nice meeting you, Britt.” Meredith Scott waved and climbed in the back seat of the car.

Britt pasted on another confident smile and waved. She felt like an idiot. Did Caleb tell her everything that had happened between them? Moms usually paid attention to that sort of stuff, didn’t they?

Caleb stood in the driveway until the car was out of sight. Britt’s uneasiness grew with each passing minute. She admired the way his gray T-shirt clung to the broad expanse of his back. But the tension in his rigid spine, the fact that he’d made zero effort to touch her since she’d arrived—this wasn’t the reunion she’d envisioned on her flight from Newark.

He turned around, avoiding her gaze, as he walked back up the driveway. He stopped at least an arm’s length away. Dirt smudged his cheek and she longed to wipe it off with her thumb, let her hands trail over the stubble that clung to his angular jaw. Her gaze flitted to his injured arm, which he held close to his body, protecting it.

“How’s the arm?” she asked.

“Is that really why you’re here? To see if I’d scheduled surgery?” His eyes were cold, piercing. Challenging her.

Britt’s confidence evaporated. He was certainly in a mood today. “That’s not the only reason.”

“No, I’m sure it’s not.” His voice was gruff. “Could we make this quick? It’s been a long day.”

She inched closer, lowering her gaze to his lips. Unable to resist another second, she dared to brush his chiseled forearm with her fingertips. “Aren’t you going to invite me in?”

Caleb encircled her wrist with his fingers, eyes flashing. “Don’t.”

“What do you mean, ‘don’t’?” Her voice quivered, undone by his frigid response.

“You heard me.” He released his grip and backpedaled, like he couldn’t get away fast enough. “Whatever you need to say, you can say it right here. Right now.”

“I—I came to tell you the truth.” The sting of rejection burned hot. But she swallowed against the lump in her throat and plowed forward. “Marne told me to take some time off and get … things straightened out. So I came here, hoping we could talk. I wanted—”

Caleb’s laughter interrupted her, an empty, harsh sound that made her flinch. He looked off in the distance, shaking his head. “So once again, I’m the guy you run to when it’s convenient. All the places in the world you could go to do some soul-searching, and you picked my new driveway. I’m flattered.”

“No, it’s not like that,” she insisted. Why was he making this so hard?

“Oh, but it is.” His wan smile faded. “I’m sorry, but I won’t be that guy. I can’t afford to let you rip my heart out and stomp on it again.”

“Caleb, please.” She hated the way her voice inched dangerously close to a whine. “I never meant to hurt you. I’m so sorry. Can’t we talk about this?”

“I don’t have anything left to say. I tried talking—you ran away.”

“I know. I’m sorry. There’s no excuse for my behavior.”

He narrowed his gaze. “And the voicemails and text messages you haven’t bothered to return? What about those? Why does it always have to be on your terms? Am I really just a story to you?”

She looked away, grappling with his rapid-fire questions. “No, of course not. I—”

“Then where have you been?”

“Japan, LA, Anaheim, the Bay Area, Newark.” She ticked them off on her fingers. “It never stops. I can’t even catch my breath.”

He stared at her, his lips pressed into a thin line. “I think you’d better go.”

“No,” she whispered.

“Goodbye, Britt. I hope you find whatever it is you think you need.” He walked away without waiting for a response, striding toward the house. He climbed the steps and then disappeared inside. The front door slammed shut, the ultimate sign of dismissal.