Earning A Ring. Kristina Mathews

a reassignment might be in her future. They could send her to another city, but getting players and fans to trust her would be an issue. “They could make it difficult for both of us.”

      She couldn’t bear the thought of taking his child away from him. He already had a daughter in Pittsburgh he rarely saw.

      “So you don’t have to tell them who the father is.” Maybe he was freaking out, too. He was just better at hiding it. “Tell them it’s none of their business. If they press, you could always say you were artificially inseminated. Or that you’re serving as a surrogate for a gay couple. They certainly couldn’t fire you then. Talk about bad press.”

      “Except when I kept the baby, they’d figure out I wasn’t a surrogate.” She welcomed his extreme suggestion. It was more like the Bryce Baxter she knew and had spent the last fifteen months trying not to fall in love with.

      “Say you changed your mind.” He shrugged. As if he thought it was a simple solution. “I’m sure it happens often enough.”

      “Bryce, I appreciate that you’re trying to help. Really. But once my pregnancy becomes public, so will our relationship, and I know you want that even less than I do.”

      “Why? Why do you say I want it even less?” Now he was defensive. Good. She could deal with that.

      “Come on, we both know you don’t need any added pressure right now.”

      “Ah. Yes. I suck. I knew we’d get to that.” Now his pride was stung. “I suck and it must be because of personal reasons. Because of our relationship? Well, you know what? I sucked a few hours ago. I sucked yesterday. And the day before. It has nothing to do with you, sweetheart.”

      “I know that. But come on, people want to blame someone.” She’d been in this business long enough. She knew the score. Winning the World Series was just the beginning. Now expectations were even higher. Pressure more intense. They’d have to do it again. Or risk being called a fluke. A one-shot wonder. “They’ll blame me. For getting pregnant. For distracting you.”

      “They’ll call you a gold digger.” Bryce ran his hands through his hair again. He made a fist and she could tell he was angry. “Or worse. They’ll speculate that I wasn’t the only one. They’ll read your friendliness, your ability to joke with all of us, as something else.”

      Yeah. That’s exactly what she was afraid of. Her on-air persona was somewhat flirtatious. She used her feminine charms to get through the players’ defenses. Make them feel like big, strong, manly studs, and they’ll say just about anything. She’d never crossed the line, though.

      Until Bryce.

      “Why don’t you let me give you a ride home?” He put his hand on the small of her back, to lead her around to the passenger seat. “I don’t like the idea of you taking BART at night, anyway.”

      “Thanks, but I have my car.” She tried not to read too much into his concern. “I can’t ride the train right now. I’m fine until those doors close and the train starts to lurch forward…”

      She put her hand on her stomach, wishing she hadn’t brought up the queasiness. Slow breaths through the nose, closing her eyes, and willing the nausea away sometimes worked. But not always.

      “I’ll follow you home, then. To make sure you get in okay.”

      “No. I’m fine. Thanks anyway.” She held her hand up, as if she could keep him at bay. He could be thoughtful as well as charming. It was the charming part that had gotten her in this mess in the first place. “I’ve got my first doctor’s appointment in the morning. So it’s best if we head our separate ways for tonight.”

      “Do you want me to go with you?”

      “No.” She answered too quickly and far too forcefully. “I mean, not this time. I think we both need a little time to adjust. And you really don’t need the distraction right now.”

      “No. I guess not.” He frowned. Her timing couldn’t have been worse. “But hey, let me know what the doctor says.”

      “Yeah. Sure. I’ll be in touch.”

      How many times had she promised herself that she’d forget about Bryce Baxter? That each time she saw him off-camera would be the last? It didn’t matter now. They were forever linked through the child growing inside her.

      * * * *

      Even though she’d asked him not to, Bryce followed Rachel home. He gave her enough of a head start that she was able to make it inside before he pulled up to her modest apartment in Walnut Creek.

      He’d been there a few times, when he’d been desperate for her touch. It was a nice place. Small, but nice. Perfect for a single woman. Not so great for a family.

      He’d have to do something about that. But Rachel Parker was the kind of woman who wouldn’t just stand aside while a man told her what to do. She wouldn’t take his money, either. At least not until she absolutely had to. Legally, if he was the father, he’d owe child support after the baby was born. He was fine with that. He wouldn’t want his child to have to go without, not while he could still do something about it.

      Why else would he agree to pay for fencing lessons for his nine-year-old daughter? Fencing? Really? But hey, if that’s where her passion took her, he wasn’t going to question it. He couldn’t be there to play catch with Hailey, so it didn’t really matter that she’d tried every sport, dance, and activity except baseball.

      Bryce waited in front of Rachel’s house until she turned off the lights before he drove away, satisfied that she was safe, but worried about how this was going to play out. What if she did lose her job because of him? Or worse, transferred to another city? He already had one daughter he never saw because they lived in different states. He wasn’t going to do that again.

      He’d just have to make sure Rachel didn’t lose her job. That she stayed in San Francisco and they’d somehow manage to be a family.

      He drove back over the Bay Bridge, into the city he’d come to call home. The lights were off, but the silhouette of the ballpark was still a striking view. Some of his best memories happened in that ballpark. The rest had been with Rachel.

      Shit. He didn’t want to lose her. That’s why he couldn’t stay out of her bed. It wasn’t about sex. Okay, maybe a lot of it was about sex. Great sex. Uncomplicated sex. Or so he’d thought.

      It had just become real complicated. Not just with the baby. But her career, too. He didn’t think she should lose her job because she had a relationship with him. But he was a ballplayer. She was a reporter. Not supposed to happen, but it did. Hell, it was almost a cliché, but most of the guys he’d known who’d hooked up with a reporter had kept it casual.

      Or they’d married her.

      Chapter 2

      After a restless night, Bryce was awoken by the phone. Scrubbing his gritty eyes, he glanced at the caller ID, hoping it was Rachel. No such luck.

      “Morning, Jillian, what do you need?” With his ex-wife, it was always something. Not that he didn’t send her enough money to run a small country.

      “Hailey needs braces.” Jillian huffed, as if it was somehow his fault.

      “She’s nine. Does she even have all her permanent teeth?” He usually tried to keep his interactions with his ex-wife friendly and upbeat, but he was tired and cranky and sometimes he just couldn’t fake it.

      “If they do it now, she shouldn’t have to go through the humiliation of wearing braces in high school.” She used the same tone of voice she’d used when they were married. It was as if she thought he couldn’t possibly understand the burden placed upon her by parenthood. He was, after all, a dumb jock.

      “So there’s still a chance she’ll need them again