Hard Ball (Stadium Series Book 1)

the shell of my ear, sending a wave of irritation over my entire being.
“I. Am. Not. Interested.” I punctuate with every breath. I don’t know how else I can spell it out, but from the look on Cam’s face and the horror on Mel’s, I need to find another way.
“Come on, Harp,” Mel whispers in my ear. “Just humor me.”
I lock eyes with Cam, hoping he can’t hear our conversation.
“Just play a game of darts with the guy. Please?” She’s practically begging and I know if I don’t agree, I’ll never hear the end of it.
“Fine,” I mumble, getting off my stool and taking my drink in my hand. “Come on hotshot, let’s play a round so I can go home.”
“Whatever you say, my lady,” he says, motioning for me to lead the way. Cam’s eyes are on my ass the entire time I walk toward the dartboards. I wish I felt even a sliver of arousal when his eyes land on my body, but I don’t. Tonight would be so much more interesting if I did, though.
I find an empty board, set down my glass on the high-top table beside me, and go to retrieve the darts off the board.
“You know those pants make your ass look amazing, right?”
I stop. Does shit like that actually work for men these days? I take a very long, very large sip of my drink and pray I have the strength to get through this game.
“You know, telling a girl she has a nice ass might seem like a good idea, but it just lets us know that’s all you care to look at.”
He barks out a laugh as I set up to throw my first dart.
“What can I say? I’m an ass man,” he admits as I toss the dart, completely missing the board and hitting the wall.
“What a surprise…” I deadpan as Cam smiles and looks me up and down once more. Do men actually think we like being talked to like this?
“Can’t blame a guy for trying.” He winks as he sets up and throws all three darts perfectly. I guess I should have guessed since it is his job to aim and throw.
“Look, Cam, as much as I love watching you pitch for the Hawks, I’m not into ballplayers, okay?”
He quirks an eyebrow before he turns and walks over to retrieve his darts, handing them to me as he hovers.
“You’re seriously saying no.” It’s not even framed as a question, more like a disbelieving sigh, and for a second I feel bad for the guy. He must not be used to women saying no. Maybe I’ll be the first of many, so his ego quivers just a little bit. “Can I at least know the name of the first woman to turn down Cameron King?” If he didn’t speak about himself in the third person, I might have thought about telling him. But now? Not a chance.
I take my stance once again, determined to actually hit the board this time when I look back at Cam. “A good mystery never hurt anyone,” I say just as I release the dart from my hand. It’s not until I hear someone scream, that I turn around.
“Jesus, fucking Christ!”
My eyes scan the crowd in front of me, trying to see what all the commotion is about when my eyes catch sight of the most gorgeous man I have ever seen. His blue eyes track up my body, sending shivers cascading down every limb, and as our eyes meet, I realize I’m in so much trouble. Because standing in front of me is none other than Josh Anderson, third baseman for the Toronto Hawks and Cam’s teammate.
And the worst part? He had my dart sticking out of his arm.

2


Harper
The man standing in front of me is drop-dead gorgeous. Nope, that’s not even an accurate description of how he looks right now. Sexy? Hell yes. Hot as hell? Yes, that too. I try and find words to describe how his dirty blond hair falls freely over his eyes, the way my fingers itch to feel the shaved sides of his head that are peeking through those strands of hair, tempting me. Baiting me. His jet blue eyes are incredibly striking, and his five o’clock shadow just adds this ruggedness that is making it very hard for me to stop staring at him.
I do a full-body scan, knowing that I’m doing the same thing Cam did to me earlier, but I can’t help it. The man is built like he was created just for me. With his arms and chest visibly defined through his thin Henley shirt that could be black or dark blue depending on the light. Yet when my eyes meet his once more, I’m surprised at the look of anger and lust staring back at me. But what I don’t expect is the feeling of heat that travels through my body and how much I like his eyes on me.
“Holy shit!” Cam yells from beside me, taking me out of my Josh trance as I watch him stalk toward me. “Anderson, you okay, man?” The laughter in Cam’s voice brings a slight smirk to Josh’s lips as he nods, slowly reaching up and pulling the dart out of his arm and placing it gently on the table in front of me.
“You throw this, Sunshine?” he grumbles, never taking those eyes off me. The nickname is one I’ve heard before, but my reaction is completely new. My palms start to sweat, and my hands start to shake.
“Shit,” I mutter, my head finally clearing and realizing what the fuck just happened. “I am so sorry!” I panic, taking the dart from the table and leaning in to inspect his arm. “I must not have seen you walking before I threw it.” I want to tell him that maybe he shouldn’t be walking in front of dartboards, but the words get stuck in the back of my throat. My fingers trace the