Free Dare to Kiss (The Maxwell Series Book 1) by S.B. Alexander Page A

too, she said, and the last time the team had won a championship was when Kade and his brothers had played.
    When we made it to our cars, the parking lot was completely empty except for our cars. I wasn’t surprised, since it was Friday.
    “Is Kade trying out, too?” I asked with a hand on my car door.
    “No, I don’t think so. He hasn’t played since his sophomore year.”
    “Because of the Greg Sullivan thing?”
    “Yeah. Since that incident, Kade hasn’t played sports. It’s a real shame because the four of them were a force to be reckoned with on the field.”
    “What position did Kade play?” Not that it mattered. I was just curious.
    “Third base. He was awesome. He had a great batting average. He was always hitting homeruns. He was major-league good. Scouts would be all over him after the games.” She leaned against her VW bug.
    A lump lodged in my throat. My brother Rob had been scouted by the major leagues when he was playing at ASU. In fact, he was ready to sign with the Dodgers’ organization when he’d found out about Mom and Julie. He had just driven back to Arizona to pack up his apartment when Dad called him after the police left our house that night. I still held out hope for Rob. Like me, he was still grieving, although he dealt with the deaths a lot like Dad did, keeping himself busy at the club in LA. I’d told him that he should pursue his dreams, but he’d said he just needed time. He was still in touch with the Dodgers. I was praying like hell that he would take their offer.
    “Are you okay, Lacey?” Becca rubbed my arm. “You have tears in your eyes.”
    “Yeah, just thinking.”
    “You want to talk about it?”
    “No. I have to go,” I said, blinking away tears. I silently berated myself. I didn’t want anyone to see the weaker side of me. I had to be tough. I had to make the team.
    After Becca and I parted, I rushed to my psychiatrist appointment. This was the first time I was meeting Dr. Davis, my new shrink, and I was looking forward to it. My former psychiatrist had nothing but great things to say about him. I was also anxious to talk to someone. I would’ve met him sooner, but he’d been booked during the last few weeks.
    I parked in the lot behind a gray two-story building in the town of Lancaster. I snatched my purse, got out, and locked my door. As I was walking around to the entrance, I caught a glimpse of a black truck stopped at the red light on the corner of Fifth and Main. I did a double take. Please don’t let it be Kade. He was the last person who I wanted to know that I was seeing a psychiatrist. Dad had been specific when he asked Dr. Meyers to find a therapist who didn’t have an office in Ashford.
    I squinted to see if the truck had the hearts on the passenger door, but I couldn’t tell from this distance—although this truck had tinted windows like his. What were the odds? Not wanting to look like a lost idiot, I strode right past the entrance to the building as though I was headed to one of the other shops in town. Several establishments and restaurants lined Main Street. I crossed over the side street. Up ahead, a small boutique like the ones my sister and I used to shop at in California caught my eye. Well, she shopped. I just went along with her on our way home from school occasionally. She would always say, “Lace, you need to dress like a girl.” I hadn’t cared much about clothes, and still didn’t. But the more Dad’s words rolled around in my brain—“I would like see my little girl wear a dress or a skirt every now and then”—the more I considered giving the girlie-wear a try, to bring one of those elusive smiles to his face.
    I was so deep in thought I’d forgotten why I was walking this way until a couple of beeps sounded from behind me, indicating someone had unlocked their car door. I flicked a quick glance over my shoulder, and I shouldn’t have. The black truck idled, waiting for a pedestrian to cross the road. I still