Free Jordan (Season Two: The Ninth Inning #5) by Lindsay Paige, Mary Smith Page A

team.
    It’s not until I walk into Hector and Zoey’s backyard to see the couples and little Kaelyn, that I remember why I don’t like family-oriented functions anymore. I’m without my other half. Permanently, if she gets her way. And if she does, I should probably get used to being a one-person family.
    Shaking my head, I continue my journey to where the biggest group is mingling. I run into Trent first. He has his girlfriend with him, but this is the first time I’ve met her.
    “Hey,” I say.
    Trent smiles and says, “Hey, you just missed Tanner. He was wearing a crown.” He laughs, shaking his head.
    “I bet that was a sight.”
    “It was.” He looks at the girl, and I can’t think of her name if my life depended on it. “Scarlett, this is Jordan Johnson. Jordan, meet Scarlett Knowles.”
    She gives me a nervous smile and holds out her hand. “Nice to meet you, Jordan,” she says as we shake hands.
    “Nice to meet you too. Where’s Kaelyn?”
    They both look over their shoulders, and I follow their gaze, finding her as Scarlett replies, “She’s working her magic on Blake and Sofia.”
    “They claim they want to hang out with her for parenting practice,” Trent chuckles.
    Sofia, in all her pregnant glow, looks like she’s bursting with happiness. So does Blake, and that’s not something you see every day. Every time I see them, or see Sofia, all I can think about is how I hope they’ll have a healthy, happy baby. For a brief moment, I’m glad Heidi isn’t here because I know she’d take one look at Sofia and Blake or Trent, Scarlett, and Kaelyn and see what we lost when we lost Eden.
    A family.
    Clearing my throat, I ask, “Have you seen Colby?”
    “He’s not here yet.”
    “Jordan!” I hear my name in a very cute, little girl voice. Kaelyn is running over and I crouch down with a grin.
    “Did you leave Grumpy behind just to come see me?”
    She crosses her arms over her chest with a pout. “He’s Happy ,” she corrects, stressing his name and dragging it out.
    “He has too many names,” I laugh. “Are you having fun?”
    “Yep. But I have to go now.”
    “Go where?” I ask, but she’s already turned around to tug on Scarlett’s shirt. Kaelyn motions for her to lean down and then whispers loudly that she needs to use the bathroom. I try not to laugh as Scarlett excuses them. Trent has a smile on his face as he watches them talking and giggling on the way to the house. “You seem to be doing well,” I blurt out.
    He faces me. “Yeah, I am, thanks to those two. Kaelyn’s been over the moon since she found out Sofia is having a baby. She’s ready to have someone to play with when we get together.” I try not to think about how she could be playing with Eden had things happened differently. He starts chuckling as he adds, “She asked Scarlett for a baby and she almost fainted.”
    I force a laugh. “Not that serious yet?” Trent hasn’t spoken about Scarlett as much as he did about his late wife, but I think he’s getting to that point again.
    He shakes his head. “It’s not that. We’re not quite at that point yet.”
    I nod in understanding as someone slaps me on the shoulder. Before he speaks, I know it’s Hector.
    “JJ!” He grins.
    “Oh, come on. Why do I need to be called JJ?”
    “Just testing it out.”
    “Well, don’t.”
    His laughter is cut short when Zoey shouts his name from the house. She sounds stressed. “I’m coming,” he calls back. Hector searches the yard until he finds Sofia and Blake walking toward us. “Sof, a little help?”
    Blake shakes his head, looking very much like the Grumpy we’re familiar with. “She’s pregnant. She doesn’t need to be helping you do anything. I’ll help.”
    “I’m not helpless,” she protests.
    All he says is, “I know,” before walking to the house without waiting for Hector, who quickly follows when Zoey is about to yell for him again. Sofia takes a seat at the picnic table with her back