A Million Miles Apart (Wish 4)

16 - Pipe dream

Sloane hadn't expected to see Ben at the Whitby event. She had spent the day moving into her apartment and had no intentions of going out. Teddy begged her to be his date, because Mia had foundation responsibilities which included sitting at Celia's table.

It took all she had to not show emotion when she looked at him. For a man who wanted her out of his life, he certainly spent a lot of time looking at her and he wasn't always glaring.

Unfortunately for him, she had the upper hand. He thought Ted was married to Elaine, so Sloane played the adulteress and Ted was happy to go along. When Ted returned with her drink, he put his arm around her.

"Your boyfriend is here."

Shaking her head, she smiled at her handsome brother. "He hates me, but he also thinks you're still married. So any looks we get are because he assumes I'm your mistress."

"At an event with our friends?" Ted didn't hide his disbelief.

Sloane laughed. "Let him think what he wants."

Sloane knew they made a striking couple on the dance floor. They had learned to dance together. When she saw Ben looking her way, she put her head on Ted's shoulder and he pulled her close.

She whispered into his ear. "You're not so bad."

He leaned into her ear. "You know you love me."

She did, but it was a sister's prerogative to keep it a secret. Reluctantly, she had to relinquish her date to Mia. Watching Mia fall into Ted's arms, Sloane smiled. Let him be confused now. She was contemplating leaving, but Monty appeared. He wasn't drunk and kept her on the dance floor. By the end of the evening, she was tired of the glares. If Benjamin Lynch planned to invade her social engagements, she would stay home.

On Sunday afternoon, she sat in her own apartment watching the game before she had to leave. Because she was heading to the west coast, she couldn't wait until Monday morning. She watched as Jett struck out and the shortstop hit a line drive. When Ben approached the plate, she wanted to feel differently but couldn't. She watched all his rituals she knew like the back of her hand. They were oddly comforting.

He swung at a bad pitch, but kept fouling off fastball after fastball. The catcher set up for an inside pitch. It came in at a speed that Ben couldn't spin away from. It happened so fast, but he was on the ground. The broadcast showed the replay and again in slow motion. The ball hit his wrist. When the screen went back to live action, the training crew had surrounded Ben at the plate. When he stood, the crowd clapped. Sloane watched with her hand over her mouth as they escorted him off the field. His face had a grimace. He was obviously in pain. She tried to watch the game, but kept thinking about him. They showed the replay multiple times, and the announcer said the pitch was clocked at ninety-eight miles per hour.

Sloane reluctantly turned off her television. Her car for the airport was arriving. When she stepped out the back door, Mia was coming in.

"What's wrong?"

"I was watching the game. Ben Lynch got hurt. I just want to know he's okay."

"Maybe Noah will know something. The team always goes to his hospital."

Mia's brother-in-law was an emergency room doctor. "Is he working?"

Mia nodded. "I was just at my sister's. I'll see if I can get some inside information. You like him, don't you?"

"He hates me."

Mia laughed. "The man lusts over you. I watched him watching you. He doesn't like Ted."

"That's because he thinks he's an adulterer, because of how Elaine introduced herself at the gallery." Sloane's car arrived. "I have to go. I'll be back Friday morning if all goes well."