Right now, Tannis’s mild-mannered nature was working in Emmy’s favor as it kept Tucker and Jasper from further humiliating her.
“Jasper and Kasper,” Tannis said with a smile. “What’s on the menu for today?” Her red curls were piled on top of her head in a lazy-looking knot Emmy wasn’t a big fan of but had no say in banishing.
“Chet will be in in about half an hour,” Emmy said, not needing to consult the schedule to know who needed what. “His hamstring has been causing him some grief lately, so I want you to focus there, but not too much pressure. We need him healthy.”
Tannis nodded and added more sugar to her coffee, swishing the liquid in her mug to mix it since they had no spoons. “Anything else?”
“Alex will probably roll in an hour later than his scheduled time. He’s about to go on a five-game stretch since Brian got recalled and the trade for Pablo hasn’t been finalized. I want you to pay attention to his legs and thighs especially, then send him to me, okay?”
Tannis nodded, wished them all a good morning, and wandered down the hall to her room.
Tucker gave Emmy an appreciative nod. “You know about the Pablo Rancon trade?”
Emmy smiled. “They don’t say pending physical for nothing, you know. Sometimes I get asked to assess on these things, see what kind of wear a guy has on him and whether or not the eight million he wants is a bargain or a shot in the foot for our franchise.”
Ramon entered the room with a six-foot cloud of ego around him and presented himself to Emmy and Jasper, announcing, “I am here.”
Jasper rolled his eyes so only Emmy could see, then hopped off the massage table and guided Ramon to the other side of the room. Tucker took Jasper’s place beside Emmy, sitting like she had in his kitchen that morning, with his knees touching her thighs.
A warm swell of memory washed over her at his touch, reminding her of all the things he’d done less than two hours earlier with his hands, his mouth, his…
“Want me to start with some basic stretches?” Tucker asked, reeling her back in to the present task.
“Please. I’m going to go get a resistance band. Do you want a bottle of water?”
“Sure.” He’d already begun doing some overhead stretches, and her gaze was drawn upward to the way his fingers crooked and fanned. The smile he gave when she looked back down told her it was no accident he’d been moving his hands like that. It was the closest he could come to flirting with her while two other men were present. Her legs trembled as she walked out of the room, well aware he’d be watching her go.
When she came back, they spent the next half hour staring intently at each other while she held the resistance band and he did his damnedest to pull her over. Ramon left and Chet replaced him, having finished with Tannis. Jasper went through his warm-up routine with the shortstop, but Emmy barely noticed either of them was there.
Tucker, who wasn’t pitching that day, finished his session with her when Alex arrived. Alex was—as Emmy predicted—late, but not by the lengths she’d anticipated. Tucker and Alex swapped spots on the table, and a knowing glance passed between the three of them.
Of course Alex would know she’d gone home with Tucker. He’d been responsible for getting the pitcher to show up at the bar in the first place. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to hug him for being a brilliant wingman, or smack him for being presumptuous.
At least he hadn’t taken advantage of her himself. There might be something noble about Alex after all.
“How you feeling this fine morning?” he asked, keeping his voice almost level, but a hint of teasing snuck in.
“Just fine.”
“Just fine?”
Tucker, still only five feet away, sipped his water and watched the two of them with passive interest. He didn’t seem like he intended to come to her rescue with Alex, leaving her to her own devices, which had served her fine thus far in her life.
“I don’t think I’ll be signing up to be your drinking buddy any time soon, but I’ll survive.”
“Smart girl.”
“Hola, Lloyd.” Ramon snapped his fingers at Tucker from the doorway. “I said do you want to run some drills with me? I need a good arm.”
“Sure,” Tucker said, only hesitating slightly. It wasn’t as if he could spend all morning in the training suite with Emmy. He might not be playing, but she still had a job to do, and it would look highly suspect if he was in there with her for hours on end, regardless of the fact they wouldn’t be alone.
Ramon and Tucker left for the changing room, the first baseman nattering about something in Spanglish, which Tucker either understood or had learned to play along with because it didn’t slow their conversation down in the slightest.