Thanks for hanging in there with me... I keep writing because I feel like this series should have been 22 episodes instead of 10. Littlest is out of the hospital. It was a non-invasive procedure, and all is well.

Blackout:

About two weeks into their forced separation, Mike had four days off and was able to sneak away for two nights to see Ginny. He didn't tell her he was coming, thought it would be a nice little surprise. And outside of San Diego and LA, he could go pretty much go unnoticed when he wore a hat and avoided eye contact.

He sat in the stands behind her dugout. Quietly watching. Even after being her catcher for a year, he still admired her strength on the field, not as a woman, as a player. She pitched the first five innings, until she was pulled to keep her arm fresh. Her team won. Once she was in the locker room he called, a few times actually. She was in the shower the first two times. The third time she answered… "Geez, old man, anxious much?"

"Great game today, babe!" and then he mentioned a few things a person would only know if the were in the stadium. It's not like they broadcast these games nationally.

"I know!... Right." She paused and then it hit her "How'd you know that?"

"I'm rental car in front of the stadium. I'd really like it if you could get out here as quick as possible. Look for a black Ford Mustang." And with that Ginny hung up on him, grabbed her stuff and went running through the locker room. She hadn't really taken the time to get to know any of the guys well, but they still were curious what the rush was all about.

Mike leaned across the passenger seat to help open the door. Even though it was almost 10:00 at night, he didn't want to draw too much attention to them by getting out and risk anyone recognizing them together. She shut the door and looked at him in awe… "How?"

"I can tell you how, or you can tell me where to go. I'd rather get to the kissing part in your hotel room." She gave him instructions to get the few miles from the ballpark where she was staying for the series. "I'm in room 323. Drop me off on the side. Then meet me up there in a few minutes. We still shouldn't be seen in the lobby together."

She was pacing in her room. Where was he? It seemed like it had been an hour – it had only been 20 minutes. Finally the door knock came. She opened it. "Where have you…" He shut the door, and shut her mouth with a kiss - a very long over due kiss. It was one of those moments when Ginny appreciated his physical stature; she had started to forget how attracted she was to him. She had to be so strong as a female in this sport. But when she was with Mike, she was just a woman in love, she felt his equal, and didn't need to worry about being 'sized up' or judged around him.

"Some fans recognized me in the lobby. I did a few photo's and signatures. Don't worry, I said I was catching up with an old high school friend." Not much else was said that evening. They talked on the phone all the time, no need for words right now. This was time they needed to physically reconnect. They ordered room service, watched a movie in bed, and were nearly inseparable for those 12 hours.

Tomorrow was Sunday and she had to be back in the stadium by 10:00 am. "I hate to ask, but when do you have to leave?"

"I'm on the first flight out Monday morning. We have another night." But they still would be separated during the game. "Since you pitched yesterday, it's unlikely you'll pitch today. Mind if I stay here and do some work for my car dealership? I can pick you up after the game."

"It's probably best to stay out of sight. I'll text you when I'm done." As she started to leave, she turned to him, "Hey Mike,"

"I know, you love me." He said in his slightly arrogant tone. She rolled her eyes, smiled and left.

That night after the game was basically a repeat of the night before. "I need you. Needed to see you. Blip said I was getting more grumpy than normal."

"I'm hoping Al will call me back up soon. And this will be over."

"About that…" Ginny hadn't brought it up. She must not know. "They just signed a new pitcher from Puerto Rico. Didn't you see that in the news? Blip and I asked how that would affect you. Al and Oscar said they just wanted to see how he worked with the team. He may be back here and then bring you up. This could be good, or bad news."

Ginny realized in an effort to make time go by faster, she had been avoiding contact with the outside world. She needed to pay more attention to the San Diego news and get reconnected with her teammates.

The next morning was a combination of mixed emotions. The hotel room was filled with love, a deep love. And a sadness of having to part, not knowing when they would see each other again. They had looked at their schedules, and they just didn't align for at least two months. Their only hope was Ginny being called back up to the Padres.

- Called up -

Another three weeks. Three weeks of Mike turning grumpy again. Three weeks of Ginny reconnecting with her teammates via social media and paying closer attention to her new found home in San Diego. But still three weeks of only phone calls and talking via Skype for Mike and Ginny.

After three weeks, Ginny finally got a call from Oscar. "Baker, I'm here in Al's office, I have you on speaker phone. I hear you're back to normal, even your screwball is looking good. Ready to come home?"

"You have no idea, Sir!" Ginny tried to respond as calmly as possible.

"Remember our deal, your starts will be spaced out to keep you fresh. No arguments." Al said.

"Got it. You're the boss. I'm not going to push it this year. Does Mike know?"

"Not yet… He's walking by my office now, hold on." Al responded.

Ginny could hear Al barking down the hall, "Lawson, my office NOW!"

"Sir." Was all he responded, as Al shut the door.

"We have a staffing change for you to prepare for," Al mumbled. There was a moment of silence. Mike didn't realize Ginny was on the phone. "Baker, why don't you let Captain know?"

Mike instantly knew, "Mike, I'm coming home. I'll see you tomorrow!" Ginny tried not to yell through the speaker.

Mike didn't even try to hide his excitement and let out a huge yell.

There was a noticeable change in Mike the rest of the day. The Padres won their last home game in this series the Cubs and everyone felt like celebrating, especially Mike.

That night most of the team went out to a local club. Mike had way too much to drink. The next day he felt like a truckload of bricks had been dumped on his head. He wasn't even sure how he made it home. The last thing he remembered was dancing… He was dancing, he was that drunk.

He needed to sober up and get rid of this epic hangover. Ginny would be home in a few hours and he didn't want her to see him like this.

A few hours went by and Mike had sent Ginny a few texts…

[Let me know when you've landed]

[Love you]

[Can't wait to see you]

But she hadn't responded. He looked up her flight online and it was on time. So where was she? Finally she heard from her via text.

[staying at hotel tonight]

[can't talk to you rt now]

[we'll talk after practice]

Mike called her wondering what the hell happened. He didn't want to wait until after practice. Yesterday, she couldn't wait to get home. Now she wouldn't come to their home or talk? She didn't answer.

He didn't sleep at all that night. His mood in the locker room the next day was back to bad. Meanwhile Ginny walked in and her team began to clap for her. It was good to be back. She had worked hard not just to get back to Mike, but to get back to this, the Majors.

She joked around with the guys a bit, as Mikes sat grumpy in his chair. Tommy asked, "So where are you staying? Moving back in with that old man? Or are you finally going to get a palace of your own?"

"Not sure yet, I just landed last night and I'm staying at a hotel right now. Mike's been nice enough to store my stuff while I've been out of town, but I don't want to wear out my welcome." She looked over at him and walked off to her private room to change.

He followed her and entered and locked the door behind them. He kissed her, which she hesitated before she pushed him off.

"Not here, and not after what you did."

"What did I do? I got you flowers at the house?"

Ginny pulled out her cell phone and pulled up a few pictures of him on social media with a beautiful blonde giving him a lap dance. One of their teammates innocently posted it to social media, having no clue the fallout it would cause.

"You can explain this to me after practice." But then when she looked at his face, she had to ask… "Can you explain this to me?"

He couldn't, he had no memory of most of the night. He was celebrating Ginny coming home and completely blacked out. "Gin, I would never cheat on you. You have to believe that."

"But can you say that with certainty? From the look on your face, I don't think so. Out, I need to change and get ready for practice."

Mike obliged and left. He ran into Blip, finally, maybe he could answer. "Hey man, what they hell happened last night?" There were to many ears around to bring Ginny into this part of the conversation.

But Blip responded, "I drove your drunk ass home. That's what happened. You're welcome, by the way…. Wait you don't remember?"

"Damn… I stepped in it this time."

"Don't worry, I hauled your fat ass off before you did anything dumb. Nothing that would mess anything up permanently." Blip said.

Now Mike just needed to get through practice and let Ginny know. "If you could let her know that as well…" Mike whispered.