Balk (Home Stand #2)

by Lacy Hart

  “Yeah, I told him I would meet with him to talk about projects, and funding, and stuff like that. I didn’t set up a time or day or anything with him. I guess he’s anxious to see what’s going on. He texted me last night, too.”

  “I don’t know, Kris, he kind of gives me the creeps. The whole time I felt like he was sizing me up the way he looked at me. He seems a little too friendly.” Karen had concern in her voice.

  “I didn’t get that vibe from him, Karen, honestly. He’s just new to town and trying to meet people and get involved. Let’s give him a chance. Besides, I think he can be a big help to us.”

  “Okay, but other than that, nothing is going on here. Get yourself better, and you can come in tomorrow. Just think tomorrow is Friday. You get the chance to relax for the weekend after that. I gotta go; Mrs. Pauling just walked in, and you know how she is if someone is on the phone and she wants help. Talk to you later,” Karen said before hanging up.

  It seems like everything is under control, Kristin thought. She set her head back into the pillow behind her, unsure of what to do with herself. She did think about what Karen said about Richard Trainor. He did have an avid interest right away, and that could easily be misinterpreted, but Kristin would tuck that information in the back of her mind for now. For the moment, she was going to relax and try to kick this bug.

  ****

  Wes got to the grocery store with the sole mission of finding the bananas and getting out as fast as he could. Even though he had stopped playing pro ball, people in town still liked to stop and chat about his playing days. He appreciated the fans and always tried to be as obliging as he could. He signed autographs, posed for pictures, and listened to stories, but there were days like today where he had things he needed to do.

  The trip to the store also would give him more time to figure out what he should say to Kristin about the offer from the Wild Things. He hoped to tell her when she got home yesterday, but they got caught up in passion, and then she was sick, and he didn’t want to make things worse for her.

  Wes examined the bananas laid out on the table as he tried to figure out which would be the best to get. He didn’t do much of the shopping, and even when he did, produce was something he usually left for Kristin or Izzy. Wes had no idea which would be best, though he did know the bunches that were still green were off-limits. He found a group of five that appeared yellow enough and picked them up, only to hear a voice behind him.

  “If you were going to eat them today, those aren’t the ones you want.”

  He spun around to see his father Wyatt standing there, pushing a small cart with some groceries.

  “Hi, Dad. What’s wrong with these?” Wes asked. He held the bananas closer to his face to get a better look at them.

  Wyatt sighed at his son and grabbed the bananas. “Look, they’re still pretty green towards the stems, and they feel hard. They will not be pleasant for Kristin to eat if she’s not feeling good. Take these instead; they’re perfect,” Wyatt added, picking up a bunch that was yellow and lightly speckled with brown dots.

  “Thanks, Dad,” Wes chirped. “Wait, how did you know Kris wasn’t feeling good? Are you psychic now, too?”

  “Sometimes I am, boy,” Wyatt smiled. “No, Izzy called me this morning to ask me to pick her up after rehearsal tonight, so you and Kristin didn’t have to go out. How’s her stomach?”

  The two men walked casually towards the front registers.

  “She said she’s better, but I don’t know. She was pretty sick last night and still looked a bit pale this morning. Probably just a virus she picked up. She’s burned the candle at both ends pretty hard lately.”

  Wes placed his bananas on the conveyor belt at the register and waited his turn.

  “A lot of stress going on lately too with work and you,” Wyatt added, grabbing the plastic bar to separate his order from Wes’.

  “What about me? I haven’t stressed her out.” Wes wanted to believe that was true.

  “Really? You don’t think so? Come on, Wes. You’ve been ornery on and off for weeks with all this baseball stuff, and she knows you’ve been keeping stuff from her. How do you think it makes her feel?”

  Wyatt finished putting all the vegetables he was buying and a pint of coffee toffee bar ice cream on the belt. Wes took a quick look down and then smiled at his father.

  “Who’s the ice cream for? I’m pretty sure Mom doesn’t eat it, and you’re not supposed to have any. Now, who’s keeping things from people?”

  “Mind your business, boy. It’s your turn to pay,” Wyatt scolded as he pointed at the cashier.

  Wes paid for his bananas and waited for his father to finish his purchase so they could walk out together. They stopped next to Wyatt’s truck, and Wyatt loaded his bags on the passenger seat.

  “Dad, I have to let you know something,” Wes started. “I got an offer yesterday, and I’m going to take it.”

  Wyatt turned to his son and tipped his Stetson hat back on his head.

  “What team?” Wyatt questioned.

  “Well, that’s just it,” Wes began. “It’s with the Washington Wild Things.”

  Wes could see the wrinkles on his father’s forehead as Wyatt thought about what his son had said. Wyatt’s eyes went wide when he figured it out.

  “That independent team a few towns over? Why… why would you want to do that, Wes?”

  “Because it’s a chance to play, Dad. If I do well enough, maybe some big-league team will pick me up during the season, and I could get another chance.”

  Wes’ feet shifted beneath him like he did when he was telling things to his father when he was a boy and knew his Dad would disapprove.

  “That’s a pretty tall order, Wes. And what if it doesn’t work out? Suppose no one picks you up, or you don’t play well. What then? And what about Izzy and Kristin? Where are they in all this? Do they know?”

  “I have to take the chance, Dad,” Wes said as he tried to convince his father it was the right move. “If I don’t at least try, I will always wonder if it was the right thing to do. If I try and fail, so be it, but at least I will have tried. As for Kristin and Izzy… no, I haven’t told them yet.”

  “What are you waiting for?” Wyatt leaned back on his truck now for support.

  “I don’t know, but it… it has to be today. I have to go to the team on Sunday to start practice. Randy just texted me this morning,” Wes confessed.

  “Jesus, Wes,” Wyatt shook his head and gave a sideways glance to his son. He saw that Wes was torn about it and needed some fatherly advice and support.

  “Look, you know your Mom and I will do whatever we can to help out with Izzy. We always have. And Kristin… well, she’s family to us too, and I would hate to think that this was going to come between all that…”

  “Nothing’s going to change, Dad,” Wes interrupted. “The team is just as close as the mall. When they are at home, I’ll be able to stay here at the house with everyone so it will be just like always. When I’m on the road, I’ll be gone for a week or two at a time and then be back. It will better than when I was playing for Pittsburgh and was gone for months. It will all work out, I promise.”

  “Okay,” Wyatt told him, patting him on the shoulder. “You better get home and make sure Kristin is feeling alright. Just let me know if you need help with anything.”

  “Thanks, Dad. I appreciate it. I’ll talk to you later.”

  Wes walked towards his truck, knowing his father watched him as he did. The pit of Wes’ stomach burned now, and not because he was getting sick too. He worried even more about talking to Kristin about his plans and how she would react.

  Wes’ ride home was consumed with how he would break the news to Kristin and Izzy. Every scenario he came up with seemed to have it end badly, no matter how much he didn’t want it to be that way.

  Wes’ entered the house and heard the tea kettle whistling loudly. He walked into the kitchen and saw the steam rising rapidly from the pot with no one in sight
. He turned the gas off, so the kettle quieted down and went into the bedroom to see Kristin come out of the bathroom, wiping her mouth.

  “You okay?” Wes asked, looking into her eyes.

  “I think so,” Kristin rasped. “I thought I would make some tea and started the teapot going. I noticed the orange juice still out on the counter, so I went to put it away, but as soon as I opened the fridge, I got hit with a whiff of something that made my stomach jump. I had to run into the bathroom right away.”

  “It was probably Izzy’s leftovers from last night. She and her friends went to the diner, and she had the fried chicken and garlic mashed potatoes…”

  Kristin held up her hand to Wes.

  “Wes, stop,” she begged. “Just hearing about it is making me smell it again.”

  “Do you want me to fix the tea for you?” Wes asked gently.

  “Please,” Kristin said as she climbed back into bed.

  Wes prepared a mug of tea and placed an unpeeled banana on the tray next to the cup and brought it to Kristin.

  “Here, in case you feel up to having something later,” Wes offered.

  “Thanks,” Kristin smiled. “You’re my hero.”

  Pangs of guilt flushed through Wes’ system at her words.

  “Kris, there’s something I have to tell you,” Wes said, taking her hand in his. Kristin turned and looked right into Wes’ eyes.

  “I… I heard from Randy yesterday,” he started. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you last night with everything… everything that went on.”

  Kristin let out a light giggle, thinking back to their interlude, and then made her face serious again as she could see Wes had something important to say.

  “There’s a team that wants me to come to play for them,” Wes said, getting it out as fast as he could. Wes saw that Kristin almost held her breath now.

  “What… what team?” she said softly, a knot tightening in her stomach now.

  “Well, that’s the good part… there’s an independent team in Washington that’s interested.”

  “D.C. or Washington the state?” she questioned. “Either way, it’s not really close by Wes.”

  “No, Washington, Pennsylvania, not more than a half-hour from here, right near the mall. The Washington Wild Things. You might not have ever heard of them if you don’t follow baseball, they are a small…”

  Wes looked up to see Kristin’s eyes clouding over.

  “Kris, I know this isn’t what we planned or talked about, but it gives me a chance.”

  “Wes, we never talked or planned about any of it,” Kristin chided. “You did all the planning without ever letting me in on it. We should at least talk about it before you decide anything, don’t you think?”

  “I… I already gave them an answer,” Wes confessed.

  “I see.” Kristin turned her head to break eye contact with Wes. “Well, at least you’ll be at home every day until the season starts, so it gives us time to adjust to everything.”

  Kristin grabbed a tissue and wiped her eyes and nose. “When is the first day?”

  “That’s another thing,” Wes said. Each statement seemed to make things go more poorly, and Wes knew a worse reaction lay around the corner. “You see, practice starts Sunday and I’ll… I’ll have to stay with the team in Washington until the season begins in May. I booked a room at the Ramada there this morning.”

  Silence hung in the air between the two. Wes uncomfortably fidgeted on the bed and stared at Kristin. He wished she would say something, but nothing came.

  “Kris? Say something,” Wes pleaded.

  “What do you want me to say, Wes? You obviously have it all under control and figured out; what do you need me for? You… you should probably think about how much you are going to have to pack and what you want to bring, and maybe work out with your parents about Izzy. She’ll need rides and maybe to stay down there with them.”

  Kristin climbed out of bed without a thought about how much her stomach tumbled.

  “Kris, get back in bed. You’re still not feeling great. We have today and tomorrow to work all those things out, and besides, you’ll be here so Izzy can just stay here until you get home, and my Dad said they would help out and pick her up from rehearsals…”

  “You… you already talked to your father about it?” Kristin broke down now. “You told your Dad before you said anything to me?”

  “I… it just came up in conversation this morning. I didn’t even think about it,” Wes fumbled for the right thing to say, but it never came.

  “Right, you didn’t even think about it, or me,” Kristin said as she nodded and sniffled back tears. She stripped off her pajamas and threw on the pants and blouse she had taken out to wear to work this morning.

  “What are you doing?” Wes said as he watched Kristin pace the room, collect items, and stuff them in the bag she grabbed from the closet.

  “I’m going to work, and then I am going to stay with Karen,” Kristin yelled. “Do what you need to do, Wes. I won’t get in your way.”

  “Kris, stop,” Wes said as he grabbed her wrist that held her bag. “Let’s talk about this.”

  “We had plenty of time to talk about it for the last few weeks, and you never wanted to, Wes. The time for talking passed long ago. I need to figure stuff out now, and I can’t do that here.”

  Kristin pulled her arm away and raced out of the house. She pulled out her keys so she could get into her Jeep. She tore down the hill and out onto Route 5 so she could get into Chandler and to the library, leaving Wes standing at the front door to watch as she left.

  14

  Wes spent the better part of Friday and Saturday trying to get Kristin to see him or talk to him. He went to the library, but she stayed in her office and would not come out while he was there. Phone calls and text messages proved useless, and when he showed up at Karen’s house, where Kristin stayed, for now, it seemed pointless, though once she yelled at him out of a window that she would call the police if he continued to sit and wait outside Karen’s house.

  When Sunday morning arrived, Wes knew he had to choose between staying or leaving. All the clothing and equipment he thought he would need was loaded into the back of his truck since Saturday, but as 1 PM inched closer on Sunday and Wes knew he would have to go, he readied to unpack. It was then Wes saw his father’s pickup amble up the hill and stop just in front of Wes’ vehicle. He clearly made out his father’s cowboy hat silhouette in the car, but then he also saw Kristin seated next to him.

  His father got out and slowly walked over to the passenger side of his truck to open the door for Kristin, who slipped out of the truck, clad in a t-shirt and jeans. Wes walked quickly over to Kristin and took her hands.

  “Kris, thank God you are here. I’m going to…” Kristin put a finger up to Wes’ lips to quiet him.

  “Wes, let me talk,” Kristin told him. “Look, I’m not happy about how all this played out and how you didn’t let me in on what you were planning or anything…”

  “Kris, I…”

  Kristin shushed him again.

  “I’m angry about it, Wes, but more than angry, I’m disappointed, and I’m hurt. It’s going to take me a while to get over that and get through it. I know playing again is important to you, and if you had given us the chance to talk about it, I think you would have found out that I support you. It’s going to take some thought to sort things out, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be here for Izzy or your parents. I’ll help out with whatever they need me for while you are gone.”

  Wes sighed in relief and went to retake Kristin’s hands, but she pulled them away.

  “But I thought…” Wes stated, confusedly.

  “It doesn’t mean we’re completely okay, Wes,” Kristin told him. “I think we can both use this time apart to evaluate our relationship.”

  Kristin leaned over and gave Wes a long kiss on the cheek and then kissed his lips softly.

  “I still love you, Wes Martin. Good luck,” she whis
pered, choking back tears.

  “Kris, wait!” Wes yelled as she walked back to the truck and got in.

  Wes took a few steps towards the truck before his father moved in front of him to hold him back. Wyatt turned Wes around and started walking him back towards Wes’ house.

  “Son, you need to give her some space right now,” Wyatt told him. “It took a lot just to convince her to come here. Your mother, Izzy and I talked to her at different points yesterday and today to let her know how important she is to all of us.”