“He did, but—”
“You should. The kids would love it. You’re a legend at Central. And it would mean a lot to my dad.”
For some reason, I found myself considering it. “My schedule’s pretty tight. I’m only here until Sunday.”
“We’ve got practice tomorrow morning,” he said hopefully.
“Do you?” I rubbed a finger beneath my lower lip.
“Yes. Just think about it. I got this new kid, a senior, just moved here beginning of this year. He’s a lefty. Fantastic arm, lots of speed, great power. But—”
“No command?”
He shook his head. “Very little.”
“Sounds familiar.”
David laughed. “You had more than he does.”
“Well, I had to learn it. Your dad taught me that. Made me slow down and rededicate myself to the mechanics.” I was sort of warming to the idea of passing on the knowledge. “I might be able to come by.”
“That would be awesome. I’m not even gonna say anything to the guys, because they’ll fucking lose it, and we’ve got a game tonight.”
“Oh yeah? Where?”
“At home. You should come check it out. Chip, the lefty, is pitching.”
For a second, I thought about it. Maybe April would come with me. “Oh wait—I can’t. I’ve got my sister’s rehearsal dinner tonight. She’s getting married tomorrow. That’s why I’m in town.”
“Oh. Well . . .” He shrugged. “We’d love to see you at practice tomorrow if you can fit it in. Ten a.m.”
“Sounds good. But David.” I squared my shoulders and spoke firmly. “I don’t throw in public. Not even for practice.”
“That’s okay. You don’t have to throw. You could just talk to them. Help Chip with his motion.”
Just then, my sister appeared at the table, her hair damp from the rain. “Hey.”
“Hey, Sadie. You remember David Dean, my old coach?”
She smiled at him. “I do, but he was Mr. Dean, geography teacher, to me. Nice to see you.”
“You too, Sadie,” he said. “Congratulations on your wedding.”
“Thanks.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “I’m not going to stress about the rain. I’m not going to stress about the rain. I’m not going to stress about the rain.”
David grinned. “Nope, not at all. Well, I’ll let you two have lunch. Good seeing you both. Tyler, hope you can make it tomorrow.”
I nodded and sat down, and Sadie dropped into the chair across from me. “What’s he talking about?” she asked.
“Baseball practice. He and his dad—I ran into Coach Dean this morning at breakfast—are on me to stop by the team practice tomorrow morning.”
“What time?”
“Ten.”
She nodded. “That works. You should do it.”
“I’m thinking about it.”
She shrugged out of a light jacket. “God, this weather better break.”
“April thinks it will.”
Sadie looked up at me and tucked her wet hair behind her ears. “How did it go with her last night?”
“Good.”
“Good?”
“Yeah. It was fun.”
She stared at me. “No. Do not give me the man version of events—I want the details.”
I rolled my eyes, prepared to give her only a slightly longer man version, but I was saved by the server who came to take our order. Once we were alone again, though, Sadie persisted.
“Well?” she prompted, giving me a gentle kick in the shin for good measure.
“I met her at Cloverleigh’s bar. We had some food and drinks. We talked about old times. It was nice.”
She digested that. “Did you apologize?”
“Actually, I did. But you were wrong.”
“About what?”
“I didn’t abandon her. I specifically asked her if I had.”
Her eyes widened. “What made you do that?”
“I don’t know. I guess you got me thinking about it.” I leaned on the table with both elbows. “I started doubting my recollection of the events and realized maybe it wasn’t the only version of the story.”
“Wow.” She blinked. “I’m impressed. I didn’t really think you’d do it.”
“I wasn’t going to. But . . . I don’t know.” I sat back and shrugged. “At the end of the night, the question just sort of slipped out, and we wound up having a conversation about it.”
Her brows shot up. “Interesting.”
The server returned with our drinks, and Sadie took a sip of her herbal tea. I probably should have let the subject drop right there, but for some reason, I didn’t.
“It was a boy,” I said.
Sadie looked up at me in surprise, nearly choking on her tea. “You asked that too?”
“Yes.”
“Wow. Wow.” She sat back and studied me. “And how do you feel about that?”
“Fine.” I shrugged. “It doesn’t really affect me, you know?”
“It doesn’t?”
“No. She told me he was adopted by two amazing people who really wanted a baby, and she knew right away they were the mom and dad. I told her I was glad to hear it.”
My sister nodded slowly. “Well, I’m glad to hear that too.”
“Good. So now we never have to discuss it again.”
“Okay, but one more thing.”
“What?”
“Did she tell you his name?”
“Charles.”
“Charles,” she repeated softly. “What’s his middle name?”
I shrugged. “I didn’t ask.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know.” I frowned, scratching my head. “Look, I didn’t ask about him for him, I asked about him for April. I wanted to hear that she was okay.”
“And is she?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. Good.” Sadie took another sip of tea. “She’s such a good person. I want her to be happy.”
“Me too.” I took a drink of my iced tea. “Any idea why she never got married?”
“No. It’s really surprising to me, actually, because I know she always wanted children. She used to talk about it when she’d babysit me.”
“Huh.”
Sadie shrugged. “Maybe she just hasn’t met the right person.”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe it’s you.” One of Sadie’s eyebrows peaked.
I rolled my eyes. “It’s not me.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I know,” I told her, picking up my iced tea again. “Believe me. We talked about this last night too—she and I are very different, and we are not looking for the same things.”
“What’s she looking for?”
“A husband, two-point-five kids, maybe a cat.”
“And you?”
“A club sandwich. And look at that, dreams do come true.” I leaned back as the server set a plate in front of me.
My sister sighed dramatically. “I don’t even know why I bother.”
I picked up a French fry and stuck it in my mouth. “Me neither.”
After lunch, I drove by my old barber shop, but at the last minute I kept on driving, deciding instead to try a salon up the street that said “Walk-Ins Welcome.” I figured I had less of a chance of being recognized there, and the encounter with that reporter was fresh on my mind.
Thankfully, I was right. The salon was full of women who either didn’t recognize me or didn’t give a shit, and I got a pretty nice haircut too. Not only that, but it came with a shampoo and a scalp massage that—not gonna lie—made me miss a woman’s hands in my hair. I closed my eyes and imagined the hands were April’s.
At five o’clock that night, I reported for duty at Cloverleigh Farms. Sadie had told me I didn’t have to wear a suit but to please look nice, so I’d added a blue sports jacket and tie to my dark jeans and a white button-down.
April was standing in the entrance hall of a building Sadie had called “t
he wedding barn,” which was the designated meeting spot for the rehearsal. The way she looked me over—kind of the way she’d gazed at her dessert last night before devouring it—put a little swagger back in my game.
“Hi,” she said, her eyes traveling over me. “You look great.”
“Thanks.” I gave her a kiss on the cheek without thinking if that was okay or not. She looked great too. It was amazing how she could make such a long skirt—it came down to at least her knees—look sexy. Maybe it’s because it hugged her butt so tight. And the blouse she wore didn’t show any cleavage—it tied around her neck, in fact—but somehow, the whole effect of the outfit was making me sweat.
Was it the heels? They were the same ones she’d been wearing last night—black and high and shiny, with a little hole at the top where the barest suggestion of red polish on her toes peeked out.
I loosened my tie.
The rehearsal was pretty straightforward, although we had to run through it indoors instead of out because of the rain. I stood where they said to stand, moved where they told me to move, and stayed out of the way as much as I could. Mostly I watched April, impressed by the way she handled everything and everyone so smoothly. My sister’s constant questions and requests would have driven me fucking bananas, but April’s patience seemed endless.
By six o’clock, it was over. Sadie seemed happy with everything but the weather, which wasn’t even that awful now that the storms had quieted to a drizzle.
“My weather app says no more rain tonight,” assured April. “And everything should be nice and dry by tomorrow.”
Sadie still looked nervous. “I hope so.”
The dinner was being hosted by Josh’s parents at a restaurant downtown, and on our way out, Sadie invited April to join us.
“Thanks, but I can’t,” she said. “I’ve got a lot of things to get done here.”
“Can’t you get away for a little bit? You still need to eat,” I told her, disappointed she wasn’t coming along.
She shook her head, smiling wistfully. “I wish I could. I’ll grab something to eat later. Go have fun.”
“Okay.” I glanced out the glass door and watched Josh and Sadie walking arm in arm next to his parents. “Hey, what about the dance stuff? My sister was bugging me about it at lunch today, and I told her you were going to help me.”
“Oh, right.” Her forehead wrinkled for a moment.
“Can I come back here later? How long will you be here?”
“A few hours, for sure. That could work.” She looked up at me. “You don’t want to go out with the wedding party?”
I gave her a look. “Are you serious? They’re like twelve. They’ll probably want to go drive go-karts or play paintball or something.”
April laughed. “Okay. Meet me back here after dinner. In the meantime, I’ll think of a song.”
“Something short, please. And not too fast. But not too slow either.”
She pushed me toward the exit. “Trust me. Sheesh.”
“I do trust you.” I stopped in front of the door and looked at her. “Thank you for this.”
“For what?”
“For everything you’re doing for my sister. And for me.”
She shrugged. “It’s my job. And you guys are like family to me.”
I couldn’t resist pressing my lips to her soft pink cheek once more. Her skin was warm, and I left my mouth there for a little longer this time. When I picked up my head, I saw that her face had gone full-on flushed. “I’ll see you soon,” I said, pushing open the door.
She raised one hand, looking a little dazed. “Okay. Bye.”
The cool air felt good on my skin as I walked toward my car. That girl made me hot all over, and I was growing concerned about my ability to stay in control when we were alone later tonight, especially if I had to put my arms around her.
But I couldn’t fucking wait.
Ten
April
I watched Tyler walk across the parking lot with his long, easy strides until I couldn’t see him anymore. Then I bolted for my office, snatched my phone off my desk, and called Chloe.
“Hello?”
“Are you still at work?”
“Yeah, but I’m about to leave.”
“Can you come over to the wedding barn first?”
“Why?”
“Because I’m afraid I’m going to make a really big mistake and I need you to talk me out of it—or into it. I can’t decide.”
“Okay, okay. Give me ten minutes.”
While I waited for her, I paced back and forth in front of my desk, even though there were a million things I should have been doing. But I couldn’t concentrate—all I could think of was that Tyler had kissed my cheek twice! And he was so handsome! And it had been so sweet watching him walk his sister down the aisle! And he was coming back later tonight and we were going to be alone and I’d promised to show him how to dance, which meant he’d have to touch me, and I wasn’t sure I could take it.
Which reminded me—I’d better start looking at songs. I had a few ideas, but I wanted to listen to them.
I had just perched on the edge of my desk, phone in hand, when Chloe knocked on my open office door. “Hey.”
“Oh, thank God.” I set my phone aside. “I need a voice of reason.”
“So you called me?” She cocked her head. “I feel like another sister might have been a better choice.”
“Well, they’re not here, so you’ll have to do. Come sit.”
She sat in one of the chairs in front of my desk while I resumed pacing. “So what’s up?” she asked. “Is it Tyler?”
“Yes.”
“How did it go last night?”
“Great.”
“Did he want to bang you after all?”
“Yes. But we didn’t.”
She made a face. “Why not?”
“Because he said he wanted to be a gentleman this time.”
“Like he was trying to make up for last time?”
“Exactly. He said he saw it as an opportunity to do the right thing, like a good guy would. He drove me home because I drank a little too much, and he said he’d promised me no detours this time, and he was determined to keep his word.”
Chloe sighed. “Can’t fault him for that, I suppose.”
I turned and faced her. “It’s not that I fault him, Chloe, it’s that I want him. I think I want him even more because he was such a nice guy last night. If he’d tried to put his hand up my skirt or something, I probably would have been mad. Tonight could be a different story though.”
“You’re seeing him again tonight?”
I nodded. “After the rehearsal dinner he’s coming back here. For a dance lesson.”
“A dance lesson?”
“He’s nervous about dancing with Sadie tomorrow. I promised to show him a couple easy moves. It’s not that I’m worried about—it’s what could happen afterward.”
“What’s the problem? If he wants you, and you want him . . .”
“But why do I want him, Chloe? It doesn’t make any sense.” I tapped my head.
“Uh, yes it does. He’s ridiculously hot. And you guys have history.”
“But it’s stupid—he’s only in town for two more days.”
She cocked her head. “How long do you think sex takes?”
I stopped moving and looked at her. “You know what I mean. I’m not interested in a weekend sex fling. At least, I shouldn’t be.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m supposed to be trying to find the one.” I threw my arms in the air. “I want the damn one! But if he could just hurry up, that would be great, because I haven’t had sex in a really, really long time, and I’m getting a little desperate!”
Chloe laughed. “That’s exactly why this attraction to Tyler makes sense. Even though your mind knows he’s not the one, your orgasm is like, ‘Hey, remember me?’”
“What’s an orgasm?” I asked irritably. “I vaguely recall one from
2015, but it might have been self-inflicted.”
“Exactly.”
I crossed one arm over my stomach and chewed the thumb of the opposite hand. “You don’t think it’s a terrible idea?”
“It’s a terrible idea if you’re looking for something deep and meaningful out of it. But if all you’re looking for is a good time, and it won’t mess with your head, maybe it’s part of the closure you’re looking for. Like maybe you need to get him out of your system once and for all. On your terms.”
I perched on the edge of my desk again. “Maybe.”
“But for the love of God, use protection if you do.”
I laughed. “I’m pretty sure Tyler would be all over that. The man does not want children.”
“No?”
I shook my head. “We talked about it last night.”
“Really.” Chloe crossed her legs. “That’s interesting. Did you guys discuss the adoption thing at all?”
“We did, actually. Not until the end of the night when he took me home, but then he came right out and asked me about it. He wanted to know whether the baby I had was a boy or a girl.”
“Wow. How did he take the news?”
I shrugged. “He was quiet at first, but when I told him about the couple who adopted him, he said he was glad he’d asked. It’s so weird, Chloe. I really think he was able to move on from it just like that”—I snapped my fingers—“and never feel anything about it again.”
“Yeah, well, in general, guys are better at that than women. They can file their emotions away in a box and not allow them to seep into other parts of their lives. Especially a guy like Tyler, who had a fuck ton of pressure to deal with.”
“Yeah.”
“But that doesn’t mean they’re not still there,” she said, surprising me. “It just means he doesn’t like opening that box. Most men don’t.”
“What about Oliver?”
She rolled her eyes. “Oliver was excellent at keeping the box locked up. But he is learning that opening it up is not going to kill him, and in fact, science has shown it leads to increased blowjobs and occasional butt stuff.”
I burst out laughing. “Okay. Good to know—sort of.”
Chloe smiled and stood up. “I better get home. We have dinner plans with Mack and Frannie tonight. Did this help at all?”
Unforgettable: A Small Town Second Chance Sports Romance Page 10
