by Jamie Wesley
“Right. We’re not. Except we did have great chemistry, riffing off each other, didn’t we?”
“You did,” Noelle admitted.
Her pitching stomach didn’t matter. She wanted the show to be successful in syndication. She wanted to prove she was a successful producer. And she and Brady were dating. Sort of. Kind of. Not really, but close enough.
Caitlin took a deep breath and said what needed to be said. “I like Deb’s idea to continue to make Love Letters the focus of Brady’s visits, but allow one or two personal questions to sneak in, so I shouldn’t have to talk that much. People are going to continue to ask about us, no matter how much we try to steer the conversation elsewhere, and they’ll just get angry if we don’t talk about it for at least a little bit. Besides, it’s not like Brady and I aren’t spending time together, so when people ask, we can tell them about it. Keep it simple and straightforward. No need for exaggerations. I’ll talk to him. He enjoyed himself today, so I’m sure he’ll agree to it.” She paused. “So if you’re okay with it, I’m in.”
Noelle nodded. “I’m in.”
“Chris, what’s going on with you?” Caitlin’s mom, Miranda, asked, striding into her dining room. Caitlin glanced up. Her mom wore black slacks and a stylish red sweater that highlighted the sienna skin tone Caitlin and her brother had inherited from her. Always put together, that was Miranda Monroe. Even when they didn’t have much, she’d made sure she and her children were never less than neat. Her mom peered over the basket of rolls she held out to her only son.
“Nothing much. Oh except for some of my students winning a contest for a video we produced in class,” he so immodestly offered, taking the basket and grabbing a roll.
“Oh, honey, that’s great. I’m sure the kids were excited,” their mom said. She turned to head back to the kitchen, so she should have missed the smirk Christian sent Caitlin’s way and Caitlin sticking her tongue out at her brother.
“I saw that,” their mom said. “Behave, you two.”
Caitlin met her brother’s eyes, struggling not to giggle. These dinners were sacred. It had been just the three of them for as long as she could remember. Her grandparents hadn’t been much interested in helping out their unwed teen daughter having babies. Though times had changed and they were all busy, they still were committed to dinner at least once a month, usually more.
Though she’d never voiced the thought out loud, she’d always felt like the lesser twin. Stupid, but true. She’d gotten great grades. Chris got stupendous grades. But she’d held her own. Until the embarrassing incident in college in which she’d openly defied her mom by dating a guy her mom disapproved of—an athlete—and the situation had blown up in her face. But that’s what happened when you dated a guy who told you he was divorced, but who so wasn’t. And whose wife decided she needed to sue you for breaking up her home. Ever since then, she’d felt like she was in catch-up mode to earn her mother’s respect. To make her proud.
She admired her mom so much. All she’d sacrificed to make sure her children participated in the activities they wanted to, showing up to their events even when she was dead tired from working and going to school. Always willing to offer a shoulder to cry on or offering up some tough love when needed. All she’d accomplished while raising two rambunctious kids on her own. Now that she knew why her mom had reacted so strongly to her mistake in college, she felt even worse.
“Cait, I noticed you were driving your brother’s Accord while he came in his Mustang,” their mom said, returning with a lasagna dish. She set it on the table and took a seat next to her son and across from Caitlin.
Caitlin became engrossed in slicing a roll open and applying a pat of butter. “Yeah, my car’s in the shop.” She braced herself for her mother to admonish her again for throwing good money after bad when it came to Hans.
Instead her mother said, “Hmm. How are things at the station?”
Caitlin breathed a sigh of relief. “Great. Syndication is going to take the show to a whole new level. We’ll reach more people and hopefully help and entertain them.”
Miranda beamed. “I can’t believe my baby is on a national radio show.”
She took a sip of water. “More like regional, but it is really cool to get callers from all over.”
“National is coming. The show is great. Other stations will be beating down your door to get you. Soon enough, Noelle’s name will be up there with Dr. Laura or Dave Ramsey.”
Caitlin inclined her head. “That’s the hope.”
“I’d like it better if it was your name under lights though,” her mom said.
Caitlin carefully set her glass down, old insecurities crowding in, tightening her chest. “Mama, we’ve discussed this. I get as much satisfaction from being behind the microphone as Noelle does being on the air.”
Miranda’s lips twisted. “Hmm.” They ate in silence for a few minutes. Caitlin started to relax. Then her mother spoke again. “Speaking of being in the limelight, please don’t think I didn’t see that photo of you kissing that basketball player.” She sent a mama-knows-all look Caitlin’s way.
Caitlin swallowed quickly before the piece of asparagus could get stuck in her throat. She maintained a death grip on her fork. “How did you know?”
“People couldn’t wait to show the photo to me. When I say people, I mean everyone.”
“Oh.”
Miranda’s eyebrows arched. “‘Oh?’ Is that all you have to say?”
“I didn’t realize you’d seen it. I’m kind of at a loss for words.”
“Let me help you out. Please explain to me what you were thinking. How do you even know him? Why are you on the radio practically declaring your love for him?” Her voice never rose, never changed inflection, but it never did for Miranda Monroe to get her point across. That same voice commanded attention in the boardroom as a successful attorney.
Caitlin took another sip of water while her brain worked feverishly. What to say to placate her mother? She didn’t want to betray Brady’s confidence. What was going on between him and Elise was no one’s business. And she couldn’t tell her mother about her plan to out Mack. Not yet. Not till the deed was done. She’d just have to get through this dinner. Temporary disapproval would eventually give way to praise. “I met him a few weeks ago.”
“He’s an athlete, Caitlin.” “Athlete” might as well have been “cockroach” the way her mom said it.
“Yes, I know,” she managed to get out of a tight throat.
“Do I need to remind you what happened the last time you went down that road?”
God, no. Her most embarrassing mistake had happened. A mistake her mother had had to extricate her from after telling Caitlin, more than once, that she didn’t like her boyfriend. But Caitlin had been going through a rebellious phase, thinking she knew everything and didn’t need to listen to her mom anymore. She’d been in love. What a joke. All of it. The pain had faded, but the embarrassment? That bastard continued to hang around like the last five pounds she wanted to lose.
“No, but Brady isn’t like that.” He wasn’t. Not just words to appease her mom, but the truth, she was realizing. He’d never been anything but upfront with her. Was he always easy? No, but neither was she.
“How do you know that? You said that the last time, and look how that turned out.”
Horribly. Embarrassingly. But Caitlin now knew her mom’s reaction was no longer just about the stupid mistake she’d made in college. She didn’t want her daughter to travel the same road she’d gone down. That didn’t make her mom’s disappointment any easier to take. Worse, actually.
“I’m older now and wiser. I know what to look for.” What she and Brady were doing was playacting to meet larger goals for themselves.
“I know he’s not good enough for my daughter.”
“How can you say that? You don’t even know him.” Would she forever be defending him? First to Noelle and now her mom. Two of the three people who meant the most to her in the wor
ld. Who knew her best. But they didn’t know Brady like she was starting to.
Her mother sniffed. “I know enough. I hope you know what you’re doing. I don’t think you do though.”
And there was the dagger. The one that always made her feel like she would never measure up. That she would never be the daughter Miranda Monroe longed for.
Caitlin returned to her meal, the lasagna tasting like sawdust. Her mother could be disappointed. For now. The ends justified the means. When she gathered the necessary info on her father and exposed him for the fraud he was, her mom would be proud of her and forgive her for her mistakes. It would all be worth it. She hoped.
After dinner, she and Christian left together. She looked behind her. Their mom still stood by the front door, but there was no way she could hear them. Still… “Can you meet me at my place before you go home?”
His brow furrowed. “What’s up? Need me to change a lightbulb you’re too short to reach?”
“Ha ha. I’m forever astounded you’re not giving Kevin Hart a run for his money as a stand-up comedian.”
“Only because my skills were better used elsewhere.”
Caitlin rolled her eyes. “Whatever. I’ll see you in a bit.”
Back at her apartment, she paced. Her brother watched her from his seat on the couch, as calm as ever. “What’s up?”
She took a deep breath. She couldn’t hold in her secret anymore. “I found out who our father is.”
“Excuse me?” Like their mother, he didn’t have to raise his voice to get his point across. His entire body froze though.
“I found out who our father is,” she repeated.
“How? Who is it?” Still calm, but demanding.
“Mack Jameson.”
Disbelief crowded his features. “The head coach of the Stampede? You’re joking, right?”
She shook her head. “I’m not.” She quickly explained how she’d found the letter.
“Why haven’t you said anything? Who else knows about this?”
“No one knows. I didn’t say anything because I was stunned. I wanted to confront him at the Stampede event without involving you or Mama in the drama.”
“But you didn’t obviously.”
“No. It wasn’t the right time, but I found a better way. Everyone thinks he’s this great family man. I’m going to expose him for the fraud he is on zachsfacts.com. I’m going to tell everyone how he unnecessarily made us and Mama suffer because of his selfishness.”
Christian rose, his movement jerky, and paced around her living room like she’d been doing a few minutes ago. This was his way. He had to think through everything before offering thoughts. Never her way, but understandable.
He stopped and stared at her with their mom’s eyes. “So does your new boyfriend know?”
She’d expected the question. “No, he thinks I agreed to pretend to date him because I needed a radio guest. He doesn’t know that I’m trying to get closer to Mack to get some more dirt on him.” And she couldn’t, wouldn’t feel guilty about that. They were both getting something out of their arrangement.
“Damn it, Cait, how could you keep this from me?” Now some anger crept into the calm. “This is too much to take in all at once. I have to get out of here.” He strode to the door. She didn’t try to stop him. He needed alone time to process info. He always did.
She could only hope he figured it out soon and explained it to her. She followed him to the door. “This will all work out.”
He stared at her silently, his anger, his frustration, his confusion all palpable. “You think so? I’m not so sure.”
“It has to.”
He sighed. “Look. Can you at least promise to hold off on your exposé plan until I have time to come to grips with this? This isn’t just about you. This affects me, too.”
Because he was right, she nodded.
Caitlin shut the door behind her brother and returned to the living room. She’d barely plopped down on the couch with a weary sigh when her phone rang. Was it her mom calling to continue the conversation from dinner? God, she hoped not. No, that wasn’t the ringtone she’d programmed for her mom. Then who was it?
She picked up the phone from the coffee table, her eyebrows raising at the name on the display. She stabbed the talk icon. “Hello.”
“You called,” Brady murmured in her ear.
Oh, right. She had called him earlier. She’d forgotten, thanks to the dinner from Uncomfortableland.
“Miss me already?” he continued.
“Who is this?” she asked, injecting as much pretend confusion in her voice as she could.
He chuckled, the sound sending a shiver through her. “What am I going to do with you?”
She had some ideas. Some very vivid ideas. Nope. Bad Caitlin. So bad…and hot. Warmth curled through her system. So dangerous. “I was calling to ask you a favor.”
“What kind of favor?”
She rubbed her eyes and flopped back against the sofa cushion. “The listeners loved you on the show, and we’re hoping you’ll continue your run.”
“So people can keep butting into our personal lives? Because you know that’s what’s going to happen.”
“I know.”
“And you’re okay with that? I don’t think so. I saw your face. And I do prefer keeping my personal life private.”
“Unfortunately, it’s too late for that. We already talked about our relationship on air. A photo of us kissing has spread to all corners of the world wide web.”
Brady sighed. “This is getting way more complicated than I bargained for. And don’t tell me pretending to date was my idea. I already know and have kicked my ass over and over for opening my big mouth.”
“You kicked your own ass? You really are talented.”
“And you really are a smart aleck.”
“Thank you. A woman can never hear too many compliments.”
“I try.”
“So you’ll do it then?”
He sighed again. “Only because it’s you asking, and I know you wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.”
“Thank you.”
“Caitlin?”
“Hmm?”
“What’s bothering you?”
She stared at the phone for a second. “How do you know something is bothering me?”
“I don’t know. You sound tired. Not your usual energetic self.”
He’d detected all that through the phone? “I had dinner with my family.”
“Don’t get along with them?”
She shook her head even though he couldn’t see her through the phone. “No, I do for the most part.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“My mother does not approve of you.”
“And you live for your mother’s approval.” It was a statement, not a question.
“Don’t say it like that. It’s not a bad thing. Don’t you want to make your parents proud?”
“No.” So stark. Final. “I gave up on that a long time ago.”
He did? Caitlin frowned. “You’re happier that way?”
“Sure am,” he said, his tone sure. “You only have one life to live, and you can’t live it for someone else.”
“Those are some profound words there, Mr. Hudson.”
“Who said the only thing I knew how to do was dribble a basketball?”
His parents, maybe? She didn’t ask though. She had a feeling the question wouldn’t be welcomed.
“Remember what I said, okay?” he continued. “You can’t live your life for someone else.”
“Okay,” she said. It sounded important to him that she agreed. Like he wanted her to feel better. Like he actually cared about her.
“So I have a favor to ask,” he said.
She perked up. He sounded a little nervous. “What’s up?”
“How do you feel about two dinners two nights in a row? Coach has invited, more like commanded, a team dinner at his house—I think in an attempt to promote team bonding
or some such bullshit—”
“Brady, you know that’s not bullshit.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen the forced bonding thing work.”
“First time for everything.”
“Yeah, well, in any case, all the players have to go, and we’ve been encouraged to bring our significant others, so will you come?”
A chance to spend more time with her father? A definite reason to get excited. Maybe she could get some dirt on him, find something in his home she could use in her story. More proof that he wasn’t a candidate for Daddy of the Year.
A chance to spend more time with Brady? No need to get excited about that. But she was. Her skin buzzed with it. But surely that could be attributed to the fact that the outing would provide more fodder for the radio show. Surely.
“Count me in. We’ve got this.”
Chapter Seven
Outside Mack’s front door, Caitlin peered up at her date. His face was blank. Too blank. “Ready to do this?”
Brady tugged on his jacket sleeves. “Absolutely.”
“Then stop fidgeting. And look alive. No one is going to bite.” She tapped him on the chest. “I won’t let them.” She’d figured out—helped by some well-meaning pestering in the car on the way over—that it wasn’t only Mack he was anxious about facing tonight.
“I’m not nervous. I don’t do nerves. I just don’t want to kill anybody tonight.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s why your coach set this up—to foster community. So go with it. Get to know your teammates. Think of them as people, not pieces of a possible championship puzzle. Find some common ground.”
He nodded. “Right. I’m not supposed to be guarded. How am I supposed to do that if he’s not interested?”
He being Lance Maguire, of course.
“I refuse to believe he’s a total ass,” she said. “He has to have some redeeming qualities.”
“Like what?” Doubt laced his deep voice.
She searched her brain for a second, then snapped her fingers. “I saw a story on ESPN about him spending the day with a kid with cancer through the Make-a-Wish Foundation.”
