Called Out

by Jen Doyle

  Turning in his arms so that her back was now to his parents, Lola realized she was probably sealing the lid on her coffin. Since his parents had already made up their minds about her, however, she didn’t really have much to lose. So she bunched his collar in her hands, pulled his head down to her, and gave him the most inappropriate kiss she could manage while still keeping her hands above his waist. Going lower would be too much, even for her, although she didn’t at all mind his hand had tightened on her ass as he pulled her in against him.

  But she did say, “There’s plenty of dessert. If you want, feel free to invite them in.” Then she stepped back and smoothed down his collar. “Or not.” She should have resisted the juvenile jab but she couldn’t.

  She walked back down the hallway without another glance back, not giving in to the overwhelming desire to fly at them with her claws. Not until she rounded the corner did she begin to shake, leaning against the wall just as Nate came out of the dining room.

  “Who is it?” Nate said, and suddenly Lola realized there wasn’t a sound coming out of the dining room beyond the kids restlessly whispering.

  “Jack’s parents,” Lola said, just as Jack’s father exclaimed, “Nate’s new fiancée? Please tell me you’re not going to sleep with her, too.”

  There was no pretending his statement hadn’t been heard by everyone in the house.

  “Christ,” Nate said, pulling her into his arms.

  “Emily and Geo,” Jules said to her older kids, “could you take Four and the boys out back for a little bit?”

  Emily led Silas and Matty out of the room almost immediately while Geo said to the younger boys, “Race you to the door.” Four followed after them. Thank goodness, because the second after the back door slammed, the words “worthless” and “do better?” could be heard.

  Lola tried to joke, “Do you think he meant Jack, or me?” although she was more furious than upset, and after a few seconds of calming her nerves, she turned to go back. She couldn’t leave Jack alone with them. Not for another second.

  But Nate held her firmly as she made the move toward the front door again. “Let him handle this,” he said, not letting her go until she gave in and relaxed against him.

  As he’d done on the phone call outside the bar the other night, Jack’s voice was a soft contrast to his father’s harshness.

  Lola buried her head in Nate’s chest, blocking out Jack’s father’s response. “How can he think he’s anything like his father?”

  “The brainwashing started early,” Nate said, his arms tightening around her even further.

  And now Lola truly understood how deep Nate’s loyalty ran and why. Not that she’d doubted Nate—she’d seen it in his eyes. And she knew what a truly decent and kind man Jack could be. But... “This is why you could never hate him, isn’t it?”

  Nate didn’t even hesitate as he nodded. “I don’t think I’ve ever disliked someone as much as I dislike Jack’s father,” Nate said. “If he asked me to, I would decimate that man.”

  After a few more uncomfortable moments of overheard snippets of conversation, there was the sound of the door closing firmly. So Jack had kicked his parents out after all. Thank the freaking Lord.

  “No question in my mind, Lo,” Nate whispered. “I think you might be the best thing that’s ever happened to him.”

  The first thing Jack did when he came back down the hallway was come right up to her, nodding at Nate as she twisted and threw her arms around his neck, telling him exactly what she thought of his parents in exceedingly unmentionable words.

  “You’re amazing,” he said after her rant was over, packing more emotion in those few words than he’d ever shown her before. “I can’t believe you turned your back on him.” He smiled, but there was some distance to it. And then he let her go, glancing into the dining room and saying, “Did the kids take Four outside?”

  She nodded.

  He gave her a kiss on the forehead before saying, “I think I’ll join them.” Then he walked down the hallway, without even so much as a glance back. She might have been the best thing that ever happened to him; but she had a sinking feeling it wasn’t going to be enough.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  The kids helped. Four, too. Jack had probably thrown out his pitching arm given the sheer number of snowballs he’d unleashed, but he was past caring.

  Lola, of course, was...

  Amazing.

  It wasn’t just that she hadn’t backed down—that she’d actually stood up to his father, something men twice her size had never done. Jack certainly didn’t; not regularly, at least. Nor was it that she’d had his back. It was that she thought he was worth it. Unconditionally.

  And what had he done for her?

  Nothing.

  Got her a puppy that created more havoc, not less.

  Offered her son a ride on a private plane and a trip to Chicago—at one of the craziest times of the year.

  Exposed her and her family to the blood that ran through his. He was appalled he’d allowed that venom into her house; that she and the boys had even that brief of a taste.

  Jack had no idea how much she’d overheard; he hoped to God the boys had gone out back before the worst of it. But that only made it easier by a little bit.

  “Jesus Christ, Jack,” his dad had said. “You can’t even make some family of your own? Well, I guess it’s a step up considering this time the guy was at least dead before you slept with his wife.”

  Oh, there’d been crap about baseball, too. His father had never been happy with his choice of a career, but it seemed he was a thousand times unhappier that Jack wasn’t spending every waking moment working to shore up his legacy.

  You’re building a fucking house?

  His father clearly wanted to hurt him when Jack’s response had been, “Ever heard of Mr. Miyagi, Dad?”

  Although Jack hadn’t been sure if it was because his father had no clue who Mr. Miyagi was, or because of Jack’s blatant disrespect. Despite their mostly hate/hate relationship, Jack didn’t generally talk back during the berating sessions. He usually just took himself to another place in his head, somewhere far away enough for him to reply with not much more than a bland nod. Last night, though, Jack couldn’t let it go. Not after watching Lola get up in his father’s face.

  He couldn’t love her the way she deserved. He wasn’t someone she could be proud of. But the least he could do was kick his parents out of her house and make sure they never returned.

  And the second Lola left to take the boys to school this morning, he’d be packing his bags.

  When he came upstairs, the boys were finishing up their breakfast. Lola was at the sink staring out the window, lost in thought. Then she turned to him—and it was like the air around him froze. Somehow she knew.

  “Boys,” she said. “Go get your backpacks and your coats.”

  He’d never seen all four boys’ heads come up like that. Even they could hear it in her voice. He took a deep breath as they left the kitchen.

  “You’re leaving today, aren’t you?” she asked after they’d cleared out. “That’s what last night was for us, wasn’t it? A goodbye.” Then she started pacing, her hands in her hair. “I should’ve known. I should have seen that coming.”

  Jack leaned back against the counter, gripping its edge. “You knew I was going.”

  “Yes, I knew you were going. I was thinking you’d maybe stay long enough to realize what the rest of us have already figured out.” She stopped and glared at him. “You belong here with us. When are you going to get that?”

  Jack swallowed hard. He wished that was true. For a few weeks he’d even thought it could work. But his parents showing up on her doorstep had been enough of a reminder that this wasn’t his place. He was living someone else’s life right now; his own life w
as back in Chicago on the forty-eighth floor. His place was the leather chair across from the fireplace and a bottle of expensive Scotch burning its way down his throat while he looked at the pictures of the family he’d almost stolen from a dead man.

  “I’m not sure where I belong, Lola,” he said, using every ounce of strength he had to keep the emotion out of his voice and a blank expression on his face. “But it definitely isn’t here.”

  He’d never worked so hard in his life. It almost killed him when her breath hitched in her chest.

  She held herself together, though, pointing down the hallway and quietly saying, “Were you planning on letting them know?”

  Of course he was. “I wanted to talk to you first. I figured after last night, you’d want me out sooner rather than later.”

  Her gaze was so piercing, he would have taken a step back if he could. Especially when she came right up to him. “You are not like your father. You’re not even close.” She rested her head against his chest. “What else do I need to do? Tell you I love you?”

  He tried to resist holding her. Tried to keep his arms to his sides. But she was too damn soft.

  “That I could see myself spending the rest of my life with you?” she continued. “Tell you what a great dad you would make?”

  And that’s where she started to lose him. “Lo—”

  She persisted, though, wrapping her arms around him. “Because you would. I never thought there’d be anyone I could trust their hearts to—that I’d want to even try with.” She gave him a fierce hug before pulling away and taking his breath with her. “He’s done a number on you, you know. And I know he’s been doing it for a very long time. But think about the kind of father he was to you, and think about how you are with me and the boys. You are nothing alike. You never will be. You are every bit of what we see in you.”

  Jack moved forward, grabbing hold of her shoulders. “I’m not, Lola.” Not even close. “I wish I could be even half of what you think you see.”

  Her hand came up to his face, and it was as though all of the light she had inside traveled from her fingertips right through his skin. For a moment he could even come close to believing. His father’s voice, though, rang too loudly in his ears. And with his mother’s ice running through him, he did what he had to do. “But you know what, Mama Bear? Wishes don’t come true just because we want them to. I say it’s time to cut our losses and stop playing what we both know is a fool’s game.”

  Her hands dropped to her sides. She took a step back and all that beautiful light went with her. A tear rolled down her cheek. “Well, maybe I am a fool, but I do see you. I see every part of you. You’re worthy of this, Jack. You’re worthy of us.” Her hand closed over her heart as she blinked away more tears. “I hope you can see that for yourself someday. I hope you find me again when you do.”

  She took one last look at him, before turning her head and calling to the boys. “Come on in and say goodbye to Jack,” she said, her voice emotionless and flat. “He has to leave today, and I’m not sure when we’re going to see him again.”

  Jack swallowed hard. No matter what he said, he wasn’t ready. Not to leave her, not to leave any of them. He was pretty sure he’d never cried in his entire adult life, but he was damn near close as the kids ran to him, clamoring around him and giving him hugs, something he could handle only because it kept him from thinking about not ever having her in his arms again. After he promised to send them plenty of pictures from Arizona, the younger boys left and ran past Lola into the hallway.

  She stayed as Silas gave him one last hug, saying, “You’re gonna knock ’em dead, Ice. Mr. Price is totally going to sign you.”

  Jack knew the kid was smart, but he hadn’t realized Si was quite so up on things. He forced himself to smile. “You think so?”

  “I know so,” Silas said, his belief seemingly as unwavering as Lola’s.

  “Come on, Si,” Lola said, her voice steel even as her eyes filled up with tears all over again. When Silas walked past her, she gave one last look at Jack across the kitchen. “Goodbye, Jack,” she said, before turning on her heel and disappearing down the hallway. And then she was gone.

  It took Jack no time at all to pack up his measly two bags, find all of Four’s toys, and load everything into the truck. Then he took Four out back one last time, sitting on the stairs from the deck as he threw snowballs across the lawn until Four got tired of chasing after them.

  The puppy trotted over to where Jack was sitting and dropped down to the ground, resting his head on his paws with a whimper. Jack scratched Four’s head. “Si says Sam is going to sign me. So we’ve still got that.”

  Four jumped up and peed on Jack’s shoe. Which summed things up perfectly.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Lola took a page out of Dorie’s playbook. TV was no longer an option in her house. She couldn’t handle all the baseball previews and that was before the reporters caught on, one of them doing a whole segment on the transition from NateGate to LetItGoGate, and proposing the cast from Frozen sing the national anthem at the Watchmen’s home opener.

  Nope. No TV.

  But Silas did like sports and she was trying to pass it all off as if Jack leaving was no skin off her back, so her compromise was to let him hang out on occasion with his uncles, blood-related and non-.

  It was a little harder at the bar, obviously, since HGTV and Lifetime weren’t exactly the preferred channels of the clientele. She did have a reputation, however—the occasional slamming of trays did occur—and the general consensus was that no one wanted to bankrupt her via dry-cleaning bills, so the regulars were now fully invested in critiquing the accuracy of the home improvement shows rather than Sports Center.

  She tried to make clear to everyone she wasn’t angry at Jack.

  Well, okay, she was maybe a little bit. But mostly she was just sad. Sad for the little boy who’d grown up not knowing the meaning of love, and the man who had so much of it to give, yet couldn’t quite understand it or accept it.

  And, oh, how she was tempted to go to him, especially in those first few days after he’d left. She knew he hadn’t left Inspiration right away, partly because she overheard Nate talking to Wash and Deke about how Jack had stepped it up even further in training and had become a virtual machine. Nate had no doubts Sam would sign him. One day Dorie even confided to Fitz and Lola that Nate was having such a good time just training with Jack, she was afraid he might be having second thoughts about telling the world he’d retire after this year.

  Lola had also taken to driving by the farmhouse regularly, even though it was brutally hard not to stop by and go in and see what he was doing—how he was doing. But every time she came close to giving in, she remembered those last few months with Dave. It wasn’t possible to help someone who didn’t want to be helped.

  Plus, she had four boys of her own to love and raise and pour every ounce of her being into. Maybe if she didn’t, it would be a different story. But she did, and she couldn’t take away from them for someone who wasn’t willing to accept what she had to give.

  Also, she had promised the boys a dog, damn it. Even she missed Four, and she couldn’t deny she was looking forward to having another warm body to sit with her on the porch at night, even if it was only a four-legged one. This one would be a girl, however, and they wouldn’t get it until they moved into the new house, which Aaron said was only a couple of months away. She was on her way to meet Aaron now, in fact, to do a walk-through. She hadn’t been inside the house in several weeks—not since Jack had left her. But she knew from Dorie that Jack had headed to Arizona the day before yesterday to get settled in early. She figured it was safe.

  It was the middle of February, the part of winter that felt like things would be dreary and cold and gray for the rest of time. The crocuses hadn’t worked their way up through the snow yet, and
everything was icy with no promise of melting. She got to the house early, staying inside the car and thinking about how beautiful a house it was and yet a little less so without Jack in it. She was just about to get really melancholy, when Aaron pulled in behind her. She let him lead her inside, raising her eyebrows when he unlocked the door with the key.

  He looked a little sheepish as he stomped his boots in the entryway and unzipped his jacket. “Jack made us lock it all the time,” he said. “I guess it’s just habit now.”

  Lola couldn’t decide which she wanted to do more: laugh or cry.

  She walked ahead into the kitchen. The ultimate decision had been not to go commercial as Lola had more than enough on her plate and no immediate plans to do anything beyond cook for her family. For now, though, this was easier, and seeing the bones of her gorgeous new open and airy kitchen made her smile. “This is wonderful.”

  She’d already made her choices about appliances and the various finishes, so, other than signing off on the tile shipment, there wasn’t much more to do in here at the moment. They made their way through the rest of the first floor, with its dining room and office and little nook off the mudroom/laundry room. Not wanting to linger in the laundry room for reasons she was obviously not going to say, they ended their first floor tour at the living room and...

  “Oh,” she whispered.

  She’d seen it in process of course, and had approved the designs, but the drawings hadn’t done it justice. The refinished fireplace was stunning, and the transom windows on either side were like brilliant paintings of the stark trees and stunning sky. It was the huge, oversize windows looking out over the porch and into the fields beyond, though, that took her breath away. Jack had insisted on those windows, telling her it was worth the extra expense, especially when it was too cold to sit on the porch.