Stealing Home

by Sherryl Woods

  “Today?” she said.

  He hesitated and her temper stirred, but then he nodded. “Yes, today.”

  When she turned to leave, he stopped her.

  “Maddie…”

  “What?”

  “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine,” she said, forcing a cheery note into her voice. “Way too busy.”

  “Oh?”

  His surprise rankled. Did he think she was sitting around pining for him?

  “I guess you haven’t heard,” she said. “Helen, Dana Sue and I are going into business together.”

  He stared at her. “What kind of business?”

  “We’re opening a fitness club for women.” She might not have made a firm decision before, but the incredulous expression on Bill’s face was enough to solidify her resolve. Not that she was ready to tell Helen and Dana Sue just yet. “You’ll have to tell Noreen all about the postpregnancy classes we’re going to be offering. Maybe it will help her get her shape back. I noticed just now that she’s put on a few pounds that pregnancy alone can’t account for. I’m sure she must be aware of your tendency toward a wandering eye.”

  Before he could say a word to that sarcastic observation, she walked out, pleased that her announcement had left her husband speechless.

  Bill stared after Maddie and wondered what had become of the pleasant, accommodating woman he’d married. He didn’t know this confident, feisty woman at all.

  Then, again, she bore an amazing resemblance to the girl he’d fallen in love with back in high school. It was only their early struggles and Maddie’s determination to play the role of supportive wife that had changed her—and the way he’d looked at her—over the years. Her weight had played no part in it, despite what she’d said on her way out the door. He’d always thought she looked damn good, even with the few extra pounds she’d been unable to shed after her pregnancies.

  His office door opened and Noreen came in, her expression uncertain.

  “She was here because she wants you back, wasn’t she?” she asked.

  “No, she doesn’t want me back,” he told Noreen, knowing it was true and in some ways regretting it. “She needed to talk to me about Tyler. Will you look at my schedule this afternoon and make sure I can get out of here no later than four o’clock? If you have to reschedule a couple of patients, do it, or ask J.C. to cover for me.”

  Thank goodness Maddie had advised him last year to take on a new medical partner. His pediatrics practice had grown too much for him to handle and still have any sort of family life. J. C. Fullerton, who’d just completed his residency, had picked up the slack. J.C. was still single, young and energetic enough to relish the challenges of a demanding small-town practice. There were times when he wondered why Noreen hadn’t focused her attention on J.C. rather than him. And truthfully, the fact that she hadn’t had flattered him.

  “Where are you going?” Noreen asked.

  “I need to spend some time with Tyler.”

  “Want me to come along?”

  He knew how sensitive she was about his kids, but he shook his head. “Not this time. I’m just going to stop by baseball practice and see how it’s going. You’d be bored.”

  She rested a hand on her stomach. “I could learn to like it,” she said. “After all, one of these days our baby might want to play baseball.”

  “I think that’s a few years down the road, whether we have a boy or a girl,” he said. “Now let’s get started. Who’s waiting for me?”

  She looked as if she wanted to say more, but then her innate professionalism kicked in. “Mrs. Nelson is in room one with Jennifer. She says Jennifer’s rash still hasn’t cleared up. I’m putting Mrs. Davis and Martin in room two. He cut himself on a nail and she wants to be sure his tetanus shot is up to date.”

  Bill nodded. “See about fixing that schedule while I’m with them, okay?”

  “Sure,” she said, but she still didn’t look happy about it.

  He stopped on his way out the door and kissed her. “We’re going to be okay, Noreen. It’s just going to take some time.”

  Her blue eyes welled with tears as she looked at him. “I love you. You know that, don’t you?”

  “That’s why I know it will all work out,” he said and slipped past her, hopefully before she could tell just how many second thoughts and regrets were whirling around in his head.

  Maddie stopped at Wharton’s for a hot-fudge sundae on her way home. Learning that her son was in trouble not only on the ball field but in his classes, then giving her soon-to-be ex-husband a wake-up call had drained her. She needed chocolate. Over the years, she’d discovered that there was very little that couldn’t be made better by thick, warm, gooey chocolate poured over vanilla ice cream, and no place in town offered a better sundae than Wharton’s.

  Slipping into a booth by the window, she toed off her high heels and sighed with relief.

  “Another job interview?” Grace asked sympathetically.

  “Not today,” Maddie said. “Just a couple of meetings.”

  “Looks to me as if they didn’t go well,” the older woman said. “A hot-fudge sundae kind of day?”

  Maddie gave her a weary smile. “Exactly.”

  “Coming right up.”

  Maddie closed her eyes as she waited, only to snap them back open when someone slipped into the booth opposite her. She scowled when she saw it was Helen. Normally that would have been a good thing, but right this second she was in no mood for a pep talk.

  “You ever think of warning a person instead of sneaking up on them?” she snapped.

  “Most smart people are more alert to their surroundings when they’re out in public,” Helen retorted mildly.

  “It’s Serenity, for goodness’ sakes,” Maddie said. “There haven’t been a lot of assaults in Wharton’s.”

  “Definitely moody,” Helen assessed. “That fits. I was on my way home when I spotted your car. I thought you might want some company.”

  Maddie regarded her curiously. “Why would you think that just from seeing my car parked on Main Street?”

  “It’s outside of Wharton’s in the middle of the day. That can only mean one thing—a sundae emergency.”

  Maddie laughed despite herself. “I’m making a vow right this second and you’re my witness. I am changing my predictable ways.”

  “Really? How?”

  “I’m not sure. I’ll keep you posted.” She shrugged. “Or maybe I’ll just surprise you.”

  Grace returned with two hot-fudge sundaes. “Figured you’d be wanting one, too,” she said as she set one in front of Helen.

  “I was just going to taste some of hers,” Helen complained. But she took a huge spoonful, then sighed blissfully.

  Grace grinned. “From the looks of her, Maddie’s not eating much these days. She needs every one of those calories.”

  “Hardly,” Maddie said. “Since all this mess with Bill started, I’ve been stuffing my face with everything in sight. I weigh more now than I did right after Katie was born. Maybe opening a new gym is a good idea.” She savored her first bite of the decadent hot fudge.

  “Not a gym, a spa,” Helen corrected.

  “What’s the difference?” Grace inquired, pulling a chair up to the end of the table without waiting for an invitation.

  “For one thing, ours won’t smell to high heaven like Dexter’s,” Maddie said.

  Helen gave her a sour look. “It’s more than that. We’ll pamper women. We’re going to offer facials and massages and a steam room and sauna.”

  “Really?” Maddie and Grace said at the same time. Grace sounded intrigued, Maddie skeptical. Saunas and steam rooms were bound to be expensive.

  “Was that in the business plan?” Maddie asked.

  Helen grinned. “We don’t have a business plan,” she reminded Maddie. “Unless you’ve written it. Have you?”

  “I’ve made a few notes,” Maddie admitted.

  Helen tried unsuccessfully to hide a s
mile. “Interesting. Then you’re on board?”

  “Even though you were out of town on a case, I’m sure Dana Sue told you I was crunching numbers, so don’t act so shocked,” Maddie told her. “And I’m not on board. I’m exploring the situation.”

  “She’s in,” Helen said to Grace.

  Grace chuckled. “I’d put money on that, too.”

  “Watch it, Helen,” Maddie warned. “I’m not sure I want to go into business with a smug know-it-all. I can still look for another job. The Charleston want ads were fairly extensive in yesterday’s paper.”

  “You’d spend every penny you earned on gas for the commute,” Helen countered. “And you’d never have any time for the kids.”

  “The sacrifice might be worth it just to make sure you don’t get your own way yet again,” Maddie told her.

  Helen held up her hands in a gesture of surrender. “I will await further word on your decision.”

  “A brilliant grasp of the situation,” Maddie said approvingly. “No wonder you excelled in law school.”

  “Sarcasm doesn’t become you,” Helen said.

  Maddie grinned. “Frankly, I’m rather enjoying this new, say-what-I-think side of me.”

  There was only one more week of baseball practice before the season opener. Even though he now had some idea of what was going on with his star pitcher, Cal still didn’t have a plan for addressing the problem.

  If it were entirely up to him, he wouldn’t add to Ty’s stress by threatening again to take him out of the starting rotation, but the school system, community and parents expected big things from the team this year. That was one reason they’d approved the funding for new bleachers and new sod for the field. A brand-new brick building had been added to house the refreshment stand and restrooms, as well. After all that expenditure, they wouldn’t tolerate losses while Tyler tried to regain his emotional equilibrium.

  That’s what happened when a kid had played as brilliantly as Ty had last year. Expectations were high. Cal had even heard from a couple of Major League scouts who’d noticed media reports about the boy’s skill on the mound. Unfortunately, if they saw him right now, they’d wonder what all the hype had been about.

  Cal studied Ty’s increasingly discouraged expression as his teammates hit pitch after pitch. He was about to join him on the mound for a chat when he spotted Bill Townsend climbing into the bleachers to a row that was shaded from the afternoon sun. Ty noticed his father at the same time. For an instant, based on the expression on Ty’s face, Cal thought the boy might toss down his glove and stalk off the field.

  Instead, though, Tyler seemed to reach down deep and tap into all that anger. His next pitch flew across the plate at a burning clip, nicking the outside corner for a perfect strike.

  “That was some real heat, Ty. Way to go!” the catcher said, tossing the ball back with a grin.

  “I liked it better when I could see the ball coming at me,” the batter grumbled, but there was admiration in his voice as well.

  More than pleased, Cal wandered over and climbed onto the bleachers next to Ty’s dad. “Glad you could stop by,” he told him.

  Bill gave him an odd look. “I assume you know why I’ve stayed away.”

  “Your wife mentioned the divorce,” he admitted. “But I think you can see what your presence means to Ty. That’s the first decent pitch he’s thrown since spring training started.”

  “At least he’s finally putting all that anger he feels toward me to good use,” Bill said wryly.

  Cal chuckled. “You got that, too?”

  “Hard to miss. That ball would have taken my head off if I’d been in its path.”

  “You sticking around for a while?” Cal asked.

  “Is it okay?”

  “It’s fine with me. I’m going to give the kids a break in a minute. Why don’t you ask Ty if it’s okay with him.”

  Cal went down on the field and called everyone on the team in. “You guys are starting to look like a team again,” he told them. “Take five and get something to drink. It’s important to stay hydrated in this kind of heat. After the break, we’ll switch so the rest of you get a chance at bat. Ty, can you stay on the mound for some more batters?”

  The boy gave him his once-familiar cocky grin. “You sure you want me to humiliate them like that?”

  “You wish,” his teammate Luke Dillon said. “I’ve hit three home runs off you since practice started.”

  “Pure luck,” Ty retorted. “I’m back in the groove today.”

  “Maybe you shouldn’t get too smug,” Cal warned him. “A couple of outstanding pitches don’t make a season.”

  “Don’t even make a practice, if you ask me,” Josh Mason, another teammate, said snidely. “Come opening day, I’ll be on the mound. You wait and see.”

  “No way, sucker,” Tyler retorted.

  “Okay, enough,” Cal told them. “Five minutes, guys. Tyler, why don’t you check in with your dad.”

  Ty scowled at the suggestion, but he grabbed a sports drink and slowly headed for the bleachers. Cal noted that he didn’t climb up beside his father but sat down several rows away. It was Bill who finally broke the awkward silence between them. Cal couldn’t hear what he said, but Tyler responded with a nod.

  At least the two of them were talking, or rather Bill was talking and Ty was listening. Cal wondered how long it had been since that had happened.

  He also couldn’t help wondering what Maddie had done to bring it about. He doubted it was a mere coincidence that Bill had shown up here today, just hours after Cal’s meeting with her. However it had come about, though, he was grateful. Maybe it was a first step in getting his star pitcher back in his groove. Maybe he’d call Maddie tonight and report on the change.

  “Idiot,” he muttered to himself as he beckoned the players back. He was just looking for an excuse to call Ty’s mother and that, as he’d warned himself only a few short hours ago, was a very bad idea.

  6

  “Dad came by practice today,” Tyler announced nonchalantly while Maddie was on the patio grilling burgers for dinner that night.

  There was a balmy breeze that carried the scent of charcoal through the air. It was one of those scents that always reminded Maddie of summer and childhood and picnics with her friends’ families. Her own had never done anything as ordinary as cooking on a barbecue.

  She glanced up and studied her son’s expression. It was unreadable. “How’d it go?” she asked, careful to keep her tone neutral.

  “Okay, I guess,” he said. “At least he didn’t bring Noreen with him.”

  “Did the two of you talk?”

  “He asked me if it was okay for him to be there,” Tyler said, sounding surprised. He met Maddie’s gaze. “Do you think he really would have left if I’d asked him to?”

  She knew what he was really asking—if she thought his opinion really mattered to his dad. For all his attempted indifference, Ty was desperate to believe that he still counted in Bill’s life.

  “I imagine that’s why he asked,” she said. “He wants you to be happy and successful. He isn’t out to make your life miserable, Tyler. I think deep down you know that.”

  “He’s done a pretty good job of it, anyway,” Ty said with a trace of the familiar bitterness.

  “What else did you all talk about?” Maddie asked, anxious to change the subject before Ty started dwelling on all the sins Bill had committed against him and their family, rather than the olive branch he’d extended.

  “Nothing much. He gave me a couple of pointers on my fastball.”

  “Did they help?”

  Tyler grinned and for just an instant, he was a self-confident, cocky kid again.

  “Yeah, they helped. I threw some heat this afternoon,” he exulted. “No one laid a bat on my pitches after that. They said I was awesome, that we’re bound to win the state championship if I keep pitching like that. Even Josh Mason said I looked good, and he hates my guts. He wants that starting slot in the
worst way.”

  “And Coach Maddox?”

  “He said it was nice to see me remembering at least some of the things I’d been taught.”

  Maddie bit back a grin at the coach’s laid-back response. “I suspect you were hoping for more enthusiasm.”

  “Naw, he says stuff like that to keep my head from getting all swollen.”

  She studied her son’s happy expression and regretted that she was about to dash some of his excitement, but this was a conversation she couldn’t put off. She’d hoped to temper it by fixing one of Ty’s favorite meals.

  What she’d learned from his other teachers this afternoon had shaken her. There wasn’t even a single class in which his marks were above a C. Most were lower and in some he was even in danger of failing. All the teachers had sent home notes to that effect. Maddie had seen none of them. If those grades didn’t improve, he wouldn’t be playing ball, no matter how fast his pitching was.

  “You know, Tyler, not everything’s about baseball,” she said.

  “Everything that matters is,” he contradicted, then grinned. “Come on, Mom. Can’t you be excited for me?”

  “I’m thrilled for you,” she said honestly. “It’s wonderful to see your enthusiasm for the game coming back, but you do have classes, you know. I spoke to all your teachers today.”

  His face fell. “How come?”

  “Because Coach Maddox mentioned that you’d been having some problems.”

  “Why’d he do that? I thought he was just gonna talk to you about baseball.”

  “He assumed I already knew,” Maddie said pointedly and watched Ty’s face flush. “You need to remember that Coach Maddox is first and foremost a teacher, Tyler. He has to look out for your whole performance in school. If you start messing up in your other classes, you could be ineligible to play ball. It won’t matter how well you’re pitching if that happens. You’ll let the team down.”

  “Oh, come on, Mom, get real,” he said with disgust. “I’m not flunking anything. I bet not one single teacher said I was.”

  “No, you’re not failing anything,” she admitted. “Not yet, anyway. But they all said you’re not working to your potential. For a kid who was getting all A’s and B’s last year, dropping down to C’s and D’s is only one step above failing.” She leveled a look directly into his eyes. “That’s not acceptable, Ty. I expect you to do whatever it takes to bring up those grades, understood? Until I see some improvement, I’m going to be checking every homework assignment and I expect you to show me every test paper.”