Page 33

33

CADE

O ur plane touches down and I can hardly wait to plant my feet back on Kentucky soil. Feels like I’ve been gone for months. I miss living on the West Coast in some ways, mostly the beach and my friends, but the move has shown me how important family is and nothing compares to building a relationship with Georgia and my son. I have the off-season to enjoy the ocean and maybe someday I’ll share it with August and Georgia.

I’m going to surprise her at work. It could go either way. She sounded slightly warmer on our last phone conversation. Quite an improvement over her cool, “we’re barely acquaintances,” tone of the previous call. All I have to do is drop by my apartment to unload my luggage and change clothes. I text Mom to tell her I’ve landed and I’ll call her tomorrow.

Dean says, “You look revved up.”

“I told you, man, I’m going to surprise Georgia at work and hopefully do damage control.”

“She won’t be too hard on you if she’s on the clock.”

“She could ignore me. Freeze me out.”

“True dat. But she won’t.”

“Hope you’re right. I think she’s coming around. Her sister is a lawyer and I have a feeling she talked her down a notch from murdering me or fleeing the country with my child.”

Dean laughs. “I hope so. We need you on the diamond.”

The fasten seatbelt sign goes off and I shoot up from my seat like a rocket.

“Take it down a notch,” Dean says, poking fun at me.

“I’m sick of looking at your ugly mug,” I joke. “Almost two weeks of listening to you snore is enough for anyone. I’ve got to get out of here.”

“Ditto,” Dean says. “See you tomorrow. Good luck tonight.”

“Thanks. Fingers crossed I won’t need it.” I grab my duffle from the overhead storage compartment and follow the other passengers out of the plane.

T he restaurant is hopping for a weeknight. I stand off to the side waiting for a barstool to open. She hasn’t noticed me yet. I’m assuming the other bartender is her friend Eric who she’s talked about. They both move together like well-oiled machines. Talking and laughing with customers while efficiently filling orders. Georgia is a sight for sore eyes even in a plain white dress shirt and black slacks. Her hair is pinned back, falling in soft waves around her shoulders. She throws her head back and laughs at something the male customer says and I feel a jolt of jealousy. He seems a little too invested in his server.

She raises her gaze and spots me, freezing, her mouth opens in surprise. Her customer turns to see what’s caught her attention and frowns. I wiggle my fingers at Georgia and smile. Her customer’s eyes meet mine, narrowing then widening, and I realize he recognizes me. He glances back and forth between me and Georgia, then backs away from the bar with his drink and returns to his friends.

I make my way through the sea of people to reach Georgia and slide up to the bar. “It feels like forever,” I say. Her smile is tentative but not cold. I’m encouraged.

Eric bumps his hip into Georgia’s and says, “Aren’t you going to introduce us?”

She bumps him back. “He just got here. Eric this is Cade. Cade, Eric.”

I reach across the bar and shake his hand. “Nice to put a face with the stories.”

“Not gonna lie, my girlfriend practically drools when the camera pans to you. Hard on my ego.”

I laugh and shrug. “Sorry?”

“I don’t blame her. I have a bit of a man crush myself.” He nods at the growing line. “Gotta serve the masses,” he jokes. “See you around.”

Georgia smiles shyly, her cheeks slightly pink. “What can I get for you?”

“How about a Corona Light?”

“Sure,” she says. She pulls out a bottle from the under-counter cooler and uses the bottle opener attached to the bar to pop it open. “Do you want a frosty mug?”

“No thanks.” I pull out my wallet and she shoos me away.

“It’s on me. Great game yesterday.”

“I thought you were working,” I say.

Looking at me from under her lashes, she says, “I recorded it.”

“Wow! Baseball has come a long way in your household.”

“Hold that thought.” She leaves me to wait on a few customers. I take a long swig of my beer and look around. A mixed crowd, mostly twenties and thirties with a sprinkling of seniors mixed in.

“Hey, aren’t you Cade Jennings?” I turn towards the man standing next to me.

“Only if you’re a Cutters fan,” I say.

“The only team I follow. You guys are on fire! World Series here we come.”

“Looks like playoffs at least,” I reply. “Not sure which wild card team we’re up against, but there are some stiff competitors, and they’re playing their best right now. Unfortunately, they got hot at the right time.”

“No doubt. Would it be rude to ask for your autograph?” he asks as his girlfriend turns from her friend, sees me and squeals.

“Oh my God!” she blurts. “Cade Jennings!”

“Brianna, chill out. He doesn’t need the entire bar lining up for photographs.” Too late. I see a couple of people with their phones out taking pictures.

“My bad,” he says sheepishly.

“No problem,” I reply. “Comes with the territory.”

I scribble on the coaster he provides then smile into the camera as his girlfriend cozies up next to me for a selfie.

“One more with all three of us,” she says excitedly. I look over at Georgia and she rolls her eyes. I shrug and smile for the camera.

Eric comes to the rescue and says to Georgia, “I’ve got things under control here. Why don’t you take a break and greet your man properly?” His ornery broad grin is contagious.

Georgia playfully shoves him, “He’s not ‘my man’, you doofus.”

“Whatever you say,” he drawls.

“Give me a second,” Georgia says to me, then shoots through the counter pass-through. She grabs my arm and hauls me towards the exit before the group of women tentatively approaching can reach me. Laughing, we run out of the restaurant.

“Let’s find a bench along the river,” she says. “We’ve got about fifteen minutes before I turn back into a server.”

We sit facing the lazy river and I hold her hand tight. The night is alive, the midnight blue punctuated by the moon peeking through and the warm glow of the street lamps. A boat’s running lights reflect off the water shimmering over the wake created as another boat glides by. There is laughter in the distance coming from the restaurant’s outdoor patio. The street lamps cast light and shadow across Georgia’s face, accentuating her delicate bone structure. A slight breeze ruffles her hair and I itch to brush it back.

Gazing at the water, she says, “You know they say if you can’t stop thinking about someone it means they’re meant to be in your life… or maybe just on your Instagram.” She laughs softly.

“Are you following me on Instagram now? Stalker.”

“You know I should probably focus on my knittin’ or take up another hobby or something,” she says. “The problem is when I knit, I still think of you in a sweater and how good you’ll look in it when I’m finished. Apparently, you’re my downfall.”

“I like knowing that you’re thinking about me, Geege. It’s mutual. I couldn’t wait to get back here to see you. I hope I didn’t mess up too bad with the lawyer stuff.”

She shakes her head. “Not really. Darla said the same stuff you did. It makes sense. I was letting fear cloud my judgment. I know you mean well.”

“Always.” I cradle my hand behind her neck and lean in for a kiss. Her lips are so soft… I deepen the kiss. My breath is shaky as I lift my head. Her eyes are closed, her lips parted, utterly enchanting. I kiss her eyelids and they flutter open and our gazes lock. I hear her breath shudder and she brushes her fingertips shakily across my lips.

“Cade, what are we doin’?” she says, accompanied by a soft sigh.

“We’re living our lives. It’s no secret that you’re my sweet spot. I don’t know… I guess I’m trying to win your heart. How am I doing?”

“Well,” she drawls, “you certainly take my breath away.”

“Georgia, in another month I’ll have all the free time in the world. We can make a go of this. I want you in my life more than just parenting together. It’s all I can think about, you me and Auggie sharing our lives.”

“It’s a lot to consider. It’s not as simple as a yes or no. It’s bigger than the two of us because we have a child to consider now. What if we don’t work? What if you decide you made a mistake? We can’t drag Auggie through the ringer. He needs stability. Matter of fact, so do I. Not to mention… I see how the women look at you. I’m not sure I’m confident enough to overcome my insecurities.”

“Geege, I just saw the same thing with you. That one guy looked like he was ready to order you from the menu. I felt the green monster bite me.”

Her eyebrows shoot up. “You did? I can’t hardly imagine you feeling insecure about anything.”

“Are you kidding me? All the time. Look, I know I’m a good baller. I’m confident when I have a bat or a glove in my hand. But when it comes to you or being a father, I’m in the deep end. I don’t want to mess this up. I’m terrified of losing you again.”

She looks at me so tenderly that my chest feels achy. “Just tell me you’ll consider it. We can date, do normal stuff. Spend time as a family, and take that vacation we talked about… just the three of us.”

She wraps her hands behind my head and pulls me down for a quick kiss. “I’ll think about it, promise. But right now, I have to get back. Poor Eric is probably swamped. We’ll talk more later.”

“Tomorrow, we start our last series before playoffs. Fortunately, they’re home games, but time will still be tight. Then I only have two days off before we head into the playoffs.”

“That’s crazy. I wonder how the women who love you players adjust to all this?”

“I’ll hook you up with Max’s wife, Ginny. She’ll tell you all about it. They’re as solid as it gets. Maybe we can even double date.”

She giggles. “Sounds like we’re teenagers.”

“Why not?”

She stands and pulls me up and we walk hand in hand back to the restaurant.

“Since my cover’s blown you don’t mind if I skip coming back in, do ya?” I ask.

“No, we’re slammed anyway.” She stops at the entrance and faces me, wrapping her arms around my waist. Her cheek rests against my chest and I wonder if she can hear my heart pounding. “Thanks for coming by,” she says, pulling away.

“Nothing could have stopped me.”

Her lips tilt up playfully. “Even your mama?”

I blow out a laugh. “Especially my mom. I’ve got to be at the stadium by noon tomorrow. Game’s at six. I doubt I’ll have time to visit with Auggie.”

“I wasn’t expecting it. No worries. Good luck tomorrow.”

“I’ll call you after the game.”

“Sounds good. Bye, Cade.” She turns and disappears into the restaurant. I stand there for a few seconds then head to my car. This went way better than I could have imagined.