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“Is that what they call it these days? I think it makes you look like a jackass.”
“Oh, Verne, behave, will ya?” Ellie scolds. “I think it looks nice.”
I give him atake thatlook with raised brows and a smug smile on my face.
He shakes his head and rolls his eyes playfully, which only makes me laugh. “I’m just teasing the boy.”
“Why don’t you two have a seat and catch up?” She extends a hand to the empty chairs before retrieving the book she was reading when I pulled up from the table. “Can I get you boys some lemonade? I just made a fresh batch.”
“That would be lovely, thanks,” I say at the same time Coach scoffs.
“Ellie, we’re not little girls trying to make a quick buck. Maybe throw in some bourbon to celebrate this homecoming.” Just hearing the word “bourbon” instantly makes my stomach do somersaults.
A shiver runs up my spine at the glare she gives him over her shoulder as she heads inside.
Moments later, the screen door reopens as she comes back onto the porch carrying two glasses. The one she hands her husband is a shade darker than mine. Coach takes a hefty swig and sighs. “I knew she loved me.” He sits back with a big smile on his face, resting the glass on his knee.
I bring the glass to my nose and inhale. Skeptically taking a sip, I let out a sigh of relief that there’s no booze in mine. I think I had enough last night to be good for a while.
“So, what brings you here today, son?” He takes another sip of his drink before this time setting it down on the table between us.
Is he not aware of my wake-up call this morning?
“You’re going to pretend you don’t know?”
“Oh, not at all. I just want to not make assumptions and hear it straight from the horse’s mouth.” He rocks back and forth in the chair with his hands folded over his stomach.
I stare at him and take in every detail. He looks like a shell of the man I knew when I was younger. Obviously, people change in six years, but this is almost like a different man entirely. Gone is the man who used to run alongside the freshman running the bases, encouraging us with taunts such as “my grandmother could run faster than you, and she’s been dead for years.” My heart breaks a little more, thinking of all the moments I missed and might never get a chance to.
Had Austin not stopped by this morning and told me the news and about the job offering, how long would it have taken me to get my head out of my ass and come over and see Coach? I don’t really need to think about it because I know with all honesty, I wouldn’t like the actual answer. He was another person I up and left behind—a man who played a huge role in where I am today.He’s a much better man than I am to not have kicked me off his property today.
“Say what you need to say, son,” he says, pulling me from my thoughts. “Let’s get the elephant in the room out in the open. I can literally see the wheels in your brain moving a mile a minute. If you don’t get it out, you might give yourself a damn aneurysm.”
I lean forward, resting my knees on my elbows, and exhale an unsteady breath. “Why didn’t you tell me?” How could my parents keep this from me, too?
“And when did you expect me to do that? When you were coming home for the holidays or when you called to check in? Ahh, yes, that’s right. You did neither of those.”
Silence passes between us.Way to kick a man when he’s already down.
“Look, Cooper, I’m sorry. I know this is a lot to handle, but it’s all out of our hands. There’s nothing I can do but use the time I have left with my family.”
“But if you had told me, I could’ve gotten you the best doctors and a second opinion. Contrary to what my appearance might tell you, I can, in fact, afford things like the best doctors’ care.”
“And we did that, I promise you. The second, third, and fourth opinion were all the same.” He gives a glum, forced smile. “So, how about instead of rehashing what’s already in the past and all this depressing shit, you tell me you’ve come here to accept the job offer that dipshit was supposed to focus on this morning? Ease my mind, Coop. Tell me you’ll take care of my boys. It’s killing me not to host that.” He pauses, realizing his words, and then holds up his hand. “Sorry, no pun intended.”
I take a long sip of my lemonade, wishing that Ellie had slipped a little alcohol in there after all for the added liquid courage.
“I don’t know, Coach. I’m not sure that’s best for the kids.”
“Best for the kids? Or best for you?” He narrows his eyes before leaning his elbow against the armrest of the chair. “You are what’s best for those kids. The fall ball clinic is something you’ve been through before. You know what it takes to make it in the game. You have the talent and the skills that deserve to be passed on—skills that snagged the eyes of the scouts as a sophomore in high school. Now, I’m not naive enough to think you’re the ballplayer you are today because of me. I’m pretty sure you were born with a glove in your hand. I just helped you realize your potential. The boys will listen to you; you can be a role model.”
I scoff and push to stand, pacing back and forth on the porch before settling back against the railing.
“Some role model. I’m sure their parents would love to add to the town gossip and worry that their sons will learn all my bad habits.”
Coach waves his hand, dismissing my comment. “Those parents want what’s best for their sons, and if they didn’t, they wouldn’t put them through the additional training. Now, this is the first year I haven’t been able to host in twenty-sixyears. Are you really going to deny a dying man’s wish for you to take over for him?”
While Coach has been the head baseball coach at Meadows Ridge High School for forty-five years, for the past twenty-six of them, he’s hosted this separate clinic in the fall. While it costs money, he only ever charges the cost that it takes to run the program. He also never turns anyone away. If a child can’t afford it, he makes it affordable. He’s done it for so long that the town even pitches in, raising money to hold in a pool for anyone who can’t afford to make the payment on their own.
