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We followed the crowd down to the field. Cash spotted us and hustled over. His face lit up when he saw his mom, but first he wrapped his arms around me, lifted me off my feet, and kissed me. I couldn’t help but laugh when he spun me around.
“Our boy killed it. Did you see his sinker?” he asked, setting me back on the grass.
“I did. All that practice paid off.”
Cash nodded and looked to my left. He said hello to Mia and my parents before turning toward Claire. “Hi, Mom.”
They hugged and Claire wiped her eyes. “Hi, sweetheart. What a great game.”
Players and fans ran by us, shouting their congrats as they started to leave the field. Jimmy ran up to us, high-fived Mia, hugged my parents, and apologized that he was sweaty, then kissed me on the cheek. Every time he did that, I wondered when or if he’d stop. That would be the day I cried.
We all boasted about how great he played. Then he looked at his other grandmother.
Cash slung his arm around Jimmy’s shoulders. “Son, this is—”
“Hi, Grandma Claire,” Jimmy said, bringing more tears to her eyes. “Thanks for coming to my game.”
She threw her arms around him while his hung loosely at his sides and then raised to hug her back. “Let me take a look at you,” she said. “You reminded me so much of your dad today. But I will say, I see a lot of your mom in you too.”
Jimmy glanced at me and smiled. “Yeah, she’s the best. Mom, the team is going to go grab burgers at the diner. Can I go?”
“Sure, but come home right after. I’m sure all of your grandparents would like to spend time with you.”
Something caught his attention behind us. When Cash followed his sight line, his jaw ticced. Turning, I saw John Jameson walking toward us.
“What the hell is he doing here?” Cash grunted.
We all turned. Claire gasped, and out of my peripheral, I saw my mother holding my dad’s arm. There had been zero doubt that he wanted to kick John’s ass, and I didn’t blame him one bit.
With his hands in the pockets of his slacks, he walked up to us. “What are you doing here, John?” Claire asked.
He didn’t say anything to her but instead looked at Jimmy. Instinctively, Cash and I flanked him. It didn’t matter that my son was almost six feet tall, thanks to a growth spurt. I still felt the need to protect him.
“You must be Jimmy,” he said with an outstretched hand.
Oh, no. You’re not putting my son in that position,I thought. But I didn’t need to do anything because, like his father, Jimmy crossed his arms in front of his chest.
“You’re not welcome here,” Cash finally said before sternly adding, “Leave.”
He looked at me. “Hannah, I wanted to tell you that I’m sorry for—”
Slap.I couldn’t help it. It was as though my now-stinging hand had a mind of its own. “Don’t you dare say you’re sorry as though that exonerates you from what you did. You’re not welcome here or in our lives. You made that choice fifteen years ago, and I’m making it now.”
John nodded and looked at Cash. “Do you feel the same way? I made a mistake. I know it was a big one, and I’m sorry.”
“A big one? You disrespected Hannah. You disrespected me, not to mention Mom. All those years I missed out on with my son and Hannah were because of you. Do you know how lucky I am that Hannah is a great mother and has the support of her parents and friends? What if she didn’t? What if ...” Cash ran his hand through his hair.
Jimmy stepped forward. Almost eye to eye with his paternal grandfather. A lump formed in my throat and lodged there. Breathing became difficult, and the air around us stilled. “I agree with my parents. You should leave. They don’t want you here, and neither do I. For the past fourteen years, I’ve had one grandfather. And you’re nothing like him. He loves his family.”
I heard my dad clear his throat, and my mom sniffled, but I kept my focus on Jimmy. I didn’t want this exchange to bring down the high of winning the game. I wanted to step in so badly to end it. I put my hand on Jimmy’s arm.
“I don’t know all of what you said to my mom, but I do know that you lost your chance to be my grandfather. My mom is the best person ever. My hero. And you turned her away when she needed my dad. Now it’s our turn.”
“I agree with my son. And we don’t want to hear any excuses because there aren’t any you can give. Hannah and I are back together. We’re with our son and our family. We don’t need or want you around. As far as I’m concerned, I no longer have a father.”
John shook his head. “I did what I thought was right and best for you.”
I was half expecting Cash to tell him to fuck off, but instead, he took my hand in his, put his arm around Jimmy, and waited for his father to do the right thing and go back to where he came from.
