AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I kept my eyes on him the entire time as he got to third, barely paying attention to where I was going as I rounded the bases but cheering when he made it to home plate.
He was waiting on me as I ran home, jumping up and down, whooping as we fist-bumped. This was better than winning the College World Series by a mile. My throat clogged up, my eyes stinging when they landed on my mother. She wiped away tears in between clapping.
And just like that, my love for baseball was rekindled.
I’d missed her more than I’d allowed myself to believe. Seeing Gabriel’s excitement reminded me what it was that had made me love her so much in the first place. The sport could be selfish, but it ultimately was about the team. I’d forgotten that along the way. The reminder was striking.
I set Gabriel on his feet, and he took off for Carlos. “Daddy, Daddy. Did you see me?”
That didn’t hurt as much as it normally would have, the happiness I felt overruling all else. Everyone gathered near my mother and grandmother, but I strolled over to Sonya, who was a sight for sore eyes.
She was beautiful, the wind catching her hair and blowing it in her face. Her hands were in the pockets of her jacket. I turned my baseball hat backward on my head and leaned on the fence, matching her lackadaisical attitude. In truth, my pulse pounded in my veins, but the tigress would be disappointed if I just fell at her feet. She expected more than that.
“Guess you’re not half bad.” She shrugged.
We were off to a decent start.
“I’m better than that, and you know it.”
“Glad to see that your ego hasn’t deflated in the last week,” she said dryly, though the corner of her mouth lifted slightly.
“You’re not here to make me feel good about myself, and I doubt you like watching a family baseball game. Why are you here? Besides missing me so much you couldn’t function?”
She shoved a finger in my chest. “I never pegged you forfamilybaseball games.”
“Neither did I.”
“Can’t believe they let you play with them,” she observed, glancing around.
I didn’t take my eyes off her. “My brother and I are on speaking terms. Mostly. With the rest of them, it’s touch and go.” It was easier to make light of it.
Sam raced over and charged the fence to get to Sonya.
“Hi,” she said, her voice up a few octaves. He put his paws up on the fence, and she leaned over, rubbing down his sides. His reception was far better than mine.
When she stopped, he sat positioned so he could see Mama and be close to Sonya.
“What do you know about some old lady returning my jewelry?”
“That old lady is my Grandma Carter. I dare you to say that to her face.” She’d come to New York to be close to Mama while she recovered . . . and she’d done a little of my dirty work.
“I will.” She wasn’t scared, the stubborn set of her jaw making me want to reach over the fence and grab her.
“I want a front-row seat for that. My money’s on her.”
“You don’t have any money,” she pointed out.
“Make of it what you will.”
“Thank you for getting the jewelry back to me. I . . . It’s just that was the last time I really gave my mother a reason to be proud of me.” Sonya looked down for a second before her eyes met mine. “I panicked when it was gone because maybe there wouldn’t be another chance. One that was real anyway.”
I couldn’t stand it anymore. This fence was in my way. I reached over it, planted my hands on her hips, and lifted her over.
“There’s a gate right there,” she protested, even as she wrapped her arms around my neck.
“Yes, but if you’d used that, I wouldn’t have had an excuse to get my hands on you.” I buried my face against her neck. “Not that I need one.”
“I was going to apologize for what I did to you, but you can forget that.”
