Page 51 of Sometimes You Fall

She catches me staring this time, clearing her throat to regain my attention.

Is this how it’s going to be for the next six months? Stolen glances, catching each other staring, and denying what’s really between us?

I refocus on the matter at hand. “I don’t think it was just anger about the work.” I hold my hands up in frustration. “I might be way off base, but my gut is telling me there’s something else bothering him.”

Scottie blows out a breath, dropping her arms to her sides. “What did he say?”

I tell her about catching him practicing his pitching and how the boys on the team are giving him a hard time because he’s starting at the game tomorrow. And when I tried to explain how I can relate, he brushed me off.

“Yeah, sounds about right,” she says, shaking her head.

“So it’s not just me? I mean, I’m not here to be friends with the kid, but…”

“You’re a man, Grady. That’s all you had to do to piss him off. Having a penis is why Chase is giving you that attitude.”

My brows furrow. “Uh, can you explain further, please?”

Scottie leans on the counter that separates us. “He doesn’t trust you because you’re a man. The one man in his life he should have been able to count on never kept his word, so…”

Recognition races through me. God, I remember that feeling well—wondering why my father never stuck around. Wondering if all men were like that—leaving their kids behind without a second thought.

Knowing that Chase has experienced that just fuels the anger coursing through me. “Fuck, Scottie.”

She shrugs, but brushes a tear from her cheek. “It’s part of why we moved here,” she whispers. “I was tired of watching my son suffer, tired of seeing him disappointed when his father wouldn’t keep his word.”

I shift my gaze back to Chase, who’s still standing at the sink, scrubbing engine parts. That ache in my chest intensifies because now I not only have to ensure my own child never feels that disappointment, but I also want to show Chase that there are men who do keep their word.

“You did the right thing, Scottie.”

“I know, but it doesn’t make it any easier. And now he’s got a target on his back because of baseball. I was hoping that might go away too, but…”

“He’s really fucking talented,” I say, cutting in. “I swear, watching him yesterday was like…”

“Watching you,” she finishes for me, her eyes locked on mine.

“Yeah.”

Silence stretches between us. I stare at her, feeling like I’m a teenager all over again, getting lost in her eyes. But now, as adults? The connection is even more powerful.

We’re connected not just by friendship now, but by the life growing inside of her.

Scottie is the only person who really knew who I was before baseball. And her son has that same passion for the game—a passion only someone cut from the same cloth can recognize in another.

“I won’t let him down, Scottie,” I declare, breaking the silence. “Or you.”

“You—you can’t promise that, Grady.” Her voice is shaky and her lips are trembling, but it’s the fear in her eyes that tells me how fucking vital it is that I prove I’m serious.

Standing tall, I assert, “Yes, I can.”

She swallows and then pushes herself off the counter. “I need to get my son home.” Walking around me, she heads into the garage. “Chase?”

He looks over his shoulder at her. “Yeah?”

“You’re done for the day,” I tell him .

“Finally,” he mutters, tossing the steel pad into the sink.

“Say thank you to Grady,” Scottie warns as Chase pulls the apron from his body.

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