Page 68 of Sometimes You Fall

He blinks. “My mom?”

“Yeah.” I sigh before reaching for a rag to wipe off my hands, grateful the tension from us yelling is dwindling. “She was a huge part of my life before I made it to the MLB, and seeing her again reminded me that there is a life beyond the game. And now that we’re having a kid, it’s like a new chapter of my life is about to begin, and for the first time in five fucking years, I’m excited about it, Chase.” The clench of his jaw softens. “And you’re a part of that new chapter.”

“Why aren’t you marrying my mom?” he asks, shocking me, quite frankly.

“Maybe you should ask her that question.” Probably not the most mature answer to give him, but if I had it my way, she and I would already be planning our future together.

I turn back to the engine, picking up where I left off. A few seconds later, I feel Chase come up beside me, leaning over my shoulder to see what I’m doing. “What do you need me to do?”

And just like that, instead of fighting our circumstances, we start working together on our project.

Now if only I could get his mom to come around.

***

“You didn’t have to bring him home,” Scottie says as I set bags of food on her kitchen counter. “But selfishly, I’m glad you did since you brought dinner too.”

The smell of the burgers and onion rings I picked up from Catch and Release wafts through the air as Chase and I pull the boxes of food out of the bags. When I texted Scottie my offer, she said the craving for today was the same burger I brought before, so I couldn’t help but oblige her request.

“I’m starving,” Chase grumbles as he shoves three fries into his mouth from his container.

“Grady worked you hard today, huh?” Scottie asks.

He nods. “Yeah, but taking the engine for the Nova apart was actually kind of cool.”

Scottie shoots me a curious look. “Cool, huh?”

Chase shrugs as he grabs a cup of ranch, a handful of napkins, and his drink. “Yeah, Mom. Cool.” He heads down the hallway and calls out, “I’m gonna eat in my room and then shower.”

I wait for his door to close and then lean over the counter to whisper, “He looked like I was asking him to play Operation and every time he touched the engine, it was going to electrocute him.”

Scottie snorts. “Well, at least he was invested and not out to mess anything else up.”

I reach for my burger and bring it to my mouth, but before I take a bite, I say, “We had a good day, Scottie.”

Her smile is soft and there’s a hint of emotion in her eyes. “I’m happy to hear that.”

“Your son is actually pretty funny when he’s not being surly and acting like nothing I say matters.”

She smirks before popping an onion ring into her mouth. “I’d like to think he got that from me.”

“Hopefully our kid will too.”

She clears her throat and grabs her box of food, walking over to the table. When she sits down, she rubs her belly. “This baby is super excited for this meal.”

I follow her over, taking my food and drink with me as well. “Are you feeling movement yet?”

“Yeah, but not from the outside.”

“Just the flutters, right?”

She stares at me while she chews. “It’s frightening how much you now know about pregnancy, Grady.”

“I don’t like not knowing things.” I shrug. “But I’m looking forward to being able to feel our kid kick.”

She rubs over her stomach again. “I already feel bigger than I should, but maybe that’s because I didn’t find out right away.”

I drop my eyes down her body before lifting back to her gaze. “You look fucking perfect to me, Scottie.” A tinge of pink graces her cheeks, but she doesn’t say anything. And before she can flip a switch on me and lecture me about us remaining friends, I move the conversation to another topic. “So, do you have plans next weekend?”

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