Page 36 of The Art Of Starting Over

She never looked his way.

When the final buzzer sounded, Hayden walked toward the entrance to the field, careful to stay in the shadows.

That’s when he saw the love of his life kissing another guy.

Not just any guy, but the piece of shit known as Chad Campbell.

Hayden’s heart lurched. Devorah ... his Devy ... looked happy. She smiled.

She wasn’t a secret. Not like she had been with Hayden.

He had failed her, and now he was too late.

Hayden went back to school, flipped the switch on his feelings for Devorah Crowley, and met Sofia.

But things were different now. He wasn’t married, and Devy was ... well, she was going through some major shit. None of which was going to be easy on her or Maren. Hayden felt bad for Dev. Not in the sense that he felt obligated to try and make her feel better about herself or her situation, but in the sense that no one should be treated the way Chad had treated her. What her husband did was the lowest of lows. His behavior was despicable.

Hayden looked over at her as he drove along the interstate. Her lips moved to the song, which made him smile. At least she was putting in an effort.

“Do you like this song?” he asked her.

“It’s one of Maren’s favorites.” She looked over her shoulder at her daughter. Hayden did so quickly. The girl was dancing in her seat. Then he caught a glimpse of Conor. His son was playing the air guitar with so much gusto he actually looked like he knew what he was doing.

“Guess I’m the drummer,” Hayden said as he started tapping on the steering wheel. He didn’t know the words to the song, but he made his lips move anyway. The four of them continued to put on their own concert until Hayden pulled into the sporting goods store parking lot and shut the truck off.

“Whew, that was fun,” Devorah said as she got out of the truck. She opened the back door and helped the kids out. She took Maren’s hand while Conor walked next to his father.

“I had no idea we were such a good band,” Hayden said, walking close to Devorah. “I think after a few more jam sessions, we’ll be able to take our band on the road.”

“Definitely.”

They entered the large store and were greeted by an employee asking if they needed assistance. After declining, they turned down the first aisle toward the baseball section. As soon as they were close, Conor ran the rest of the way.

“He’s excited,” Hayden said, almost as if he was making an excuse for his son’s enthusiasm.

“Is your dad coaching?” Devy asked.

“Not sure. I have a feeling he’ll help out, with Conor being on the team.”

“Can I play?” Maren asked.

Devorah looked at her daughter. It took her a couple of seconds, but she finally nodded. “This is baseball,” she told Maren. “I can see if there are softball tryouts.”

“No, I don’t mind playing with Conor.”

“Okay, let’s get you some shoes and a glove.”

“Why don’t you go over to the shoes, and I’ll look for a glove for her,” Hayden told them. “I’ll find one that doesn’t need a lot of breaking in. Are you right or left handed, Maren?”

“Right,” she said, holding up her hand to show him.

“Perfect.”

“Thanks, Hayden. This means a lot to me. To us.” Dev looked from her daughter to Hayden.

He smiled at them both. “It’s my pleasure.”

Hayden watched them head toward the shoes, and then he started down the aisle with gloves and balls. He tried on three different mitts before finding one that was already soft and would be easy for Maren to squeeze shut. He figured he would take her to the park early tomorrow and play catch and hit some grounders for her. Not knowing her level of playing ability, he didn’t want to assume she hadn’t played before.

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