Page 50 of Coach Me
Will makes his way over. “What’s up?”
“I know you’ve played this team many times before, but we’ve got to start strong.” I don’t have to explain why to him—as a new trade he hasn’t gone numb to Jordan’s bullshit like some of the other guys.
“I got ya. What are you thinking? I know some of these guys’ weak spots. Hughes hates a low ball and McCormack can’t do an outside corner. My issue is Morales—doesn’t matter how fast or what angle—fucker hits off me every time.”
“Have you tried slowing it down?”
Will gives me a dumbfounded look. “No, can’t say that I have.”
“Don’t be a smartass. I mean, have you tried throwing a circle change on him? If I couldn’t strike someone out, I’d try throwing one of those. Morales is a hell of a hitter, so I can’t promise he won’t adjust to it quickly, but since it’s just the grip that changes the speed, it might be enough to trip him up.”
Will adjusts his ball cap and shrugs. “Fuck, I’ll give it a try. I’ll let some of the other guys throw a few, then I’ll try it out and see how it feels.”
“Alright, I’ll tell you if you need to adjust anywhere.”
Will nods. “So, how’s it going with Lucie?”
His tone doesn’t scream any ill-will or double meaning behind the question, but I think my hands just started sweating.
It’s torture. Your sister is too young, too nice, and too damn pretty. Oh, and she did the impossible of lowering my blood pressure today, so I’m pretty sure she’s some sort of miracle worker.
I clear my throat. “It’s going. Miles is definitely enjoying it.”
“I’m not surprised, Lucie’s always been a natural with kids. Don’t repeat this back to Callie because I’m still remaining a neutral party in this whole thing but I’m happy you offered her the job. It really broke her heart to lose her teaching job, and with our other sister moving to Boston, I know it was a lot for her. She seems excited about this, though—said she thought it would be good for her.”
“She did?” The response tumbles out of me. While I’m sure she meant the pay and free travel will be good for her, I like hearing it nonetheless.
“Yeah, and for what it's worth, it could be good for you, too. More importantly, it could be good for me because I need Lucie to keep your smooth talker away from my girl.”
“If my son is that big of a threat to you, Anderson, I think you might need to step up your game.” I wave him off, ignoring the first part that he thinks this could also be good for me. After this morning, it’s hard not to see that too.
An even crazier thought enters my brain—if things work out with Lucie, could I actually play again? The way things went today, I can see how much easier it is, and it seems possible. But then again, I’m struggling to see how I can constantly be around Lucie’s sunny personality and not get burned.
“Touché.” Will tosses a ball my way, pulling me from my thoughts. “Come on, Coach, make sure I’m doing your idea right.”
Yeah, this is the only Anderson who needs to call me Coach from here on out.
Starting strong this game, Will manages to throw a damn good first three innings. Specifically, striking out Morales in the bottom of the first. While I figured he would be able to adjust quickly, Will's making him work for each hit now.
Anderson isn’t the only one having a good game either. The entire team is playing like a well-oiled machine now. Beck and Tripp had a killer double play this past inning, and Adam hit a home run right out of the gate.
Olsson’s got the team morale up with him taking over, and it’s a little bittersweet to not be playing when I can see the changes I wished for these past few seasons, but I guess still being a part of it counts in some way.
By the top of the fourth, we’re up by two runs and it’s looking pretty solid. Will says he’s still feeling good to do another couple of innings if possible. I’m not going to argue if that means pushing off bringing in Jordan.
But by the bottom of the inning, the rain starts to fall. It’s been overcast all day, but dammit, couldn’t it have waited another inning? If this rain doesn’t stop in half an hour, then we’ll have to reschedule this game.
Everyone works fast to get the tarp pulled out onto the field, and after about twenty minutes of it not letting up, I nudge Olsson. “I’m going to go to the hall and holler at Lucie. Make sure they’re somewhere dry.”
“Yeah, go for it. I think it’s starting to lighten up a bit, so hopefully we can finish this one.” Olsson gives me a weird smile. “But take your time, there’s no rush here.”
“What’s that look for?” I groan.
“Just seems like Lucie’s working out well. I like her—I think she’s just what you needed.”
Yeah, that seems to be today’s consensus. Unfortunately, so. I think anyone with eyes can see that Lucie is perfect for this job.
Stepping out of the dugout, I pull out my phone as I head toward the guest locker room. Hitting call on Lucie’s contact, she picks up on the third ring.
