Page 30 of Wild Pitch
I tuck my tongue against my cheek and take a look around my room. The clock on the night table reads eight something, close to nine. And I mean, c’mon, my plan was already derailed and Garcia is clearly upset by this ex or whatever.
Shrugging to myself, I suggest, “Wanna tell me over a drink or something?”
This immediately snaps her back into professional mode. “No alcohol for you, mister.”
“There are non alcoholic liquid things in this planet, you know?”
“I… Actually, I shouldn’t bother you anymore. You need to rest, I’m sorry.”
I volley with, “I don’t play tomorrow.”
“But—”
“Garcia, I’m bored.” I surprise myself with this truth that suddenly decided to tear out of my chest. My amazing house, with its expansive rooms, amazing views to manicured gardens designed with native Florida plants, the pool that flows up the property like a human made river, the perfectly kept kitchen…
It’s all empty. Lonely.
Swallowing hard, I add, “And honestly, I think hearing the story will help me be a more effective coach. It’s like when you’re training us and you need to figure out what exercises will work best to fix any issues or whatever, you know?”
“Then I’ll drive closer to you. What neighborhood are you in?”
“Winter Park.”
“Oh, me too.” She then adds, “Then I’ll text you a nice place we can meet at. See you in like twenty?”
“Roger that. Ten four,” I say like this is the army and hang up.
I jump out of bed to find socks, shoes and a hoodie. My sneakers squeak against the marble floors as I retrace my steps out of the house, and I pause outside to lock my front door with my phone.
Rustling sounds behind me freeze me on the spot. I turn my face, slowly, expecting I don’t know what. It’s quiet again except for the gentle brush of the leaves with the wind. The lights around the yard illuminate a clear grass that twinkles with moisture, but I don’t spot anything human shaped anywhere.
“Don’t be a fool, Cade. This is why you fenced up the whole lot,” I say to myself. The only creatures that can reasonably scale up the walls are cats.
Stretching my shoulders, I make my way to the garage and fire up my pickup, eager to distract myself from my own mind, and drive over to this little ice cream joint at a strip mall in a hipster area of town.
When I arrive, Garcia is already sitting by the window.
CHAPTER 11
HOPE
“Ahora sí he perdido la cabeza,” I whisper to myself in the dark of my car, parked by the curb of the townhouse I share with Rose and Audrey. The lights are off and their cars nowhere to be seen, so for all intents and purposes I’m alone right now. This has to be why I’ve gone and lost my marbles and called Cade Starr.
While he was in the shower, no less.
I rub my temples. I kinda wish he hadn’t told me, so I didn’t have to imagine him sopping wet and naked, but I also understand his need to make me understand how unhinged I am.
Surely anyone can understand that seeing something likethisis enough to make your brain pack its shit and screw off in a long trip away from your head socket.
I lift up my phone again and swipe the screen. The Instagram post greets me again, looking like something out of a stock photo website. Amy cut her hair into a bob and wears a floral dress that stands out against the stark white decor of her living room. Dawson, in contrast, hasn’t changed his hair one bit. It’s the same curly blond that looks beach swept. He’s wearing a khaki suit with a white button shirt that matches Amy’s dress—andalso the straw vase in a corner. Like he’s trying to fit in her life in a way he never did with me, or like Amy wrestled him into compliance in a way I never could. And behind them, golden balloons shaped like letters read ENGAGED.
Everything I ever wanted but never dared to demand of him.
What’s worse, I know I should feel happy that they found the right fit in each other, the perfect combination of personalities that makes dating for a few months feel like such a definite shoo-in that marriage is the only possible next step. Good for them.
I hate it.
Just as I’m about to put my phone away and turn the Jeep back on, a text pops up on the screen and gets my attention because it’s in all caps.
