But despite that, he missed her. He’d gotten used to calling her during the day to see how she was doing. And at night, in bed, he couldn’t get the images of making love to her out of his mind. It was crazy, but sometimes he thought he could still detect a trace of her perfume in his loft. And that was why he was still sitting in his SUV, staring at the sweeping arc his windshield wipers had made on his rain-soaked windshield. The prospect of sitting alone watching some mindless show on television held zero appeal.
She looks like she did before. Really sad.
Annoyed at himself, he opened the door and climbed out of the truck. After grabbing his gym bag out of the cargo hold, he headed for the elevator. The damp, chilly air stung his cheeks as he pushed the call button and waited. A few seconds later, the doors slid open and he stepped inside and hit the button for the lobby. He hadn’t checked his mail in several days and didn’t want to get another note from the mail carrier telling him his box was too full for his mail. Like his email, he often neglected to check his mailbox.
When the doors slid open, Rick stepped into the warm lobby and crossed to the opposite wall that held the bank of mailboxes. Someone, probably the building’s maintenance man, had placed a mat on the floor, along with a yellow hazard sign to warn tenants of the wet floor. He was about to insert his key into the lock on his mailbox when the sound of heavy pounding on the entry door scared the shit out of him. Jerking toward the source, his stomach did a sudden free-fall at the sight of Danny, his soaked hair plastered around his face as he stood outside the glass doors.
Dropping his gym bag, Rick rushed to the door, turning the inside lock to open it. “Danny, what the—” He motioned the boy inside with his hand. “Get in here,” he said as Danny darted inside. Rick closed the door and took in Danny’s appearance. In addition to being soaked to the skin, he was shivering uncontrollably. “What are you doing here?”
“I c-couldn’t w-wait until W-Wednesday,” Danny stuttered, his body still shaking from the cold.
“Come on.” Rick grabbed Danny’s hand. His fingers were like icicles. “Let’s get you upstairs,” he said, then led Danny toward the elevator, picking up his gym bag on the way.
The elevator doors opened instantly after he pressed the call button and he guided Danny inside, then pressed the button for his floor. “How did you get here?” Rick asked as the elevator car ascended.
“I s-snuck out of the y-youth center and w-walked here,” Danny chattered, unable to control his shivering.
Rick’s jaw dropped. “That’s over a mile away. How did you know where I live?”
“M-mom showed m-me.” He lifted his free hand to push the wet strands of hair from his face. “I’m c-cold.”
“It’s okay.” Rick squeezed Danny’s hand. “You’ll be warmed up in a few minutes. I promise.”
After hustling Danny into the loft and directing him upstairs to the shower, Rick set his keys on the kitchen counter, pulled his phone from his jacket pocket and called Amy.
“Rick!” she answered on the first ring, her voice frantic. “Danny’s missing. I just got off the phone with Lucia. He wasn’t at the youth center when I got there, and she said she didn’t pick him up. I think someone took him.”
“It’s okay. He’s here.” Rick ran a hand through his hair. “With me. He was waiting outside my building when I got home.”
Amy’s long relieved breath was audible. “Oh, thank God. I was so worried. Is he all right?”
“He’s fine. I sent him upstairs to take a hot shower.”
“Okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can,” she said in a calmer voice, then hung up.
Ten minutes later, Rick had thrown Danny’s wet clothes into the dryer and after his shower had bundled the boy into one of his flannel shirts. As he stirred a hot chocolate mix into a mug of hot water, Rick glanced at him. Sitting on the couch and wrapped in the crocheted afghan Rick’s mom had made for him years ago, Danny looked small and vulnerable. And way too young to be out after dark, alone.
With mug in hand, Rick left the kitchen and gingerly handed it to Danny. “Be careful, it’s hot. Are you warm enough?” he asked, concerned that Danny still might catch a cold from being out in the rain.
Holding the mug by its handle and supporting the bottom with his other hand, Danny nodded. “My toes aren’t cold anymore and I stopped shivering,” he said, then took a tentative sip of the hot liquid.
“Do you know how dangerous it was for you to walk all the way here from the youth center?” Rick asked, moving the TV remote off the cushion and sitting next to him. “Not only is it dark, it’s rush hour. You could have been hit by a car crossing the street.” There was also the possibility of Danny encountering a stranger, homeless or otherwise, that might have hurt him. The thought of any harm coming to Danny scared the shit out of him.
“I was careful,” Danny said, as if walking over a mile on a dark, rainy night was no big deal. “And I waited for the green lights, just like Mom taught me.” He sipped the hot chocolate. “Is she mad at me?”
“No. But she was worried when you weren’t at the youth center when she came to pick you up. You gave her a bad scare.”
Danny hung his head and stared into his mug like it held the secrets to the universe. “I didn’t to mean to scare her,” he said softly. “She told me to wait until Wednesday to talk to you, but I couldn’t wait that long.”
“Why did you want to talk to me?”
“I was mad at you.” Danny didn’t look up, but his voice was clear and strong. “And I said mean things. I wanted to tell you that I still have the glove you gave me for Christmas.” He lifted his head and met Rick’s gaze. “And I’m sorry for being so mean.”
The remorseful expression on Danny’s face would have melted even the hardest of hearts. “I accept your apology. And I understand why you were so mad at me.”
Danny’s eyes widened. “You do?”
“Yes. And you need to know that even though your mom and I aren’t dating anymore, I still care about you and I want to be your friend. That’s not going to change.”
“Do you promise?” Danny asked. “Will you still teach me about baseball?”
Rick grinned. “I promise, and yes, I’ll still teach you about baseball. And I still have a lot to learn about clouds. Will you teach me?”
Danny nodded vigorously. “Guess what? I’m learning all about tornadoes now.”
For the next ten minutes, Rick listened to Danny show off his knowledge about tornadoes and watching Danny’s animated face, he couldn’t help the wave of sadness that washed over him. He would still see Danny, but with spring training and the season starting right afterward, it wouldn’t be as often as he’d like. Volunteering at the youth center during the season would be next to impossible, what with the team’s grueling schedule and extensive travel. Still, he wouldn’t let Danny down. Somehow he’d find a way to be a part of his life, even if he wasn’t a part of Amy’s.
The intercom buzzer interrupted Danny’s explanation of how tornadoes were formed and how extreme tornadoes could reach wind speeds of over three hundred miles-per-hour.
“That’s gotta be your mom,” Rick said as he stood and headed for the entryway. He pressed the entry button then opened the front door and stepped into the hallway. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a rectangular box propped up to his front door. Odd. It hadn’t been there earlier. Or maybe he’d been so concerned about getting Danny inside he hadn’t noticed it. He bent over and picked it up. The address label had his name on it and the return address was that of Grady and Merilee’s ranch in Lockhart. A pink Post-It was affixed to the box with a handwritten note from his neighbor stating she’d received the box by mistake.
Just then, the elevator chimed and Amy stepped into the hallway and headed toward him. Despite knowing Danny was safe, there was a strained expression on her face and her mouth was pressed into a tight grim line. Her purposeful stride caused her raincoat to flap around her legs, and in one hand she c
arried one of those collapsible umbrellas that dripped a path of water droplets behind her on the floor.
“He’s okay,” Rick assured Amy as she slowed to a halt in front of him. “I had him take a hot shower and his clothes are in the dryer. They should be done by now.”
“Thank you,” she responded, her voice a little shaky and her eyes shiny with unshed tears. “I’ve never been so scared in my life. I know he wanted to talk to you, but I never imagined he’d sneak out of the youth center and walk all the way here.”
Rick tucked the box against his side, confused by the emotions warring inside of him. “I don’t think he realizes how much danger he put himself in. Or how much worry he caused you.”
“I’m sure he didn’t, but when we get home we’re going to have a long talk. If I can’t trust him to stay in the youth center, he’ll have to go to Lucia’s after school instead.” She lifted a hand to wipe at the corner of her eyes. “I should get him home,” she said, her voice now cool and distant.
“Sure,” he said, and let her precede him into the loft. Rick closed the door and moved to the kitchen, setting the box on the countertop.
“I’m sorry, Mom,” Danny said in a quavering voice as soon as he saw her. He stared up at her, his eyes wide. “I’m really sorry.”
Amy rounded the couch, set her tote bag and umbrella on the floor and crouched in front of her son. “I know you are,” she said and lightly caressed his cheek. “But you scared me, Danny. I had no clue where you were or what happened to you. That’s the worst feeling in the world.”
“Am I in trouble?”
Rick smothered an ironic grin. Danny was worried now, but hadn’t thought twice about what could have happened to him tonight.
“We can discuss that when we get home, but you can expect limited tablet time for the unforeseeable future.” Amy got to her feet and looked at Rick, her green eyes impossible to read. “You said his clothes are dry?”
“They’re in the dryer. I’ll go get them,” he said and headed for the stairs. A few minutes later, he came back down with Danny’s clothes. Amy reached for Danny’s mug and headed for the kitchen. “You can change in the bathroom by the front door,” Rick said, handing the bundle to Danny after he flung the afghan aside and slid off the couch.
Rick watched Danny until he disappeared into the bathroom, then moved to the kitchen where Amy was at the sink rinsing out the mug. Leaning against the counter, he tried to ignore the familiar scent of her perfume, but it didn’t work. He was unable to suppress the need that surged through his body. Would he ever shake it? He wasn’t sure, but he had to. Whatever they might have had was over.
“Thank you for taking care of him. We’ll be out of your way in a few minutes.”
“You don’t have to thank me,” he said, annoyed at her impersonal tone and matching it with his own. “I’d do anything for Danny.”
“Except forgive me for not telling you the truth,” she said, turning to face him.
“It’s not that simple,” he said as tension hung in the air between them, dividing them.
“Yes, it is. But I’m not going to defend myself anymore. I have a past. Everyone does. Mine is a bit more complicated than most, and yeah, I made some questionable choices when I was younger. But for too long I’ve let my fear of other people’s opinions dictate how I feel about myself. I’m not a bad person. I never was. And I’m not going to beg you to forgive me. If you can’t understand why I was hesitant to tell you about my past, then you’re not someone I want to be with.” Amy squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. “I’m sorry you were blindsided at the press conference, but that’s all I’m sorry for,” she said, then walked out of the kitchen as Danny emerged from the bathroom.
A few minutes later, Rick shut the door behind Amy and Danny, listening as the echo of their footsteps grew fainter and then finally disappeared. Had they just disappeared from his life for good? Fighting the urge to open the door and run after them, he swallowed the painful lump in his throat. Punching the shit out of something sounded like a real good idea right now, but if there was anything or anyone to punch, it was probably himself.
It was after eight when Rick finally remembered the box that Merilee had sent him. After Amy and Danny left, all he’d done was stare out the window brooding about Amy, Jill, and the fact that as different as they were, the one thing they had in common was they’d kept something from him. Something important.
Heaving a frustrated sigh, he trudged to the kitchen, and after slitting the heavy duty mailing tape with a pair of scissors, he sat on the couch, set the box on the coffee table, and opened it.
As Merilee had described, it was filled with assorted papers. He grabbed a handful and as he suspected, found a number of recipes that Jill had printed out from an online recipe website, along with several greeting cards that ranged from her birthday to Christmas. There were also pictures of Solomon and the cat next door that Jill had taken a shine to. The darn cat would sit on the porch every morning waiting for Jill to come out to sit on the porch swing to drink her tea.
He set the papers and pictures next to him on the couch, dipped into the box again and pulled out a small snapshot photo album. He opened it and his heart dropped like a two-ton boulder to the pit of his stomach. The first picture was of Jill and a man he’d never seen before. They were standing side by side in front of one of the stalls at the stables, both sporting wide smiles. Jill looked happy, almost glowing. He flipped through the album; there were more pictures. Some of Jill and some of the guy who Rick assumed was Chase Clifford. A couple of the pictures showed Chase on a horse. Rick’s jaw tightened. As he’d suspected, good old Chase wasn’t afraid of horses. The last picture was of the two of them. Chase’s arm was thrown casually around Jill’s slim shoulders, his head slightly angled toward hers. It wasn’t hard to miss the adoration on his face; there was no doubt in Rick’s mind that Chase Clifford was in love with Jill. But had Jill returned his feelings? Rick closed the album and leaned back against the cushions. He’d never know. And now he was left to wonder if Jill had only stayed with him because of the baby. Or if she had taken the secret of the baby’s paternity to her grave.
“Damn it,” he muttered and flung the photo album at the box. It hit the upturned flap and landed on the coffee table with a light thud. Rick stared at it, his gut churning with anger. He wished Merilee had never told him about Jill and Chase. In this case, ignorance would have been preferable to suspecting his wife had cheated on him.
Swearing softly, he leaned forward and picked up the photo album. An envelope slipped from the back of it and landed on the coffee table. Rick tossed the album in the box and picked up the envelope. He was about to toss it into the box along with the photo album, then froze when he saw the name on the envelope. Chase Clifford. Written in Jill’s handwriting, it looked as if she’d partially addressed the envelope, but stopped before putting Clifford’s address underneath his name. In the upper right-hand corner she’d placed a stamp, but then she had never mailed it.
Why?
Was it a love letter she’d written and never sent? Was she declaring her undying love to Chase Clifford?
Rick turned the letter over, slid his finger under the flap and pried it open. With a shaky hand, he withdrew the folded notepaper and began to read.
Dear Chase,
Ever since I told you we couldn’t see each other anymore I’ve felt like I owe you more of an explanation. You see, for as long as I can remember I’ve loved Rick. I had a big ole crush on him in grade school and when we started going steady in high school, I knew down deep in my soul that he was the boy I was going to marry. Our wedding day was the happiest day of my life, right up until I found out I was having his baby. Now that’s the happiest day of my life.
You came along during a stressful time. Rick’s career with the Blaze was just getting started, and when he got injured it was tough on him, and on me. I wanted to help him during his rehabilitation, but other than making his meals and tr
ying to be supportive, I haven’t felt so useful. Rick is a very goal-oriented individual and when he’s in that mode he tends to shut other people out. Even me.
Now that’s no excuse for flirting with you and letting you flirt with me. I know you thought it was leading to more than that, but when you kissed me the other day it made me realize where my heart is. Where it’s always been, and where it will always be. With Rick.
You’re a nice guy and I’m sure you’ll find someone else who will feel that same way about you. Thank you for listening to me and for being a friend.
I wish you Godspeed.
Jill.
Rick stared at Jill’s handwriting until it blurred from the tears in his eyes. It was a relief to know Jill hadn’t cheated on him and hadn’t planned to leave him, but if she’d considered it, even for one second, he only had himself to blame. He hadn’t meant to do it, but it was painfully obvious that he had neglected her in his effort to heal from his injuries and get back to the team as soon as possible. He’d been so focused on his rehab that he’d shut her out and never once noticed she was unhappy. What the hell did that say about him? Nothing good.
His phone vibrated on the coffee table. He folded the letter, tossed it in the box and then picked up his phone. Jade’s name lit up the screen. She didn’t normally call him in the evening, but she’d been working hard finalizing the interviews for the foundation’s director of operations. “Hey,” he said, holding the phone to his ear. “What’s up? Do we have an interview schedule yet?”
After a short silence, she spoke. “Rick, I—” She broke off and let out a low sob.
“Jade?” He straightened as his heart started to pound. “What’s wrong?”
“Accident...there’s been a car accident,” she said, her voice cracking.
“Are you hurt?”
“It’s not me,” Jade said, her voice filled with anguish. “It’s Amy. And Danny.”
Playing for Keeps (Feeling the Heat Book 6) Page 27