Head Over Heels

by Crystal B. Bright

  “Thank you for the opportunity.” Attempting to leave with some dignity, she kept her head held high as she tried to move around him.

  He lashed out at her again, grabbing her arm and pulling her to him. “Fine. You want to go, try to do this on your own?”

  With all the force she could muster, she yanked her arm from his grasp and managed to get to the door.

  “You will fail. If I have anything to do with it, I will make sure of it.”

  “That’s a shame.” She shook her head. “I wish that you get exactly what you deserve.”

  Frank’s threats meant nothing to her. The same hollow feeling she had for Thane she now had for her former boss. No, those feelings didn’t match. A small part of her heart still smoldered for Thane.

  “Jesus, Kari. Are you really going?” Chelsi stood from her desk.

  “Wow. News travels fast.” Kari glanced over her shoulder at Frank. “I’ve got to spread my wings. I’m sure I’ll stumble. But I need to try. If I don’t do it now, I never will.” She hugged the person who’d had her back as much as Reagan. “Take care.” She held Chelsi’s shoulders. “Know your worth. Never settle.”

  Chelsi nodded, glanced at Frank, then looked back at Kari again. “Hope to see you around.”

  On her way out, Kari picked up the box with her personal items and her purse. Whether she made it or not, she wouldn’t be back in this office, and she definitely wouldn’t be working for a boss who didn’t respect her.

  Before heading home, she stopped at a park. Kari craved the crisp spring air that reminded her so much of sports and her youth. As soon as she got out of her car, she headed to her favorite playground attraction and the one least crowded—the swings.

  She sat on the wide, thick leather platform held up by charcoal-gray chains. Below where she rested her hands, she noticed how worn the chains looked. Kari imagined all the children over the years who had used the swing before her and worn out the finish on the links. She added to that by gripping them and pushing herself back and forth.

  It had been a few days since she, Michael, and Reagan had come home from Virginia Beach. Although she’d tried keeping a strong appearance for them, the whole situation had left her feeling drained. Every time she closed her eyes to go to sleep or even when she blinked, Thane’s image popped in her head. If she couldn’t stay at a job where she didn’t feel trusted and respected, how did she think she could be with a man who valued her just as little?

  After a few swings and some strange stares, Kari felt relaxed enough to go home. Thankfully, she could park in her garage. Reporters and photographers had become a new staple outside her home since pictures of her and Thane had surfaced. Even telling them she’d only wanted to represent Thane didn’t calm the ravenous crowd.

  After pulling into her garage, Kari quickly shut the door behind her. She didn’t get out of her car until it closed completely. Then she emerged and went into her home.

  Reagan stood in the kitchen cleaning up from lunch. “So you did it?”

  Kari nodded. “I quit. I’ll have to dip into Michael’s support to pay you. But that’s what that money is for anyway.”

  Even with Jarrod’s temporary suspension from the team while the heat from the video of him pushing Michael died down, he still made his support payments. He’d contacted Kari to assure her he would do whatever he could for Michael.

  “Why would you still need me around? You’ll be home with Michael until you get your business going, right? You won’t need me.” Reagan shrugged, but the tough woman’s eyes started to have a glossy sheen over them. When she blinked, one tear escaped and rolled down her cheek.

  “Reagan, you’re like family.” Kari embraced her. “I will always look out for you.”

  “You don’t have to.” Reagan wiped her eyes.

  “I know. I want to.” Kari smiled. “Is Michael with the tutor?”

  Another new change since coming home. After seeing reporters standing on the sidewalk trying to take pictures of Jarrod Townsend’s son at school, Kari had to regroup and protect her child.

  “Hi, baby.” Kari smiled as she strolled into the office area where Michael met with his tutor.

  “Hey.” Michael’s deflated answer matched how Kari felt inside.

  She wouldn’t show that to him. “You two had lunch already?”

  Michael nodded. “Chicken sandwich and chips.” He threw his pencil down and looked at Kari. “When can I go back to school? I miss my friends.”

  Kari glanced at the older man sitting next to her child. “Mr. Hashni, will you excuse us for a moment, please?”

  The man nodded and arranged the papers they used on the desk. Kari put her hand on Michael’s shoulder as she led him to his bedroom. It hadn’t escaped her notice that Michael had removed all the posters of Jarrod from his wall. He’d replaced all of them with pictures of Thane, which made it difficult for her to go to his room. She closed the door for privacy.

  “I know all these changes are a bit much for you.” Kari sat next to Michael.

  “It’s all happening so fast. First, the thing with Dad, and then doing school at home, which I thought would be fun. But Mr. Hashni is as bad as my teachers.” Michael shook his head. “And now I don’t even get to see Mr. Wells anymore.”

  Kari had to come up with a good story, not a lie. “You know Mr. Wells was only in town for his mother’s funeral. Spring training is going on right now.”

  “But he’s not doing that.” Michael sprang from the bed and retrieved his tablet from the desk in his room. “See. He’s been put on the injured list. What’s a bleeding ulcer?”

  Probably something the Carolina Wrens didn’t want to hear right now, Kari wanted to say. She’d avoided looking up stories about Thane to keep from being sucked back into caring again.

  “An ulcer is when the acid in your stomach eats the lining in your belly and it makes you sick.” Kari understood Thane’s worry. First his mother, then the issues with his brothers, and now his job. For a young man, he had a lot riding on his shoulders.

  “They said he’s spending time in North Carolina.” He turned the tablet around to show her the gossip site where he had found the information.

  Kari took the tablet from his hands. “You know I don’t like you going to these sites. They’re not for kids.”

  “Sorry.” He hung his head down.

  “And Thane—Mr. Wells—has a right to his privacy just like we do. Stop following him online. It’s creepy.”

  “But I miss him. You won’t let me go outside to play, and I can’t throw a baseball in the house.” He leaned his head on Kari’s shoulder. “Until he got sick, we had fun in Virginia Beach.” He laughed.

  “What’s so funny?” She stroked her hand over his back.

  “Before everything happened with Dad, I got Leona’s contact information. I wouldn’t have done that if it hadn’t been for Mr. Wells.”

  Kari blinked. She didn’t think she would need to have “the talk” with Michael so soon, although she found it adorable that he liked a girl already.

  “I thought you liked him.”

  “I do, as a baseball player.” She couldn’t say as a friend. Not anymore.

  “Did you two have a fight or something?”

  She leaned back to look at her son’s face. He still looked innocent, but the questions he asked made her wonder if he had aged ten more years since leaving the beach. “Why would you ask me that?”

  He shrugged. “You seem different now.”

  “Different how? I still dress the same. I still eat the same foods. I still love giving you kisses.” To illustrate her final point, she kissed his forehead, complete with the kissing sound she knew drove Michael crazy.

  “Mom.” He wiped his forehead.

  “See. Still the same Mom.”

  “Yeah, but you seemed, I don’t know, happier before.” He patted her leg. “It’s nice to see you smiling again.”

  It
felt good to show some happiness. “Okay, I’ve kept you from your studies long enough.” She helped Michael to his feet and nudged him toward the office. “Get back to work, mister.”

  “Aw, Mom.” He schlepped toward the office.

  “I know. Life is so hard for you, isn’t it?”

  He nodded.

  “I could sing to you if you wanted.” She paired the singing with some dancing.

  Michael shook his head and waved his hands in front of her. “No, no. I’m fine.”

  Kari held back her laughter. With Michael gone from his room, it gave her the opportunity to scan the pictures on his wall. Thane’s blue eyes drew her in to every shot, that and his incredible ass.

  She shook her head. She had to stop. No way would he be pining over her. In her mind, Thane had moved on. In her heart, she hoped he felt the same as she did.

  * * * *

  “Are you sure this is what you want to do?” Jermaine asked for the seventh time over the phone.

  Thane smiled as he drove down to the Outer Banks vacation house. “I haven’t changed my answer each time you’ve asked me.” He shook his head. “The surgeon has told me to take time off. The team doc won’t clear me right now to even practice, let alone play. My body is telling me I need to take a little break. I’m hoping sixty days will do the trick, but we’ll see.”

  “And then you’ll be back?”

  Thane heard the anticipation in Jermaine’s voice.

  “Yes, then I hope to come back.” His contract covered another year. He owed the Wrens that much.

  “Take care of yourself, man. Hopefully, we’ll see you in a couple of months.”

  The call ended as soon as Thane’s navigation announced his arrival to his destination.

  Jesus, Queen Elizabeth had good taste. He drove up the brick-paved drive to the three-story house that sat on the beach. Thane had imagined owning this type of home when he saw retirement in his horizon.

  He stayed in his car in front of the house for several minutes while he compared the address on the paperwork he’d signed at the will reading to where he sat now. Thane surveyed the place. He had arrived before tourist season so he didn’t see any cars.

  Before he lugged his suitcase up the stairs to the brown house with white trim, he went up to the door with the key. Even after opening the door, he still couldn’t believe he had come to the right place and that his mother had owned this home without telling any of them.

  Thane heard the telltale beeping from the alarm by the door. He entered the code the attorney had given him.

  He walked into the living room first. The great open view of the ocean behind the house greeted him as soon as he entered the home. He clearly saw the picturesque beach through the glass wall at the back of the house. No wonder his mother had bought this place.

  Thane explored the downstairs area first. He stepped into the kitchen with its all stainless-steel appliances and granite counters and bars. He half expected to find the refrigerator fully stocked. The nearly empty refrigerator only held a box of baking soda and a couple of bottles of champagne. However, in the freezer he found Tupperware containers filled with cookie dough, his mother’s homemade chocolate chip cookie dough.

  “Yes.” Thane pumped his fist as he closed the freezer door.

  He strolled around the home until he came across a strange-looking door. He opened it and found it went to an elevator. The idea that Queen would outfit her vacation home with an elevator tickled him. Thane laughed as he got inside and went up to the second floor. He would need this when he moved some things into the place.

  He rested his hand on his stomach when the doors opened and he felt a slight twinge. The doctors had advised him to get a lot of rest and relaxation. This house would accomplish that goal…but not much of anything else.

  As Thane explored each room, he found the furniture to be oversized and comfortable looking. The home reminded him of Elizabeth’s house in Virginia Beach, or rather Gunnar’s house now, except it didn’t have an abundance of doilies.

  Thane reached the top floor and walked around the open space with pitched ceilings. In every part of the house, he thought about Kari and how much she would like this place. He’d wanted Kari to be with him the first time he came here. He messed up that relationship. As much as he wanted to blame his misguided conclusion on the drugs, he knew what he had said. He knew what he’d done. To make it all right, he knew what he had to do.

  Thane started to leave the house when he noticed an envelope sitting on a coffee table. He picked it up and opened it, thinking that maybe Mr. Ubo had left him other instructions regarding the home. The attorney had been extremely helpful in getting the utilities placed in his name.

  He opened the envelope and instead found a handwritten letter from his mother. He recognized her writing. For this, he had to take a seat.

  If you all are reading this, it means that I have gone to that great garden in the sky.

  Thane smiled at her terminology, but he felt his throat getting scratchy and tightening up the more he read.

  I know this home is a surprise. I had to have my secrets. You all shouldn’t. I hope this home brings you all closer together as a family. It’s all I dream of…well, that and grandchildren.

  Thane laughed at that line. Queen would have made a wonderful grandmother. She’d always been a great mother to the three of them.

  Be good to one another. Love each other. I will always, always love you all. Love, Mom.

  He read over the line about being good to one another. Before leaving, he pulled out his phone. As soon as he started to call the first number, he instinctively put his hand to his stomach. Usually, a call to Gunnar twisted his gut. Not this time.

  “Yeah,” the gruff man said after only the first ring.

  “Hey, Gun. How are you doing?” Thane rested his free hand on his leg as he talked to his brother.

  “You mean since you kicked me and Gid out from your hospital room? Great. Just great.” Sarcasm filled his voice.

  Thane couldn’t blame him. He had been a rotten brother to both of them.

  “What are you doing? I read online that you were released from the hospital. Thanks for telling us.”

  Thane could now hear his brother pacing through the phone. “Yep, I got out yesterday. I checked out of my hotel. As long as I remain relaxed and take my meds, I’ll be fine.” He glanced around the space. “So I’m at Mom’s house in the Outer Banks.”

  Gunnar chuckled. “You called to gloat? You want to rub it in my face that you’re in a beach house?”

  “No. I’m wondering why the hell you and Eboni aren’t here.”

  The silence on the other line had Thane wondering if Gunnar had disconnected the call.

  “You what?” Gunnar asked.

  Thane sat at the edge of the couch. “Why don’t you and your girl come down here? The house is beautiful, man. But it’s too much for me.” He glanced at the letter Queen left. “And Mom would want it that way.” He stopped. “No. I want you here. I want to see you all here.”

  “Really?”

  “You have something to write with? Let me give you the address.” As soon as Gunnar said he could write, Thane spouted the address and gave some basic directions to get to the house.

  “Eb and I have to make sure the salon is okay before we can go.” Excitement filled Gunnar’s voice.

  “Good. I was thinking maybe you all can come down this weekend. Maybe stay a week or two or more. Whatever you want.” Thane stood. “I need to get some food and stuff in the house. It’s all furnished at least. I’ll make sure there are enough towels, blankets, sheets, and stuff.”

  “Come on. It’s Mom’s house. Of course she would make sure it was stocked with everything we would need.” Gunnar laughed, which prompted Thane to join him.

  “Yeah, I suppose.” Thane nodded as he headed to the elevator. “I’m calling Gid now and see if he can make it.”

 
“Thanks, man. It’ll be good to see everyone again under one roof without it being a funeral.”

  “Or a community center dance.”

  They laughed together. The elevator dinged and Thane got inside.

  “I thought you said you left the hotel. Did I hear an elevator?” Gunnar asked.

  “You have got to see this house. It’s incredible.” He reached the bottom floor and made sure to lock all the windows and doors.

  “Can’t wait. Love you, Thane.”

  Thane stutter stepped to the front door and stopped in place. “Love you.” He did. Despite his pent-up anger and resentment, he did love Gunnar and Gideon.

  Too bad it took losing their mother, having a surgery, and missing out on the best woman he’d ever been with in his life for him to realize the importance of family.

  He turned on the house alarm and locked the door behind himself. As soon as he got into his car, he called Gideon.

  “Hey, Thane. Are you back in the hotel? You know you can stay with me and Janelle while you recover.” Gideon barely took a breath as he spoke.

  “You are always opening your home to me and the family.” Thane ran his hand over his head.

  “Of course. That’s what family does.” He grunted like he’d stood from a sitting position.

  “You’re right. So how about you and Janelle come down to the Outer Banks this weekend and stay with me at Mom’s house?” Thane looked up at the house through his car window. “I’m here right now. It’s incredible. And I’ve already called Gunnar.”

  “You did?”

  Thane nodded like his brother could see him. “He said he’s coming down with Eboni after he makes sure the salon is all straight. What about you? Can you take some time from the flower shop to hang out? I need to do some things first and get some food in here. All that was left was a frozen container of Mom’s chocolate chip cookie dough.”

  “No way.” Gideon laughed. “I’ll come down there now just for that.”

  Thane gave his brother the address of the house.

  “I’ll get up with Gunnar so that we can come down together. Thanks, Thane. This’ll be good for all of us.”