Pride flooded Kate's mind but even the positive thoughts about her daughter weren't enough to wash away the anger she was feeling toward Joy. Her mind was racing and Kate was trying to think of something pleasant to say instead of letting out the bloodcurdling scream that she felt in her chest.
"Hey, Mom. Hey Granddad!" Dana greeted as she jogged up to her family. "Coach Thompson is taking the team out for pizza. Is it okay if I go?"
"Sure, Honey," Kate answered masking her anger.
"And I think some of the girls are going to spend the night at Monica's house." Dana hesitated. "Unless you need me to come home," she said softly.
Kate could tell Dana was still worried about her grandfather's health but she also wanted to hang out with her friends.
"Go ahead and have fun with your friends, Sweetie. I'll watch out for your grandfather."
"Nobody has to watch out for me," Mr. Warner interjected with a laugh. "I am fully capable of taking care of myself."
Kate felt a sudden wave of guilt wash over her. If she hadn't been spending so much time with Joy maybe she would have been able to see that her father needed to slow down before he had a stroke.
"Are you coming with us, Joy?" Dana asked cheerfully.
"Sure. I'm up for a celebratory slice!" Joy replied.
"Great! Can I ride in the convertible with you?"
Before Joy could answer Kate interrupted. "Dana, I think you'd better ride with your teammates."
Kate didn't look at Joy when she spoke but Dana knew her tone of voice well enough not to protest. Kate still didn't understand everything she'd read in the article but until she got to the bottom of it she wasn't going to allow Dana to go anywhere in that car with Joy.
Chapter 22
"That was a pretty good game," Coach Thompson said as she took a seat next to Joy at the pizza parlor. "We really couldn't have played that well without your help. You really have a gift with kids."
It made Joy feel good that she'd been helpful and having something other than her own problems to focus on was helping her manage what had happened on the video call with her father.
"So, are you headed back to Japan soon?" Coach Thompson asked.
Joy just shrugged. "I don't really know. My agent called with an offer but to be honest I'm not sure if I want to go back overseas."
"What about the NFP?," Coach Thompson asked. "I'm sure some team here in the states would love to have you."
"Yeah, but the salary cap is the problem. The NFP teams can't afford to match my salary with their current rosters and I can't live on what those teams pay alone." Joy just shook her head. Hearing it all out loud just made it seem even more hopeless.
"Well, I'm sure something will work out. You're a talented player and the game needs you."
Joy nodded at the Coach's complement but the question in her mind was did she still need the game?
Joy glanced over at Dana who was laughing and joking with her teammates. After spending so much time with Kate, Dana and Mr. Warner what Joy really felt she needed was family. She still didn't know exactly how Kate felt about the two of them but Joy wanted to find out before she made her next decision.
After the girls finished their pizza everyone loaded into various cars to go home. Joy felt a little strange driving back to the Warner's alone. She knew Coach Thompson had several girls to drop off and it seemed like it would have made more sense for Dana to just ride back with Joy. But for some unknown reason, Kate didn't seem to want Dana to do that. Maybe she was just making sure that Dana enjoyed the last bit of time with her friends before the summer was over.
When Joy pulled her car up to the Warner's house she headed straight for the front door and knocked. Between Kate looking after her father and Joy helping with the softball team, they really hadn't spent a lot of time together in the past day or so and Joy realized that she missed Kate.
"Hey!" she said cheerfully when Kate answered the door.
The expression on Kate's face worried Joy. Clearly, something was wrong.
"Is your dad okay?" Joy asked as her mind jumped to the most obvious possibility.
Kate didn't speak but looked straight at Joy. She opened her mouth as if she was going to say something but then closed it without speaking a word. Instead, she pulled her cell phone out of her back pocket, tapped the screen a few times and then handed the phone to Joy.
It took all Joy had to remain upright. The article was from a small local paper that not many people read in print but it had a pretty decent online following. In spite of the strings her father had pulled to keep the story out of the press, he'd obviously missed this news outlet.
Joy scrolled through the article. When she reached the end she was tempted to move on to the comments section but she'd been in the public eye long enough to know that nothing good ever came from reading the comments. She slowly lifted her gaze and was greeted with the coldest look she'd ever seen on Kate's face. Even colder than when Kate was mad at Sam.
"Kate. I. It's not what you think," Joy started to explain.
"It's not what I think?" Kate asked in a measured tone like she was holding back the anger she obviously felt. "So you weren't in a DUI accident? You didn't total a car? You haven't been driving my daughter around town since you've been here?"
Now it was all clear. This was why Kate had objected to Dana riding home with her. Joy let out a long sigh. She couldn't blame Kate for being angry but she needed to explain that she'd never put Dana in any danger.
"And you let me tell you the story about my mom and didn't say anything!" Kate's voice was getting louder each time she spoke. "How dare you!"
"It's not like that, Kate." Joy knew the next thing she said could either help the situation or make it a lot worse but she didn't have a choice. She had to tell Kate the whole truth. "I've not had anything to drink since I've been here -- I promise. As a matter of fact, I'm actually here getting help. My whole reason for being here was so that Dr. Turner could help me work through the problem that created this situation."
At the sound of Dr. Turner's name, Kate's face grew even more stony. She held her hand out asking for her phone back. When Joy returned the device Kate tapped the screen a few times and then held it up. Joy stared at a picture of herself and her heart sank. The picture had been taken the night she went to Sally's. The night she ran into Sam for the second time. The night she'd ordered the beer. Under the picture a text message read, Maybe we need to reevaluate who should have custody of our daughter?
Joy's heart dropped to the pit of her stomach. Sam was threatening Kate because of Joy.
"I didn't drink it!" Joy said quickly. "I promise! I was upset because of something that happened in my therapy session and I needed -- wanted -- a drink to calm my nerves but I promise you I didn't have a drop. You believe me don't you?"
The expression on Kate's face didn't change. "I don't know what to believe, Joy. What I do know is that this isn't a game for me. This is my -- an my daughter's life. I thought you might want to be a part of that but," Kate hesitated choking back tears. "But right now I'm not even sure if I know who you are. What I do know is that I have to protect my daughter and right now that means keeping her away from you!"
❤️❤️❤️
When Kate woke up the next morning her eyes were still puffy from crying herself to sleep. She still felt like someone had attached an electric cord to her heart and turned up the voltage. Her emotions were vacillating almost uncontrollably between anger and hurt and she couldn't get her thoughts straight. How could Joy have kept all of this from her? Sure they hadn't even known each other a month but to keep the kind of secrets Joy kept -- it was just unforgivable.
The smell of frozen toaster waffles drifted under Kate's bedroom door. A sure sign that Dana was up and had eaten. The smell made Kate's stomach growl remaining her that she'd gone to bed last night without eating dinner. Otherwise there was no way store-bought waffles would ever be tempting.
Kate threw on her robe and shuffled
into the kitchen.
"Good morning, Sleepy-head," her father greeted from the dining room table. "There's some coffee left in the pot if you're interested. Dana made it. It's not bad," he said taking another sip. "Not as good as her mother's but not bad."
Kate went into the kitchen and poured herself a cup. When she tasted the coffee she had to agree with her father. "She's growing up," Kate said more to herself than to him as she sat down with her coffee and a two frozen waffles.
"How are you handling that?"
Kate sat quietly thinking about her father's question. As angry as she was at Joy she knew deep down part of her reaction was because Kate was struggling with the reality that she wouldn't always be able to protect Dana from the bad things in life. She was going to have to trust that she'd taught her daughter well and let her learn to handle things.
"I'm not handling it very well," Kate admitted. "But that's not the only thing that's bothering me."
As Kate told her father about the article and the picture Sam sent her Mr. Warner just sat quietly. When she finished she looked into her father's eyes. "I don't know what to do, Daddy," she said. The admission brought the tears back.
Mr. Warner got up slowly from his seat and walked over to Kate's side of the table. "Well, first of all, we're going to call Sam and tell him to stop making silly threats about Dana. You know good and well he's not really interested in caring for her full time. He's just bent out of shape because you've met someone who is."
Kate snapped her head up and looked at her father.
"Joy cares about Dana," he said adamantly. "Now I don't know what may have happened to her before she got here, but what I do know is that she'd never let anything bad happen to Dana on her watch."
The truth of her father's statement sobered Kate. She realized she'd been so quick to rush to judgement because of her fear and anger that she didn't even take into consideration what she'd seen take place between Joy and Dana over the past few weeks. She at least owed Joy a chance to explain and maybe even owed her an apology.
Kate decided to take a shower and then go talk to Joy face-to-face. The warm water helped her clear her head and calmed her nerves enough to make her open to what was bound to be a difficult conversation. As soon as Kate opened the front door the first thing she noticed was that Joy's car was gone. Because of Joy's confession last night Kate now knew Joy was probably visiting with Dr. Turner during the times when she seemed to disappear for a few hours. Maybe that was where she was now. Kate was just about to go back inside when she noticed a piece of paper attached to the batting cage fluttering in the wind.
When she got close enough she could see that it was a hand written note addressed to Dana.
There's no way I can fit this in the back of my car and I know you'll make good use of it! Enjoy it! And keep that shoulder down! Love, Joy!
Kate blinked and then read the note again. She was touched by Joy's kind gift but why would she leave a note like this now? She still had a whole week before she was scheduled to leave since she'd agreed to stay and help Kate's father with the landscaping. Then a thought crossed Kate's mind that brought with it a sense of panic. She turned and hurried up the stairs to the apartment. She was just about to knock on the door when she noticed the key -- still attached to the purple wrist scrunchy -- hanging around the door handle. Kate pulled it off and then quickly stuck the key in the lock. When she opened the door her worst fear was confirmed.
The sheets had been stripped from the bed and stuffed into the laundry bag sitting outside the empty closet. All the drawers in the dresser were empty, the dishes had been washed and the refrigerator had been wiped clean. Then something leaning against the window seal caught Kate's eye.
Unlike the note taped to the batting cage this one was in a sealed envelope making it clear that it was only to be read by the person who's name was written on the front.
My Dearest Kate,
I don't blame you for being mad at me. I should have told you why I was in Hersh Falls in the first place but I was afraid that if you knew it would have prevented us from getting to know each other. Now I see that wasn't the best choice.
I want you to know that I'd never hurt Dana. I honestly didn't even have a sip of the beer in that picture. In fact, because of the time I spent with you I didn't even struggle with drinking the way I had before we met.
Thank you for providing both a physical and emotional space where I could be myself. I will be forever grateful.
Please make sure Dana keeps practicing. She had a great future ahead of her!
Love Always,
Joy
Kate fell back on the unmade bed. The tears that she thought she'd cried out last night resurfaced and spilled down her cheeks. Was Joy really gone? Kate looked around the empty room in disbelief. The wonderful, unexpected summer romance was over and Kate had no one to blame but herself.
Chapter 23
"I won! I won!" Garrett yelled after attacking Joy's video game fortress and leaving it in ruins. Her nephew did a victory lap around the room which ended in a football end zone type dance.
"Sheesh, Garrett. What happened to going easy on me until I got the hang of the game?" Joy laughed.
"If I go easy on you, you'll never learn how to play well," the little boy responded with a smirk.
Joy couldn't help but laugh at his response. Garrett was almost quoting her directly. She'd said that very thing each time they'd gone outside to practice in the backyard batting cage Gary bought for his son to practice in.
"Fine," she said pretending to acquiesce. "But that doesn't mean I'm not going to do this!" With a cat-like movement, Joy pounced on Garrett and started tickling him. The little boy was giggling so hard he could barely speak when his mother walked in the room.
"Mom! Mom! Help!" he managed to blurt out.
Carla Sizemore just shook her head. "You got yourself into it, Garrett. Don't call me to rescue you now." She looked over at Joy and winked.
It had been almost a month since Joy returned to Richmond and moved into the basement of her brother Gary's house. Since then she, Gary and Carla had had a lot of open honest talks. It didn't happen overnight but eventually, she regained both their trust which meant she could spend as much time with her nephew as she wanted -- including driving him to get ice cream or to the movies.
"I don't mean to interrupt your fun but Joy you left your cellphone on the kitchen counter and it's been beeping like you missed a call." She handed the phone to Joy giving Garrett just enough time to escape her tickling clutch.
"I'm going to get a snack," Garrett said as he started up the stairs. "And when I get back I'm going to beat you at another video game, Aunt Joy!"
Joy smiled at her nephew and then looked down at her phone to see who called. As soon as she saw the 704 area code her expression changed and she felt a tightness in her stomach.
"Was it her?" Carla asked when she saw the look on Joy's face.
Once Joy and Carla had gotten on good terms again Joy confided in Carla about everything that had happened in Hersh Falls. Her sister-in-law knew Joy's heart was still hurting from the loss and she'd been a truly compassionate sounding board as Joy tried to get over her feelings for Kate.
"No. It wasn't her," Joy said quietly trying to manage her disappointment. "But the phone call did come from someone in North Carolina."
Joy tapped the voicemail icon on her phone and listened to the message from the missed call.
"Hi, Joy. This is Rita Thompson." Joy noticed that the Coach's voice sounded a little strained almost like she'd been crying. "I'm sorry to call you at the last minute like this but I really need your help. The softball tournament I told you about is this weekend and I have to leave town because of a family emergency." The Coach stopped talking and Joy could hear her sniffling in the background. "I'm sorry. It's just that my sister has fallen ill and I have to get to her in Oregon. If you're available to come down to Charlotte and help with the tournament I'd really appreciate it. Plea
se give me a call back as soon as possible. Thanks."
Christmas All Around Us ; The Perfect Time for Love ; Playing for Keeps Page 52