Christmas All Around Us ; The Perfect Time for Love ; Playing for Keeps

by Carla Kincaid

  When the message ended Joy just stared at the phone. In her mind, she could see each and every player on Coach Thompson's team -- including Dana -- and she knew how upset the girls must be that their coach couldn't be with them for the big tournament.

  "So, what are you going to do?" Carla asked after Joy filled her in on the message.

  Joy twisted her lip and her leg began to bounce up and down as she processed the request. "I kinda feel like I need to go," she finally said. "I mean it's not like I have anywhere else I have to be."

  A few weeks ago Joy had made one of the hardest decisions in her life. She turned down the contract the Hurricanes offered her. Joy knew deep down the team owners viewed her as damaged goods and was only offering her a contract because the pitcher they really wanted backed out at the last minute. Joy had decided it was better to take the season off, continue to work with a trainer to strengthen her arm and hope for a better offer the following year.

  "Are you going to call Kate when you get there?"

  Joy shrugged. That was a question she couldn't answer right now. Obviously, Kate would find out she was in Charlotte since Dana's softball team would be playing in the tournament. But if Kate hadn't reached out after all this time maybe she just wanted to be left alone.

  "I don't know," Joy told her sister-in-law. "I guess I'll just have to play it by ear."

  Felicia Mason, Coach Thompson's former teammate, picked Joy up at the Charlotte airport on Thursday night and drove her to a hotel near the ball field.

  "There's still quite a bit to do in preparation for the tournament," Felicia said as she pulled what seemed to be an endless stack of papers from a box that had been waiting for Joy in her room. "Rita has things pretty organized so I don't think you'll have too much trouble picking up where she left off."

  Joy thumbed through the pages looking at the schedule for the eight-game tournament. Saturday would be her busiest day. Not only did the team she now had to coach have a game but there were six other teams who would be competing to see who'd make it to Sunday's round of games.

  "If you need anything while you're here don't hesitate to call me," Felicia continued. "I wish I could give you more hands-on support but I'm in the middle of finishing a big business deal that demands all my attention."

  "It's okay," Joy said confidently. "I think I can handle this although I'm not exactly sure when I'm going to have time to eat or sleep," she joked.

  "Well, I can assure you that the eating part is at least taken care of. We've hired a really great caterer to prepare meals for all the teams and staff during the tournament. And I'll make sure that hot food is delivered to you so you won't even have to go over to the cafeteria at the stadium unless you want to."

  "Alright. That sounds great," Joy said. Her thoughts were already absorbed in the papers in front of her.

  "I'll have someone pick you up in the morning so you can go up to Hersh Falls to practice with the Cougars. After practice, you'll all be coming back to the hotel to get a good night's sleep before the first game on Saturday morning." Felicia paused before walking out the door. "Joy, I can't thank you enough for stepping in to help us at the last minute."

  Joy just smiled. "I'm happy to do it," she said. After all, it was making the sting of not preparing for her own softball season a little more tolerable. Now if she could only do something about the sting she felt in her heart knowing she was so close to Kate but at the same time so far away.

  ❤️❤️❤️

  "Put those boxes of apples over there," Kate instructed the delivery man coming through the door with six big boxes of fruit stacked on a dolly. "Elaine is there enough room in the freezer for all the frozen hamburger patties? I want to make sure they don't thaw out before we're ready to cook them for lunch tomorrow."

  "Yes, there's plenty of room," Elaine confirmed.

  Kate looked around the kitchen at the Tyson County Sports Stadium checking off items on her checklist to make sure she had everything she needed to feed the close to 150 people who'd be participating in the weekend softball tournament. Occasionally, she still had to pinch herself to make sure that everything that was happening was real.

  When her search for a sous chef job wasn't going very well Sally from Sally's Diner suggested something that changed Kate's whole approach to finding a new job. One of Sally's regular customers was planning a birthday party and wanted a special menu for the occasion.

  "I don't think I can handle cooking what they want," Sally confided in Kate. "But I think you can."

  The birthday event went so successfully that before Kate knew it she was getting all kinds of requests to cater small events in the area and Kate's Kitchen was born! But the softball tournament was her biggest job thus far. A whole weekend of feeding hungry players and team staff three meals a day, plus snacks in between.

  "You know I couldn't have done this without you," Kate said to Elaine as they went over the breakfast menu for Saturday morning.

  "I'm happy to help," Elaine said. "Plus, I'm looking forward to the time when Kate's Kitchen is so profitable that you can afford to hire me full time."

  Kate looked up at Elaine with surprise. She was still getting used to being a business owner and had been careful not to let her dreams about what could be rush ahead of what was happening at the moment. She'd made that mistake with her love life -- rushing into a fantasy about Joy -- and was determined not to replicate that in her business.

  "You'd leave Glenmore to work for me?" Kate asked.

  "Of course. You don't think I'm going to keep working at Glenmore alone do you?" Elaine replied. "No way! You're not breaking up this team."

  Kate hugged her friend and then went back to organizing the food for the weekend.

  "Kate, this lasagna is incredible!" Linda Bates, the coach of the Morrisville Monarchs, said when she came up to the buffet table for a second helping of the lunchtime meal on Saturday.

  "Thanks, Linda," Kate answered with a smile as she scooped another helping of lasagna onto the woman's plate.

  Kate watched Linda as she walked back to where her team was sitting. Everyone in the room seemed to be enjoying the meal too.

  "Hey, Mom, do you have any to go containers," Dana asked as she approached the catering table.

  "Why?" Kate asked laughing. "Are you trying to sneak some food back to your hotel room for later?"

  "No," her daughter responded. "It's for Joy. She's busy with some paperwork and can't come to the cafeteria to eat."

  Kate tried to keep a neutral expression on her face. She'd already failed at that when Dana first told her that Joy had come back to town to help run the tournament. When she first heard the news the shock sent a flood of emotions running through her body -- the strongest of which was sadness that Joy hadn't reached out to her when she got back in town.

  Kate put a heaping serving of lasagna into a styrofoam container along with some salad and a roll. Before she handed the container to Dana she thought about writing Joy a note and sending it along with the food but what would she say? I'm sorry? I shouldn't have reacted the way I did? I should have let you explain your side of the story? Any of those things would have been appropriate the night they last talked but Kate had missed that opportunity.

  "Tell her there's more where that came from if she gets hungry before dinner," Kate said. It wasn't exactly a grand apology but maybe Joy would at least know that Kate cared about her wellbeing.

  Chapter 24

  One more game to go, Joy thought Sunday afternoon as she pushed her calculator aside and prepared to eat some food. She'd tabulated the stats from the previous six tournament games in preparation for the post-tournament awards ceremony. Not only would there be a trophy for the winning team but individual players would receive awards based on their cumulative game stats.

  She was happy that not only had the Hersh Falls Cougars made it to the finals but Dana was also a contender for the Most Valuable New Player Award. Everything about the tournament was going great. Well,
almost everything. Joy looked at the unopened container of food with the Kate's Kitchen logo stamped on the top.

  Joy had honestly been too busy to go to the cafeteria to see Kate before the tournament started and during the games her responsibilities kept her from searching the stands to find her. Maybe she'd finally be able to talk to Kate after the tournament was all over. Joy bit into the delicious meatloaf and immediately thought about all the dinners she'd had at the Warner's.

  She closed her eyes and thought about the first time she'd tasted Kate's meatloaf. That was two whole months ago but the sore spot in her heart made it seem like just yesterday. As she ate the rest of the delicious meal, she couldn't help but wonder if she'd ever be invited to dinner there again.

  Several hours later, in the last inning of the last game of the tournament, Joy strode out to the pitcher's circle to give her relief pitcher one last set of instructions.

  "The girl up next won't be able to take your fast pitch," she said to Dana. The teen nodded but kept her eyes glued on home plate. Joy walked back to her position near the dugout and mentally crossed her fingers hoping for a strike. She watched Dana prepare for her pitch going through all the steps Joy had coached her on while she was staying in Hersh Falls. It was almost as if she could see Dana's arm moving in slow motion and then...

  "Strike three!" the umpire yelled.

  The entire Cougar team came running out of the dugout toward Dana. Joy smiled as she watched the team members lift Dana into the air while chanting her name.

  "She should probably get used to that," Felicia Mason said as she walked up to Joy. The woman was holding a three-foot trophy that would now belong to the Cougars. "And, she couldn't have done it without your help."

  Joy tried to brush off the compliment but Felicia wouldn't hear of it. "Look, I've been around this sport long enough to know the real deal from the fakes and you, Joy, are the real deal. In fact, there's something I'd like to talk to you about after the awards ceremony."

  "Sure," Joy said wondering what the wealthy real estate developer had to say.

  Felicia just smiled and pulled a t-shirt out of the bag she was carrying and draped it over her shoulder. Then she carried the first place tournament trophy out to a microphone that had been set up in the pitcher's circle.

  "Let's give a big round of applause to the winners of the Turner County Girls Softball Tournament, the Hersh Falls Cougars!"

  Joy watched as the people in the stands erupted with applause. That's when she spotted Kate standing in the distance with tears streaming down her eyes. She looked so happy and so vulnerable at the same time. Before Joy knew it she found herself walking over to her.

  "She really played a great game," Joy said awkwardly.

  Kate nodded her head and wiped the tears from her eyes then the two women both started to speak at once.

  "I'm sorry, Joy." "Kate, I'm sorry."

  The overlapping apologies caused both of them to let out an uncomfortable laugh.

  "Let me go first, please," Joy said as she gently touched Kate's arm. "I should have told you everything from the beginning but I had no idea then that I was going to feel the way about you that I do now."

  "Now?" Kate responded. "You mean you still have feelings for me even after I behaved so terribly?"

  "You weren't terrible. You were just being a protective mother. It's one of the qualities I admire most about you."

  "Well, I'm still sorry and I'm glad my behavior didn't stop you from coming back to help with the tournament. But how did you manage to do it? Aren't you supposed to be in Japan preparing for your season by now?" Kate asked.

  Joy just shrugged. "I'm not going back to Japan. I don't know what I'm going to do, but whatever it is it will be here in the states where I can be closer to the people I care about."

  Joy stared into Kate's eyes. "And you're one of those people," Joy said without looking away.

  "Excuse me, Ladies and Gentlemen." Felicia tapped the mic to get the crowd's attention again. "There's another announcement I'd like to make that I think you softball fans will find exciting." Felicia waited for the crowd to quiet down and then continued. "For the past few months I've been exploring a new business venture here in Charlotte and I'm happy to announce that last night I closed the deal." Felicia held up the t-shirt that had been draped over her shoulder. "I'd like to welcome all of you to the new home of the Charlotte Chargers -- the newest addition to the Women's National Fast Pitch Softball League."

  After a moment of stunned silence, the stadium exploded with cheers. As the crowd celebrated, Felicia walked over to where Joy and Kate were standing. "As the president of the new organization, I'd like to make an offer to a woman who I hope will be the first member of our soon to be championship winning team." Felicia held out the team t-shirt to Joy.

  Joy just stood there in shock until Kate shook her arm. She looked at Kate with a dazed expression and then put her attention back on Felicia.

  "Well, what do you say, Joy? How'd you like to be a member of our team?"

  "I. Well I... I'd be honored," Joy finally stammered.

  Just then Dana ran over to where the women were standing and threw her arms around Joy.

  "This means you can move back to our house in Hersh Falls!" the teen said enthusiastically.

  "Hold on a minute, Dana," Kate interrupted. "Joy's probably going to have a really nice place here in Charlotte. She won't need to stay in our tiny studio apartment."

  Joy looked at Kate and then at Dana. "But that doesn't mean I won't be around for dinner -- a lot," she said with a smile.

  "Oh, speaking of dinner," Felicia interrupted. "We're going to need a top-notch chef to feed our players and after the great food I've eaten here this week, I think I know where to find one." She smiled at Kate. "Do you think Kate's Kitchen can handle the job?"

  "Absolutely!" Dana and Joy replied before Kate could say a word.

  "Well, I guess we'll all be working together," Joy said looking at Kate with a smile. "On the same team. Playing for keeps!"

  THE END