Ready To Love Again Read online

  “What’s a Thunderstick?”

  Shawn shrugged. “I dunno. Tony said it helps you bat.”

  “Let’s just get a glove and some balls until we talk to your coach, okay?”

  He nodded and grinned. Katie loved to see him excited about something. Since the divorce, the only things Shawn had been interested in were creepy crawlies and trouble. Maybe redirecting his energy would be a good thing. Now she needed to figure out how she would make her schedule work around baseball.

  ~*~

  Chase woke to the sound of his bedroom door creaking open. He kept his eyes closed, hoping the intruder would let him have a few more minutes of sleep. Doctors’ hours could be hard on a single parent.

  He knew it was Tony by the way his feet slapped against the floor. Chase tightened his stomach muscles in anticipation of the attack that always came on Saturday mornings. He’d been caught unaware one too many times in the past. Tony bounded on the bed and plopped down on Chase’s stomach. When he didn’t get a reaction, he took Chase’s shoulders in both hands and shook.

  “Dad. It’s time to get up.”

  Chase pretended to sleep, hoping Tony would give up and let him pass out for a few more hours. He wasn’t so lucky.

  “Da-ad, it’s Saturday.” Chase heard the disappointment in his whine, so he cracked one eye open and was startled to see his son’s face inches from his own.

  “I knew you were awake,” Tony exclaimed as his small fingers pried open Chase’s other eye.

  Chase grabbed his son’s wrists in one hand and tickled his ribs with the other. “Do you know what happens when little boys wake up their grumpy dads?”

  Tony laughed harder when the tickling sped up. “S-stop, Da-dd-dy.” His giggles turned into full-out snorts.

  “You’re too funny, Tony,” Chase said with a smile and shook his head at the sounds coming out of his boy. He’d accepted a long time ago that Tony gave him the strength to keep going on the days when he wanted to give up. Tony loved without ever wanting anything in return and provided the example Chase needed to cope with Liz and her outbursts.

  His son climbed under the covers and reached for the remote control on the nightstand, handing it to him. “It’s your turn to pick,” Tony said before he fluffed the pillows under his head.

  Saturday morning was their father-son bonding time over cartoons. They’d started the ritual when Terri died. For a while, Liz had joined them, but recently she’d decided she was too old for cartoons. Chase flipped on the television and scanned through the options until he came across Tony’s favorite—SpongeBob.

  Tony sang along when the intro came onto the screen. Chase rolled his eyes. What had happened to the classics like Tom and Jerry, Scooby-Doo, and The Road Runner?

  His bedroom door opened, and Liz’s head poked in. She gave him an awkward smile when he motioned for her to join them. Tiptoeing in as if she didn’t want to interrupt, she stopped halfway to the bed. Chase hated to see her hesitation.

  “Come here, sweetheart.” He held his arms out for her, and she scurried over. With a quick hop, she squeezed into the small space at her father’s side and laid her head on his shoulder.

  They spent most of the morning in bed watching cartoons and enjoying each other’s company. Afterward, Tony, Liz, and Chase packed up the baseball gear and drove to the field.

  It was the third year Chase had coached for the Carmel Youth Baseball League, so he felt confident in his abilities. It helped that he had Daniel, who was not only a restaurant entrepreneur but also a retired third baseman for San Francisco, as his assistant coach. When he wasn’t building his restaurant empire, Daniel spent most of his time surfing or volunteering with the youth programs around town. Chase always asked him why he wasn’t the coach since he was more qualified than anyone else, but his reply was always the same: “I’m great with teenage kids, but the pygmies would eat me alive!”

  Daniel wasn’t joking. After the novelty of being coached by a pro baseball player wore off, the kids soon realized he was a big pushover. At least when he and Gina finally had kids they’d have a mother who was a seasoned drill sergeant.

  All in all, Chase and Daniel made a good team. They got along like brothers and had the same philosophy when it came to kids’ sports. Sometimes Daniel’s competitive nature came out and Chase had to reel him back in, but they worked together to instill dedication and team unity in the boys.

  Gina pulled into the parking lot at the field as Chase got out of the car and began to unload the gear. He’d arrived early in hopes that he could get the most desirable assignment, which was to evaluate the boys who wanted to pitch.

  All the coaches participated in assessing the skills of the children trying out. They were to give an overall score in each category—batting, catching, throwing, and experience. This ensured that all the coaches would know where each boy’s skills stood, even if they hadn’t seen the child’s performance. The system was far from perfect, and some coaches tried to cheat. They’d give lower scores to children they had their eye on to throw the other coaches off the trail. It was all a part of the process, and they had to be good at picking talent without relying on the skewed numbers. That was why Chase always wanted to be in the pitching area.

  This season, his biggest concern was that guaranteeing Shawn a place on their team would mean sacrificing one of the better players. The good news was the most coveted pitcher in the league was already on Chase’s team, because that pitcher was his son.

  Chase walked up to the assignment desk where one of the coaches checked off names and signed in latecomers.

  “Hey there, O’Donnell. When are you going to stop coaching and let us have a crack at Tony?” The coach laughed at his own jibe.

  “Not going to happen, Coach.” Chase smirked and waved Tony over so they could give him a number to safety-pin to his shirt. “I’d like to be over at the pitching area.”

  “That’ll be fine. Where do you want Daniel?” he asked, marking the assignment on a clipboard.

  “He’d love to be in the batting area,” Chase said over his shoulder when he and Tony turned away to jog over to Gina.

  “Can you keep an eye on the kids?” he asked her. “Tryouts won’t officially start for another half an hour.”

  “Sure, whatever you need,” Gina said.

  Chase gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before making his way over to the baseball diamond where the pitching would take place. Taking his time, he set up the pitchers net and then threw a few fastballs while he waited for tryouts to begin. He loved the game and relished his memories of college, where he’d spent a good portion of his time on the baseball field. There was still the painful reminder of a shoulder surgery that couldn’t fix his torn labrum, which had prevented him from continuing to play ball in college. One thing he was determined to do was to teach the boys he coached not to overburden their arms, and that included his baseball-crazed son.

  ~*~

  Katie and Shawn arrived at the field, which was packed with children in baseball uniforms and parents talking animatedly in small groups. Shawn took off toward Tony, who stood next to a woman with long, dark hair. Her olive skin was flawless and her smile dazzling.

  “Hi, I’m Shawn’s mom, Katie.”

  “It’s so nice to meet you, Katie. I’m Gina.” She took Katie’s hand in a firm grip. “Tony hasn’t stopped talking about Shawn since Monday.”

  Katie laughed. “The same goes for Shawn. It’s a tie between Tony and baseball. It seems your son has brainwashed my child.”

  Gina laughed again and shook her head. “Tony’s my nephew. Chase, his dad, is helping evaluate the boys, so I’m hanging out with the kids to make sure they don’t get into trouble.”

  Katie apologized for her assumption before looking around at the chaos. “I’m not sure what we need to do,” she said. “This is Shawn’s first time playing baseball.”

  Gina pointed to a small table. “That’s where you register. Come on, I’ll walk you through
it. We’ve done this for a few years.”

  Katie called Shawn over, and Tony followed them to the registration table. Once Shawn was set up with his number, the boys ran to the first station.

  A blond-haired girl ran up. “How long is this going to take, Aunt Gina?” she asked with a frown.

  “It’ll be at least an hour.” Looking back at Katie, Gina said, “This is Elizabeth, Tony’s sister. Liz, this is Katie.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Elizabeth.”

  Liz smiled, and Katie noticed that she looked more like her brother when she wasn’t scowling.

  “It’s nice to meet you, too.” Liz turned to her aunt with pleading eyes. “Can I go hang out with Shannon and Marissa? They just got here.”

  Gina looked around until she located the girls. “Yes, that’s fine. Just stay out of the boys’ way, okay?”

  Liz nodded and took off toward the bleachers.

  “So, Katie, Tony said you moved to Carmel recently.”

  Katie nodded. “We’re from Albuquerque, but I went to school at CSUMB, so I’ve lived here before.”

  “At least you’re somewhat familiar with the area. My brother and I were raised in the Bay area, so we’ve lived on the central coast our whole lives.”

  “There’s my bonnie wee lass!” A smooth, deep voice came from behind Katie, and she spun around to face an extremely handsome man.

  “I’m quarter Irish, half Italian, and a quarter mutt, Daniel—not Scottish,” Gina said with a laugh.

  Daniel shrugged, then smiled at Katie. “And who is this lovely lady?”

  He had a huge grin and bright blue eyes. His light-brown hair had severe blond highlights from prolonged sun exposure, or maybe even a little highlighting.

  “Katie,” she stuttered, stunned by his striking features.

  Gina punched Daniel in the arm. “You’re as bad a flirt as my father,” she said before she turned to Katie with a twinkle in her eye. “This is my fiancé, Daniel Johnson.”

  Two-for-two on the unavailable men front.

  Daniel opened his arms wide. “Gina, you know you’re the only girl for me. Let me prove it.”

  “Don’t even think about it, Daniel.” He made a grab for her, but she ducked under his arms and darted around Katie.

  “Come on, Gina. I’ve seen that fiery, Irish lass behind all that Italian bravado. I just want a little kiss.”

  She peeked over Katie’s shoulder while he continued to stalk her. Katie laughed at his playfulness before she jumped out of his way. His arms wrapped around Gina, pinning her arms with his muscular limbs. Daniel pressed his lips to Gina’s with a loud mwah.

  Katie could tell that Gina loved every moment, but she pushed at his chest until he let go of her. Rolling her eyes, Gina turned her back to him. “Don’t you have a baseball to chase or something?”

  He gave her a swat on the behind, making her jaw to drop, and she spun around to retaliate. Daniel had already turned and jogged away. His boisterous laugh reverberated back to them. “See you girls later,” he called.

  Gina turned to Katie with an exasperated sigh, and even though she flaunted her irritation, Katie could tell that underneath the embarrassment Gina loved the attention.

  “So what is it that you do?” Katie asked to alleviate the awkwardness of Daniel’s departure.

  “I’m the events coordinator at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I have the fun job of planning corporate events and weddings.”

  Katie smiled at the coincidence. “I start working at the aquarium this week.”

  Gina lit up. “Seriously? What were you hired to do?”

  “I’m a research biologist, but I’m starting out as an aquarist until a position opens up with the white shark project.”

  “This is so exciting. I can’t believe we’ll be working together. Well . . . not really working together, but you know what I mean,” Gina said with a large grin.

  “It’ll be nice to know someone before I start. I haven’t worked except for volunteering since I was in college, so I’m a little nervous about the whole thing.”

  Gina nodded before filling in Katie about the different departments. By the time she finished, Katie felt better about the prospect of going back to work.

  “So are you familiar with the events in the area?” Gina asked.

  “No, not really.”

  Gina led Katie over to the bleachers, and they watched while Daniel threw soft pitches to the children at bat.

  “Well, there’s the Feast of Lanterns in Pacific Grove in the summer, and they also have this thing called The Good Old Days next month. Then there’s the Jazz festival in September, and we have a fantastic night life on the Row and in downtown Monterey.”

  “It sounds like there’s a lot to do around here, but I’m afraid between work and Shawn, I won’t have a lot of time. I’m still worried about how I’m going to get him to baseball practices during the week.”

  “I wouldn’t mind picking him up,” she said. “He could come home with Tony and Liz after school, and Chase or I could take him to practice on those days.”

  Katie hated to impose, but she didn’t feel like she had many options. “That would be a huge help. Thank you.”

  “Now we just need to make sure Shawn is on Chase’s team. I’ll talk to him tonight.”

  “I know that would make Shawn happy. I think he and Tony are permanently attached at the hip.” Katie nodded toward the two boys, who were talking with two larger boys by a concession stand.

  Gina laughed. “Don’t worry—it’ll all work out.”

  ~*~

  The tryouts crawled to an end, but Chase had been impressed with several of the newcomers and made a note to ask Daniel how they had done with batting.

  “Hey, Dad.”

  He looked up from his clipboard. His son was walking toward him with a dark-haired boy. He was lean, but not too lanky, with dark, spiky hair and a swagger that only came from a child who had confidence in who he was. He was dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt, a sure sign of a newbie since most of the other boys wore their old baseball uniforms.

  “Hey, slugger. Is this your new friend Shawn?” Chase asked when they approached.

  Tony nodded.

  “Nice to meet you, Shawn. I’m Coach O’Donnell. Have you played baseball before?” Shawn shook his head. “That’s okay. Do you have a glove?”

  “No, sir.” Eyes downcast, he toed the dirt with his shoe. The confidence Chase had noticed while he walked with Tony vanished and was replaced with uncertainty.

  “Not a problem, sport.” Chase turned to his son. “Why don’t you let him borrow your glove, and we’ll test you when Shawn’s done?”

  Tony smiled and handed his prized possession over to his friend. Shawn slipped it on, and Chase could see a hint of apprehension in his stance.

  “It’s okay, Shawn. We’re just going to throw a few baseballs. It’s not like a test at school. I just want to see what you need to work on.”

  “Okay, Coach. I’m ready.”

  He seemed to gain more confidence after the first few throws. “All right, let me see you throw it as hard and straight as you can.”

  Shawn nodded. He focused on Chase’s mitt without breaking his concentration, and Chase noted the determination in his eyes. Taking a deep breath, Shawn pulled back and let it fly.

  His form was a mess and the pitch was a little high and outside, but he packed a sting. Chase recognized the potential. A kid with drive and no experience was worth ten kids with talent and no determination.

  “Great throw, kid!”

  Chase threw the ball back to him, and Shawn caught it without difficulty, giving Chase hope that there was some natural talent under his inexperience.

  “Let’s see you do it again.”

  Shawn nodded, and Chase saw the same resolve when he wound up and threw the ball. Chase was impressed when Shawn hit the target in the same spot as his previous throw. They could work on accuracy, but consistency was a valued asset.

&nbs
p; “That was fantastic, Shawn. Are you sure you haven’t played before?”

  Shawn beamed at Chase’s praise. “Nope. I’ve been listening to everything Tony’s been telling me. I really want to be a pitcher.”

  Chase ruffled Shawn’s hair and pointed him over to Tony. “I think we can make that happen. Go give Tony his glove, and we’ll get him tested.”

  He remembered Tony mentioning that Shawn’s mother was a single parent and new to the area, so he wondered if she had someone who could practice with Shawn. He made a note on his clipboard to talk to her and see if she was okay with Shawn getting in a little extra coaching time.

  ~*~

  The more Katie got to know Gina, the more she liked her. She was spunky, albeit a little pushy, and had a no-nonsense attitude when it came to Tony and Liz. If Gina hadn’t corrected Katie, she would have thought Gina was their mother, considering how well she handled them. Katie was confident her child would be well taken care of when he was in Gina’s care.

  “Damn, what is that woman doing?” Gina glared over Katie’s shoulder.

  Katie looked behind her to find a woman with bright red hair, dragging Shawn behind her. Her jaw clenched when she recognized the woman from his class. She wore a lemon yellow shirt, which was unbuttoned to reveal the top of the red lace on her bra, with Daisy Dukes that barely covered her rear. Her bright-colored clothing only enhanced the birdlike effect that Katie remembered from their first encounter. When she noticed the woman’s long talons digging into Shawn’s arm, Katie went into mama-bear mode and flew down the bleachers, ready to confront the woman who was manhandling her son.

  As soon as the woman saw Katie, she released Shawn’s arm. “Your son is a menace,” the bird-woman said in an irritated snarl.

  “Who are you, and why the hell are you yanking my son around?” Katie said between clenched teeth, ignoring her question.

  Shawn’s eyes widened. The only time she swore in front of him was when Victor pushed her past the point of rational thought.

  The woman’s hair flew wildly around her face, and her cheeks were flushed with anger. She glared at Katie then pointed her long, hot-pink fingernail at Shawn.