Dropped Third Strike (Portland Pioneers #1) (6 page)

Reid was already at the table when she entered the restaurant. He spotted her when she came in the front entrance and waved her over. As she approached, he stood and, instead of offering a handshake, pulled her into a hug. His embrace was warm and strong, just as she remembered. She was surprised at how familiar it felt after all these years. As she retreated from his grasp, she tried to shake off the nostalgia but Reid wasn’t cooperating.

“It’s so great to see you, Katie. I can’t believe we’re going to be working together after all these years.”

“It’s just Kate now,” she corrected him as she took her seat. “And you’ll be working FOR me.”

Reid cocked an eyebrow and looked at her for a minute. He laughed lightly and finally nodded.

“You’re right, I’ll be working for you, but I’d like to think of it as working with you,” he said. “You know, like when we used to study together. It started out with you tutoring me, but eventually, we were just studying together.”

He had a point, but Kate didn’t think calculus and Major League Baseball could be compared that easily. Then again, they were both situations in which each of them needed some sort of help from the other. She only hoped this time around would result in less hurt on her side of the deal. She planned to do everything in her power to guarantee that.

“That was different,” Kate said. “You needed my help for awhile, and then you didn’t. I still don’t really understand why you kept coming over to study.”

“Your mom made the best cookies in town, and I liked talking baseball with your dad,” Reid said. “I could tell it made his day.”

Kate smiled at the memory. Whenever Reid came over, he and her dad would spend the first several minutes hashing out the latest baseball headline, trade, or game. Kate had felt virtually invisible, but it had made her dad happy. Almost as happy as the day she told her father she’d gotten her first job in minor league baseball.

“It did,” Kate agreed. “He really liked you.”

“I liked him too,” he said. “I liked your whole family, even your sisters.”

Kate rolled her eyes, remembering all the study disruptions when her younger sisters thought they needed to show Reid their new dress or toy. Reid never seemed to mind. He would stop and pay attention to them every time, which only encouraged affections from the young girls. They were crushing hard on Reid, and they didn’t make a secret of it. They would giggle and even flirt a little. Kate would watch with a mixture of amusement, annoyance, and jealousy. Yes, jealousy. As a teenager, Kate was incompetent when it came to flirting. She was afraid of looking stupid or foolish, so as she watched her sisters not only flirt, but flirt successfully with Reid, she was envious.

“They liked you more than anyone else in the house,” Kate said. “They were your biggest fans.”

“And here I always thought you were,” Reid said, smiling at her.

Kate felt the heat creeping up her neck. She hoped it hadn’t reached her cheeks as his comment silenced her. She didn’t know how to respond. In truth, she had been a huge fan of his and that had been the problem. Her adoration of him had gotten in the way of her judgment, which cost her a lot in the end. She lifted her menu to study it, reading it a bit more intently than was necessary; she’d been to this restaurant hundreds of times. When the waitress arrived to take their order, she chose her usual - salmon, lightly seasoned, with steamed vegetables. Reid chose the daily special without even asking what it was. This highlighted another reason she and Reid hadn’t worked out. She liked routine and predictability while he had always been more adventurous and spontaneous.

Once the menus were no longer between them, Kate had no choice but to look across the table into those green-speckled hazel eyes, which, in turn, seemed to be studying her.

“So how have you been?” he asked. “I mean, obviously, you’re doing well, professionally, but what about the rest?”

“What else is there?”

“Well, are you married? Seeing anyone?”

Kate bristled a bit at the question. It was an innocent one and a common one, but one she never enjoyed hearing. And she definitely didn’t feel like it was any of his business. He had relinquished that right years earlier.

Reid could tell his question bothered her, as her nostrils flared slightly and she pushed her long dark hair back over her shoulder. He didn’t quite understand the hostility, but he was too distracted by her hair to dwell on that for long. Reid remembered how it had felt to run his fingers through those locks, and he had to restrain himself from reaching out to see if they were still as soft as ever. The color was basically the same, with a few auburn highlights added in.

“No and no,” she replied. “I have my work and it keeps me busy. That’s enough for me.”

“But you deserve more,” Reid said. “Someone deserves you too.”

“Funny, you didn’t seem to think so a few years ago,” she spat back.

Reid sat up a little straighter, as if she’d actually reached out and slapped him with her hand instead of just with her words. He was surprised by the bitterness of them. He frowned as he studied her. They hadn’t been in touch for a long time – each busy building their own careers. Obviously, she had done a better job of that than he had. Still, he couldn’t imagine what he’d done or said to evoke that tone in her voice.

Kate hadn’t meant for the words to come out like that. She probably shouldn’t have said anything at all. She didn’t want him to think she was still affected by him or that she ever thought about their past. But she was and she did. His memory crept up on her every now and then, but the frequency had slowed quite a bit in the last two years. She could already see that reversing. She would be seeing him practically every day for the next eight months, and those distinct eyes and that devastating smile were bound to keep her memories of him close to the surface. Granted, not all of those memories were bad ones, but the bad ones made even the good ones hurt a little.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked after a few moments of tense silence.

“Nevermind,” Kate said. “It’s been a long day, and I haven’t slept much lately with the stress of this hitting coach search. I don’t know what I’m saying,”

She reached for her glass of wine and took a sip, silently praying he would let it go. She really wasn’t in the mood to hash out their past – now or anytime in the near future. She was prepared to deal with the memories, but she wanted to deal with them on her own, without his interference.

Reid was tempted to push her but he decided against it. The ink was barely dry on his contract, and he wanted and needed this job. He also didn’t want to upset her. He had never wanted to upset her, and sensing that he had once done just that bothered him. He wished he knew what he’d done but he could tell he wasn’t getting any of those answers tonight. He decided to shift into a topic that would make her more comfortable.

“So, how’s your family? I haven’t been back home in a while. Do they still live there?”

Kate relaxed visibly as she smiled and filled him in on her family. Her parents were retired but still living in the same house. They spent much of their free time enjoying their grandchildren’s company and activities, as all four of Kate’s sisters lived within 30 minutes.

“I get to see them all when I’m in Arizona for spring training,” Kate said. “Mom and Dad also come see me for a week or so each summer. Dad makes sure it’s during a series he wants to see, of course. Mom likes baseball, too, but Dad’s the fanatic, so she lets him choose.”

“Is he still a Mets fan?”

Kate smiled, surprised he remembered that. Then again, Reid and her father had spent hours discussing baseball, so she shouldn’t have been too shocked.

“Of course,” she said. “He even bought a replica of your jersey after they signed you. He was so proud.”

Reid smiled, but then his smile faded and he looked down at the table.

“Yeah, I’m guessing he’s not so proud anymore.”             

“You’d be guessing wrong,” Kate said, noting the sudden lack of confidence in Reid’s handsome features. “I had a voicemail from him this morning. Three minutes of him ranting about the Mets letting you go. I’d say he’s still one of your biggest fans. He’ll be thrilled to know you’re working for the Pioneers now, and I’m sure he’ll be excited at the chance to see you when he visits this season. He’ll probably even ask you to autograph that jersey.”

Reid looked up at her again and although his full confidence wasn’t back, his expression didn’t seem quite so self-defeating.

“I’ll sign anything for him. It’ll be good to see him again. Your mom, too,” he said. “What about your sisters? Do you see them very often?”

“Again, usually when I’m in Arizona for spring training and again during the winter holidays,” she said. “With the kids now, they don’t get many chances to come to Portland to see me. Maybe when the kids get a little older. The oldest one, Brody, is only five; he’s starting to get into baseball, but Chelle doesn’t think he’s ready to sit through a whole game yet.”

“I can’t believe Chelle has a five-year-old,” Reid said. “She’s still 11 in my mind.”

Kate laughed.

“She’s even younger than that in my mind, but I know what you mean,” she said. “Anyway, Brody is five, and he just got a new sister, Brielle. Cassie has a three-year-old boy, Sage. Melanie has one-year-old twin girls, Ilana and Isla. Samantha has one boy, Jacob. He’s not quite one yet.”

Reid shook his head in disbelief. He’d sent enough wedding gifts to realize people their age were at the married-with-children stage. He’d also attended several of his teammates’ weddings over the years and saw many players’ children during team functions. It still seemed like a strange reality to him. He just couldn’t imagine spending his evenings helping with homework and his nights in bed with the same woman. He supposed he’d want it someday, but at the moment, marriage and parenthood sounded like a prison to him.

“Where are your parents living now?” Kate asked. “Last I knew, they’d moved to Tucson.”

“They’re still there. I don’t think they’ll ever leave Arizona, and they like the area. It took them a little while to get used to it, but my mom is in a few clubs, and my dad is big into his golf league.”

“Do you see them often?”

“Not anymore,” he said. “Just holidays, and even those are short visits.”

It was sad, but true. Reid wasn’t as close to his parents as he had once been. Sam and Kathy didn’t like the headlines they read about their son – the non-athletic ones. They didn’t care about his declining stats, but they were horrified and embarrassed by Reid’s infamous drinking and womanizing. The tabloids exaggerated his activities, but they weren’t entirely fictional. He enjoyed alcohol and women, and the New York media didn’t miss a beat. They were always waiting outside clubs and had even parked themselves outside his apartment building on more than a few occasions. The women were never embarrassed to be photographed on his arm or leaving his building in the morning. In fact, he was sure some of them only went out with him for the media attention. But that didn’t really bother Reid. After all, he always got what he wanted and needed out of the deal.

“I’ve been busy with baseball, and they don’t really like New York,” he said.

There was no way he would tell her how his relationship with his parents had crumbled. He wasn’t proud of it, and he wanted to save some face with her. He was pretty sure Kate knew all about his reputation too, but he wasn’t about to own up to it. She was already too aware of his career failures. That was enough.

“That’s too bad,” Kate said. “Well, maybe you can see them during spring training. We’ll be right in their area.”

“Yeah, maybe,” he said.

He was pretty sure he wouldn’t see them, but he wouldn’t admit that to her.

They spent the rest of the dinner discussing the business of baseball – clearly a much more comfortable topic for both of them. By the time dessert arrived, they had made it through half of the Pioneers’ lineup, discussing the strengths and weaknesses of each batter. Reid was already familiar with some of the guys, having faced them on the field or read about them, but he wanted Kate’s input too. Not only was she his boss, but she knew the game. And he knew that. He trusted her analysis, and he trusted her.

As far as he could tell, she trusted his baseball skills as well, but beyond that, he wasn’t sure. From across the table, he studied her demeanor. She was all business. She’d been pretty cold when he tried to get personal with her. He was aware their past wasn’t perfect, but he was surprised that she still seemed to be affected by it. If he wanted her friendship back – and he did – he would have to earn it. And it didn’t look like it would be an easy task.

Reid and Kate fought over the check when it arrived, but eventually she let him take it. He didn’t seem to care that she could write it off as a business expense; he wasn’t letting her pay. She should have remembered that from their past. They walked out together and she waited while he hailed a cab.

“I’ll see you tomorrow at the press conference,” he said.

“And Fan Fest,” she reminded him. “Everyone’s going to be excited to meet you.”

“I’m looking forward to it too,” he said, as a cab pulled up to the curb by him. “Well, there’s my ride.”

Before she realized what was happening, he was descending on her and she felt his lips graze her cheek gently. Kate shivered at the contact. When they parted, she stared at him with wide eyes. Reid appeared unaffected as he calmly thanked her for joining him at dinner and climbed into the cab. Kate was glad he didn’t wait for a response from her because she wasn’t sure she could have offered one. She blinked a few times, and then she turned and headed to her own car.