Out of Left Field (24 page)

“
A very special girl.” He flashed a smile he didn’t feel. “I’ve gotta get on the road. What can I do for you?”

More giggles bounced through the air, grating on his nerves worse than nails on a chalkboard. The girls turned around to show off his name on their backs, and he felt … nothing.

“
Will you sign our shirts?” They even supplied the Sharpie.

He did a quick swish and sign.

“
Can we get a picture, too?” the other girl asked, brandishing a camera.

***

Frankie’s heart leaped into her throat. Xavier stood in the parking lot near his car with his arm around a girl. A very young, barely beyond jailbait girl. Her friend held up the camera and insisted she cuddle closer into his side.

That he only posed for a picture didn’t stop the clawing jealousy from shredding her insides. She stepped back into the shadows, hoping she wouldn’t be seen.

She’d succeeded with keeping her distance pretty well since returning from Boston. Even as every part of her urged her to seek him out, to finish what they’d started, like a chicken, she avoided him. She’d promised herself she would put distance between them.

She’d told herself it would be best to stay away from him. Yeah, she was a big, fat, liar-liar. She couldn’t bear to be anywhere near him because she’d fallen hopelessly in love with him.

The two girls giggled while they traded places. Xavier added his signature just above the block letters of his name on her back then smiled and posed for another picture.

Frankie reminded herself shirts like theirs could be purchased anywhere and didn’t mean anything. But knowing didn’t stifle the desire to rip them off the little groupies’ bodies.

She watched the photo shoot come to an end and the girls walk away. She breathed a sigh of relief until one of the girls hollered over her shoulder, “Have fun with Emma. She’s a very lucky girl.”

Frankie’s chest constricted around her heart and lungs. Tears prickled in her eyes. She’d been kidding herself when she thought letting him go and moving on with her life would be easy. She’d even convinced herself seeing him every day wouldn’t matter. She’d been such a fool.

Xavier chuckled and offered a final wave before sliding down into the driver’s seat of his jet-black sportscar. The engine growled to life, deep and menacing like an animal about to be unleashed. The growl intensified to a roar and gravel arced from the sudden spin of the tires.

Frankie blinked to keep her tears at bay. She didn’t want to leave the job she loved, but seeing him every day wasn’t an option either. Hearing his voice echoing through the corridor or having his file cross her desk or catching a whiff of his cologne in the hallway drove her to the verge of crying every time.

He’d start traveling with the team this week, giving her a welcome reprieve. Another MRI would show his shoulder had healed then he’d be back full time.

She climbed into her SUV and started the engine. The radio blared with the slow, agonizing plea for just the right man to come into her life. She dropped her forehead and, closing her eyes, sighed.

From what she could tell their distance hadn’t affected Xavier in the least. Jeff complained his attitude sucked, but that was simply par for the course. X’s attitude always sucked when it came to PT.

She toppled into the memory of her conversation with Grayson this afternoon.

“
I’m worried about him. He’s … moping.”

“
Not moping, just brooding. That’s nothing new.”

Grayson shrugged, but his shrewd gaze told her he didn’t agree. “It’s something else. He’s … different since you guys came home.”

Frankie busied herself, stacking the papers on her desk. This topic was so not open for discussion, especially with Xavier’s best friend.

The door to her office opened and she looked up to see Grayson in the doorway. “I don’t know what happened between you two, but you should seriously consider giving him a chance.”

“
I can’t.” So much for unopen topics.

Grayson nodded, his smile tight, his eyes understanding. He then walked out of her office, closing the door behind himself.

The ringing of her cell brought her back to the here and now and made her smile. She lifted her head from the steering wheel and fished out her phone. She accepted the call, grateful when the suggestive lyrics about Speedos at the beach stopped.

“
Hey, Chris.”

“
That’s it! I am done with this moping.”

Making sure her Bluetooth was in place, she shifted the car into gear and headed out of the parking lot. “I’m not moping.”

Christian snorted. “I’m taking you out.” She opened her mouth to protest and he grunted. “Huh uh, no arguments. We’re going to see a movie and you’re going to laugh your ass off. How long ‘til you’re home?”

“
Twenty minutes.”

“
I’ll be there.” And the line went dead.

She tossed her phone onto the passenger seat. Okay, so maybe she was moping. That’s what happened when your heart broke into a million pieces. Christian should consider himself lucky he didn’t need a mop to soak up all the tears she kept locked up on the inside.

***

Xavier stood in front of the toy department and bit his lip. He never ventured into this section of the big box store. He should get out more. They had some really cool things. Much cooler than when he was a kid.

He had to remind himself he shopped for a little girl, but couldn’t stop himself from taking a stroll down all the aisles. Trucks, action figures, kickass LEGOS sets. He’d loved LEGOS.

Were those Transformers?

He laughed to himself and picked up a couple of the toys. There was a yellow one with a black stripe he couldn’t resist. He felt like an idiot. Grown men did not buy toys for themselves, but the thought didn’t stop him from tucking the giant box under his arm.

With a satisfied smile on his face, he found the pink aisles. He wondered what Emma liked.

A pair of dress-up shoes caught his attention and, like an invisible tether guided him, he stood in front of the boas and dresses and those shoes. His baby sister, Shayne, had a pair just like these, purple straps with pink feathers and clear heels. He smiled thinking of her clomping around the hard wood floors of their home, carrying her Cabbage Patch Kid. She never went anywhere without that doll.

Two aisles over, he found exactly what he’d been looking for. There had to be at least twenty of the stupid things. He thought of Emma with her shiny brown hair, her deep jade eyes, her infectious smile. Separating out all the brown haired dolls, he created a line of dolls on the top shelf then pulled out the ones with eyes other than green. He’d narrowed it down to four dolls: one with an art set, one with curly hair and overalls, and two of the same style of white shirts and frilly pink skirts.

He frowned. Emma’s hair was straight, so he removed that doll. Emma liked to color, but Xavier thought the other two dolls were cuter. He shook his head. He’d never picked out dolls before and wanted to make Emma happy. He had no idea how to choose between the other two dolls. They were identical. Then he remembered the ridiculous names the Doll Gods gave them.
Ah-ha!
The deciding factor.
Macy Rose or Greta Lilly?
Well, hell, that made it easy.

He tucked Macy Rose under his arm, retrieved the Transformers toy from the floor where he’d set it during his doll inspection and headed for the check out. The girl at the register smiled when he placed the toys on the counter.

“
Single dad? We see a lot of guys making up for not being around all the time.” She softened the slam with a big grin.

“
I don’t have kids.”

Her smile widened. “I get off in about twenty minutes.”

“
Not interested, sweetheart.” He motioned toward the toys on the counter. “I’m only here for these.”

Her hands shook as she rang up and bagged the stuff. He felt a little bad for shooting her down as hard as he had. Hell, he was old enough to be her father and wasn’t it just sad he
didn’t
have children of his own at his age. He gathered the bags and took the receipt she held out to him.

“
Thank you.”

She ignored him to welcome the next guy in line. She wouldn’t be leaving alone. It might take the full twenty minutes remaining in her shift, but Xavier had no doubt one of the guys standing in her line would take her up on her offer. He wanted to explain that guys were assholes, unworthy of her, and that she should wait until she found somebody who was before she got intimate with them.

What the hell had happened to him?

He knew exactly what had happened, but refused to think of her. He snapped his thoughts down tight and thought of Emma. The doll he’d gotten for her would be perfect. He popped the trunk on his car and placed the toys inside. Damn, he’d forgotten a bow or a card. He considered going back in, but the ring of his cell phone stopped him.

He answered, knowing this would be the call Grayson had warned him would come. “Hello, Princess.”

“
Uncle Xavier, where are you?” came the greeting. “Mom says we can’t eat until you get here and I am starving clear to death. Did you know I’m five today?”

He laughed. “I am on my way. I’m hungry too and yes, I did know you’re five today.”

“
Did you get me a present?” Jane’s reprimand came through clear as if she’d spoken directly to him. “Mom says it’s okay if you didn’t. But it
is
my birthday and it
is
a par—”

“
I’m sorry,” Jane said into the phone. “You do not have to get her a gift.”

Xavier was sure Jane’s cheeks bore the reddened stain of her humiliation and he shook his head, chuckling. “I already did. I’ll be there in about ten minutes.”

“
Okay. We’ll see you then.” He pulled the phone away, but put it back to his ear when she continued to speak. “I’m really glad Grayson talked you into joining us. He says you’re kind of down these days.”

“
Yeah, your husband talks too much.”

She laughed. “He just worries. We’ll see you in a few.”

This time the line did go dead. He still didn’t have a bow or any gift wrap and didn’t feel like braving the store again. The outside of the bag was bright red, the inside white. He took the toy he’d bought for himself—he couldn’t believe he’d actually done that—out of the bag and set it on the black carpet in the truck, then removed the doll. Turning the bag inside out, he slipped the doll back into the bag and tied the handles together. Not bad.

He frowned. It didn’t look like a present. But there wasn’t much he could do about it.

Back behind the wheel, he began the short drive to the Pierce’s. He glanced down at the console and noticed the black Sharpie the girls had left behind. He smiled and nodded. The gift would look like a gift once he’d finished with it.

***

A squeal followed the opening of the door. Emma launched herself into his arms. She kissed his cheeks. “I’m so glad you’re here.
Finally
.”

“
Emma!” Jane shook her head. She wiped her hands on her apron and opened her arms for a hug. Xavier shifted the wiggling Emma to his hip and accepted the hug, wrapping an arm around Jane. She kissed his cheek. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“
I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be.”

Emma slithered off his hip and down his leg. She grabbed the bag out of his hand. “Is this for me? Did you draw all these pictures? Oh, man, is that supposed to be a balloon or a monkey?”

Jane’s cheeks did exactly as he’d imagined them before, turning bright pink. “That child has no filter. If I didn’t know better I’d say she was
your
daughter.”

Xavier laughed as Jane shooed her daughter into the kitchen. He’d learned to love Jane. She was a good woman, the perfect match for Grayson.

In the beginning Xavier had been skeptical, voicing his opinion on the matter. A lot. He’d had lots of fences to mend and it’d taken years before he’d made it up to Jane. Now he felt like one of the family. An honorary Pierce.

Grayson’s mother’s death three years ago had affected him as deeply as Grayson, the two men shamelessly crying as they sat side by side on the tiny pew in Salina, Utah.

Grayson shared his family with Xavier, giving him the one thing he’d always wanted more than anything in his life.

“
I’m opening it!” Emma announced, and before Jane could stop her, she had the bag ripped open and pulled the doll out. Xavier felt his surge of pride and achievement melt into defeat when her little brows folded in the middle and her lips formed a perfect pout. “Oh.” She tipped her head to the side. “It’s a fat baby.”

The three adults broke out in laughter. Emma’s two older sisters grabbed the box away and raved about the
adorable baby
. Eleven-year-old Kamryn took the box between her hands while eight-year-old Sami pointed to the name.