Vintage Volume Two (4 page)

six

Parker was leaning against the wall across from the bathroom door in the small hallway that led to the restrooms when I exited.

He grinned. “You were in there forever. I was debating walking in to see if you were okay.”

His smile faded as he focused in on my expression. “What happened?” he asked, his voice sharp.

“Gideon found my journal in his wife’s suitcase.”

“Are you fucking serious?”

I nodded as my eyes filled with tears. “And he thinks she didn’t do it.”

Parker’s arms wrapped around me. I stood there, helpless and furious as he held me. One of his hands rubbed my back while the other brushed my hair away from my temple.

I loved it when he did that.

It was such a simple move, but it was packed with earnestness and kindness and this genuine expression of adoration.

“How could he take her side over mine?” My voice sounded whiney to my own ears.

“Babe, he’s not choosing sides. You know that, right?”

“No, Parker. I don’t know that.”

“It’s not some battle between you and his wife. Believe me, you would win every time if it was.”

I shuddered in a deep breath, and he pulled back and pressed a soft kiss to my lips.

“I know it’s not a competition,” I said. “But it hurts that he believes she’s innocent when I know she isn’t. It all adds up, Parker. She wasn’t at the show the night my journal went missing and then it mysteriously appeared in her suitcase? I smell bullshit.”

A voice sounded over the loudspeaker. “Seventy-eight, don’t be late!”

“That’s our number,” Parker said. “Let’s just give it time and see how everything works out, okay? And you know that I’m always on your side, right? No matter what?”

I nodded, and he kissed me again before he took my hand and we walked toward the pick-up counter. I spotted George eating already at a table by himself in the corner. He preferred to eat alone, to make it less obvious that he was actually there to be a bodyguard.

Parker had been right: it was the best meal I had ever eaten. I scarfed down my beef sandwich, dipped my boiling hot French fries in cheese sauce, and washed it all down with a shake made out of chocolate cake and ice cream.

Our meal was over all too soon, and we were back in the car. “Hop on the Edens. Should be faster than State Street,” I heard Parker tell George before we headed to our next mysterious destination.

It was mid-afternoon, a little before the rush hour traffic was set to begin. There was still a lot of traffic, though.

We pulled into some private entrance at US Cellular Field and George parked the car. I wasn’t sure how he managed to navigate an unfamiliar city, not to mention crazy venues and secret entrances, but George was a pro at what he did.

We exited the car, my hand clutched tightly in Parker’s, George following close behind us. We made our way through a back entrance, and Parker produced three tickets to the usher.

It meant a lot to me that he wanted to experience a Chicago White Sox game with me in his hometown. I thought of his “lucky hat,” the one he’d left with me. I knew that the Sox were meaningful to him, and for him to share that with me showed me the intensity of his feelings for me.

We made our way through the venue and up to a suite. It was far too extravagant for the three of us, but it was private and comfortable.

I had to wonder who the hell was paying for it. I knew that suites didn’t come cheap, but I decided not to worry about it. It was Parker’s money to spend, and if he wanted to take me to a Sox game and show me a good time, I was damn well going to put the shit with Jadyn out of my mind so that I could enjoy myself.

We walked down toward the seating area and looked out over the field. The grass was mowed in that perfect way you only ever saw at ballparks. It was a beautiful day, and I was happy to be spending it next to Parker.

“This is awesome,” I said with a smile. I looked over at the man I loved. A touch of anxiety plagued his eyes for just a moment, but then Parker grinned that boyish grin that only came out once in a while.

“Isn’t it? I’ve always loved this park.”

“What time does the game start?”

He glanced at the clock on his cell phone. “About a half hour.”

“So we’re early?”

“A little.”

“What do you want to do?”

“Got anything in mind?”

I nodded. “Can we walk around the stadium?”

His eyes lit up. “I figured you’d just want to stay in here.”

“Let’s go wherever you want.”

We headed out toward the elevators. George shadowed us, but I didn’t really care. I felt carefree and excited to be in one of my boyfriend’s favorite places on Earth.

We headed down to the main level. Parker led the way, and we ended up in the gift shop. I knew I wanted a souvenir to commemorate our time together at this park that meant something so special to Parker, so I bought myself a black Sox baseball cap.

Maybe I didn’t really so much buy it for myself, though. Maybe I bought it so that Parker would have a spare whenever he came over to my place.

We walked around the main level, and Parker took me down toward the field to check things out up close.

Then it was time to make our way back to our suite because the game was getting ready to start.

When we walked back in, a girl with glossy, long, dark hair was sitting by herself in one of the seats that overlooked the field. I glanced over at Parker.

The look on his face was a mixture of nerves and anxiety, and it finally dawned on me who she was.

It was Parker’s sister.

Parker took a deep breath. “Kimmy!” he yelled, and she turned around.

A huge smile stretched across her face. She stood and ran toward her brother.

He wrapped his arms around her in a hug. I couldn’t tell what she looked like because she was wearing sunglasses. I was dying of curiosity. Did she look like her brother? Which parent did they each resemble?

This was my first glimpse into the real Parker James. He’d been slow to reveal personal information to me, and I wondered if I’d get more out of Kimmy in one afternoon at US Cellular Field than I had in all the months that Parker and I had been together.

“Introduce me to your fiancée!” Kimmy exclaimed.

She pulled off her sunglasses, and a gorgeous Asian girl smiled back at me.

So apparently Parker and his sister were not related by blood.

News to me.

“Kimmy, this is my fiancée, Roxanna. Roxanna, this is my sister, Kimmy.”

I smiled timidly, suddenly shy. It was out of character for me, but the “fiancée” comment threw me for a loop. I figured he’d be honest with his sister, of all people. I figured he’d tell her it was a sham.

But apparently we were faking it for everyone. The only people who knew it wasn’t real were my dad, Parker, and me. Possibly George.

And the more we faked it, the more real it began to feel.

I stuck my hand out to shake Kimmy’s, and she leaned in for a hug. “We’re going to be sisters,” she squealed.

She was nothing like what I would have expected out of Parker’s sister. I wasn’t sure why, but I expected someone who was his opposite. He tended to be confident and outgoing, so I expected someone meeker. But she was a lot like him, at least from my first impression.

My eyes met Parker’s over her shoulder. He shrugged and then smiled sheepishly at me. I grinned back at him.

The game was starting, so we took our seats. I sat beside Kimmy, and Parker sat a row behind the two of us. George stayed in the corner of the suite, his shrewd eyes scanning everything.

“So tell me everything about your brother,” I said to Kimmy.

She looked behind us at him, and then she leaned in toward me. “This game won’t be longer than a couple of hours. Give me your number so we have more time.” She laughed heartily, the kind of laugh that made everyone around her laugh, too, and I giggled along with her.

I liked her already, and I was just getting to know her.

“Tell me all about you first,” she said.

“Not much to tell. I work in a store called Vintage. I like drinking Coke. You may have heard that my father is a musician.”

“Can you two keep it down?” Parker complained behind us. “I’m trying to focus on the game.”

Kimmy rolled her eyes at me, and we both giggled again.

We helped ourselves to a couple of beers, and then we settled into some chairs off to the side, away from George and down a few seats from Parker so we wouldn’t interrupt his game viewing.

“He’s the best big brother a girl could ask for,” she started. “I was adopted into his family when he was about five, and he accepted me in without question and protected me from the start.”

“Do you mind if I ask where you were adopted from?”

“China. After Parker, our mom couldn’t have another baby. Both of our parents wanted more, so they decided to adopt. I lucked out with Parker.”

I noticed that she said she lucked out with
Parker
. There was no mention of their parents.

It just added more to the mystery of the James family.

“Oh, come on!” Parker yelled, and we both turned our attention to the field, where we saw two of the White Sox players running toward the outfield wall after someone from the other team hit a ball between the two of them.

After the ball had been recovered and the next player was up to bat, Kimmy and I resumed our conversation. “He’s always been in love with the Sox. He played baseball in high school.”

“I always found baseball players kind of sexy,” I said with a cheeky grin.

She wrinkled her nose. “That’s my brother you’re talking about.”

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be. He lights up in a new way around you. It’s pretty refreshing to see him settling down instead of playing the field.”

A cheer roared up from the crowd and cut our conversation short, but her words about her brother warmed me over for the rest of the day.

Between drinking beer and watching the game, we didn’t get much of a chance for more gossip, but if first impressions meant anything, I absolutely loved Parker’s sister.

He only let me in on the pieces he wanted to, and learning about him through a family member was a precious, rare commodity that I cherished.

All too soon we were saying our goodbyes, exchanging numbers, and getting back into the car. George drove us back through downtown to our hotel, the Four Seasons Chicago.

We checked into our room. It was still early, but Parker had to meet up with the guys for the next day’s performance, and I had to track down my dad and get my journal.

I kind of wanted to just send George to do it, but it was my journal and my responsibility.

But George tagged along anyway after Parker headed out.

I wondered who was protecting Parker when he was on his own. Keith had been attacked; what made anybody think that Parker was safe?

George led me to my dad’s room. I knocked on the door, my heart beating faster as nerves kicked in. I didn’t want to see Jadyn. I couldn’t be responsible for my actions if she answered the door. I didn’t trust her, and I planned to make that very clear to her.

Luckily for her, my dad answered the door.

“CC,” he said, reaching to pull me into a hug.

I darted out of his reach. “I’m just here for my stolen property.”

“Don’t be like that.” His voice was a soft plea, but I wasn’t going to let him get to me. I was too upset and the betrayal was too fresh.

“Just hand it over and I’ll be on my way.”

He sighed and glanced over at George, who was standing behind me. I imagined George shrugging, as if to say that he should just give me what I wanted.

My dad walked to another room for a moment, and then he returned. He held my journal in his hands.

I moved to grab it from him, but he held it back from me. I felt hot tears burning my eyes, but I wouldn’t let them fall.

“I really don’t think she took it. You don’t know her like I do.”

“I know she’s jealous of the time you spend with me. I know she doesn’t like me. And I know she happened to be missing the night this was stolen out of my room. It’s fine if you want to believe her over me, but I refuse to sit here and listen to this bullshit.”

“I’m not picking sides, CC. I am trying not to place blame on someone who is innocent. You want the truth?”

I nodded, and he lowered his voice.

“I don’t know what to believe. I see the facts, and I want to believe my wife when she cries to me that she didn’t do it. But I don’t know what the fuck is going on anymore.”

He shoved my journal toward me with a heavy sigh.

“Take it and just go.”

I grabbed it out of his hands and spun on my heel to head out the door.

I didn’t want to be mad at my dad. I understood that he was stuck in a shitty place. But he wasn’t making any of this easier on me.