Page 37

“You know I can’t not worry.” Not worrying about her was impossible, but I appreciated the sentiment.

“What else is going on? You don’t normally check in on Monday.”

Brooke and I had a standing call every Wednesday. Between her class schedule, Ethan’s practices and games, and the bakery, scheduling our calls was the only way to make sure we talked at least once a week.

“I have some news. You won’t like it, but hear me out.” I took a deep breath, working up to telling her about Chad.

“You know I rented our upstairs room to Carter, and that your dad was upset. Turns out, he’s homeless. He’s been sleeping at the dealership for a few days, because his friend kicked him out.”

“That sucks for him, but what does that have to do with anything?” Brooke asked suspiciously.

Now the hard part.

“Ethan accidentally told him about the unfinished suite in the basement, and Chad basically invited himself to move in. He played on Ethan’s kindness. Ethan knows what he did, but Chad has been making an effort with Ethan. I said he could move in only because he has nowhere else to go. He has to pay rent, and he has house rules to follow. If he screws up, I don’t care that he’s homeless, he’ll be gone.” I hated feeling like I was disappointing Brooke.

“Please tell me you’re kidding. After everything he put us through?” Brooke’s voice rose with every word, until she was almost yelling. At the same time, her face was bright red.

I didn’t blame her for being angry. She’d been old enough to know what happened when Chad and I split; her friends had seen all the viral videos on social media mocking my weight and claiming I deserved to be cheated on because I didn’t fit the WAG image.

While her real friends had been supportive, too many had proved to be mean girls who relished in teasing her relentlessly about her fat mother and cheating father. It had been one of the many reasons I’d moved back to Red Rock before the ink on the divorce decree was dry. In truth, the divorce and our move had impacted her more than anyone.

“If he weren’t homeless, I would have said no, and Ethan would have accepted it. But he is. We were married for a long time, and he is your father, like it or not. He can stay until he breaks the rules, or he gets back on his feet financially and finds his own place. Either way, it won’t be for long.” There was no way Chad would stick around. He didn’t have any domestic skills, and doing chores was beneath him. He’d leave as soon as he could.

Brooke scowled at me, but some of the red colour was fading from her cheeks. “I won’t put up with any crap from him while I’m there. He’s ignored me most of my life, so he can keep his opinions about my life to himself. If he starts in on my choice of university, or my girlfriend, or anything else, I won’t hold back.”

Her tone was firm, but her volume returned to normal. Brooke had a temper, but it flared quickly and faded fast. I was proud of her for always standing up for herself and what she wanted.

“I wouldn’t want you to. Are we good?” I didn’t want this to come between us either.

Brooke let out a heavy sigh. “I’m not happy, but yeah, we’re good. Love you, Mom.”

“Love you too, baby girl.”

Chapter 20

Carter

I left my luggage on the floor, and I lowered myself onto one of the double beds in the hotel room, groaning as I lay back on the bed. I ached everywhere. The bus ride to Billings had lasted eight hours, and my muscles and joints were telling me in vivid detail how much they couldn’t sit for that long. Billings was one of the only cities in the league close enough to Red Rock that we travelled by bus; most other cities we would fly to, and I was grateful for that. We’d stopped for breaks, but never long enough to stretch and loosen up. If I didn’t do something to relax, I’d pay for it tomorrow when I tried to play. This place better have a hot tub.

I didn’t move as the door closed again, and Raine set his stuff on the luggage rack against the wall. I’d requested him as my roommate for this road trip, even though Skip had told me I could have a private room if I wanted, or upgrade to a suite if I paid for it. I said no for two reasons. The first was I didn’t want to flaunt my past success in the face of players making the league minimum, many of whom didn’t get a significant signing bonus in the draft. The second reason was more complicated. Rooming with someone would help me build more credibility with my teammates. I wasn’t a major league player here rehabbing from an injury. I was the same as all the other players, trying to fight my way up to the bigs. Being seen as one of the guys mattered when it came to clubhouse dynamics.

The downside of sharing a room was the lack of privacy. I wanted to call Jane, let her know how the trip went. Instead, I would have to settle for text messages and the occasional stolen phone call. Video chats would be almost impossible.

“You going to stay there all night? A bunch of us are heading out to dinner later.”

I turned my head enough to see Raine, watching as he unpacked, hanging shirts and pants before tossing socks and underwear into one of the dresser drawers. The glamorous life of a minor league baseball player. Too-long bus rides and cheap rooms, followed by eating at whatever restaurant seemed decent. Suddenly my aches and pains were irrelevant. I didn’t have to be here, yet there was nowhere else I’d rather be.

I pushed up from the bed. “I need to find a hot tub and soak out some of this muscle soreness first, do some stretching to make sure I’m ready for the game. What time are you meeting up?”

“Not until seven, you’ve got time. Meet us in the lobby. The restaurant is close, so we’re walking. I’ve got to study for a while.” Raine opened the backpack he’d brought with him and pulled out his laptop.

“Study? What are you studying for?” I started unpacking my stuff and searching for my swim trunks. The sooner I found the hot tub, the better.

“When it looked like St. Louis was going to DFA me, I figured it was time to think about going back to school and finishing my degree in statistics. I got drafted out of community college, so I have two years done, but I need more. I was accepted and had signed up for courses before I found out Vancouver wanted to sign me. I promised my dad I’d finish my degree this time, so I’m sticking with it. Luckily, the school allows me to do most of my courses remotely, and I can write my exams at the local college in Red Rock.”

I was impressed, if a little jealous. I was no slouch, but advanced math had never appealed to me. The sheer volume of analytics used in baseball sometimes went over my head. Not a huge issue as a player, but if I ever wanted to coach or manage, I needed to brush up on my skills. “Why statistics? Other than you must be good at math.”

Raine looked a little embarrassed, which made no sense. Baseball was full of smart guys who had studied everything: math, science, engineering, finance. Statistics was not unusual.