Chapter One
CHAPTER ONE
CARTER BAILEY, A NOW RETIRED BASEBALL PLAYER
“Daddy, we’re on an ad-menture,” the little girl’s sweet voice says from the backseat.
“That’s right, sweetheart. We’re going on an adventure.”
“Mama can’t go wif us. No, no, no.”
“Right again, baby girl.”
“Fun wif no mama,” she sings from her booster seat.
How easily she’s moved on. I mean, I don’t blame the kid. It’s not like she’s even seen her for the last year. Eleven months ago, my divorce was finalized. Ava’s mother, Carrissa, signed away all of her rights to her own daughter. In exchange for a big check, of course. And I’m the idiot who thought it was love.
I’d never give up my daughter, not for all the fame, money, or glory in the world, but I also won’t lie and say the last year hasn’t been the hardest of my life. I didn’t have enough knowledge to successfully navigate the world of single-parenthood while living a high-profile life. When Ava was born, Carrissa was there when it was time for spring training and during the season. They traveled with me quite a bit, but I know I wasn’t there as much as I should have been. I tried to retire when she was born, but Carrissa shot that down fast. And I looked at my teammates with families and figured if they could do it, so could I. Right? Yeah, wrong. From the minute she left us until the last game of the season a little over a month ago, it’s been one thing after another. A revolving door of nannies who were more interested in my dick than taking care of Ava. You know, what they were hired to do.
The team tried to help. My teammates’ wives and girlfriends, too. But they have their own lives and there is no world where it’s okay to basically dump your kid for eight months a year. So after giving it my all this season, I met with the team and officially retired. Now I’m just Carter Bailey, the thirty-two-year-old ex-pitcher for the Diamond Cove Sails, who is moving back home to his parents’ place.
Pity party for one.
I smile, thinking about Boulder Canyon. My home. Ava has only visited a few times, and while she always had a good time, this has never been her home. And I never thought when it was time to come back that I’d really be moving back in with my dad. But I’ve missed my friends. I miss my sister and niece. I want to get to know her new husband better and the other members of the group that have been brought in since I’ve been gone.
“Ava.” I glance in the rearview mirror to make sure I have her attention. “Are you looking forward to starting daycare?”
“No!” she whines at top volume.
“Are you sure? It’s going to be lots of fun.”
“No, no, no!”
“What if I were to tell you Aunt Lottie’s little boy will be there?”
“Duncan? I like Duncan.”
“I know you like Duncan and he needs his big cousin Ava to watch out for him at daycare, okay?
“Are you sure I have-ta?”
“Yeah, baby girl, I’m sure.”
“But I wanna stay with you, Daddy.”
“I know you do, darling. But it’s only gonna be for a couple of hours a day. Promise.”
“Promise again, Daddy.”
“I promise.”
“Fine,” she relents with all the sass of a pre-teen. I’m so not ready for that age.
That is the one thing that’s changed since her mother left. She’s worried I’m going to leave her, too. And that will never happen. Ever.
We’re quiet for the remainder of the drive. Ava is engrossed in a movie about an enchanted house with a song that will be stuck in my head for hours, which keeps her occupied until we pull into the driveway of my dad’s house. He meets us at the door with his arms open wide. Not for me, of course, but for Ava.
“Grandpa!” she screams as she jumps from the car and runs straight to the older version of me.
“My Ava Girl!” He swings her up in his arms, squeezing her tight, and my decision to move us back here looks even better than it did five minutes ago. “I sure have missed my baby girl!”
“I’m not a baby anymore,” she pouts, trying to put her hand on her hip even while still in his arms.
“No, you sure aren’t. You’re a little princess now, aren’t you?”
“Nu-huh. I’m not a pwincess either. I’m a ballplayer like Daddy!”
“Is that right?” He laughs, winking at me.
“Uh-huh. And I’m gonna grow up and I’m gonna be a big pitcher just like Daddy was.”
Was. Like Daddy was. Still hurts to hear. Dad watches me, a look that’s not quite pity on his face. He gets it. He knows how hard this decision was for me. Hell, the man offered to move closer to me to help. And then my sister announced she was pregnant, and I demanded he stay here. He wasn’t always the perfect father and grandparent, but he is now, and he’s had a lot of making up to do, especially with Lottie.
“Oh, I talked to the new teacher at the daycare today,” he tells me as we walk into the front room.
“I’ve only talked to Miss Melly,” I inform him. Melly, the owner of the daycare, who has turned fifty every year for the last thirty.
“Oh, she hired the new teacher about six months ago. She seems to really care about the kids.”
“Good to know. I need someone great for my baby girl.”
I smile at Ava and dare her to call me out, but she never does. I’m still allowed to call her baby girl.
“Grandpa, Grandpa! Did you know we moving here?” Ava asks.
“I did know that. Would you like to see the room I picked for you?”
“Yes!”
“Well, come on.” He offers her his hand and they move to the stairs.
I already know where he’s going. To Lottie’s old room, right across the hall from mine. What I’m not prepared for is the redecorating he’s done in the weeks since we were last here. The room, which used to be light blue and cream, is now teal and hot pink. The colors of the Sails. Which is Ava’s favorite team, of course. There’s a jersey with her name on it in her size on the bed that’s also covered in animals in mini Sail jerseys and other team gear. Her bed has a teal canopy and I just stare, taking it all in. Dad chuckles and I roll my eyes, only to get a smirk back.
“Why don’t you go up to Zach’s?” he asks, both of us watching Ava take in her new digs.
“What? Nah, we just got here.” The thought of seeing my best friend, Davis, sounds great, but I can’t leave Ava as soon as we walk in.
“Daddy, you go. Give Unc Davis a kiss for me.” Ava smiles.
I laugh. This girl is too cute for her own good. “How about a man-hug?”
“Nope.” She shakes her head. “Kiss. Right here!” she says, pointing to her cheek.
“I’ll give you a kiss on the cheek!” I reach out and grab her, her squeals of laughter lifting another load off my shoulders.
“Besides, me and Ava have some catching up to do, grandpa and grand-girl things. And we can’t do that with Daddy around.”
“Yeah,” Ava agrees, but then gets serious, putting her little hands on my cheeks and locking eyes. “But you have to promise you’ll be back.”
I pull her into my chest, kissing the top of her head. “I promise, sweetheart,” I whisper to her.
I put her down and look at Dad, who nods, letting me know he’s got her, and I leave the two of them playing with her new stuffies. I look at the house as I walk down the stairs and out the door. Our stuff will be here later this week, but most of it is going into storage until I can find us our own place.
The bar is only a few blocks away and is named for Davis’s father-in-law. He’s not expecting me. Apart from Dad, no one knew I’d be back in town. And until this morning, I didn’t even know when it would happen. The team officially cut me loose today. All documents have been signed, sealed, and delivered. Fucking sucks.
When I open the door to Zach’s, Davis is behind the bar, a towel on his shoulder. He looks up. Does a double take. Smiles. “The fuck are you doing here?”
I laugh, shaking my head. I expect nothing less from Davis. He’s not the clean-cut guy he used to be. Now he’s got a full beard and his hair is on the longish side. Wonder if I could pull that off?
“Your Mom let you keep your hair that long?” I grin at him.
“Fuck you. The wife likes it. That’s all that matters. Seriously, what are you doing here?”
“Just thought I’d stop in and say hi.”
“You don’t ever just stop in and say hi. What’s going on? Everything okay?”
“How about you give me a beverage and we can talk about it?”
He pulls a bottle of beer out of the cooler and pops the cap, sliding it across the bar. “Is it true? You’re retired?”
“You heard correct, my friend,” I tell him before tipping the bottle and taking a long pull.
“And now you’re here…” He trails off, looking at me expectantly.
“For good. Moving back in with Dad till we can find our own place.”
“She’s really gone, too?”
“Funny how fast she went when there was an extra zero added.”
“I really hate that for you, man.”
I grin at my friend. “You almost said that with a straight face.”
“What can I say? She’s a fucking cunt.”
I raise my bottle. “We’re moving on. New life, new town, new faces.”
“And old friends.” He raises his own bottle of water to me. “Speaking of new faces, there’s a new face in town you don’t know.” He waggles his brows.
“And what does this new face look like?”
“Well, she’s about five-seven with long, dirty blonde hair. She’s a stunner. Perky boobs, too, if I do say so.”
“Does Trish know you’re looking at perky boobs?” I interrupt him.
“She’s the one who pointed them out to me.”
“Of course she did.” I laugh with him.
I love his wife. She’s always been around, was his little sister’s best friend. Honestly, she might have been in Davis’s life longer than me, and she was always following him around. You’d think it would have annoyed Davis, but it never did. I always knew if they could get their shit together, they were endgame for each other.
“So, who is this new person?”
“Her name is Madeline Webster. She’s the new teacher at the daycare.”
“You’re the second person in the last hour to bring her up with me. Where did she come from?”
“That’s just it. Nobody knows.”
“What do you mean nobody knows?”
“I mean exactly that. Nobody knows. She just showed up one day. Elle and Ranger have been friendly to her,” he tells me. “But they met when she rented Elle’s apartment. I think she’s helping at Elle’s studio on the weekends with the kids’ art classes, but nobody knows her.”
“Well, that doesn’t happen very often, does it?”
“That’s never happened. And the few strangers that have moved in, somebody in town has a full background on them within days.”
“How long has she been here?” I ask, my curiosity piqued. Someone who’s managed to keep the grapevine in this town stumped? Unheard of.
“A little over six months.”
“And you don’t know where she was before?”
“Ha-ha,” he mocks. “And no, I don’t. But if you mind your p’s and q’s, you might get to say hi.”
“Huh?”
“She just walked in the door.” He smirks.
I turn my head and am assaulted by a memory. Amberly Randolf’s sister crying in the hallway outside of the locker room. Visible bruises up and down her arms and a black eye shining through as her makeup wore off under her tears. A phone call to Lottie’s brother-in-law who put me in touch directly with Daniel Allen, one of the owners of ANON Security.
Without much thought, I’m on my feet, moving away from Davis. He’s saying something to me, but I can’t hear him. I walk straight to the woman who just came in. Her hair is a little different, the color blonde instead of brown. The length shorter than the last time I saw her.
“Zoe?” I quietly say, but it’s loud enough that she jumps three feet in the air. “Is that really you?”
She looks at me, her eyes wide and terrified, caught like a deer in headlights. It takes her a minute to compose herself and find her voice.
“I’m sorry, who?” she asks, her voice shaking with fear.
“Zoe? Zoe Daniels? Amberly’s sister?” I ask quietly so no one will overhear us.
“No,” she finally says after licking her lips. Shaking her head, she won’t make eye contact with me. “I’m sorry you’ve got me confused with somebody else. My name is Madison. Madison Webster.”
I know she’s lying. Fuck, she knows that I know she’s lying. But I hope she also knows I won’t call her out for it. She’s going by a different name for a reason.
“You’re safe with me, okay?” I whisper, leaning in closer, but still not up in her personal space. “Your secret is safe with me.”
She blows out a breath, her shoulders visibly relaxing. “Thanks.” She gives me a small smile. “I’ve got to go…over there.” She points to the far corner. “I’ll see you around.”
She’s already stepped away from me before I can reply, and I know she’s running. I need to let her go. I’ve thought about her a lot the last two years, but my own life was falling apart. Davis is right. She’s got perky boobs and a beautiful face to go with it. But I also remember a smart, sometimes snarky woman. I wonder if she’s changed that, too.
Get a grip, man. You do not need to be thinking about her. Bad situation, right there. All women are bad situations in my life right now.
“You know who she is,” Davis tells me when I return to my bar stool.
“I don’t know anything.” I shake my head.
“I call bullshit. I’ll get it out of you, eventually.”
“Fuck off. Nothing to get out.” I stare at him, challenging him to question me again.
He must hear something in my voice that makes him back off. “How about another?” he asks, nodding at my now empty bottle.
“That’d be great.” I get comfortable and make small talk with Davis while he works.
But I can’t help but keep an eye on the woman in the corner, hiding behind her hair.
If I know anything, it’s that some secrets should stay that way to keep the ones you love safe. I don’t talk about my mother anymore. There’s a reason for that, and it’s for that reason I won’t be the one to spill anything to anyone.