Chapter 27
Schmidt
I’ve been rocking Tali for hours. She won't fall asleep no matter what I try. I'm exhausted and listening to her cries are killing me.
“Win-Win,” she whimpers again.
She sits up and points towards Winnie’s room. She’s gone in there countless times and searched the entire house when we got home from the stadium today. She just wants Winnie, she doesn’t want me at all.
“Winnie’s not here, Tali,” I whisper as a lump forms in my throat.
My chest aches with the loss of her, but somehow listening to Tali cry for her is like another knife to my already broken heart. I never thought about how Tali would be impacted if Winnie and I broke up.
I didn’t think it would happen. I was in this for the long haul, yet she ran the first time I screwed up. She won't even give me a chance to fix it.
“I want Win-Win,” she cries even harder.
“How about we sleep in Winnie’s bed tonight?”
She doesn’t bother responding. She slips off my lap and drags her blanket on the floor until she gets to Winnie’s door. As soon as I open it, she’s climbing onto the bed and curling up on Winnie’s pillow.
It’s bad enough trying to make it through something like this, but to watch her go through it too, it’s killing me. Something needs to change. I have to get Winnie to talk to me again.
“Is she at your house?” I growl as I stomp up to where Wheeler’s getting his shoulder checked by Charlie. She has her baby in a wrap, snuggled up against her chest as she works. I love how Owen lets her bring Carter to work because she isn’t ready to leave her yet.
“I think you need to be more specific.” The jerk smirks at me.
“Is Winnie at your house? Is she staying there?” I fold my arms over my chest and glare at him.
It’s been almost a week since I took Tali home from the hospital.
Winnie won't answer any of my phone calls and she barely responds to my texts. I tried to visit her in the hospital, but they wouldn’t let me in.
Apparently, she told the staff she didn’t want any visitors and they were respecting her wishes.
“Oh, Winnie? Yeah, she’s living in my guest room. Why do you care?”
“Because she’s my girlfriend!”
“Is she though?” He narrows his eyes on me, pushing my buttons even more.
“Stop being a jerk, Wheeler.” Smithy places himself between us, knowing he’s only trying to push me to get angrier.
“Fine. Is she really your girlfriend when she’s keeping her phone off because she doesn’t want to hear from you?” He sits up and Charlie rolls her eyes before moving to the next table to help that player. She knows it’s useless to wait for Wheeler to be done.
“What did I do? I asked her if she was hurt and she said she was fine. But then she said she’d be in the hospital for a few days, which clearly means she’s not fine.
I tried to call. I tried to visit and every time I get shut down.
What did I do?” I thrust my hands through my hair and it’s taking everything in me not to scream with frustration.
“She had to have surgery, you idiot!” Wheeler stands from the table and gets right in my face.
“What?” I lose all my fight and my words come out as barely a whisper. “What happened? Is she ok? Why didn’t she tell me?”
“Because this is what Winnie does, man. She lets you in and makes you feel like you’re living out your dream… But then she gets scared and she runs away.”
“But what happened to scare her? Please, Wheeler, I can't lose her. I know this is a horrible thing to ask you to help with given I didn’t help you… But I need her. Tali cries every day for her. I don’t know how to comfort her when all she wants is Winnie.”
“Do you want her back because it will make Tali happy or because you love her?”
“I love her more than I ever thought possible.” I swallow hard, hating that I'm about to admit this out loud. “I love her more than I loved my wife.”
“Jeez,” Smithy mutters under his breath and shakes his head.
“She ruptured her spleen. It was bleeding a lot, she had to have surgery to stop it. They had to keep her in the hospital for a few days to make sure the bleeding stopped. She had to have a few blood transfusions. She’s in so much pain.”
“Are you kidding me? How did that happen?” I scrub my hands over my face. I'm seconds away from running out of here and banging on Wheeler’s door until she answers.
“They think it’s from when the paparazzi tried to grab Tali and she lost her footing. She slammed into a metal bench and was in a lot of pain, but she didn’t stop. She got right back up and kept the lowlife away from Tali. They don’t think it’s from the car accident.”
My mind spins in circles with the information Wheeler just dumped on me. Why didn’t she yell at me? Why didn’t she put me in my place and let me know exactly what happened? She took all of my angry words and accepted them. She never tried to defend herself once.
“I… She didn’t tell me any of that,” I whisper as my eyes fill with tears.
“Why didn’t she tell me? I accused her of not protecting Tali.
I told her she was careless and went out for no reason.
I said she kept pushing me to do things I didn’t want with Tali.
I even told her she wasn’t Tali’s mom and she had no say in what happens with her…
I destroyed our relationship and it’s all my fault. ”
Tears slip down my cheek and I do nothing to stop them. I don’t know how to fix this. I'm an idiot. I deserve whatever she decides to do.
“Wasn’t she waking up from surgery when you saw her in the hospital?
Liliana said Winnie called her right after she called 9-1-1.
Apparently, she was barely awake when the police and ambulance showed up.
She was bleeding a decent amount and they had to rush her into surgery.
She was lucky Derek Devine was on call and saved her life.
” Smithy stares at me with a furrowed brow.
“Why did she call Liliana? Why didn’t she call me?”
“She said Tali needed someone with her. She knew Lils would protect Tali while she couldn’t. I think Winnie knew something was wrong with her and she held on strong until she knew Tali would be with someone who loved her.”
“She didn’t call you because you were in a different state.
We were in the middle of the game when the accident happened.
She didn’t want you flying home and being tortured the entire drive over wild thoughts about Tali and her.
She was thinking about you even while she was bleeding out,” Wheeler says softly.
“She’s in love with you, Schmidt. So much more than she ever loved me.
I see that, but I'm not sure you can fix this.”
“Give me the keys to your house.” I hold out my hand and he shakes his head.
“Nah, man, I can't do that.”
“Please, Wheeler! I need to fix this!”
“You do need to fix it, but storming into my house while she’s still trying to heal isn't the way to do it. My house is her safe space. Nothing can touch her there and I'm not changing that. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I love Winnie and I’ll always protect her. She needs time to recover.”
“What am I supposed to do? Do you really expect me to stand by and watch her slip through my fingers?”
“No, but you need to figure out something without stepping foot in my house.”
Without another word, I stomp out of the physical therapy room and straight to Owen’s office. I know he’s in a meeting with Levi, but I need to talk to both of them.
I knock on the door and wait for them to respond before I enter, shutting the door behind me. Owen watches me carefully with a sleeping Tali on his lap. Levi motions for me to take the empty seat next to him.
How did Owen get Tali? Has he had her all day? I thought Liliana or Macy were watching her.
“Liliana passed her off to me after she fell asleep. I was happy to hold the little princess so Lils could get some work done.”
“I can't go to the away games next week,” I blurt out.
“I know, I was just waiting to see how long you’d try to pretend you had your life in order for.” Levi doesn’t even lift his gaze from the notepad he’s scribbling something on.
“What?” I whisper, a little confused.
“We know what’s happening on our team, Schmidt,” Owen says softly.
“Just because you think you have secrets; doesn’t mean you do.
I'm assuming Winnie’s still recovering and you have no one to watch Tali.
You know I value you as a person, not just a player.
Your family should always come before the game. ”
“Take your time and get your life in order. Your position will be here when you’re ready to come back. You’ll still be on the starting lineup,” Levi adds.
“Seriously? You aren’t going to give me a hard time?” My eyes fill with moisture again. I feel like an emotional disaster and I don’t know how to stop it.
“You’re the best center fielder I’ve ever seen. I'm not going to penalize you for having a life off the field.” Levi shrugs.
“Here’s the police report from the accident.” Owen tosses an envelope of paper towards me.
“How did you get this?”
“Charlie’s uncle used to be a cop and now he has his own security company. I asked him to pull some strings. I'm not ok with a paparazzi pulling the stunt Oliver Sinn did. I think you need to sue him.”
“I don’t need the money. It’s not worth it.”
“I know you don’t need the money; I already pay you too much.
You need to make these lowlifes realize you’re not putting up with their games before someone else tries to do the same thing again.
If you want to protect Tali, you call Hunter Jackman and get him on the case.
He’s Leo’s step dad. He’s also Charlie’s uncle.
” Owen chuckles. “One of the best attorneys I’ve ever dealt with.
He’ll bring as many charges as he can against Sinn.
I'm sure he can get attempted murder on there after he physically assaulted Winnie and then made her crash. That with her ruptured spleen and Tali being in the car, I’m sure a judge would happily put him in prison. ”
“How did you-”
“I know everything, Schmidt. When are you all going to realize that? I have friends everywhere and I pay attention.” He tosses a thumb drive at me and nods at it.
“You might want to take the rest of the day off and watch the videos on there. It took a lot to get them, but I think you need to see them.”
“You don’t want me to work?” I arch a brow.
“I appreciate you coming into work and bringing Tali with you. I love this little girl.” He glances down at my daughter.
“But you need to be home. Take a few weeks. Do what you need to do. Get your life back in order, then give me a call. And if you need anything, don’t hesitate to call me about that either. ”
“Thank you, Owen. I couldn’t ask for a better boss. You too, Levi. You’re the best coach I’ve ever worked with.”
“Don’t be a stranger, Schmidt. Keep us in the loop and please know you’re always free to bring Tali to work with you.
We’ll figure it out. I'm thinking about starting a daycare here anyway. I don’t see Charlie and Macy letting strangers watch their kids and eventually they won't just be sleeping in the corner, they'll be running all over.” Owen shakes his head.
“The things I do to make my girls happy.”
“You just want to be able to see your grandbaby whenever you want.” Levi snorts with laughter.
“That is a plus.” He chuckles.
“I’m looking for someone willing to work when the games are, and possibly willing to travel with us.”
“That would be amazing… But I’m hoping I can get my nanny back.”