Chapter 7
7
Michelle’s alarm went off at seven sharp. She quickly dressed and threw her hair in a ponytail. A cute baseball cap, and she was set. She looked younger than fifty but nowhere near his age. Maybe people won’t notice. She opened the refrigerator but quickly decided that eating wasn’t going to happen. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach. She brushed her teeth and applied minimal makeup. She didn’t want to scare anyone, but she didn’t want Ronnie to think she was trying to impress him. “The hoops women jumped through,” she thought. She took one final look in the mirror and was pleased with what she saw.
She knew she needed something on her stomach, so she drove by the Coffee Café to pick up a coffee on her way to the game. As soon as she opened the door, Gretchen caught her eye and mouthed, “Usual?”
Michelle nodded and stepped aside for others to place their orders. Several people moved past her as she sent a text to Jackie, letting her know she was on the way to the game. Finally, Gretchen held up her cup. As Michelle approached the counter, a man looking down at his phone turned and bumped into her. His brown eyes locked on her blue ones. “Sorry, I wasn’t...” He held up his phone.
Michelle smiled. She felt her face heat. “It’s all right. Say, has anyone ever told you that you look...”
He held up his hands. “I get that all the time.”
She tilted her head. “You don’t know what I was going to say.”
He leaned close and whispered into her ear. “That I look like Keith Mason.”
She bit her lip and bowed her head. “Guilty as charged.”
“Michelle,” Gretchen said and pushed her cup toward the edge of the counter.
“I didn’t see you order.” He grinned, flashing his perfect white teeth. “You must come here a lot if the barista knows what you want.”
Michelle shrugged with a playful glint in her eyes. “I’m here enough.” She picked up her cup. “Have a nice day,” she said as she walked out the door.
Twenty minutes later, she pulled into the recreation center’s parking lot. There were two groups of people already at the ball field. She got out of her Jeep and slowly walked toward the field. She forgot to ask which team he was on, so she scanned the crowd of faces to see if she could spot him. Before she was halfway to the field, a man jogged toward her. As he got closer, she recognized him. Ronnie. His smile was warm, and she smiled in return.
“You made it!”
“I’m a woman of my word.”
“Good to know.” He kissed her cheek before she had time to react. “C’mon, my friends want to meet you.”
She grabbed his arm. “Ronnie, I’m not prepared to meet your friends.”
“They don’t bite. Besides, you’re going to be sitting with them. You may as well know their names.”
“I’m really not ready for people to know I’m registered on a dating app.”
He covered his mouth with his hand and widened his eyes. “Oops. I let the cat out of the bag the first day I saw your picture.”
“Do your friends know me? I mean, do they know my children?”
“I don’t think so. I don’t even know your children.”
This had disaster written all over it. She took a deep breath. “Let’s go meet your friends.”
He draped his arm over her shoulders, and she wanted to elbow him in the ribs. They had just met, and that felt a bit too familiar. She slipped from under his arm and held his hand.
“Too soon?”
“Yeah, too much too soon.”
“I can take it slow.” He squeezed her hand. “You look really good.”
“Thank you. Um, so do you.”
He laughed. “In sweatpants?”
“Well, they’re nice sweatpants.”
“Relax. My friends are going to love you.”
Michelle smiled as the knots in her stomach tightened. She didn’t want his friends to love her. She wasn’t sure she wanted them to even like her. Dating in today’s world moved at a different pace than when she was younger. Sure, they had talked via text and a few phone calls. That video chat was different. She’d participated in video conference calls, but she hadn’t needed video to converse with someone. She was lucky her children all lived in town, and she got to see them several times a week.
They walked up to a group of about twenty people. Ronnie introduced her to his friends. “Hey everyone, this is Michelle. Michelle, this is everyone. Y’all introduce yourselves and make her feel welcome.” He kissed her cheek again. “I’ve got to warm up.”
She nodded. When he walked off, she lifted her hand in an awkward wave. “Hi.”
A couple of the girls walked over. “Hi. I’m Natalie, and this is Amy.”
“Hi,” Amy said.
Natalie pointed to the pitcher. “That’s my husband, Ryder.”
Michelle noticed Ronnie was at first base.
Amy pointed to the catcher. “That’s my boyfriend, Maddox. He and Ryder were high school friends, but more like brothers.”
Michelle nodded. “It’s nice to meet you both.” She looked at Ryder again. “Your husband seems familiar. I think we met him about ten years ago. Did he work for an adventure company?”
Natalie laughed. “Yes, it’s his family’s business. His dad and mom are babysitting the children this morning while his uncle takes a small group on a hike.”
“Glad to know I’m not going crazy.” Michelle chuckled.
They sat on the second row of bleachers. Ryder took his warmup tosses and Natalie watched him like a hawk. She clapped and shouted cheers of encouragement. Maddox jogged out to the mound, and Amy clapped. Michelle started to focus on the game when the first batter walked to the plate and almost missed Natalie speaking to her. “So, Ronnie says this is your first date.”
Michelle blinked. “It’s our first face-to-face meeting, yes.”
Ryder walked the first batter, and Amy yelled. “That’s okay, now you got your groove.” They all settled into the game and really didn’t talk much after that.
At the start of every inning, Michelle caught Ronnie staring at her when she looked his way. She smiled and he winked. It was the top of the seventh inning, and Ronnie’s team was up five to three. There were only seven innings in softball, so they needed to hold on for three more outs.
Michelle looked around the stands, hoping no one recognized her when she found a pair of familiar eyes staring straight at her. She froze and thanked her lucky stars that she didn’t eat breakfast. Bile rose in her throat. Her worst nightmare was coming true. Before she knew it, people were standing and cheering. Natalie grabbed her arm to join the celebration. Ronnie’s team won. He walked over to the bleachers and pulled her into a hug, just like Ryder and Maddox did with their significant others. Michelle broke the embrace, and Ronnie looked confused. This was moving too fast.
“Let me grab my gear, then I’ll walk you to your car.”
“Thanks.”
While he was gone, Michelle bid farewell to the girls and then met Ronnie at the end of the bleachers. By the time they were halfway to her Jeep, the pair of familiar eyes that were attached to her son came around the building that housed the restrooms. She stopped and so did he, causing Ronnie to stumble.
“Mom?”
“Cade.” He glanced at the man standing next to her, and she swallowed. “This is a friend that I met online Ronnie... um...”
“Ronnie Porter,” he said as he reached to shake Cade’s hand.
Cade’s manners wouldn’t let him leave someone hanging. “Cade Conroy.” His eyes hadn’t left his mother’s.
She gazed at him, silently pleading for him not to make a scene. “Ronnie invited me to watch his softball game. I didn’t know you would be here.”
“My team has the next game.”
Ronnie rested his hands on his hips. “So, you’re one of Michelle’s kids.”
“Yeah.” Cade really looked at Ronnie for the first time. “How old are you?”
“Thirty-seven.”
Cade’s mouth gaped open. When he turned back to his mom, she gave him an imperceptible shake of my head, all while praying he didn’t say anything. Finally, she gathered her wits. “I’ll call you later.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek.
Ronnie gripped Cade’s shoulder. “Nice to meet you.”
“Yeah,” Cade said as they walked past.
As soon as they got out of earshot, Ronnie bumped her shoulder. “I met one of your kids. That went pretty well, I think.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Did you have fun at the game?”
Michelle smiled. The girls hadn’t made her feel out of place. Ronnie was funny and made her feel special. She didn’t know what tomorrow held, so why not live in the moment.
“I did have fun.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“Look, I didn’t eat breakfast this morning and am kinda hungry. I’m going to the restaurant on Hazelwood if you’d like to join me.”
“Sounds great. I’ll follow you there.”
Michelle drove toward the restaurant. She was happy. Their first meeting went well enough to have a meal together. She knew she’d have to deal with Cade later, but for now, she was going to have fun.
Michelle didn’t ask him what kind of car he drove, so she waited at the corner of the building. An older Mustang rumbled past and parked beside her Jeep. Ronnie got out and her heart dropped. Another sign of their age difference. She smiled as he walked up, and he took her hand as they went into the restaurant. Thank goodness they were seated immediately in the back room.
They ordered and breakfast passed in cordial conversation. The server cleared the table and promised to return with the check. Ronnie leaned back in the corner of the booth. “What are you looking for, Michelle?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know really.” She rolled the edge of her napkin between her thumb and forefinger. “Bill, my late husband, and I worked hard, traveled, and enjoyed life. I’m looking for someone who wants to do that.”
“I can do that with you.”
She looked at him. “What are you looking for?”
“It’s up to the lady.”
“What do you mean?”
The server left the check and walked away. Michelle looked at Ronnie, who was staring at her. He leaned forward and rested his arms on the table. “Michelle, I’ll travel with you. I’ll cook for you and help you in every way. Most of the women I date are older. They’re missing a man in the house, and they’re lonely.” He waggled his eyebrows suggestively. “I’m looking for... you know... someone who needs some TLC in exchange for monetary security.” He pushed the tab toward her. “You asked me to join you , remember?” He got up and walked toward the restroom.
Mortified, she snatched the check as soon as he turned the corner and walked to the front of the restaurant. “Can I pay this here?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Can you hurry, please?”
The young man at the register rang up the check. She filled out the bottom and scribbled her name, then walked out the door as the young man called, “Ma’am! Ma’am...”
She rested her hand at the base of her throat. She had to get out of there. She could hardly breathe. She jumped in the Jeep and pulled out of the parking lot as Ronnie ran toward the road, waving his arms to flag her down. Was that what dating was like these days? She didn’t know if she could do it. She mentally coached herself. When the children didn’t listen, she gave them three strikes before she punished them. She thought it was fair that she did the same thing to herself. If she had three bad experiences, then maybe dating apps weren’t for her. Her heart calmed. Yeah, that sounded like a wise plan. She turned onto the main road as her phone pinged... and pinged... and pinged. She needed to talk with Jackie before she dealt with Ronnie.
Using Bluetooth, she called Jackie.
“That must be the longest softball game in history.”
“Jackie, I’m coming over. Please tell me you’re alone and dressed.”
“Girl, it’s almost lunchtime. Of course, I’m dressed.”
“And alone?”
“I will be in ten minutes.”
“You’ve got fifteen.”