Chapter 11
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Kyle
His world was full of fire where everything around him seemed to be going up in flames, but the thing he could count on for some semblance of normal, were his workouts. Thanks to a few phone calls, he was able to use the Strikers’ facilities while he was in town, to keep up with his training.
With spring training only a week away, he had to focus on staying fit and healthy. Not to mention, being in the gym kept his mind off Celia.
Something he desperately needed.
If only he could work out twenty-four hours a day.
Heath had stayed in town, as had Noah Ashe. Noah was the second baseman for the Los Angeles Emperors, whereas Heath was a starting pitcher. Kyle didn’t know him as well as Heath, but he had met him a few times when they’d played against each other. They were both working out alongside him, because just like he needed to train, so did they.
Kyle had just hit mile five on the treadmill when Noah stepped on the treadmill next to him. “Trying to outrun your problems?”
Kyle faltered, almost falling off, but catching himself quickly. “Excuse me?”
Noah hit the screen to start the treadmill. “I’m just saying the only reason a man runs as hard as you are, is to outrun his problems. I’ve tried it myself once or twice.”
Did Noah know about Celia and Jasmine? It wasn’t as if he was going to be able to keep it a secret forever, but they hadn’t talked about what they would say.
“Ashe, shut the hell up and work out!” Heath shouted from across the room.
Noah flipped Heath off as he started jogging. “I wasn’t trying to pry. Just figured you needed to let off some steam.”
Kyle slowed his treadmill until he was doing a slow jog. “There’s a lot going on, and you’re right, I was trying to clear my head.” Then he figured fuck it, since it was going to come out sooner or later. “I have a daughter with a woman who lives here.”
Noah didn’t miss a beat. “The blond you were talking to at the wedding? The one Zara seemed protective of?”
“You know Zara?” he asked, curious how Noah was even at the wedding.
“I just switched to her firm. That’s why I”m in town. Although she’s too busy to take me on so Hannah is going to represent me. Which, thanks to her, is how I somehow got a last-minute invite to the wedding.”
“No one better!” Heath yelled over the music.
“Says her brother and the man who is represented by Zara,” Noah said with an eye roll. “Do you use Sports World?” he asked Kyle.
“No, but I’ve been thinking about it.” He didn’t hate his agent, but he also didn’t have any sort of real relationship with him. He’d been thinking of switching, and now with Celia and Jasmine living in Valley Falls, this might be a perfect time. “Heath, aren”t you friends with Zara? Can you get me a meeting?”
“You heard me, right?” Noah said. “She was too busy to take me as a client. I doubt she has time for you.”
“I’ll give you her number,” Heath said, finishing a bench press set. “She’ll meet with you.”
“What the fuck?” Noah said. “I knew she was just using that as an excuse.” He huffed out a breath as he pushed the button to make the treadmill go faster.
It looked like he needed to work off some of his own frustration.
Kyle stopped his treadmill and jumped off. “Thanks. I think it could be a good time to switch.”
Heath sat up, his elbows on his knees. “I don’t know everything going on, but I do know my sister and Zara have Celia’s back, no matter what.”
Hearing that made even more of his anger at Celia dissipate. She’d been alone with only her sister for so long. She’d told him the story of her parents, and how after her dad died, her mom had become an even worse parent. He was glad there were other people in her life to look out for her. “I know that.”
“What”s going to happen?” Heath asked. “Are you getting partial custody of Jasmine? Moving here? Taking her with you?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know. I’ve only met her once, and I think we need more time together before we make big life decisions like that.” He knew one thing for sure. He would not be taking Jasmine from Celia. Yes, he wanted to see her more, and maybe he’d like her to come visit him at his home in Arizona, but he knew he would never ask her to move there and leave her mom.
He wasn’t a monster.
Why was that? Celia had done something unforgivable, and yet here he was, trying his damndest not to do anything that would hurt her.
Why should he be the good guy?
He knew the answer. Because even though she’d done this unforgivable thing, he knew, deep down, that she’d regretted every second of it. She hadn’t done it to hurt him or Jasmine, She’d done it because she thought it was the right thing for him.
Did that make it forgivable? He wasn’t sure. But, he knew damn well that punishing her by taking her daughter away from her, wasn’t the right answer.
They were both Jasmine’s parents. Somehow, they were going to have to make it work.
He still wasn’t sure if her reasoning for why she’d kept the pregnancy a secret was something he could agree with. He loved baseball, sure, but he would have been able to have a baby and have baseball.
Wouldn’t he?
Guys did it all the time. He had several teammates who had kids and they seemed to make it work.
“You guys wanna grab lunch?” Heath asked when they finished up their workouts.
He had nothing else to do until he saw Jasmine the next day after school. He needed to do something to kill time. “I’m in.”
“Me too,” Noah said.
They changed into warmer clothes and then walked a few blocks to a local sub place. It was nice to spend a few hours doing anything other than talking or thinking about Celia. He knew he had a lot to work out, but when she was on his mind, all he thought about was how much he wanted her.
He was going to have to find a way to stop those thoughts.
After lunch, he shot off a text to Zara asking to set up a meeting for new representation. She got back to him immediately and told him to come on over to the office. He wasn’t really dressed for a meeting, but he figured what the hell, and made his way there. The building was in downtown Valley Falls and was housed inside one of the larger buildings in the small city. He found the Sports World offices, and was directed to Zara’s office, where he found her behind her desk, with her feet up as she talked on the phone.
She waved him inside. “I told you no. That’s not what we”re looking for. See what else you can do and get back to me.” She dropped her phone to her desk, removing her feet and placing them on the floor. “Kyle Dulanay, it’s nice to meet you in person.” She stood, holding her hand out for him to shake.
“I’ve heard nothing but good things about you and what you do for your clients.” He figured starting with praise was a good way to get on her good side.
She laughed, throwing her head back. “That may be true, but I also know most of my clients fear me a little. It’s part of my charm.” She indicated to the chair in front of her desk. “Take a seat.”
He did as she asked, getting comfortable in the chair. “Thanks again for meeting with me at the last minute.”
She walked around the desk, past him, and shut the door to her office. “I wasn’t about to turn down meeting you. I mean, I sort of figured we’d meet at some point in the next week or so, but if I’ve learned anything in my years as an agent, it’s when an opportunity presents itself, you take it.”
He sighed. “I know you are friends with Celia and I’m not here because of that.”
She gave him a do I look stupid face. “You don’t think I know that you and Barry aren’t really meshing? I know all and see all.” She tapped her temple. “So, I know you aren”t only here because of Celia, but instead because Barry Cafferty does a lazy-ass job as an agent. Sometimes I wonder how he even keeps clients.” She frowned. “But, don’t lie to both of us and try and tell me that Celia isn’t at least part of the reason you came here now.”
Damn, the woman was good. “You’re right. I could have done this weeks or months ago, and should have, really. Barry is fine, but not really the type of guy I want handling my career anymore. I’m doing it now because of your connection to Celia, and because I sort of wanted to meet the legendary woman who conquers the world daily, and who just so happens to be the confidant of my daughter’s mother.”
Zara winked and mimed zipping her lips. “All my Celia secrets are just that, secrets. They aren’t mine to tell, and if you are the guy she seems to think you are, you would never ask me to break her confidence.”
He wasn”t sure whether to be scared or impressed. “I like you, Zara, and I’m really glad Celia has you in her corner.” That was the truth and he could say it with confidence.
“I might just like you too. Let’s talk about why you want to leave Barry.”
“It’s pretty much like you said, although until you said it, I never really understood just how little he did for me. I like to keep a low profile and I’m starting to think that Barry took that to mean no sponsorships. That’s not really the case. I wouldn’t mind bringing in more money, especially now that I have a family to care for. I’d just like to make sure they’re the right fit.”
“Don’t you mean a daughter to care for?”
“That’s what I said.” He frowned.
“No,” she angled her head, “you said family. Family indicates more than one person.”
Shit, had he? He didn”t even know he’d done it. “Slip of the tongue.”
Zara’s head stayed angled as she examined him. There were several beats of silence before she said, “I’m not so sure it was. You don’t strike me as the sort of guy who says something he doesn’t mean.”
Well, what the hell was he supposed to say to that? “I’m not really sure what you’re looking for from me here.” He held out his hands, hoping to come across as confused.
“The truth would be a start, especially if I’m going to be your agent.”
“Are you going to be my agent? Noah Ashe said you turned him down because you were too busy.”
He saw her cringe, even though she tried to hide it. “Noah Ashe isn’t worth my time which is why I didn’t take him as a client. You, well, I think you might just be.”
He held her gaze across the desk. She was good, that was for damn sure, but she was right, if he was going to have her as his agent, he needed to be honest. “I don’t just want to take care of Jasmine. I want to take care of them both.” He didn’t say Celia’s name, he didn’t need to. She knew who he was talking about.
“Do you care what she wants?”
“You know as well as I do how complicated this situation is. I’m just starting to get my footing but yes, I care what she wants. I just need to figure out what I want first.”
“And you think that’s Celia and Jasmine as your family?”
“They”re my family no matter what happens with Celia and me. If she ends up hating me and wanting nothing to do with me, I will still provide for both her and Jasmine.” That’s what you did when you loved someone.
He didn’t know if he still loved her, but he’d loved her once, and those feelings had never really gone away. It was time to find out if what they had all those years ago could be turned into something that would last a lifetime.
“I gotta tell you, I can see why she fell for you. You have all the right words, and what’s more, is they come across as sincere. It also doesn’t hurt that you’re easy on the eyes.”
He wasn”t sure what to say to that so he sat quietly.
“I’ll draw up a contract and you can have your lawyer look it over. I can promise you this, I will get you sponsorships, and if you still want to sit quietly in the shadows, you’ll be able to do that.”
That made him happy. “Thank you. I really appreciate it.” He stood, ready to leave.
“Before you go, can I ask you something that is absolutely not appropriate, but that I feel I should ask before you officially become my client?”
He wasn’t sure what she was going to ask, but he assumed it was about Celia. “As long as I have the right not to answer if I don’t want to.”
She nodded. “Deal.” She leaned back in her chair. “If you still had feelings for Celia all this time,” she raised her eyebrow, “and don’t forget, I saw the way you looked at her at the wedding.” She paused. “If you still had those feelings, why didn’t you ever contact her?”
She went right for the jugular. “She broke my heart. Shattered it into a million pieces using the worst possible words.” Even remembering the things she said made a little of his hatred of her return. “I know now why she did it. Why she said those things, but at twenty-one, hearing something like that, something that’s haunted you your whole life,” he shook his head, “there was no going back. Even that, though, never made me stop loving her.”
“And now? Knowing about the why? Do you still love her?”
“If I had the answer to that, I think I’d be a lot less confused.”
She pursed her lips, giving him a solid nod. “Thanks for being honest. I appreciate it. And don’t worry, nothing you told me will leave this room.”
“I’m not sure I’d care if it did. Celia’s avoiding me, and while I understand why, it’s making it difficult for me to figure things out.”
“Piece of advice? Push the door down. She’s used to people giving up and fading out of her life. Other than Ruby, she’s never had anyone stay and fight.”
Those words rang in his head the rest of his day. Everything he did, every move he made, he heard them in his head. Which was why he was standing on her doorstep at ten at night, hand lifted to knock.
He didn’t give up easily.
It was going to take a lot more than her ignoring him for him to walk away.