Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
GAbrIEL
Iwas scrolling through pizza options on my phone when the front door clicked open. For a split second, I expected Charlotte’s mom to walk in as she’d done before.
Instead, in strolled Austin with his baseball bag slung over his shoulder.
We both froze.
His eyes went wide, and mine probably mirrored his shocked expression.
I slipped the phone into my pocket and forced an easy smile. “Hey. Your mom and I were about to order pizza for dinner. You hungry?”
He shifted his bag to the floor. “Yeah. Uh…pepperoni?”
I nodded as if this was the most important decision either of us had made all day. “You’ve got it.”
Charlotte came in, looking adorable in tights and a sweater. Her gaze bounced between us, and she seemed unsure how to address the situation.
“Hi, Mom,” Austin greeted, suddenly sheepish, like he realized maybe he’d crossed some invisible line. “Sorry I didn’t text first.” He shrugged, staring down at his shoes.
Charlotte stepped quickly to lay a steadying hand on his arm. “Don’t ever apologize for coming home. This is your house, too, and we were just ordering pizza.” Her voice was soft but firm.
I turned back to Austin. “You come from practice?”
His face lit instantly, the awkwardness forgotten. “Not today. But you, uh, throw?”
I grinned, unable to help it. “My arm is probably rusty, but…happy to throw it around while we wait for the food if you have another mitt.”
His smile came easily. “Yeah, I sure do. Let me grab it from the garage.”
As soon as the door closed behind him, Charlotte let out a breath. “I wasn’t expecting him tonight, but now that he’s here…”
I thumbed the last couple buttons on my phone and slid it into my pocket. “Too late. Two pizzas and a pile of breadsticks are on their way. If I bail now, it would be awkward.”
Her lips twitched up in a smile I’d needed to see. “Okay.”
I reached out, tipping her chin up with two fingers. I wanted to explain everything sitting heavy in my chest, apologize for jumping to conclusions. For not trusting she’d done the right thing in firing John.
My hand dropped the moment I heard footsteps.
Austin appeared with an extra mitt in hand. “You ready?”
I grinned. “You bet. Let’s go out back.”
Once Austin and I were outside, the late evening air felt cool and tinged with the faint sweetness of whatever herbs Charlotte had growing in her pots along the patio.
Austin tossed me the ball first, and muscle memory took over.
My hand closed around the leather with a nearly forgotten familiarity, and I threw it back with a clean snap of the wrist.
We fell into rhythm quickly, the ball slapping into our gloves with a satisfying smack, over and over. My shoulders loosened with every throw, and something wound tight for too long started to ease.
“My mom’s pretty good at tossing the ball around too, you know,” Austin offered up after a few throws. “She practiced with me all summer when I was little and wanted to improve. Even when she was tired from a long day.”
His words packed an unexpected punch. I pictured Charlotte, out here fresh from work, lobbing balls back and forth with her son even when she must’ve been running on fumes.
“I don’t think there’s a thing in this world your mom can’t do.” She was the most capable person I’d ever met.
He blew out a breath. “I’m sorry if I interrupted your dinner tonight.”
I caught the ball against my palm and blew out a breath. “One of the best traits about your mom is the way you walking through the door would never be an interruption. Just the same as it wouldn’t be for me if Samantha came home unexpectedly.”
I only wished my daughter felt comfortable enough to come over whenever she wanted. Then it hit me. I’d never actually told her she could. Not once. Of course, there was the matter of transportation since she was only thirteen, but we could work something out like hiring a driver.
“I’m happy you’re here. My mom has never introduced me to anyone she was dating before?”
I could hear the question in his voice, and it made me chuckle. “We’re co-workers, but maybe I’m working on the second part.”
He grinned.
“I’ve missed this. Tossing a ball around.”
“You’re really good at it,” he commented before moving back and increasing the distance between us.
I was sure my arm would be sore tomorrow, but I didn’t care. It took me back to the days I’d played baseball in high school.
“Quick question. How many pizzas did you order?” he asked out of the blue.
“Uh, two large and some breadsticks. Why?”
He pointed toward the sliding glass window. “Because we have more company.”