17. Melanie #2
Harrison takes a slow, deliberate sip of his coffee.
“The school, and a lot of the parents, already know him. They were scrambling to find anyone else, so there wasn’t really a choice.
It was either Cale…or no season at all.” He slides a too-casual look my way.
“I’ll take over when this is off”—he taps his knuckles against the cast—“but the season will almost be over by the time that happens.”
Knowing that this is a last resort beats back my anger, because I’d rather Oakley have baseball with him than no baseball at all. And underneath that is bitterness, knowing that if Cale hadn’t fucked everything up between us, this would have been a dream scenario for Oakley.
“Melanie?” Harrison asks softly. I meet his concerned eyes. “Is there a reason Cale shouldn’t be coaching the Sluggers?”
“The kids will love that the games are back on,” I say, my voice strained in a way I can’t hide.
His brows dip doubtfully. “Jacob keeps telling me it’s probably a good thing,” he remarks dryly. “Apparently, I’m not as good as I like to think I am.”
I let out a soft laugh, the sound more genuine than I thought I was capable of at this moment. “Can’t have self-esteem with these kids around,” I say. “They can sense it—the moment you’re feeling good about yourself, they yank you crashing back down to earth.”
“You’re not wrong,” he mutters. “The amount of shit Jacob’s been giving me over this leg.
” He gives me a crooked smile. “One of the first things he told me was that it would’ve been a lot cooler if I’d been injured any other way than falling through a wooden porch.
” His look is put out. “I was still in the hospital, and he’s basically letting me know I let him down. ”
I give him an arch look. “He’s not wrong. I’d have been a lot more impressed if you’d broken the leg saving a cat from a tree or something.”
Harrison lets out a bark of laughter. Some of the tension eases from my shoulders as I push Cale from my mind, focusing on anything but him.
This doesn’t change anything.
By the time I finish my coffee, Oakley and Jacob are firmly entrenched in a video game, both reluctant to call it quits. I manage to drag Oakley out, but only after another hour passes, and he extracts no less than two promises that we’ll come back during the week sometime.
Harrison is under strict instructions not to drive, so I offer to take Jacob to baseball practice over the week, which thrills the boys. It just makes more sense than Harrison asking his parents to go out of their way, because I’ll already be heading there.
I’m just carefully not thinking about who else would be there.
As we pull into our driveway, the front door of Cale’s house opens. I pull air into my lungs, trying to steel myself for the sight of him. But it’s Lanie who trips down the steps, giving an enthusiastic wave as she comes toward us.
“Hi, Oakley! Hi, Melanie! I wanted to come over earlier, but Uncle Cale said you weren’t home.”
“Hello, Lanie.” I smile back, hoping that her uncle doesn’t come out. When the door opens again, panic skitters down my spine, fizzling away as fast as it came when Jaz appears, shutting the door firmly behind her.
“Look who you found, Lane!” Jaz says as she comes over. “I was hoping to see you today, Melanie. How are you?” Her eyes bounce between Oakley and me, her mouth fixed with a bright smile.
“We’re good, aren’t we, bug?”
“Yep!” Oakley declares. “We’ve been over at Jacob and Harrison’s house. He’s got a new Ninja Turtle game. It’s awesome.”
I roll my eyes at Jaz, who laughs. “How are the two of you?”
Lanie bounces on the balls of her feet. “We’re great. We had to visit Uncle Cale because he’s been avoiding family dinners again. I was gutted you weren’t home.” She looks at Oakley. “I thought we might be able to play Mario Kart.”
“That’s the only reason she came,” Jaz confides. “Apparently, Cale isn’t enough of a challenge.”
Oakley’s eyes flare with happiness before the excitement dims. “Oh. I’m not really in a Mario Kart mood,” he says stoically.
Lanie frowns. “We could play something else,” she suggests slowly, picking up on his mood. She follows his stare, looking over her shoulder at her uncle’s house. Proving how astute she is for a thirteen-year-old, she adds, “It doesn’t have to be a video game.”
Oakley looks down at his feet, his shoulders hunched, and I chew on my inner cheek. He obviously doesn’t want to shut Lanie down, but there’s also no way he’s stepping a toe inside Cale’s house.
“Oak can’t play today,” I interject gently. “He’s actually going to his dad’s house soon.” The words don’t do anything to lighten Oakley’s mood. If anything, his expression darkens further.
Jaz sends me a grimace, even as Lanie’s eyes flare with understanding. “Well, maybe we can play another time,” she suggests, her tone more cautious.
“You still need to go pack, Oak,” I remind him.
“I can help!” Lanie volunteers, before turning to check with her mother. “We’re not in a rush, right?”
Jaz shakes her head. “Nope. We’ve nowhere important to be today. Nana said dinner isn’t ‘til six.”
They don’t wait for another word, turning and walking into the house, Oakley chattering away, his grim mood vanishing, even if only temporarily.
Jaz waits for them to disappear inside before looking at me. “How’s he doing? I heard about…” She jerks her head back at her brother’s house.
I purse my lips together. “I haven’t told Oakley about the new coaching situation yet,” I admit. “Honestly, I only just found out myself. I’m not sure how he’s going to react.”
I cross my arms over my chest, feeling a little awkward. I’ve spent a little time with Jaz now, and we’ve bonded over asshole exes, but she’s still Cale’s sister, and I never want her to feel like she’s been put in the middle.
She watches me for a beat before nodding. “That’s fair. I told him I wasn’t sure if it was the best idea, but he’s determined.” She glares at his house, like she’s imagining pouring a bucket of fire ants on her brother’s head.
“Come on,” I tell her. “Let’s go inside. I need to make sure Oakley doesn’t try to pack a bag of toys and nothing else.”
“How’s Harrison doing?” Jaz asks as she follows me inside. I go straight for the kitchen, pulling out a bottle of water. She shakes me off when I offer her a drink. “Lanie said the entire school has been talking about the fire, even now.”
A small smile tugs at the corners of my mouth. “He’s grumpy, according to Jacob. And slow. He’s okay, though. More annoyed than anything else.”
“I just can’t believe someone’s wandering around, setting houses on fire,” Jaz says as we sit down at the table. “And after your house was broken into.”
A chill runs down my spine at the reminder, grateful that whoever did it hadn’t thought to set fire to my house. Still, terror hounds me that they might come back. We have the new security system Cale installed, and I silently reassure myself that we’re safe. Oakley is safe.
“They’ve got no leads apparently,” I murmur, fidgeting with the label on my water. “Some of the break-ins happened in the middle of the day, and yet no one saw anything.”
Jaz hums thoughtfully. “A group of kids from Lanie’s school saw the fire break out.
They were talking about it, saying it was intentionally set long before the information was released to the public.
” She watches me, tilting her head. “You look like you need a break. If Oakley’s at his dad’s tonight, why don’t we have an impromptu girls’ night?
Lanie can hang out with my parents. Cale skips enough dinners.
They won’t mind me dipping out for once.
” She furrows her brows. “My mom will probably be ecstatic, actually.”
I open my mouth, the words to turn her down on the tip of my tongue, but then I pause, asking myself why not? “You know what? Yes. I think that’s exactly what I need.”
Jaz’s expression brightens, like clouds parting to reveal the sunlight. “Good! It’s been a long time since I’ve had a night out. And you can invite Rosie!”
My shoulders lower an inch, a low thrum of excitement settling in me. “That sounds perfect.”