Chapter Nineteen
CHAPTER NINETEEN
LIESEL
“‘ I t’s the most wonderful time—’” I jab the button, turning the radio off. The stupid lying radio. This is far from the most wonderful time of the year. We’ve been stopped for thirty minutes, and the reports of the accident keep getting more disastrous.
“An ambulance got through, but the fire truck hit black ice and now they’re stuck too,” Cooper says.
“Enough,” I say, covering my head with my hands. “I don’t want to know anymore.”
“Pretending nothing happened isn’t going to help.”
“Knowing what’s happening isn’t helping, either. It doesn’t change anything.”
“It helps us prepare. Plan ahead.”
“Plan ahead for what?” I ask. I gesture around me. “We’re stuck in the car!”
“Right, but for how long? Do you have any medical conditions you need help with?”
“No.”
“Are you sure you didn’t get bit by something? You seem pretty venomous.”
“Wow. All that setup for a mean joke?”
“No, that just came to me.” He says, holding his arm straight out and rotating his right wrist.
“Is your injury okay?”
“Just stiff.”
My eye twitches. I want to say something scathing, something that stings worse than a jellyfish. But I’m not actually a mean person. Something about Coop brings out the worst in me. And, honestly, I thought he was also bringing out the best in me, but I was clearly mistaken. That disappointment is probably making me even nastier, and my guilt over it makes me feel like my heart is pumping acid instead of blood. “If you need me to turn the heat up in the car, let me know.”
Cooper frowns but nods.
My leg starts bouncing. I text Juliet.
Liesel
The freeway’s at a standstill, and guess who’s stuck on it?
Juliet
NO!
Are you okay? What do you need? I’ll have Nate send a helicopter.
Liesel
Do not have Nate send a helicopter!
Juliet
Of course I will! Literally, what is the point of being a billionaire if he doesn’t help his friends?
“Juliet wants to have Nate send a helicopter to come get us,” I tell Cooper, though I don’t know why I do. It’s not like he deserves to know.
(And yes, the rational part of my brain can acknowledge that he does deserve to know.)
With his arm still in front of him, he points his hand upward, then flexes it downward. “Then your car would block traffic once it starts back up again. That could lead to other accidents.”
Liesel
You can’t do that. If we abandoned our car, it would lead to other accidents.
“Besides,” he adds, “there’s no way a helicopter could fly in this. It’s too dangerous.”
Liesel
Besides, it’s too dangerous for a helicopter to fly in this weather.
Juliet
Dang it. Nate agrees with you.
Leeee! What can we do?
Liesel
Pray? Maybe Nate can help with the emergency services side of things?
Juliet
Maybe we could rent an ATV and go deliver food and water to people?
Liesel
I’m not sure you could get through. And I’m not sure it’s safe. You see how nasty this storm is.
Juliet
I hate feeling powerless.
And I hate that you’re stuck alone.
Liesel
I’m not alone. Cooper’s with me. His car wouldn’t start.
Juliet
Oh, I’m so relieved!
Liesel
Don’t be.
Juliet
??
Liesel
He arranged for my brothers to get traded to another Triple-A team instead of being called up to the Majors.
Juliet
What? Why would he do that?
Liesel
Because he didn’t think they were ready.
Juliet
Ouch. What did he say when you called him on it?
Liesel
He said he didn’t do it. But Kayla Carville—the owner—told me he did.
Juliet
I hope there’s more to that story. I liked him. But if he’s sabotaging your bros, I’ll roast him like chestnuts on an open fire.
Liesel
Right there with you.
Juliet
Do you have everything you need? You kept all the supplies in the car, right? Do you have a full tank?
Liesel
Yes, yes, and yes.
Juliet
Good. If something changes, we’ll get an ATV and find you. Share your location, okay?
Liesel
Okay. Thanks Jules.
Juliet
3
You should talk to Cooper. At the very least, fighting will keep you both warm.
Liesel
ha
I’ll keep you posted.
“Are they okay?” Cooper asks.
A fresh wave of guilt pumps from my heart. I didn’t even check with Juliet. “I don’t know. She didn’t say otherwise,” I admit. “I should text her.”
“She’d have told you,” he says. “You can text her, but don’t beat yourself up for being scared.”
He can’t know how much I needed to hear that. But it’s hard to hate him when he says something so intuitively, unintentionally kind.
“I’m not scared,” I say. It’s mostly true. I’m nervous. I’m frustrated beyond belief. But I’m not scared. “They aren’t sending a helicopter, by the way. But she said they’ll rent an ATV and come help if we need them.”
“Man, they’re nice.”
“They’re the best.”
“Have you told your family what’s going on?” he asks.
“Obviously,” I lie, pulling up my phone. I text my dad and brothers.
Lucas’s response is swift and stupid, as expected.
Lucas
But you have the cookies! Aunt Meredith is going to be so mad.
Logan
Lee, I knew you’d do anything to avoid Christmas Adam, but this is a little much even for you.
Papa Fisch
I think she’ll do anything to avoid you knuckleheads. How are you, Lee?
Liesel
I’m safe and have supplies and a full tank of gas. I was driving a coworker to the airport, so I have company.
Lucas
What friend?
Papa Fisch
She didn’t say it was a friend, she said it was a coworker.
Which coworker? Do we know her?
Liesel
You guys have the subtlety of an atomic bomb.
I’m safe. Give my love to everyone. If this clears fast enough, I’ll be there.
A few days ago, I would have been thrilled to avoid Christmas Adam with the family. As it is, I’m torn between relief and … regret.
I miss my mom like a drowning woman misses oxygen. But being around her siblings and mine doesn’t sound like the worst way to cope.
Cooper keeps stretching, and I watch him from the corner of my eye. His movements are strangely graceful. For so long, I’ve hated the way he treats the sport I love, but there’s no question he takes it seriously. It almost makes me hate him more . If he were a slacker, it would be so much easier to be upset at how he showboats. But he really does work as hard as he claims.
That doesn’t make him a good person, though.
He’s still appallingly selfish.
Yes, that’s right. He’s selfish. This isn’t a bonding moment. We’re not “in this together.” We’re in this at the same time and place. Independently.
“So, are we going to talk about whatever’s bothering you?” Cooper asks.
“I already told you what’s bothering me.”
“No you didn’t.”
“You got my brothers traded to a different minor league team! Believe me: that’s bothering me.”
I lower the heat on the dashboard. For how freezing it is outside, it’s a little too warm in here.
“I didn’t get your brothers traded to another team.”
“Then why did Kayla Carville tell me you put them on her radar? You may not have pulled the string, but you pushed the first domino that led to the others falling.”
“While I appreciate the imagery and your faith in the power of my persuasion, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I met Kayla Carville one time, and all I told her was that she needed to get a great GM and great pitching, because the Mudflaps suck. That’s it.”
“So you’re telling me you didn’t mention my brothers at all? I find that hard to believe.”
Cooper’s tongue pushes against the inside of his cheek, making it pop out like a whack-a-mole I want to smack. “Okay, yeah, she asked me about getting good pitching, and I said something like, ‘Don’t ask me. I’m torn about the Fischer brothers.’”
“You planted it in her head!”
“I’m not a gardener!”
My laugh slips out before I can stop it. I clear my throat. “You planted it in her head. You mentioned my brothers because you didn’t like the plan we agreed on.”
He puts his head on the head rest. “You know exactly how I feel about your brothers. They’re hotheads who act like they’re already in the show when they need to focus more on getting there. But they can get there. That’s not news.”
“Then why did you mention my brothers to her at all?”
“Because we—” He stops and huffs.
“Yes?”
“Because we were talking about you .”
“You and Kayla were talking about me? Why?”
He drops his arm, evidently too exhausted from our discussion to even continue his light stretching. “She caught me looking at you and made a comment about how pretty my ‘girlfriend’ was, and I said you wouldn’t like being called that.”
“Pretty or your girlfriend?”
He snorts. “That’s exactly what she asked. The latter, for the record.”
“Correct,” I say.
He gives me a wary smile. “So when we talked about her dilemma as the new owner, I told her that I’d deny it if you asked me, but she should focus on pitchers over hitters.”
“You’re not wrong. Pitching wins championships.”
“I know. So when she asked about how to get good pitching …”
“You made the comment about my brothers.”
“Bingo.”
It’s not as nefarious as I thought. “You shouldn’t have mentioned trade info like that,” I say.
“Yeah, you’re right. But it didn’t occur to me she’d do anything about it. It’s almost impossible for a Triple-A team to acquire players from another Triple-A team. They’re not in the same organization.” He’s right. This acquisition is a testament to the powers of Kayla Carville. Also of money. “How did you two meet, anyway?”
“In the spa.” I tsk, frowning. “Shoot. Did she orchestrate that whole meeting to get information from me?”
“I think Nate and Juliet’s paranoia is coming out in you in unexpected ways.”
I eye him. “I’m serious. I really liked her. If she was using me to get information, that hurts.”
“I guess that’s possible, but—and I don’t want this to come off wrong—she’s probably as rich as Nate. If she wants something, I don’t think she needs a data analytics manager to get it.”
“Just a star right fielder,” I say sarcastically.
“I appreciate that you think I’m all-powerful, but I didn’t try to get rid of your brothers. I think they’ll be awesome.”
“Eventually.”
“Yeah.”
“What do you have against them? They have almost the exact same numbers as your boy, Betancourt.”
“I don’t have anything against them.”
“Then why do you look so annoyed anytime you talk about them?”
“Being annoyed by your brothers has nothing to do with why I think they’re not ready.”
I blink quickly. “You are annoyed with them. Of course that affects you not wanting them on the team!”
“For the love of Christmas,” he mutters. “I agreed to trade for Colt Spencer. Believe me, nothing your brothers could do could compare to anything that jerk says or does.”
“They did something?”
“No,” he says. “It’s not a big deal.”
“Cooper Freaking Kellogg,” I say in my most menacing tone.
“Fine.” He leans his head back. “I met them last season and they were jerks, okay?”
“ My brothers were jerks? To you ?”
“I know, you assume that I’m such a massive tool, no one could ever be rude to me unprovoked, but even if I didn’t know their dad— your dad—was an ump, I wouldn’t just be rude to them out of nowhere,” he says.
I laugh darkly. Like, really darkly.
“Wow, you won’t believe anything I say, will you?”
“Oh, I believe it, all right. Not the part about you never being rude out of nowhere—that’s patently false. But I definitely believe my brothers were jerks. And I’m going to kill them.”