Chapter 11: Seventh Inning Slump
It had been three days since he had seen Kirby, and he looked it: his eyes were red from little sleep, his hair was frazzled from nights of tossing and turning, and he desperately needed to do laundry but couldn’t bring himself to so he was wearing the only clean clothes he had left, a pair of track pants and a t-shirt. Neither were warm enough to keep out the winter chill, so he put on his running shoes and ran all the way to Bud’s at opening time, as had become his new routine. He needed to know if Kirby would show up that day. She had to eventually, right?
And every morning, he stopped first at LuLu’s to pick up a lavender latte, in case today was the day she showed up. Today was no different, and he desperately hoped he wouldn’t have to drink this one himself, as he had the last few days.
The barista at LuLu’s made it easy for him. He walked in the door and she immediately started making his drink.
“You know, there is only one person in town who drinks this beverage,” the barista said that morning of the third day.
“I already know who it is,” Dave said, gloomily.
The barista smiled and said, “If I had a love potion to add to the espresso, I would.”
“I appreciate that. I don’t think even a love potion will help me now.”
Walking next door to Bud’s store, Dave held his breath. Any second, Kirby might appear walking towards him to the shop. Any second. The anticipation of seeing her again was making his heart beat faster than any bases-loaded scenario he had ever pitched in. But she never materialized as he walked slowly down the street.
When he got to Bud’s store, it was Bud standing in the doorway waiting for him, and he knew what that meant.
“Did she call in sick again?” he asked.
“Nope.”
“So, she’ll be here today?” he pressed.
“Nope.”
Confused, Dave sighed and put his hand over his face, trying to hide the disappointment he felt.
“She quit. Called me this morning. She’s moving.”
“Where? When? What did she say?” All frustration was pushed aside to make space for a new sensation of not being able to breath, and Dave felt frantic.
“She’s taking a job in Keystone. Teaching ski school. It’ll be good for her, Dave. After everything I told you about her, you have to agree with that. Maybe you should just let her go, son.”
“Let her go? I can’t let her go! I’ve never met a woman like her, and I never will again! Do you know how tortured I’ve been in just the three days since she walked out of my life? Bud, I have to find her. Here,” he said, handing the latte to Bud. “I can’t even drink another one of those. They’re so much like her, sweet and strong and feminine, it slays me to have her drink and not have her. I’m going after her.”
Bud smiled in the doorway and whispered to himself, I knew you would, as you should. Good luck, son.
Kirby drove away from her house and headed for the highway. With each intersection she passed in her hometown, she felt a growing sense of dread mixed with excitement. She knew a fresh start would be good for her and she couldn’t wait to be teaching again, but at the same time she hated that she was leaving behind the only home she’d ever known. And Dave. She disliked the feeling of unfinished business and wondered if she should have, as Scarlet suggested, at least given him a chance to explain.
He’d been trying to reach her, she knew that. And then there was his last text message, the one about the Rockies calling, and she wondered if it was best just to let him get back to baseball and ease herself out of his life. In the same way she did not want to be anyone’s safe wife, she also did not want to be a distraction from a man’s career and pursuit of what he loved most. Baseball was his life, and the Rockies would be a great opportunity. She had no business distracting him from that. That is, of course, if he even has a sound explanation for his dealings with Trevor, which I doubt.
She was nearly out of town when she realized she had forgotten to drop off her store keys at Bud’s. She didn’t know when she would be back in Breckenridge again, he would need them for the replacement associate he hired, and she did not have a firm timeline for getting to Keystone that day, so she turned around and headed back into town.
She pulled up at the curb of the hardware store, and saw Bud standing out front, though he didn’t see her right away. She rolled down her window, thinking she would simply get his attention, flag him to the car, and toss the keys to him and be on her way. But Bud went back in the store before she could get his attention, and apparently had not noticed her car. She was about to roll the window back up, turn off the ignition and go inside the store, when she heard a familiar voice. Dave. He seemed to be talking on the phone to someone a few paces in front of her car, with his back turned towards her car. She turned off the ignition so she could hear his side of the conversation.
“Hey Trevor, it’s Dave. … Yep, I got your message the other day about doing you a favor. … That’s why I called, I wanted to talk to you about that. … So the short answer is, no, I won’t do it. … Listen, I know what the property is worth, and while I can’t pay you what you’re asking for it, I absolutely won’t pay you half of what it’s worth. It’s not right. … No, especially not with the conditions you propose.”
Kirby wondered what they were talking about, and could not help but notice how cool and defensive Dave sounded.
She kept listening and then heard her name.
“Yeah, it is about Kirby. She’s worth that to me. … No, I haven’t found her yet, but I’m still looking, and I won’t stop. … I know what you did to her, Trevor. She deserves better than that. She deserves better than you for sure, and she probably deserves better than me. But here’s the difference between us, you and I – I would never, NEVER, break her heart or hurt her in any way in order to get what I want. Nothing I want would ever be worth that price. So, keep my parents’ property, I’d rather have her respect and, if she’ll let me, be a part of her life than hurt her and take that property from you at a steal of a price. Keep it. Enjoy it. And one more thing… Don’t call me again, and don’t call her. Stay out of our life. You’re a dick and I never want to hear your name again. I know she feels the same way.”
Kirby was breathless. Had he really just stood up to Trevor for her? She stepped out of the car, eager to rush to Dave and let him know what she had heard and how appreciative she was, even though she didn’t really understand what offer he had just turned down, when Dave took off running. She leapt out of the car, shouting his name, but he had his ear buds in and didn’t hear her. He kept running and she unabashedly stood there admiring his stride, his long legs, and his strength.
Instead she walked into the store with Bud’s keys, vowing to herself that she would call Dave later and try to talk to him.
Bud met her at the door, surprised.
“I didn’t expect to see you here this morning, kiddo,” he said.
“I know, I’m sorry, I should have told you I was coming by to return the keys to the store,” she said, handing the keys to him.
“Do you have to rush off right away, or can you come in a minute?”
“Oh, I guess I can come in, just to sweep the area and make sure I haven’t left anything behind,” she said.
Once inside the door, Bud handed her a cup. “This is for you,” he said.
She took a sip and knew immediately what it was. “But if you didn’t expect me to come by, how is it that you have my favorite coffee waiting for me, hot?”
“It’s not from me. Dave has been here every morning, lavender latte in hand, looking for you.”
Kirby looked down at her boots, overcome with emotion at Dave’s thoughtfulness. They had only had coffee at LuLu’s once, but he remembered her favorite drink, which was so typical of him. He always paid attention to her, to the little things. And she had wondered if it was all part of a game he had set up with Trevor, but now she wasn’t so sure after the phone call she had just overheard.
“He’s a good guy, Kirby. And he loves you. He’s got a good heart, he’s not like Trevor.”
“I know that now, Bud. I just… I don’t know how I can ever approach him now, after all I have put him through these last few days. He must think I am such a flake, such a tease. I think I have ruined everything.”
“No, he doesn’t think any such thing. He told me himself. He misses you. Go after him, Kirby. Go after him. Will you?”
“I will, Bud. I just don’t know where to find him. Do you know where he was heading to?”
“Well, beyond looking for you, he mentioned he had a baseball signing event at the slopes. You could probably catch him there. I think it starts in an hour.”
“Thanks, Bud,” Kirby said, hugging the old man tight.
In an effort to keep Dave relevant and in the news while he hunted for a new team for Dave to play for, Duke had been busy arranging any PR and marketing events he could. When he heard Dave was in Breckenridge, he had immediately called up his contact at Breckenridge Resort, arranged a signing, and shipped out 500 baseballs the next day to have on-site for Big Dave to sign for his fans.
When Dave arrived at the resort, he was annoyed by the event already. He had no desire to sit at a table, bundled in a coat, and sign baseballs for fans when the woman of his dreams was headed farther and farther away from him towards Keystone at the exact same moment. It was killing him to sit still, and killing him to not be pursuing her. He looked at the long line of fans – boys mostly, some old and some young – all lined up expectantly to meet their favorite southpaw pitcher.
He kept his head down while he signed, looking up only to hand an autographed ball to a fan and thank them for their support. He simply smiled and shrugged mysteriously every time an eager fan asked him where he would play next, knowing full well that most of these Colorado fans would be more than excited if he agreed to sign on with the Rockies again. Of course, he still hadn’t decided what to do about their offer but until he had, talking about the Rockies was simply not appropriate.
Towards the end of the signing, the line finally started to dwindle, to his complete relief. He reached over to the box of baseballs next to him, now nearly empty, and poised his pen to write the name of the person who stood at the table waiting for him next. “Your name?” he asked, without looking up.
“I heard the Rockies called,” the voice said.
How does one of my fans know that? He looked up sharply.
“Can you sign that one for me? For Kirby?”
He was so relieved to once again hear the sound of her voice; his heart was pounding in his chest as he looked into the eyes of the woman he could not stop thinking about.
“Kirby? Baby? What are you doing here?” He was confused and excited and ecstatic to see her all at the same time.
“I just… I wanted… Dave, I… I’m so sorry, for everything. I was confused and … I wondered if I could trust you after… And then Trevor, and… Oh! I’m not making any sense!”
Dave stood up and grabbed her hands in his. He kissed each one in turn, the way he had when they had been in each other’s arms for the first time in the hot springs. He looked deep into her eyes. “The only thing that matters is that you’re here. We’ll be okay, I promise. I thought you were… Are you leaving town, still?”
“I am, or, I was, but then… Hey, Bud asked me to give you this,” she said, handing him a sealed envelope. “You know, if I saw you.”
Dave smiled. “I know what this is,” he said. “Hey, this is terrible timing, but I have a few more fans waiting behind you I need to finish up with, and then I have a news conference afterwards. Can we meet up later to talk? I really want to spend some time with you and sort through things. Can you stay in town tonight? If after tonight you still want to go to Keystone, I promise I’ll respect that. But can we just have tonight?”
Kirby reached up and hugged Dave and whispered in his ear, “Yes, Big Dave, we can have tonight.”
He returned her embrace, not wanting to let her go. “Meet me at this address at 5 tonight. Dress warm,” he said, scribbling an address on a sheet of paper and handing it to her.
“See you then,” she said, and walked away.
Check Out my other books, posted on Steemit!