Years ago, it would have killed me if Malone had walked through the door of the establishment I was in. Ego, pride, and stubbornness would have kept me from acknowledging her, from giving her a welcoming smile. I’d probably still be a bitter shell of the man I am now. Probably have a harsh word for her, if I’d even acknowledged her at all. Hell, that stubbornness has kept me away from here for the past ten years, for fear I’d run into her again. But this knee injury? It’s changed things for me. It’s shown me the world can turn in an instant, all the carefully laid plans you have for yourself can be fucked up in a matter of seconds.

Knowing that now, living that now, I give her a smile and throw two fingers in the air to wave at her. She looks around for a moment, almost like she can’t believe I’m gesturing to her, and for some reason that makes me laugh harder than I’ve laughed in years.

An amused smile on her face, she comes over. “Were you waving at me?”

“Nobody else walked through the door.”

Her hand goes on her hip, drawing my eyes down to her manicured fingers. I’m well acquainted with a woman who takes care of herself, have been since I cashed my first Major League check. Malone definitely takes care of herself now. What she wears isn’t a cheap manicure, but it does look like it’s been a few weeks since she’s had it done. This is shit I notice now.

Leaning down, I take a bite of my omelet. “Heard you hit town not too long ago.”

“Yeah.” She licks her lips as she gazes around the inside of the Diner. “Not for the same reasons you did though.” She tilts her head toward my knee. “I’m sorry you got hurt.”

“That right?” I chuckle, taking a drink of my coffee. “Heard it told back in the day you would have taken a club to this same knee. Now you’re sorry?”

Her face turns red, she squirms with an uncomfortableness I’m familiar with. Lots of people have it around me. Either they look at me in awe, or they’re totally uncomfortable. “I was a young girl who’d gotten my heart broken.”

I rub at the beard I’ve been sporting since I began my rehab. “If I remember things correctly, I’m pretty sure I was the one heartbroken.”

“It’s only because you didn’t give me a chance to explain, to express my fear to you. You took a gesture to mean everything, when to me it was just a little taste of independence I felt I needed.”

“How’s that independence treated you?” My tone is snarky, and that part I can’t seem to help. Honestly though, I’m genuinely curious as to what the answer will be. I don’t know why she’s back in town, but one thing I do know. Malone’s not happy, and while it might not be my place to make her happy anymore, I find I still don’t like it when she’s upset.

“Decent,” she sighs. “Some days are better than others. Some seasons of life are better than others. Right now I’m going through a trying one, much like you, but I’ll get through it.”

“I’m hoping I get through it.” I run my hand through my hair, before moving down to the beard and twisting the hair between my fingers. It’s become a nervous habit of mine, but I can’t see to stop it. “Never been hurt before; this is something new to me.”

“You’ll recover, right?” she asks quietly, like she’s scared I won’t.

“Awww, Mal.” I use her old nickname. “You worried about me?”

She looks everywhere but at my eyes. “Regardless of what happened to us, Slade-” she uses her own nickname. “-you were always one of my oldest friends, and contrary to what you probably think, I’ve followed your career. Not like I would have, had I been your girlfriend, but I kept track from afar.”

“Wife,” I correct her quickly. “You would have been my wife.”

She licks her lips, almost like she’s scared of what she’s stepping into here. I recover, to keep her talking, asking what I’m wondering. “You have?”

“Kinda hard not to when you stuck it to me and became one of the most popular baseball players of the modern era.” Her green eyes shine with what almost looks like pride.

“I was on a mission. Had to prove to you that you were wrong. Had to prove to myself I was right.” I take my last drink of coffee. “But to answer your question, they do think I’ll make a full recovery. PT fuckin’ sucks though.”

“At least you’ve been able to do it at home.”

“Yeah, moving back in with my parents has been a bit of an adjustment, but a few years ago I bought them a new house. It’s got an apartment over the garage and that’s where I’ve been staying, so it’s not been horrible.”

“Yeah, I know all about the moving back in with your parent’s thing.” She purses her lips.

“Is that why you’re back in town?”

The nod she gives me is slow and almost imperceptible. “Got fired, so now I’m looking for a new job. Just trying to figure it all out, ya know?”

Actually I don’t know, because I’ve been my own brand, for the most part, since I was old enough to have an alcoholic drink. There’s a whole slew of people who depend on me to have my shit together. There’s no figuring it out for me. I rehab and go play. That’s the endgame here.

“Well good luck on that, Mal. Maybe I’ll see ya around?”

“Yeah.” She gives me a grin. “Maybe so.”

As she leaves, I watch her, wondering for just a few seconds what it would have been like if we’d stayed together. What if we’d come back to this town together, to raise the kids we’d both wanted? Every time we’d talked about it before, it was two or three. More boys than girls, all within three years of each other. We’d buy land and build a house off of Route 129. We’d even thought of how the house would look, how many cars would be in the garage. There’d be a facility in the back so that I could train in the off-season and a barn for her, because Mal had loved horses but had never been able to afford one.

On one edge of the property we’d build my mom and dad a house, on the other, we’d offer to build her mom and dad one. My brother would be close, and I’d be able to help him in his own dreams with playing ball.

It was all planned out – until it wasn’t anymore, and the bottom had dropped out. I still wonder to this day how far would we be if we hadn’t given up. Probably at least on kid number two.

“You need anything else?” Stephanie asks as she drops off my check.

Clearing my throat, I look up at her, digging myself out of daydreams I haven’t had for a long time. “Nah, thanks I’m good.”

“It’s hard to see her, huh?”

“Memories are everywhere around this place. Probably why I never came back before now, but seeing her walk in here? I remember the day we broke up, the night I left, and when I vowed not to come back. It’s all so clear in my head,” I admit to her. “But what’s just as clear are all the plans we had, all the dreams we shared, and how close we were to making that a reality. It’s just hard to look at what could have been yours had you not let it slip through your fingers.”

“I’m sure she feels the same way, Slater.”

My shoulders shrug. I really don’t know how she feels. “Just one of those things you wonder, ya know?”

“Well, you are stuck here for the next few months until you’ll be cleared to start working out with your team again. Why not hang out with her? From what I hear, she’s stuck here too.”

Hanging out with her is the worst idea I’ve ever heard in my life. She tore my heart to pieces once before, I can’t let her do it again. I can’t let myself fall for her. Malone Fulcher has always been my kryptonite. She’s the one woman I hold all others to. I’ve dated my fair share, even a few models, even an actress. None of them have ever made me feel the way she did.

And seeing her today? It drove that fact right the fuck home. If anything, I should stay as far away from her as I can.

“Thanks for the advice, Stephanie, but I gotta be going.”

Getting out of the booth, I take my time walking, practicing putting one foot in front of the other. I haven’t been off the crutches long.

As I get outside in the bright sunshine, I realize I don’t want to go home just yet. Instead, I do something I haven’t done in a very long time. I watch the world go by while I sit on a bench on Main Stree0074.