After spending half the night in the ER and the other half in the hospital waiting room, Colton and I were relieved to see the nurse heading in our direction. We both hoped that she’d have some good news about our father. We’d brought him in worried that he might’ve had an issue with his heart. Of course, my father tried to blow it off as nothing. We’d just eaten supper, and since it was getting late and he didn’t want to be a bother, he insisted it was nothing. We both knew not to listen. Hell, the man would be halfway in the grave before he’d admit that anything was wrong, so when I saw him rubbing his chest and arm, I knew it was time to get him to the hospital. Immediately, they rushed him back and hooked him up to all kinds of monitors, and the doctor ordered a long list of tests that needed to be run. Eventually he was put in his own room, and we were sent out to the waiting room, where we’d been waiting for the past six hours.

“Is he okay?”

“Yes. He’s going to be fine. The doctor will be out shortly to speak with you.”

“Did he have a heart attack?”

“The doctor will explain everything.” She gave me one of those half-smiles, which really meant: Eat shit. I’m not going to tell you a goddamn thing. “He shouldn’t be long.”

Colton nodded and said, “Thank you.”

I rolled my eyes as I watched her walk away. “What are you thanking her for? It wasn’t like she actually told us anything.”

“She’s just doing her job, Tucker.”

We were about to sit back down when Seth, our other brother, came rushing through the front door. He’d been in Chicago at some conference when we’d called him about Dad. As much as he wanted to be here, he couldn’t make it to the hospital until this morning. With anguished look on his face, he asked, “Is he okay?”

“We don’t know yet. Nurse Ratchet just said the doctor will be out in a minute to tell us what’s going on,” I explained.

“What happened?”

“We’re not sure,” Colton told him. “We’d just finished dinner when Tucker noticed that he was rubbing his chest. You know Dad. Since Mom died, he hasn’t been taking care of himself like he should. It was only a matter of time before something like this was bound to happen.”

We all knew he was right. Our mother passed away a few years ago, and Dad had a difficult time dealing with her death. Even with Colton and Seth close by, he didn’t like being alone. He missed the feeling of being needed, and we all had to find a way to make him realize how important he was to us. Seth followed Colton and me over to the seating area and as we sat down, he asked, “Do you really think it was a heart attack?”

“Hell if I know, but either way, this should be a wakeup call for him.”

“Let’s hope so.”

I was worried about Dad, and our conversation wasn’t making me feel any better. Hoping to change the subject, I looked over to Seth and asked, “So, how was the conference? Did you learn any new tricks for dealing with your nut-jobs?” I teased. Seth was a psychiatrist, and while I loved giving him a hard time about his patients, I knew he was great at his job.

He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Do you ever get tired of being an ass?”

“Nope.”

“I didn’t think so.” He sighed.

Remembering how upset he’d been about not being here when we brought Dad in, I said, “I thought you weren’t going to be able to get here until later today.”

“I did too, but Grace made a few calls and was able to book me an earlier flight.”

“Grace? Who’s Grace?” Colton asked like he’d never heard her name before.

Since we’d just had a long conversation about her the other night, and Colton was sitting with us as we talked, I wasn’t surprised to see a look of irritation cross Seth’s face. “I bet if she had something to do with one of your cases you’d know who she was.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You know exactly what that means. You’ve become so obsessed with work and that baseball team of yours, you don’t pay attention to anything else. I get why you do it. I really do. I know losing Hannah and Morgan was tough on you, but Hannah wouldn’t want you living like this.”

“Where the hell is all this coming from?” he growled.

Colton had lost his wife, Hannah, and two-year-old daughter, Morgan, in a terrible car crash a few years back. Ever since, he’d closed himself off, using work and anything else he could focus on to distract himself from the pain of losing them. I knew that spending all this time back in a hospital today wasn’t making things any easier on him, so I leaned towards Seth and said, “Hey. Ease up on him. He’s been trying. He’s been over at Dad’s more, and he’s been working with the team.”

“The team isn’t his family, Tucker.”

“Things are getting better. He’ll get there.”

“Stop talking about me like I’m not in the same fucking room, and tell me who the hell Grace is,” Colton snapped.

Seth shook his head and replied, “Just forget it.”

We sat there in an awkward silence for several minutes before we were finally called back into Dad’s room. When we walked in, he was propped up on the bed talking to the doctor, and we were all relieved to see that he was looking much better. Once we’d all gathered around, the doctor turned to us and said, “I’ve gone over all your father’s test results, and his heart is functioning in the normal range for his age. I believe that the angina he experienced last night were esophageal spasms.”

“They were what?”

“Spasms of the esophagus. They occur when acid reflux causes irritation in the esophagus. In turn, these spasms can create severe pain in your throat and the upper area of your chest. I’m certain this is what your father’s discomfort was the other night, especially after he described the foods he'd eaten earlier that day,” the doctor explained.

I turned to Dad and asked, “What foods had you eaten?”

“Just the usual stuff. Sausage and eggs and maybe some orange juice for breakfast, then I ate me a handful of those chocolate nuggets that your mom always liked. For lunch, I had a bologna sandwich with a glass of tomato juice … and then I had spaghetti with you boys.”

“And you drank a few beers, too,” I added.

“I did. What of it?”

“Have you ever heard of a TUMS?” I mocked. “If you’re gonna eat that kind of shit, your stomach is going be like a ticking time-bomb, Dad.”

The doctor shook his head. “At your father’s age, he really needs to be more careful about what he eats, and it wouldn’t hurt for him to get a little physical activity now and then.”

“We’ll see that he does,” I assured him. “Can he go home now?”

“Yes. I’ll get his discharge papers, and once they’re signed, he’s free to go.”

“Thanks, Doc.”

He reached into his pocket and offered me a card. “Here’s the name of a gastroenterologist. If your father has any more trouble, give him a call.”

Once he was gone, Dad looked at us and said, “Never seen so much fuss over a little indigestion.”

“You scared us, Dad,” I told him.

“Guess I shouldn’t have had that third beer, huh?” he teased.

“Probably not.”

Once we got him home and settled, Colton and Seth made a run to the grocery store to grab Dad some healthier meal options, while I cleaned out the fridge. It didn’t take us long to get everything sorted, and we all agreed to try to work together to get him back on track. Between Dad, ball practice, and rehab, the next week was a complete blur. My pitching coach had called for an update, so I knew he was eager for my return—I just didn’t realize how eager. Right after that conversation, I was called up to the Atlanta Skyhawks, our local Minor League team, and I had eight days to get my leg ready and in optimum shape for practice. My doctor would sign off to validate that my right quad was healthy enough only after I passed his final evaluation, so there was no time to waste. I had to make sure I was ready, or a minor injury might end up costing me everything.

By the time Friday rolled around I was completely fried, and I barely made it to the last practice before our first big game. As I hobbled through the gate, Colton informed me, “Our uniforms came in.”

I grimaced as I sat down on the bench. “Okay.”

“You all right?”

“Yep.” I rested my head against the fence and closed my eyes. “What are we doing about the uniforms?”

“We’ll give them to the parents when they come to pick up the kids after practice.”

“Alright.”

“I asked Bill to bring his team over for a quick scrimmage. Just want to make sure the kids are ready for the game on Monday.”

With my eyes still closed, I mumbled, “Umm-hmm.”

“His team won the league last year, so it’ll be interesting to see how our boys do against them.”

“They’ll do fine.”

“I don’t know. His kid is only nine, but he looks like he’s at least sixteen.”

“Umm-hmm.”

“I’m serious. You should see this kid. I bet he’s already 5’8” or 5’9” and weighs at least 220, if not 240.”

I opened one eye. “Bullshit.”

“I’m not fucking around, Tucker. The kid is a giant. Just wait and see.”

Sure enough, when the other team arrived at the field, they had several kids who looked big enough to be in high school. I was worried that they’d demolish our poor boys, but they held their own; in the end, they only lost by a couple of runs. I thought they’d done pretty fucking well for their first real practice game. I was thrilled for all of them, especially Kaden, who knocked a three-run homer outta the park.

When the scrimmage was over, I spotted him talking to Kaci by the fence. I wanted to congratulate him, so I headed over to them. “Awesome hit, Kaden.”

“Thanks, Coach Michaels.”

“You’re getting better every day, kid. Before it’s over, you’re gonna end up on the All-Star Team.”

His whole face lit up. “You think so?”

“If you keep practicing, you might just make it.”

I looked over at Kaci, and she wouldn’t make eye contact with me. I hadn’t seen her since the day her friend had invited me to meet them at the bar. With everything that had happened with Dad that night, there was no way I would have been able to make it. After our last conversation, I didn’t want her to have another reason to be aggravated with me, so I said, “I’m sorry I couldn’t meet up with you guys the other night.”

Her brows furrowed when she asked, “What do you mean?”

“Saturday night at Mulligans. Your friend invited me, and I’d planned to go, but—”

“Oh, that. It’s not a big deal. Things happen,” she interrupted with a coy attitude. “You did miss out on a great time though.”

“Oh, well. Maybe some other time, then.”

“Maybe.” She shrugged. “You ready to go, Kaden?”

“Yeah. Let me grab my things.”

He took off for the dugout, and we were left standing there alone. She looked up at me with those dark brown eyes, and in all my life I’d never been so mesmerized by a woman. She had no idea the effect she was having on me, mainly because I kept fucking things up with her. Every word out of my mouth came out wrong, and I ended up sounding like a complete asshole. It wasn’t all my fault. She was the most beautiful creature I’d ever seen, and my brain short circuited every time I was around her. Hell, it was all I could do to keep myself from reaching for her. I wanted to wrap my arms around her waist, pull her close as I claimed her with my mouth, and feel her body next to mine. As I stood there looking at her, I knew I had to try something. With her eyes locked on mine, I took a step towards her. “Kaci.”

“Yes?”

“I need to—”

“I’m ready,” Kaden announced as he stepped between us with a big smile on his face.

Maybe it was just me, but her voice sounded like it was filled with disappointment as she replied, “Oh … Okay. Let’s go then.”

And just like that, she was gone.

Damn. I was fucked—totally and royally fucked.

As I stood there watching her walk to her car, Colton came up next to me with one of his looks and said, “Seems like you could use a drink.”

“You have no idea.”

“Good, because we’re going out tonight.”

“We are?”

“Hell, yeah,” he answered excitedly. “Did you see Bill’s face when Kaden hit that home run? It was priceless. We’re going out to celebrate. I’ve already sent Seth a message. He’s meeting us at seven. That gives us both enough time to get home and take a shower.”

“You’re serious?”

“Oh, yeah. Get your ass in the car, Tucker. It’s time for the Michaels brothers to have a night out on the town.”