Chapter Thirteen
If ever there was a perfect fall day, this was it.
Cool and crisp, the sky was blue and everywhere he looked, the trees blazed with October color. The park, which sat on acres of waterfront land, was probably one of the best kept secrets on Long Island. He had no doubt that if more people knew about the ball fields and soccer fields that boasted a water view, real estate in the hamlet would skyrocket in value.
Adam sat in the bleachers with Joe, Susan, and the other parents from Ben’s team, and rather than feeling awkward, as he expected—the single guy among the families—he was completely at ease. When he arrived, no one even raised a brow when he walked over with Ben. The fathers engaged him in conversation as they stood near the backstop, watching the kids warm up, and the moms asked after Mia.
He liked feeling as if he were part of Mia and Ben’s family, and the thought drove home how important she was to him. He hoped she felt the same, because while he respected her right to make her own decisions, after what happened between them the other day, he was going to do his damnedest to make sure Noah Connolly was nothing more than a blip on the screen.
Connolly seemed like a decent guy, but he wasn’t right for Mia. She had too much fight for Noah, too much raw energy.
Hell, Adam didn’t know if he could deal with it, but he wanted to give it a shot.
Looking around, he remembered when he played baseball as a kid. Always in the spring, because fall was reserved for football, he recalled seeing his family in the stands cheering him on. After his father died, his family made sure someone was there for each kid when there was a game or event. Someone was always in the audience or in the stands and he, his brothers, and his sister knew that security their whole life.
Understanding what his mom went through was part of what drove him regarding Ben. While he was sure Mia’s nana was a help to her, he could see why Mia hesitated asking for help. What he’d learned from Ben was that the family was all about self-reliance. Mia had only started to realize it was okay to lean on others since moving to Compass Cove.
Spending a Sunday afternoon with Ben was no hardship; knowing Mia would be by soon made things even better. She was so much more than a friend to him, and the kiss outside the field house a few days ago sealed the deal for him.
Looking down at his folded hands, Adam acknowledged, for the first time in his life, that he wanted someone in his life. Someone to share things with. Someone who was more than just a warm body.
Joe sat next to him and handed him a cold can of soda from the concession stand. His friend had been quiet about his relationship with Ben and Mia, but Adam wanted to know what he thought, and Joe would never volunteer his two cents without being asked.
Unless it was about football, Joe didn’t give unsolicited advice.
The game was in the third inning, and when he last checked the time it was almost three. Ben’s team had just taken the field and Adam saw he’d donned the catcher’s equipment. This morning, when Mia dropped him off, he sat on the floor with the dog and some hot chocolate and told Adam about every kid on the team and about the positions he played—which seemed to be everything but pitcher and right field.
“Ben’s good,” Joe said.
Adam nodded and let the cold drink slide down his throat. “I think that kid can play any sport. He’s a born athlete.”
“Is Mia adjusting to life with a jock? I know there were some reservations.”
Adam let out a breath and leaned back on the riser behind him. “I think she wants to do what’s best for him. She’s pretty relaxed about the sports thing.”
“Relaxed is good. Susan likes her a lot. All the women do.” Joe leaned toward Adam. “I think they wanted to hate her cause she’s so freakin’ gorgeous, but they can’t. Susan said she’s ‘sweet’.”
Adam agreed with the assessment, especially since he’d used it himself. “She is.”
Then, for some reason, Joe chuckled under his breath.
“What’s funny about that?”
“Well, she didn’t look real sweet when she was grinding against you during that kiss the other day.”
Adam’s stomach rolled. If Joe had seen that, other people probably did too. And with just a mention, he was suddenly reliving the way Mia had felt during that kiss. Her whole body molded to him, and every move she made, every touch, turned him on.
He didn’t know if she was grinding against him, though. She was stuck to him pretty good, and her body did this little wiggle thing. Breathing out, Adam avoided looking at his friend. Okay, so maybe she was grinding. All he knew was that the kiss was hot, and if he didn’t want to take her to bed fifteen kinds of ways before, he did after.
And he knew he didn’t want Noah Connolly’s hands on her.
Adam struggled to shake the vision and the feel of Mia from his head and drag his attention back to something safe, the game. The other team’s slugger had gotten a triple and was leading off third.
The kid was a gorilla. Ben was big for his age, but the locomotive-posing-as-a-kid who was on third was freaking huge. The players in this division were ten and eleven years old—this one looked like he could vote.
The count was three and one, with one out, and the boy at the plate was small and skinny, with thick, coke-bottle glasses. No one would take him for a dangerous hitter, but apparently, he had a knack for placing the ball exactly where he wanted it.
Adam trained his eyes on Ben, who moved with such fluidity, even in the bulky equipment, that he made playing the game look easy. Unlike a lot of boys his age, gangly and uncoordinated, Ben had command of his arms and legs, his movements were precise.
The pitcher wound up, delivered, and there was a crack. Watching the flight of the ball, it looked like it was going to drop in for a neat little single and bring the runner at third home. But in a flash, Gabe Rand, who was playing centerfield, moved like lightning, stuck out his hand and snagged the ball right before it hit the grass. Joe was on his feet screaming and beaming like a proud dad.
But in a split second, everything changed. The runner made a snap decision to tag up at third, and even though his coach was motioning for him to hold up, the kid ran toward home.
Gabe reacted in a way every coach hopes a kid will react and shot the ball at Ben, who instinctively blocked the plate. At the same moment Ben caught the ball, the giant running from third base barreled into him.
As the boys made contact, everything seemed to go in slow motion. People jumped from their seats, kids reacted in the field, helmets flew and dirt clouded the air. It was like a scene from a movie, wordless and quiet.
There was a loud crack, and a blood curdling scream. What Adam saw after that would be burned in his memory forever. Ben was on the ground, screaming, his upper body thrashing around and his legs—his legs seemed dead—moving only because they were attached to the rest of him. The coaches and umpires surrounded him, and without another thought, Adam jumped from the bleachers and ran to Ben’s side.
He’d seen pain like this. Pain so raw and so new that the person couldn’t process what was happening. But seeing Ben like this was a whole new kind of terrifying.
Adam crouched down next to him, reaching out to brush some dirt off his face, the contact letting Ben know someone was there for him.
“Ben, try to calm down. Don’t move.”
Ben nodded and hissed a breath out through his teeth as he lay back and closed his eyes. He was quiet for a second, and when a small sob escaped, Adam’s heart lurched.
One of the coaches called 911 while another folded a jacket and put it under Ben’s head. The goal, until the EMTs arrived, was to keep him still and calm. Fortunately, the firehouse wasn’t far from the ball field.
“I want my mom,” Ben whispered.
Stroking the hair from his forehead, Adam didn’t know what to say. The kid was asking for his dead mother. The pain must have been blinding.
“Is she on her way here, Coach?”
“Huh?” Adam examined Ben’s face, and he realized he was talking about Mia. His mother.
Someone had to call her. Just as he took his cellphone out of his pocket, the ambulance arrived.
The EMT’s made quick work of Ben’s pants and when his leg was visible, it was obvious that it was bad. Adam had seen his share of injuries, and if he had to make a guess this one was surgery worthy. Ben’s leg was deformed and the only good thing was that the bone hadn’t broken through the skin.
Joe was next to Adam as Ben was examined and carefully put on the stretcher. “Do you want Susan to call Mia?” he asked.
It would be so much easier to let someone else call, but Adam couldn’t do that to her. She was going to freak out, regardless, but he had a feeling he could keep her a little calmer if he called himself. He wanted her to know he’d take care of Ben ’til she arrived. That her son would be safe.
Safe with him.
“I’ll call her.”
With his phone still sitting in his palm, he slid his fingers over the touchscreen, wondering what he was going to say to her. How was he going to keep her calm?
Then her voice was in his ear.
*
“Adam, I’m just walking out of the library I should be there in about ten minutes.”
“Mia.” All she heard was him exhale, and it put her instantly on alert. Something was wrong.
“What is it?” The tone in his voice was one thing, but suddenly, she could feel it.
“Ben’s been hurt. He’s going to be okay, but he’s going to the hospital.”
“Oh, my God. What happened?” Visions of him getting hit in the head, of brain damage, flooded her mind.
“He broke his leg, and it’s pretty bad.”
On the move now, she mentally made a checklist of what she needed to do. Did she have her insurance card? Probably. She’d have to call people, but first she had to get to Ben and make sure he wasn’t scared.
“Where should I meet you?” Going into crisis mode, Mia knew she’d be fine. She’d be fine until the crisis was over, and then she’d break.
“They’re taking him to Harbor Hospital. Honey, I think he’s going to need surgery.”
Harbor Hospital. Surgery. Shit. Calm, Mia. Breathe. Focus on the problem at hand. “Do you know a good orthopedist?”
“The best. Want me to call him?”
She sniffled and whispered, “Yes.”
“Okay. I’ll take care of it.” He paused, and she could tell he was worried, too. But Mia had to admit that as scared as she was, she knew Ben was in good hands. Adam was with him and she wasn’t as worried as she could have been. “They’re putting him in the ambulance,” Adam said. “I’m going to jump in there with him.”
Mia felt a tremor in her stomach as she thought about her child being so badly hurt, he needed an ambulance. “Take care of him, Adam.”
“You know I will. You’ll probably beat us. See you when we get there.”
When the connection was broken, Mia let out a shaky breath. Broken bones. Ambulances. Surgery. She had to remember to breathe. It seemed every time she turned around, something changed. Two months ago, she was dealing with Ben having fights at school, now he was hurt. Badly. When she looked at her phone, there were three text messages from different team parents offering help in whatever way was needed. Nana would be a rock, as she always was. They’d get through this.
Just as she slid the key into the ignition, her phone rang. Her stomach turned when she looked at the caller ID and saw Noah’s name.
“Hello?” Her voice was short, but who could blame her?
“Hi, have you given any thought to dinner?”
“Dinner?”
“We have a date, right?”
Holy crap. He didn’t know what happened and she forgot about everything. “Noah, I have to cancel. Ben was hurt at his game. I’m on my way to the hospital.”
There was a long pause. “Oh, oh, well, that’s fine.”
Fine? She thought. Of course it was freaking fine, her son was severely injured. “Yeah, I have to go.”
“After you get him settled, call me, maybe we can get a late supper.”
Mia knew this wasn’t right. This was one more example of why her relationship with Noah was going nowhere, and she couldn’t let it go any further. He was nice, he was smart, and he was good-looking and charming, but he was never going to be the guy for her. “Noah, I won’t be calling tonight. Ben is probably having surgery and I’ll be with him.”
“I just thought… I mean…”
“Noah, no.”
“No?”
“How can you expect a call when I’m going to be taking care of my son?”
“I don’t know. I just thought… I’m sorry.”
“Look, we are just not on the same page here. It’s not you; I don’t doubt you’re a great guy, but I have different priorities.”
“Wow, a variation of the ‘It’s not you, it’s me’ line.”
“I don’t know what to say. I know a lot of people thought we were perfect for each other, but my heart isn’t in this, and I don’t think yours is either.”
He sighed. “You’re probably right about that.”
Impatient, Mia still tried to be polite. “I have to go, but I am sorry.”
“Take care of your son, Mia. I hope he’s okay.”
“Thanks.”
As she pulled out of the library lot, Mia’s thoughts returned to where they belonged—with Ben.