I told Winnie she wasn’t Tali’s mother, but she’s proven she is.She put my little girl first time and time again.She protected Tali like she was her own flesh and blood.I couldn’t ask for a better mother for my daughter, but I messed it all up.
After sending the videos to Hunter for our case against Oliver, I tug my phone out of my pocket and click on one name.I know it’s well after midnight, but I can't let this go until the morning.
“Hello?”A sleepy voice answers the phone and I feel slightly bad for waking her up.
“Lils, I need your help.”
Chapter 30
Schmidt
“Hey,podcasters!I’mLilianaSweets here with Jamie Schmidt who plays center field for the Philadelphia Pit Bulls.Schmidt, can you tell the listeners why you asked me to do this special podcast?They all know I only release two a week, but this week I’m releasing three.”
“I screwed up.Plain and simple.”
“Do you care to explain a little further?”Liliana smiles at me over her microphone.
“You see, I’ve been hiding something from the entire world.From the fans, the media, and up until right before the season started, my team, agent, and managers.”
“That sounds impossible.What could you have possibly hidden from all those people?”
“My daughter, Tali.”
“Ah, your little baby girl.Now, I’ve known about this for a while now.I think Wheeler, Smithy, and I were the first people to find out, correct?”
“You were.It all started with this amazing nanny I hired.She convinced me it was ridiculous to hide Tali from the people who matter most to me.”
“Can you tell us why you hid her to begin with?”
I go over how we didn’t want our children in the media and how after Ellie died, I didn’t want to talk about any of it.I spill my entire history to Liliana, knowing the whole world will be able to listen if they want to.
“So, what are you hoping to get out of this interview?”
“First, I want the media to leave my family alone.There’s no reason for paparazzi to follow my nanny and daughter around town while they run errands or stop in a store.We’re a normal family and no one wants their privacy invaded like that.”
“I think that’s pretty understandable, but do you really think the paparazzi will listen?”
“No, but I'm hoping if enough fans take a stand against them, they might take a hint.If you see an article with a photo clearly tied to the paparazzi on the cover, don’t read it.Come to this podcast or the reporters who are getting the real stories.Show them support and stop reading the gossip rags.”
“I can leave a whole list of reputable reporters and where you can read about your favorite sports teams and players from.The ones who get consent for sharing photos and only report the truth,” Liliana adds.
“No one understands how far the paparazzi will go.Last week, Tali and Winnie, her nanny, were almost killed in a car accident because of a crazy paparazzi.He crashed into the back of their car, trying to get a photo of them and forced their car off the road.They’ll be ok, but it was a bad accident.The car was totaled and both of them were left shaken.”
“Most of you don’t know this, but Winnie Teller is one of my best friends.I know she’d do anything to keep Tali safe and she called me as soon as the accident happened.I rushed to the hospital and sat with Tali.Winnie refused to let me stay in her room, she only cared about Tali having someone she recognized around her.Schmidt and the team were away for a game and I wasn’t able to reach them at that time.”
I swallow hard as tears fill my gaze.I didn’t know any of this until after I blew up at Winnie.I didn’t know she sped away from the paparazzi because she was trying to keep Tali off the front page of the gossip rags.I didn’t know she was doing her best to protect my little girl.
I jumped to conclusions and did things I'm not proud of.
“She’s an amazing nanny, but she’s so much more than that to me,” I say softly.
“Tell me more.”Liliana smirks, knowing this is going to be painful for me to do in front of the entire world.
“Winnie was my girlfriend.She didn’t start off that way, but we quickly became the cliché single dad with the nanny romance trope.She clicked in our lives and made it feel like she had always been there.She made us laugh and smile more than ever, she breathed life back into me and I didn’t even know I needed it.”
“She sounds like she means a lot to you.”
“I love her, Lils.I think I’ve loved her since the first day she watched Tali.I came home and they were running around the backyard and laughing together.I had never seen my little girl so happy.All along, she’s been missing having a mom and that’s exactly what Winnie became to her.”
