“Pam Sinclair. Lovely to meet you.” Mom gives Willow an appraising look. She doesn’t miss a damn thing. And Willow’s first reaction at seeing us was more telling than she probably wanted it to be.
“And this must be Peyton.” Willow beams at my daughter, but there’s a hidden wistfulness that surprises me. “You look pretty great in your dad’s jersey.”
Peyton responds with a toothy grin. “Thanks. We’re gonna go see the field now. I’m gonna hit some balls. Wanna come?”
Willow laughs lightly. “That sounds awesome, but I have to go to a meeting. I hope you have a great time.”
Willow’s eyes dart up to mine before bouncing back to my family. “Nice to meet you both. Ronan.”
I give her a nod, and she brushes past in a cloud of sweet citrus. I have to exercise a lot of restraint to not turn and watch her walk away, but I can feel my mom’s eyes boring into me.
“Okay, let’s go to the field!” I say with way more enthusiasm than is probably necessary. We pile into the elevator and I let Peyton push the button, all the while keeping my gaze averted from Mom.
When we reach field level, I take them on a quick tour of the player facilities. Outside the gym, we run into Monty and Lark, the trainer the guys told me about, standing close together, having what seems to be a pretty intense conversation. Judging by the way they leap apart when I greet them, I’m starting to think Rhett’s comment about Monty’s feelings for Lark has some truth behind it.
“Hey guys, this my mom Pam and my daughter Peyton. We’re just doing a little tour before checking out the field.”
“Yo, Sin!” Monty gives me a fist pump and greets my family with a big smile, and it just reinforces again that moving here was a good idea.
“Hey Peyton, do you like Skittles?” Lark asks, her gaze darting up to mine to check if it’s okay. I nod.
“I love them!” Peyton cheers, because what kid doesn’t love candy.
Lark takes her hand and we follow her down the hall to what I assume is her treatment room, where she opens a drawer and lifts out a small treat-sized package of candy.
“Woah, you’re letting her have some of Willow’s secret stash?” Monty teases, leaning against the doorframe. My head whips around of its own accord at her name, but thankfully, no one seems to notice.
“Shh. She won’t miss one package.” Lark winks at Peyton.
My curious daughter tilts her head to the side and frowns. “Why do you have someone else’s Skittles?”
Lark laughs, shaking her head. “They’re her favourite candy, and if she has them in her office, she can’t stop eating them. She says she wouldlooklike a Skittle from eating so many if I didn’t keep them for her.”
My daughter giggles, and I inwardly file that random fact away. There’s so much I don’t know about the captivating woman, and every time I learn something, I find myself wanting to know more. A serious problem when the lady in question is someone I really need to stay away from.
We say goodbye to Lark and Monty, and I lead Mom and Peyton through the locker room, then the dugout, and finally out onto the field. It still fills me with immense pride to walk out onto a major league field, even after six years.
I was lucky enough to be drafted into the minors right out of university and moved to the majors two years later. I spent a season down in Texas before moving to Toronto, which is also where I met Peyton’s mom. When she told me she didn’t want to keep the baby we conceived, thanks to a busted condom, it almost derailed my entire career. If my mom hadn’t stepped in and insisted she would help me do this single parent thing, I don’t know where I’d be. Because my daughter comes first, no matter what.
Watching her take off, running the bases with pure joy, just reinforces that. Her happiness is all that matters, and if I had to, I’d give up baseball in a second for her. Thank fuck I haven’t had to make that decision yet. Her happy giggle floats back to us. Just like her dad, my kid has always been happiest out on the diamond.
“So, that Willow was quite beautiful.”
“Don’t start, Mom,” I warn, unable to outright deny her statement.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Mom lift her hands. “Simply making an observation.”
“Yeah, well, keep it to yourself. I’m here to play ball. That’s all.” I fold my arms across my chest, but then drop them less than a minute later when Peyton rounds third and comes racing toward us. I crouch down, arms stretched wide, and she barrels into me. I let her push me back to the dirt, both of us laughing.
This. This is what matters.
Not stunning women with cherry red lips.
Chapter fifteen
Willow
The stadium is quiet with the entire team, along with coaching and training staff, down in Arizona for spring training. Anyone left behind is busy in the admin offices, including myself and the media team. We’re prepping media packages, brainstorming events and social media campaigns.
