Текст книги "Triple Play"
Автор книги: Sloan Johnson
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Текущая страница: 3 (всего у книги 17 страниц)
Jason asked me why I was in town and I told him about the center. He seemed disturbed by the grim outlook and asked if there was anything he could do to help. Before I could answer him, he cut the call short telling me again that he’d call once he knew what time Drew would be going home.
I tried to go back to analyzing the figures from the center, but none of them made sense. I hoped it was my headspace causing the issue, because otherwise we had major problems.
Chapter 5
I pushed the button to lower the bed when Jason left the room, but my peace and quiet was short-lived when I heard my dad’s voice booming through the halls. He didn’t seem pissed off, but he definitely wasn’t happy about something. I rolled to my side as best as I could and listened as he berated someone for not being able to give him any answers. “Look, you’ve already talked to him and he told you everything he knows. You also questioned this good man for over an hour, and he told you what he saw. Now, I suggest you figure out what you can do with that to find the asshole who put my son in that hospital bed.”
He was telling the cops how to do their job. Lovely. Knowing him, he’d be hounding their supervisor daily until whoever did this was caught. That was going to be difficult, seeing as I didn’t see my attacker. The only hope was that Eric gave them something concrete to go on.
The argument in the hall faded and I could almost see my dad following the cop into the elevator, forcing him to listen until he’d fully spoken his mind. I pinched the bridge of my nose, knowing that it wasn’t going to do anything for the headache that was returning as the pain medication wore off.
“Oh honey.” Mom rushed to the side of the bed and stroked her hand over my hair. I wished she wouldn’t since even that slight touch hurt like hell, but I wasn’t foolish enough to tell her as much.
“Hi Mom,” I greeted her. I opened my eyes, knowing that I’d once again lost an opportunity to sleep. It was as if no one understood that I needed to sleep in order to get better. Wasn’t that what she always told me when I was sick as a kid and didn’t want to be stuck in my bed? “Do you need some more medicine? Something to drink? Eric, could you be a dear and close the blinds so that sun isn’t beating down on his face? Let me go get the nurse.”
I reached out and clamped my hand around Mom’s wrist. The woman was exhausting to listen to. “Mom, sit.”
“No, you need something for the pain,” she insisted as she tried wiggling out of my grip. “I’ll be back, just let me get the nurse in here first.”
“Mom, I’m fine,” I argued. I began praying that Dad would come in and see that I was okay and he’d be ready to head back to Belmont. This might be the first time in my life I was grateful for his obsessive need to be in charge at the farm. “I’m sure it’ll only be a few minutes before the nurses are in here taking my blood pressure, poking me, and all the other shit they do to make sure the patients don’t get any sleep.”
Eric guffawed and I turned my head to look at him. He looked like hell. “You know what, Mom? Yeah, I think I’d like you to get the nurse for me. And while you’re at it, find out when those idiots plan on letting me eat something. If I didn’t know better, I’d think their treatment plan includes starving the patients so they don’t have to do anything.”
“Andrew Joseph, watch your language,” Mom scolded me. Eric thought that was hilarious. I glared at him, hoping he’d understand just how badly I wanted to punch him in the gut to shut him up. “I’ll go find out what’s going on.”
The walls seemed to close in around me once Eric and I were alone. His entire body sagged when he sat next to me and he refused to look at me. “Hey, I guess I owe you a thank you or twenty.”
Eric shrugged, but still stared at the floor. “What else was I going to do? I didn’t even know it was you, all I knew was that if I didn’t do something, things would have been even worse. Anyone would have done the same thing.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” I challenged. Sadly, I’d seen a few people out of my periphery last night before I blacked out, and not one of them tried to step in and stop what was happening. “Still, thank you for staying with me. And for helping my parents. Jason said they’re staying in Cam’s room?”
Eric nodded. He was going to piss me off if he didn’t loosen up. I wanted to reach out and force him to look at me, but I worried I’d wind up clubbing him with the cast on my arm.
“Dammit Eric!” I picked up the plastic cup of water and threw it across the room. I would have expected some people to act uncomfortable around me, but not him. He was the one person I was hoping would understand all the shit running through my mind.
“What’s your fucking problem?” Eric snapped, wiping drops of water off his arm.
“You are now.” That got his attention. “You’re sitting here acting like you did something wrong, when the truth is I don’t know if I’d be here right now if you hadn’t stepped in. Jason told me how bad it was, how the doctors were worried there’d be internal bleeding, brain damage, all that shit. It’s because of you that I’m here.”
“Yeah, so people keep telling me.” Finally, Eric lifted his gaze. I almost regretted snapping on him the way I had, but I didn’t want his pity. “I just keep thinking that if I’d parked closer, I might have been able to stop that asshole before he knocked you to the ground.”
“And if you’d parked closer to the bar, you might have been inside and then you wouldn’t have even known anything happened,” I responded dryly. I raised the head of the bed again so I could get comfortable. I might be stuck in this fucking bed until the doctors signed off saying that I wasn’t going to keel over as soon as I walked outside, but I sure as fuck wasn’t going to look like a damn invalid. “A wise man once told me you can’t do a damn thing about what’s already happened so it’s not worth wishing you could change it.”
Jason laughed as he walked into the room. “Someone mark today on a calendar. Jackson actually admitted that I’m not full of shit.”
“Fuck you,” I scoffed. “I promise, I won’t let it happen again if you’re going to make a big deal over it.”
Jason pantomimed locking his lips before greeting Eric. I might have growled when I saw that his hands were empty. No coffee, no food. “You might want to turn your happy ass around and think about coming back with some food.”
Eric stood and squeezed my shoulder. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure they get you something before you bite off someone’s head.”
“At least someone’s looking out for me,” I grumbled. Eric winked on his way out the door, leaving Jason there shaking his head. “What?”
“You two. He’s almost as bad as your mom and you don’t even see it.” Jason scrubbed the back of his neck, still uncomfortable with whatever he thought was going on between Eric and me. “Look, before everyone gets back, there’s something you should know.”
I got the feeling I wasn’t going to like whatever he had to say next. I stared at him, waiting for him to continue.
“I called Bryce,” he admitted. I groaned and fell back against my pillows, flinching at the pain. “Look, you can kick my ass as soon as you’re up to it, but I know both of you. I could tell by the look on your face that you weren’t going to call him and I know he’s stubborn enough he’d keep trying until he got through. So, I called and let him know what’s going on.”
“Great, so now we’re going to start the parade of visitors?” Why was it so hard for everyone to understand that I didn’t want the whole world knowing what happened? I doubted that’d be possible for long, but the more people who knew, the more people would want to see me to make sure no one was lying about my condition, and all I wanted was food and a damn nap.
“I told him you’re getting out of here sometime today, but he wants to see you.” Jason kept his tone soft, as though he thought this was going to put me over the edge. He wasn’t entirely wrong. “I told him we were going back to Eric’s whenever they let you out of here and he said he’ll stop by later.”
“Fine. I’m too tired to fight about this,” I conceded. “Just do me a favor.”
“Name it,” Jason said confidently. If I’d pissed him off, he wasn’t showing it. That was good because I had a feeling it was only going to be a matter of days before everyone was sick of my brooding and short temper.
“Ask everyone else to wait until at least tomorrow before swooping in,” I pleaded.
“Deal.”
That’s when Eric walked in, a plate of toast in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. I could have kissed him.
This was definitely not the way I planned to start my fall and winter break. I’d planned on having a few drinks with the guys after Jason guilted me into going out with them, coming home, and doing absolutely nothing until we had to head to the clubhouse for meetings. Instead, I was sitting in the back seat of my parents’ SUV, cringing as Dad managed to hit every single pothole and bump in the road.
If there was a part of my body that didn’t hurt, I hadn’t found it yet. Even my hair follicles ached from where the asshole who attacked me fisted his hand against my head before tossing me to the ground. The doctors repeatedly told me how lucky I was that I didn’t have more severe injuries, but I sure as fuck didn’t feel lucky.
Dad let out a low whistle as he pulled into the driveway at Eric’s house. This was the first time I’d seen their reaction to the place I’d called home for over a year. Dad always blamed it on Mom not being a fan of long drives, but I knew it was more that he didn’t trust anyone to take care of the farm long enough for him to take a few days off for a vacation.
“This place is beautiful,” Mom praised. “If I’d known you had so much room, I might have run away from the farm and stayed with you some of the time.”
And wasn’t that a lovely thought. As much as I loved my parents, I shuddered at the thought of having them here more than a day or two. Mom wouldn’t be able to keep herself from hovering, and Dad would start trying to find projects around the house to keep his hands busy. I really hoped Eric and Jason could figure out a way to convince them to head back to Belmont because I was too worn out to think about anything other than falling into my bed, taking a pain pill and passing out for the day.
“Yeah, I got pretty lucky,” I responded, hissing because just the simple act of breathing hurt. “Eric didn’t want to get rid of the place when he was traded and the house was sitting empty when I came to town.”
Eric’s car and another were in the driveway, and Jason’s truck pulled up before I could get myself situated so my feet were on the ground outside the truck. I looked to the back of the house and saw Eric and Bryce standing at the back door waiting for me.
Now that he was standing only a few yards away from me, I wished I had been dreaming when Jason told me that Bryce was in town and would be here when I got home. He and I had talked a fair bit while I was on the road, and we’d discussed getting together if he was in town again, but I wasn’t sure I wanted him to see me like this. My swollen, bruised face and casted arm weren’t exactly the best way to make a good impression on the guy. Unfortunately, none of that seemed to faze Bryce. He quickly crossed the lawn and offered an arm to steady me.
“I’ve got it,” I snapped at him, taking a step away. “Why are you here?”
God, I sounded like such a dick, but there was nothing I could do about my shitty attitude.
“Andrew Joseph, mind your manners,” Mom scolded me. She held out a hand to Bryce. “I’m Susan Jackson, and this is my husband Joe.”
“It’s nice to meet you, ma’am,” Bryce answered. My mom smiled as they shook hands. “I’m Bryce Shaw.”
“A pleasure to meet you, although I wish it were under better circumstances.” Mom sighed heavily as she looked me over to make sure there weren’t any new injuries in the past fifteen minutes. “It’s good to know Drew will have a solid support system when we have to head home.”
“Mom, stop it,” I scolded her. She always worried so damn much, and I didn’t want Bryce thinking I needed caretakers. Hell, Bryce lived on the other side of the country and was wasting one of his days here with my sorry ass. I sure as hell wasn’t going to ask him to drop the work that’d brought him to the area just for me.
“She’s right,” Bryce interrupted before I could continue my tirade. “You’re going to need friends here to help you. I know that probably pisses you off, but you’ll just have to get used to it.”
The man sounded so damn smug. I wanted to tell him to get lost and forget my phone number, but I knew that was the lingering effects of the pain meds and my pride talking. I sure as hell wasn’t going to admit I was glad he was here. “The only thing I need is my fucking bed,” I growled.
“Then let’s quit standing around out here and get you inside,” Bryce offered, once again holding out his arm to steady me. I took two steps on my own before realizing what a chore it was to put one foot in front of the other. I begrudgingly wrapped my hand around his forearm, taking note of the way his muscles tensed under my touch. “Eric and I changed your sheets and picked up a bit, so your bed is all ready and waiting for you.”
After Jason’s lecture this morning, I wasn’t sure how I felt about having both Eric and Bryce in my personal space. I wanted to think they were just trying to help out a friend, but I couldn’t help but wonder if Jason was right about one or both of them. That was drama I didn’t need in my life. I could almost see the two of them fighting over who knew best how to help me.
“Thanks,” I mumbled. It fucking sucked having everyone trying to take care of me, but Bryce was right. I wouldn’t have been able to do shit on my own and I sure as hell didn’t want Mom walking in to see my pigsty of a bedroom. She would have spent hours in there trying to clean, and I wouldn’t have gotten any sleep.
Dad followed us into the house, admiring the timber walls and vaulted ceilings. “Man, I think I went into the wrong line of work. The outside of the house was nice, but it doesn’t do justice to all of the craftsmanship in here.”
Eric walked in at that moment and offered to take my dad on a tour of the house. I glanced over my shoulder and offered him a quick thank you as I followed Bryce down the hall to my room. I’d have thought Eric would’ve shown them around when he brought them over earlier. Then again, I didn’t know how long they’d been gone from the hospital, other than it was less than two hours since that was all the longer I’d been allowed to sleep without interruption, so there may not have been time.
It looked amazing. The bed was made to military precision and there was nothing out of place. It was like walking into a hotel room. When I felt better, I was going to have to do something nice for Eric and Bryce for not only doing this for me, but for doing it so quickly. Every time I walked in here and thought about picking up, it seemed like a daunting task and I’d flop onto the bed with my laptop instead.
Sun filtered in through the blinds, casting a golden glow over the walls. As I looked around at the clean top of the rustic dresser and the perfectly square corners of the quilt hand-sewn in shades of blue, I felt as though I were in a bed and breakfast somewhere.
I eased myself onto the bed, cursing when I stupidly tried reaching for a pillow. With as quickly as my mother appeared at my side, I wondered if she’d been standing outside the door waiting for me to need her.
“Would you quit being stubborn?” she scolded me as she rushed across the room to fluff the pillows behind my back. “I know how much you hate asking for help, but for a little while, you’re going to have to suck it up.”
“Mom, I’m fine,” I insisted. I hated her treating me as though I was some sort of invalid. So I had some cracked ribs and a broken wrist, that didn’t mean I was incapable of taking care of myself. “I wasn’t thinking and twisted around to move the pillows, that’s all.”
“You’re not fine, Andrew. You were beaten until you were unconscious less than twenty-four hours ago.”
“Gee, thanks for reminding me,” I scoffed, rolling my eyes. “If not for you, I’d have completely forgotten how I got all these bruises and cuts, not to mention the broken arm and cracked ribs.”
“Don’t get smart with me,” Mom warned. “Now, is there anything else I can get you before you take a nap?”
“A promise that you’ll all leave me alone so I can actually sleep?” I knew that wasn’t going to happen. Stupid fucking concussion meant it was going to be at least another twelve hours before I was allowed more than a few hours at a time.
“That’s not going to happen, but it was a nice try.” Mom patted my knee before puttering around to make sure everything I might possibly need was within arm’s reach. “I’ll be right back with your medicine and something to drink. When you wake up, I’ll make sure to have some lunch ready for you.”
This was how my life was going to be for a while. Hopefully, within a day or two Dad would start itching to get home and then I’d only have to worry about my friends hovering over me. At least with them, I wouldn’t feel like a dick if I snapped. They were used to me being a dick when I wasn’t feeling well.
The sun had retreated over the top of the house by the time I woke up. I shifted uncomfortably and rubbed the sleep from my eyes, flinching again because of the pain. Either I’d been asleep longer than I thought, or the pills didn’t do their job.
“Morning, sleepyhead.” In my sleepy haze, it took me a minute to place the voice. I looked to my left and saw that Bryce had pulled a chair closer to the bed and had his feet propped on the edge of my mattress. He had the remote in his hand and was watching some crime drama show.
“What time is it?” I asked, inching myself up to a sitting position. I was uncomfortable as hell after sleeping in my clothes, but the thought of getting undressed was painful.
“Almost six. I told your mom that I’d sit in here with you and wake you up when you needed to be,” he informed me with a sly grin on his face.
“And she went for that?” The thought of my mom giving up control was completely out of character.
“Not without a bit of help,” Bryce admitted. “Eric asked her if she’d mind giving him some advice about the flower beds outside. I don’t think she realizes that he’s rarely here and has someone to do all of that for him.”
Thank God for minor miracles. Mom loved her gardens and she’d probably have Eric regretting the suggestion soon. Every year, she got excited about planning which flowers to plant in each bed near the farm house that’d been in our family for five generations. Dad pretended to give her a hard time about it, but as us kids got older, he knew it gave her something to focus on rather than dwelling on the fact that we were independent and didn’t need her for everything.
“Did you wake me earlier?” I didn’t remember anyone waking me, and I couldn’t imagine I wouldn’t remember Bryce being the first person I saw when I woke up.
“No, but don’t tell her that. Maybe it was the wrong call, but you seemed to be sleeping peacefully, so I decided to sit in here in case anything went wrong,” he told me. “If you hadn’t woken up soon, I would have had to but that’s not an issue now, is it?”
Now that I was thinking a bit more clearly and not worrying about how long my recovery was going to be, I was still confused by Bryce’s presence. We’d talked on the phone a few times over the past three weeks and texted almost daily, and he hadn’t once mentioned that he was going to be back in Milwaukee. In fact, the messages had dwindled to one a day over the past week or so. Part of that was my fault because I’d been more concerned with the playoffs, but there’d been time for him to let me know he was coming back to town.
“Why are you here?” I asked. I didn’t have the energy to be polite.
“Do you mean here as in Wisconsin or here as in sitting next to your bed?” he asked, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.
“All of the above.” I tried reaching for the water bottle next to my bed and Bryce grabbed it for me. God, it was going to drive me batshit crazy if everyone acted as if I couldn’t even do the simplest tasks without help. It might take me a bit longer to do things until my ribs healed, but I was still a grown man capable of caring for myself. Regardless, Bryce was only trying to be nice, so I didn’t bitch him out. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Bryce stood and turned his chair so we were facing one another. “When I got back to Portland after my last trip, the founder was even more concerned than he had been originally. He asked me if there was anything that’d keep me from relocating temporarily to take a more hands-on approach to turning around the center. So, here I am.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I sounded bitchy, but I didn’t care. I was under the assumption that we’d both had a good time the one night we spent together and wanted to do it again. Maybe do more than just hang out and have dinner.
He shrugged. “You were busy. It’d always been my intention to call you once you were done for the season, but I was hoping it wouldn’t be so soon.”
“You and me both,” I scoffed. “You could have mentioned it, even in passing.”
“I could have, but I didn’t. And that doesn’t matter right now,” he scolded me. “I sent you a message this morning, and Jason called to tell me what happened. I was going to come up and see you, but Jason thought it’d be better if I waited until you got home. After we hung up, I thought it might be a bad time to drop in on you, but I figured Jason wouldn’t have suggested it if he didn’t think it’d help.”
“I’m glad you did,” I admitted. “I hate that I’m laid up in bed, but it’s good to see you. Now, tell me what’s going on with the center.”
Bryce’s brow furrowed as he told me how grossly mismanaged the center had been for a long time. Hearing him talk about the kids who lived at the center and might be back on the streets if circumstances didn’t change churned something in my gut. I felt closer to the situation today than I had the first time we’d talked, probably because I was sitting in the comfort of my home nursing the wounds many of them had suffered as well. Although not everyone who knew I was gay was supportive, last night was the first time I’d truly feared for my life because of who I was attracted to.
I wanted to do something to help. I didn’t want to waste my winter sitting around the house, only leaving to work out so I was in top form when I got on the plane for spring training. Even though my wounds would take time to heal, I knew how lucky I was. I had a roof over my head, money in the bank to pay for my medical bills, and even though I knew they’d drive me crazy soon, I had friends and family supporting me through my recovery.
“If you want, I could come down and help you.” I shifted higher on my pillows and turned off the television. The more I thought about it, the more it sounded like a stupid idea. I didn’t have anything to offer, and I’d probably be more of a distraction than anything. Besides, those kids didn’t need another person in their lives who was going to bail within a few months.
“You can get better. I appreciate you wanting to help, but right now, I think you’re better off focusing on yourself.”
I pounded my uncasted fist into the mattress. This was exactly the bullshit I wasn’t looking forward to. Even though I doubted it’d be worthwhile for me to volunteer at the center, it pissed me off that he used my injuries as an excuse. There had to be something I could do. It’s not like I was trying to suggest I start running drills with the kids. That wasn’t the type of help they needed. They needed what most of us take for granted: security.
“Don’t do that shit, Bryce,” I warned him. “I’m going to have enough people coddling me without you doing it as well. I want to do something. I’m going to go out of my fucking mind if I’m not allowed to do anything other than sit around the house all day.”
Bryce reached up and ran his hand down my arm. I swallowed hard, hating how good his touch felt. Although we weren’t close, he was familiar to me. He knew better than to placate me with words. His eyes met mine and I offered him a slight smile as our fingers met. We sat there a moment, both of us staring down at our linked hands. This felt like the excitement I’d heard people talk about when they realized they were with the person who’d eventually be someone special in their lives.
“Okay.” That was all he said, but I hoped that meant I’d gotten through to him and he wasn’t going to try playing nursemaid. His hand slid out of mine as he stood and I immediately missed the warmth of his skin on mine. “I’m going to get something to eat. Would you like something?”
“God yes.” The last time I’d eaten a real meal was before yesterday’s game, which seemed like a lifetime ago. I’d appreciated Eric getting me something this morning, but it seemed like the toast made me even hungrier. And then everyone kept telling me I needed to wait to make sure it didn’t make me sick, and I was left ravenous again.
As Bryce walked out of the room, I allowed myself to think about what it’d be like having someone I was interested in so close for a while. It’d been easy to keep from getting involved with anyone since I’d always put my focus on baseball, but Bryce was making me realize what a lonely existence that had been.
