Broken Road (51 page)

Angel looked to where Mr. Wyatt had gone and saw he was still sitting in the dugout, speaking to someone on his cell phone.

“I need a few minutes alone with Alec, if you don’t mind,” Jarrod said as he motioned with his head for Alec to follow him. All were in shock, and Angel had to nudge Alec to move. He slowly moved forward and followed Jarrod toward right field. They stood there speaking to each other, but nothing could be discerned from their reactions.

“I can’t stand this,” said Jim. “What could they be talking about?”

“This is driving me nuts,” responded Janet as she looked at Angel, who had removed her sunglasses, yet was shielding her eyes from the sun with her hand.

“You in a hurry to leave?” Jarrod asked Alec.

“No. Why? Jarrod, what’s going on? What did Wyatt say?”

“He wants to see what you can do.”

“Huh?”

“He saw you when you were catching for me and was impressed. He wants to see what else you can do.”

“Shit. God, Jarrod, I’m so sorry…what about you? You’re a thousand times better than me.”

“Nah. Don’t be sorry. This is a good thing. He thinks I need a little more time. He noticed a difference in speed, accuracy, and power from the last time he watched me, but said he expected it. I mean, it hasn’t even been a full year since the accident. In fact, he said he expected a lot less from me and was impressed with what I’ve accomplished so far. He wants me to continue with the training and rehab, play for the university’s team, and then meet with him again next year.”

“That’s not too bad.”

“No. I’m fine with it. Really, I am. But now it’s your turn, if you’re interested.”

“Shit, I don’t know. I mean, yeah, of course I’m interested. But I feel bad. This is supposed to be your day, not mine.”

“Alec, it was never ‘my day.’ It was ‘our day.’ The whole family. What Mr. Wyatt told me about my playing isn’t bad news. He never said, ‘Hey, kid. Sorry, but you suck, so it’s time for you to pack up your gear and quit baseball.’ He just told me that I’m not ready yet, but to keep at it. I still have hope. You, on the other hand, have a great opportunity right now. Don’t waste it. Go out there and give it your damnedest. Make me proud, but more importantly, make yourself proud.”

Alec grabbed his brother into a big hug and held him that way for a good minute, then pushed him away. They were both laughing as they returned.

“What just happened?” asked Janet.

“I have no idea,” said Angel. “But they look happy.”

“Boys, get over here now,” hollered Jim. Lowering his voice, he turned to Janet and asked, “Did you bring my blood pressure pills?” She nodded and began rummaging through her handbag.

Chapter Forty-Eight

T
hat evening they all went to dinner and ate, laughed, and celebrated for hours. Alec had tried out and was basically told the same thing as Jarrod. Mr. Wyatt was interested in them both and wanted to see them again next year. He was extremely impressed with their skills and knowledge of the game. He just felt they were both not ready at this point, but with hard work and determination, could be by the following spring. He gave them both his business card and asked them to keep in touch. He also mentioned he had a good feeling about the Wentworth brothers and would love to see them someday play for the same team.

Jarrod’s body was aching. His shoulder throbbed, and Angel promised to give him a rubdown when they returned to the hotel. Janet gave Jarrod a knowing glance, and he quickly lowered his blushing face.

Once at the hotel, they all said good night to one another in the main lobby and headed to their individual rooms.

“Will that rubdown Angel promised you take all night, or should I expect you back?” Alec whispered to Jarrod.

“I don’t know. My shoulder really, really hurts…,” he said, smiling.

“Lucky bastard,” said Alec as he stopped in front of his and Jarrod’s room and opened the door. “Good night, Angel,” he said.

“Goodnight Alec,” she responded. “Don’t wait up for Jarrod.” Well, that answered his question.

They entered Angel’s room and as soon as Jarrod closed the door, Angel wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. They held each other for a long while without speaking. Then she took his hand and led him to the bed. He sat down on the edge while she climbed behind him on the bed. On her knees she began to pull his shirt off while he lifted his arms for her to pull it over his head. With only one hand, due to her healing wound, she slowly began to knead the tight muscles in his back, neck, and shoulders, concentrating more on the last. He moaned from the sheer pleasure of her hand roaming his body, easing away all the tension and exhaustion from his weary muscles.

“You’re spoiling me,” he said with his eyes closed.

“You deserve it,” she whispered in his ear. “Lie down on your stomach.” When he did, she straddled him from behind and began to put all her weight into the press.

“God, that feels so good,” he moaned.

She smiled and said nothing. She wanted him to relax, and if she continued the conversation, it would defeat the entire purpose of the massage.

After a good twenty or so minutes, her hand and arm became tired, so she stopped. She lay down next to him and asked, “Feel better?”

With his eyes still closed, he mumbled, “Yes. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

He turned onto his back and placed his arm out so she could scuttle her body into it. She fit so perfectly. He looked at her as she stared up at him. “How can someone be capable of loving so much?” he asked her in a soft voice.

“I just am,” she said.

“I wasn’t talking about you. I was talking about me.”

“Oh…”

“I never thought a person could feel so much. It’s like my heart isn’t big enough to take in all these emotions. Saying ‘I love you’ just doesn’t seem to cover everything I feel for you. I just feel that the words aren’t enough.”

Angel eyes began to water. She knew exactly how he felt. “You show me every minute of every day how much you love me.” She placed her hand on his cheek and softly caressed it. “I’ll love you forever, Jarrod.”

He leaned over and began to kiss her. “I want to show you how much I love you tonight, but I’m worried it’ll be too much for you.”

“I’m fine. Show me. Show me how much you love me.”

They made love over and over again that night. And later, as they lay awake fully sated, Angel leaned over and whispered to Jarrod, “Thank you again for saving my life.”

“No. Thank you for saving mine,” he said as he placed a lingering kiss on her lips as a prelude to what they both knew would become another mind-blowing, earth-shattering stretch of lovemaking.

Epilogue

R
elaxing in his father’s favorite lawn chair, Jarrod sat back and watched as his dad cooked burgers, hot dogs, and chicken on the grill. Alec was running around chasing their three little cousins as they screamed in horror of being captured by the big, hairy, ugly monster he was pretending to be. He caught the littlest one, four-year-old Stella, and picked her up in his arms while twirling her around as she squealed in delight. Janet, who was standing right smack in the middle of all that chaos, hollered for Alec to stop before poor little Stella threw up.

Jarrod looked to his left and watched Angel as she sat at a picnic table, drinking a Diet Coke while speaking to her Aunt Helen, who had hesitantly agreed to attend the gathering that his parents had decided to throw in honor of Jarrod’s return for the summer. Well, at least part of the summer. The remaining portion would be spent in Bradenton.

He looked up at the sky and savored the warmth of the sun and the gentleness of the soft breeze they were fortunate to have today. He was happy today. It was great to see everyone again. He had missed them all, but hadn’t realized how much until he saw them again. Alec’s unpredictable mood swings continually concerned the family, but he refused to speak about what might be troubling him, insisting he was fine and just needed space. Jarrod and his parents spoke privately about the situation and agreed to keep a watchful eye on him while still giving him the time and space he greatly sought.

Brendon and Joey looked well and seemed to be doing great. Both were attending college, Brendon at Seton Hall and Joey at Rutgers University. They saw each other most weekends when they came home. Just two days earlier, they all went together to visit Dante’s grave. Joey brought along a portable CD player and they listened to their friend’s favored music softly in the background as they sat around, talking and reminiscing about things they had once done, scrapes they had gotten into, parties they had gone to, things Dante had said. They laughed until they found themselves wiping tears from their eyes. Joey’s mother had put together a beautiful scrapbook of photos and articles she had collected over the years of the five of them. They passed it around and smiled, laughed, and softly cried when they reached the page devoted to Dante’s passing.

“Hi, hon,” said Janice Malone, abruptly bringing Jarrod out of his reverie. He immediately stood up and gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. “How are you doing, sweetheart?” she said.