Felix (The Ninth Inning #1) (20 page)

“Why?” I slide down his body placing my feet back on the floor.

“I pitch again tomorrow, and if we win, it’ll be our tenth straight win.”

“Wow, will it?”

“Yep. No pressure, lucky charm.” He winks.

“Yeah, no pressure.” I roll my eyes. “Are you hungry?”

“Nope. I have a surprise.” He takes my hand and I grab my purse as he pulls me out of the apartment.

On the way, Felix tells me all about a training regime he’s on in the batting cage. He wants to contribute more to the team on hits and runs. He doesn’t want to be solely known for his pitching, but for other parts of the team, too.

“I think that’s great.” I squeeze his hand. “Now, why are we here?” I look around at the abandoned warehouse. “Are you thinking about moving here?” I joke.

“Nope.” He parks the BMW in the large parking lot. “You’re going to drive.”

“What?” I whip my face to him. “I...I...no…I...can’t.” My chest begins to tighten and my hands shake. I drop my gaze from his.

“Look at me.” He cups my face and forces me to stare into his golden brown eyes. “You can do this. There’s no one here and there’s nothing around us. You can’t hurt anything or anyone.”

“Felix, I…” The tears come. I’m crying in front of him and that makes me feel even more vulnerable.

“Listen to me.” His voice is firm. “Just step out of the car. Let’s stand by the driver’s side door. That’s it.” He turns the car off and strolls over to my side. He grips my hand and slowly walks me over to the other side of the car. We stand next to the open driver’s door, but I make no move to get in.

“How long was it before you got into a car?”

“A year. Well, almost a year.” I stare at the black leather seat as if it’s going to jump out at me and scare me.

“What made you get in?”

I take a deep breath and think back to that day. It feels like yesterday. “The driver of the semi-truck wasn’t charged in our accident, but Annie found out he had pending charges from a different accident and it was the day of his trial.”

“Why wasn’t he charged for yours?”

I shrug. “He received a ticket because he didn’t stop at the red light, but he wasn’t drunk or on drugs. There was nothing to charge him with. The laws were different back then. Now, it’s changed.”

Felix nods.

“I never saw him. It’s almost laughable because the semi-truck was so large, but I didn’t. Mom was on the phone with LA talking about her wedding and I looked away just for a second.” I wipe tears away. “I always told Annie and LA that I don’t remember anything about the accident, but it’s a lie. I remember seeing blood everywhere and hearing Dad taking his last breath. I never told my sisters because I don’t want to upset them. LA says she never heard the accident, only that the phone cut off.”

Felix is quiet as he watches me.

“Dad’s chest had been crushed. They tried to lie to me and say he died on impact, but I know he didn’t. Mom’s neck was broken when she was thrown forward.” I stop thinking about them both.

“What about you?” Felix’s voice is soft and sounds as if he’s scared to ask.

“My airbag didn’t deploy. I slammed my forehead against the steering wheel. I remember the pain and then passing out when I heard the sirens. I was in a coma for ten days and when I woke up, Annie and LA told me what happened. LA had canceled her wedding because of me. I don’t think she ever really forgave me for that, even though she said she has.”

Felix’s brown eyes watch me carefully.

“Annie and LA sued the trucking company after the accident and the car company for the airbag not working. They both paid me a settlement and that’s how I pay my bills. Annie takes care of all of that for me. Not that I can’t, but I like that she handles it for me.”

We both fall into silence again and I’m no closer to the seat. I keep checking to make sure it’s still there, but I don’t make a move toward it.

“The car isn’t even on if you want to sit down. Just sit. You don’t even have to go all the way in.” Felix suggests.

“I know you think this is silly of me.”

“No, I don’t, Abigail. You went through a very traumatic event and it’s something that should never be taken lightly. However, you need to keep moving forward.”

My eyes move between him and the seat. I take a small step toward the driver’s seat. I study every stitch of the lining of the leather. I know in my head that it’s a seat and nothing will happen to me since the car isn’t even running, but there’s still that little voice saying ‘run’. If LA had been here, she probably would have already shoved me into the seat by now. Patience is something she isn’t known for.

“I have an idea, if you want to try.” Felix’s voice makes me jump slightly.

I nod.

“I’ll sit down, not all the way in, only on the side, and you can sit on my lap. We won’t even be fully in the car. I promise.”

I think about it for a moment and then nod. Felix sits on the side of the seat with both legs still out of the car.

“You won’t trick me, right?” I can hear my voice shaking as much as my hands are.

“I give you my word.” He holds out his hand and I take it.

Ever so slowly, Felix pulls me onto his lap and even though I’m almost fully outside of the car, my body begins shaking all over.

“I’ve got you, Abigail. You’re okay. I promise not to let anything happen to you.” Felix keeps repeating himself over and over, but I can’t stand it and I leap out of his lap and run. He’s a lot faster than me and I barely make it two feet from the car before he wraps me in his strong arms. “You’re okay. I’m here, Abigail,” he whispers in my ear.

For the first time, I really feel safe.

“YOU DID GOOD,” I say as I drive home. “You should be proud of yourself.” Even though we didn’t get close to driving, Abigail should still be proud. She made an attempt and is one step closer than before. I wasn’t sure about taking her, but I’m glad I did. She gives me a small smile, but doesn’t say anything. I take her hand and kiss the inside of her wrist. Maybe in a few days, I can get her to come back to try again. “Want to have dinner at my apartment? I should have some food in the fridge to whip something up.”

“Yeah, that sounds nice.”

Abigail is pretty quiet for a while. She helps me fix dinner and we eat it in silence. For a while, I worry that I made the wrong decision. Maybe she really wasn’t ready. But then, when I ask her to spend the night, she agrees.

“Let’s go on to bed though, okay? I’m worn out.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Thanks for today, Felix. Really.”

“You’re welcome.” I take her hand and lead her to bed.

WE’RE IN THE locker room, getting ready for practice when the doors fly open and Blake walks in. He was the only player missing. One glance shows today is a terrible day for him. No one can look so furious and collected at the same time as well as he can. When he gets closer, I notice his busted lip.

“What the hell happened to you?” I ask before I can think better of it.

Blake doesn’t bother acknowledging me. Hector, who is on the other side of him, shakes his head at me in a motion to let it go. Blake doesn’t say a word throughout practice unless a coach speaks to him. Hector slaps him on the shoulder every now and then, but no one else bothers him. I just hope whatever has him in a foul mood is gone by our next game.

After practice, we hit the gym. Blake stalks over to a treadmill and starts running full speed. Hector and I start lifting some weights.

“What’s going on with him?” I ask.

Hector shrugs. “He’s dealing with his demons, that’s all I know. He’ll be fine once he works off his anger and spends some time with Sofia.”

I nod.

A bright smile flashes on his face. “Your lucky charm coming to the game tomorrow?”

“Abigail wouldn’t miss it.” I glance at the clock. “Speaking of which, I better go before I’m late picking her up.”

I have to admit, I’m proud of myself. A few details have slipped my mind, but I haven’t forgotten picking her up or anything. Maybe all I needed to get my mind away from the field was someone who is worth it. Not that I’m losing focus on what’s important, but Abigail could be the girl for me. The girl who allows me to commit one hundred percent to baseball, while not allowing it to overtake my life and the other important things like my family.

Shit. I was supposed to call home yesterday and completely forgot because I was with Abigail. I’ll have to do it tonight or they’ll add this to the list of examples of why I’m a workaholic with a one-track mind leading to baseball.

I frown when I park on the curb where I’m supposed to meet Abigail. She hasn’t seen me yet because I’ve parked a few spaces farther down than normal due to limited space and because she’s currently talking to Warren. What the hell? The closing of my car door gets lost in the sound of traffic. I walk around and lean against my car, waiting to see how long it takes her to look for me. Warren’s eyes have looked up behind her, toward me, so I know he knows I’m here.

My arms fold across my chest as another minute passes. Abigail laughs at something he says, my frown flattening. Why is she talking to him anyway? Finally, she glances around and notices I’m over here waiting on her. Her smile widens, but I don’t return it. Warren is looking too smug about keeping her attention for so long.

“Bye, Warren,” she says before turning to walk my way. “Hey, Felix.”

“Hey, are you ready to go now?”

Her smile falters with confusion, but she nods. I open the door for her and then walk around to get in myself.

“Were you waiting on me? Why didn’t you just come get me?” she asks.

“Wouldn’t want to interrupt your conversation with him. Why are you talking to him anyway, Abigail?”

“We’re in the same class, Felix. I’m not going to stop talking to him. Wait...are you jealous?”

“No, I just didn’t figured you’d talk to him outside of class still.”

“Well, you’re definitely not going to like what I have to say next, then. He and I have been paired up for a project.”

I’m quiet for a second. “Well, at least it’s not voluntary, I guess. You’ll still be able to come to the upcoming games, right?”

“For Pete’s sake, Felix. I’m not going to miss any games.”

“Just making sure. Don’t need to get irritated over it.”

“I’m not. I’m really not, but I gave you my word. I don’t want you upset about Warren. You have nothing to worry about, okay?”

I nod. “If you say so.”

“All right, that’s it. Either you believe me or you don’t, but I’m not going to deal with this attitude from you. Are we clear?” There’s a little bite of anger in her tone.

“I said I believed you, Abigail. I’m not trying to pick a fight with you, so lay off.”

“Okay. Okay. I apologize, but please trust me. That’s all I ask.”

“I trust you.” And I do.

“Good because I’m wearing the lace thong set for the game tonight. Hope that isn’t
too
distracting?” She leans over, kisses the corner of my mouth, and I groan.

“The point of you going to the game is so I can win, not so you can distract me.”

She shrugs. “It’s a tough job being a lucky charm.”

I laugh and pull into the parking lot of our apartment complex. “While I would love to spend some time with you, I hope you’re not expecting me to. I forgot to call home yesterday, so I need to do that.”

“That works perfectly because I have homework to do.”

And with that, I kiss her and we go our separate ways.