Lucky 13 (Deadlines & Diamonds) (14 page)

“I’m gonna ask him and Uncle X.”

Those two were like nitro and glycerin. “Good luck with that.”

“I’m going to call them now.”

1
4

Ricky couldn’t believe the curveba
lls thrown at him lately.
Shayne and Matt
waltzed into his life, turning his world upside when
she walked out of it. He still tried to recover, to pull his plane out of its tailspin, by standing
on the sidelines coaching
little league
basketball.

Basketball
of all things.

And his assistant coach—here was the real kicker—
was none other than the infamous
Matthias Xavier.

Only Matt could have put them together. Well, that wasn’t true. They’d work together if Shayne asked. His heart clenched at the thought of her. She sat on the bleachers, halfway up off to the left. He did his best not to look at her. But every time she cheered, his stomach twisted tighter.

He missed her like nothing else. And it’d only been a few weeks. If he had to live the rest of his life without her… The thought made him physically ill.

“I don’t have a freakin’ clue what I’m doin’ here.” X sauntered over to stand next to Ricky.

“Join the club.”

The ref blew the whistle and X called the boys into a huddle,
a
dry erase
board clutched in one hand, a
marker in the other. He drew X’s and O’s on the board. To Ricky it looked more like a
squeeze play, but he kept the observation to himself.
Another whistle and the boys hollered, “Bulldogs”, before hustling out onto the hardwood.

T
he boys passed the ball up and down
the court
exactly as X had diagramed. Joe
y dribbled to the top of the key
and stopped
, gripping the ball close to his chest
. Just as Matt ran past, Joey flipped the ball to him. Matt went in for the lay-up, gaining the team another two points.
Ricky whistled through his teeth. Xavier clapped his hands and barked out a laugh.

“Nice coaching, X.” 

“It was pure, dumb luck.” He continued to
chuckle
. “We should probably figure out what the hell we’re doing so we can actually teach these kids something.”

“I’ll
stop at the store and
grab a book.”

X held up the whiteboard. “And I’ll Google how to use this stupid thing.”

Pride swelled in Ricky’s chest as shot after shot finally gave them the W. The victory shocked the hell out of their coaches. The boys gathered in a circle to show off their good sportsmanship then ran off to high-five their opponents.
X put his hand on Ricky’s shoulder. He jerked h
is head toward where Shayne sat
on the bleachers.
Ricky purposely didn’t look up.

“I’m okay with you two.” He shook his head. “I never thought I’d say that, but I really am. I don’t know why she put the brakes on, and I’m smart enough not to ask her, but I do know she wouldn’t let you near her son if she didn’t still have feelings for you. Be patient with her.”

“Patient i
s all I got.”

“You’re a good man.”
He nodded. “What do you think? I
ce cream for the victors?”

“I think it’s a must.”

Xavier grinned. “You buyin’?”

“This time.” He gathered up the team balls and shoved them into their bag. “Next time you’re on the hook for pizza.”

***

Miracles did happen. N
ever in her lifetime would
Shayne
have thought her brother and her boy
fr
- ah… What was Ricky to her now?

The way he was with the boys, especially Matt, made her love him even more. Keeping her distance had been the hardest thing she’d ever done. Right now, with the boys jumping up and down and the men laughing, she wanted to walk down the bleachers and celebrate with them. Instead she remained where she was.

Matt raced up the bleachers, taking
them two at a time. His grin cover
ed his face. “Did you see that, Mom?”

She
smil
ed. “Yeah. Great game.”

“Ricky’s tak
ing
all of us out for
ice cream. Wanna come?”

She shook her head. “I don’t think so. You can go though.”

“Yeah, we didn’t think you’d come.”

Her brows shot up. “Who’s
we
?”

“Ya know, all of us.” H
e waved at X. “He’ll
bring me home.” He kissed her on the cheek. “Love you, Mom.”

“Love you, too.” She glanced down at the ring of boys surrounding their coache
s just in time to see Ricky glance
away.
She completely understood the brokenhearted expression.
She wasn’t sure how much longer she would be able to follow her head and not her heart.

***

Damn, Ricky would have to extend the credit limit on his credit card if he coached this batch of Dyson’s for very long. He’d
never seen a crew pack away ice cream the way this bunch
could. At least he’d only agreed on ice cream. X would be screwed with next week’s pizza.

“Thanks for the ride home.” Matt unbuckled his seatbelt. “You should probably walk me up.”

“I thought you could find the way yourself.”

Matt shrugged. “My mom doesn’t like me to walk up by myself.”

Ricky cut the engine and Matt grinned wider than a Jack-o-lantern. “You’re not foolin’ me, kid.”

He reeled in the happy. “What? I’m just trying to do as my mom wishes.”

“If that were the case, you’d leave me down here in the garage.”

Matt skipped to the elevator
. The silver doors part
ed. Matt jumped inside and pressed the button for their floor.
It didn’t bode well that Chatty Cathy had become Mute Mary. A
ding!
later and Matt hustled down the hall.

Ricky waved. “We’ll catch you later.”

“No.” Matt took on a panicked expression. “You didn’t walk me to the door.”

“Matt, I don’t think—”

“You gotta walk me to the door.”
Matt came back and go
t on the elevator.
The doors closed.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m not going home unless you walk me to the door.”

“Matt.”

“No.” He dug his toes into the parquet flooring. “You guys are being stupid. Both of you. She’s miserable. You’re miserable. Heck,
I’m
miserable.” Matt’s hazels glistened. He blinked, rubbed a hand over his eyes. “This sucks.”

Ricky couldn’t agree more. He put his arm around Matt’s shoulder. “As much as I wish things were different, your mom’s in control of this situation. I’d marry her tomorrow, make my house yours, and start our Happily-Ever-After. But that’s not how she wants things.”

“So if I got her to show up on
your
doorstep…” He drifted off,
thoughtful.

Ricky laughed. “
I may not be an expert when it comes to women, but I do know enough not to push her on this. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t try to help.”

He frowned. “Can I tell
her
you said hello?”

“Sure.” Ricky punched the button to open the doors. “See you tomorrow at practice.”

“Later.” Matt strolled down the hallway. When he got to his door, he turned and waved. “Thanks, Ricky.”

***

Shayne heard Matt’s voice through the door and froze. She buried the most recent letter from the IRS under the stack of papers on her counter. When the key slid into the lock, she found herself
hoping he wouldn’t be alone. She just wanted to talk to Ricky, make sure he was okay. ‘Cause she was falling apart.

The door opened. She held her breath.

“Mom?”

The door closed. She listened for footsteps.

Only one set came in search of her. “Hey, Mom, where are you?”

“In here.”

Matt strolled in basketball under his arm. “What’s up?”

“Not much. How was the ice cream?”

“Good.”

“I thought X was going to bring you home.” She tried to keep cool, but her entire body heated with the thought of Ricky being so close.

Matt grabbed a glass out of the cupboard
and put it to the water dispenser on the fridge door. “He needed to get home. Frankie wasn’t feeling real great. Ricky volunteered.”

“Oh.”

He put his glass on the counter. His scowl smacked of disapproval. “This is ridiculous, Mom. He misses you like crazy.”

“He said that?”

“He doesn’t have to, just like you don’t have to. I can see it.”

“Matt, there are things you don’t understand.”

“So make me understand, Mom. Explain it to me. At least explain it to
him
‘cause he doesn’t get it either.”

“Matt—”

The doorbell cut her off.

“I’ll get it,” he announced.

She shook her head, knowing exactly who’d be standing in the hallway. Desperation demanded she see him.
Honor persuaded her to park herself on the barstool and stay right where she was.
She glanced down at the IRS letter outlining the basis of her hardship claim.
The deep timbre of Ricky’s voice broke her heart all over again.

She’d been unable to find a job. If she didn’t find something soon, maybe she would see if she had what it took to be a stripper.
She was running out of time.

1
5

Six weeks.

It’d been six weeks since he’d talked to Shayne.

The longest freakin’ six weeks of Ricky’s entire life!

Every time he
saw Shayn
e,
it nearly shredded his heart. He didn’t know how she pulled off the
couldn’t-care-less.
Call it self-preservation, but h
e’d stopped trying to talk to her, associate with her, acknowledge her. A guy could only take so much.

Ha! He was so full of shit!

Maybe he pulled off the big-and-bad in public, but in the privacy of his own home, he was a mess.
He drank too much, slept too little
,
and barely ate enough to keep him functional.

The muted television
offered the only light in the house
. H
e sat in his recliner and polished off
yet another beer.
Setting the empty
bottle
on the end table, he laid back in his chair
, getting lost in the spinning fan
. So much like his life. Round and round he went, getting nowhere.

He’d resorted to a life w
ithout the people he loved
. Sure, he had his mother—and his brother. But not his
family
.

His cell buzzed
. He groped for his phone, knocking it to the floor. He dropped to his knees to fish it out from under the couch. He sat back on his haunches and forced himself to breathe.
Three simple words stabbed him in the heart:
Fix my mom!

The screen went dark. He closed his eyes, pressed the pads of his palms to them. H
e wished he could
fix Shayne
, but h
e didn’t know how. Sh
e didn’t want him. He sure as hell wouldn’t put any kind of money on her still loving him.

Putting the phone between his finger and thumb, he let it slip from one edge to the other, spinning it. He tapped it against his bottom lip
, trying to get his fuzzy brain to come up with a plan
.

Another text came in.
D
o something. Plz!

Of course, Ricky had no clue as to what had gone on in
their house. For all he knew the texts were just another of Matt’s schemes to get them to make up.

With
only a few weeks until Christmas,
Ricky didn’t know
how he would ever make it through the happy-happy-joy-joy.
He sat up
, rested his elbows on his knees,
and stared
at
the
Christmas tree. He bought it with the hopes
he’d have someone to decorate it with. It still had no lights, no garland, no gifts under it. Ricky couldn’t believe the damned thing was still alive.

She
’s crying
. Plz call her. Plz!

Matt’s plea ripped his chest open, exposing his heart.
He couldn’t go on like this. A decision had to be made.
He couldn’t continue to wonder.

One more chance. He’d give her one more chance to love him. But this would be it. She would let him in or cut him loose.

He woke his phone and pulled up her number. He debated what to text so long the phone darkened again. Whatever he said, it had to be perfect. Settling on his message, he brought the phone to life again and simply texted:
Spare key’s under the mat.

He read the words over once then hit send. The message was clear, but not enough. He typed in a few more letters:
I miss you!

***

Shayne watched
her phone
go dark
. It’d been a long time since Ricky reached out to touch her. She
brought her phone to life again and contemplated
his message
,
un
sure
of
what to think.

Over the last few weeks, she hadn’t been able to get him out of her head. S
he’d bought him a gift today
. Upon seeing it in the store window, she had to have it for him and then she’d
cried all afternoon while wrapping it.

She missed him so much, she’d made herself miserable. Her phone went dark
again
just as Matt came in and sat down next t
o her on the couch. He looked at her phone. “Who you been talkin’ to?”

“Not talking. Texting.”

Matt
rolled his eyes
. “Semantics, Mom.”

She loved that her son knew the word and
her pride intensified
that he’d actually used it correctly. “Ricky.”

“Go to him.”

“I can’t.”

Matt shook his head. “Mom. I’m twelve, not exactly a kid.”

She didn’t remind him that he wasn’t exactly a man either.

“I’ll be okay.” He grinned, all big and cheesy. “Even if you stayed out all night, I’d be just fine. We got a fridge full of food and pay-per-view. I’ve always wanted to watch porn.”

Shayne laughed in spite of herself. “If I ever hear of you watching porn—”

“Kidding, Mom.” He got all serious, looking much older than his age. “You’re miserable. He’s completely despondent.” He winked. “D-E-S-P-O-N-D-E-N-T, despondent. Adjective. Feeling or showing profound hopelessness, dejection, discouragement, or gloom.” He nodded. “Yep. That’s Ricky. Go to him, Mom. At least talk to him and make a decision one way or the other.
For both of your sakes.
”

Tears burned her eyes. “You are one smart kid.”

“I know.” He
patt
ed her knee. “Now get outta here. The strippers are supposed to be here in ten minutes.”

***

It took longer than the ten minutes Matt had so graciously allotted her. In fact, the shower, shave session took nearly an hour. She dried off with a fluffy white towel and brushed out her hair, letting it air-dry while she headed into her bedroom.

She’d never needed lingerie b
efore
. She fumbled through the satin, lace and silk. Nothing over-the-top-sexy there. She frowned
, a soft curse crossing her lips,
and settled on a pink thong that matched the one daring bra she owned.

She eye-balled her phone on the dresser and guilt wormed its way into her consciou
s. She hadn’t texted Ricky back
because she wasn’t sure what to say. She figured showing up on his doorstep would be the best thing she could do.

Going back into the bathroom, she tried not to pay too much attention to all of her numerous flaw
s. She applied a bit of make-up
then hit
her
hair with the blow-dryer. After throwing on a pair of jeans and an oversized
s
weater, she left her room to find t
he house dark, except for a slice
of light coming from under Matt’s door.

She opened it to find
him
in bed, leaning against the
headboard, reading. “Hey
, I thought you had big plans for tonight.”

“I did, but you took too long.” He set his book on the nightstand. “You look really great, Mom.”

“Thanks.” She picked at her sweater. “Are you sure—”

“I’ll be just fine. Really.” He slouched down under the covers and reached for the lamp. “Tell Ricky hi.”

The room went black. She smiled at the lump that was her son. “I love you, bud.”

“Love you, too. Now go away, I’m trying to sleep.”

She closed his door and went out into the kitchen for a drink of water. She tried to pretend she wasn’t stalling, but she totally was.

Just call her Queen Coward!

And therein l
ai
d the real reason she’d left Ricky hanging. Through the entire process of priming and prepping, she worried she wouldn’t make it to his doorstep. Heck, she wondered if she
’d only make it as far as
Starbucks for a midnight jolt of caffeine.

‘Cause, yeah, she needed yet another thing to keep her awake.

The clock on the microwave showed it neared midnight. Another shot of guilt doused her. She’d kept him waiting long enough. It was way past time she went to him.

***

The porch
light stood out in the darkness like a lighthouse in a storm. However, this light beckoned, instead of warned.

Shayne turned off her car and looked around at the manicured yard and enormous brick house. The very dark brick house. She guessed she should have expected that. Over two hours
. S
he’d made him wait
for over
two hours
.

Oh hell, who was she kidding? She’d made him wait a helluva lot longer than that. And it was about damn time to put them both out of their misery.

Cool air whirled around her. She wrapped her arms around herself, fighting to keep some warmth. She walked quickly up the concrete sidewalk.

Her hands shook whe
n she pulled up the welcome mat. Under it, just as expected, she found a single silver key. She picked it
up and crushed it in her
hand
, t
he
points dug
into her
palm
. She felt like she’d found something to truly treasure.

Her heart raced. Her lungs sawed out her breaths. She slid the key into the lock and twisted. Grabbing hold of the handle, her thumb pressed down to release the latch. She pushed and stood on the threshold of Ricky’s home.

She’d only been inside a
handful of times and usually
entered via the garage. Coming in the front door made her feel more like a guest than a lover. She stepped in and closed the door, relocking it. The formal living room, with its mile-high ceilings, wall of windows,
and flowery sofa
, didn’t fit the laid back man she knew.
T
he flowers… Yeah, that so didn’t
work with his macho.

Working her way into the house, the naked Christmas tree stopped her dead. As tears pricked her eyes, she realized just how despondent
she
was.

Off the family room was the hall that led to one bedroom. The master bedroom. R
icky’s bedroom. She inhaled deeply
and put one hesitant foot in front of the other.

She pushed his door and lost all her breath.
Moonlight came through a high arched window, illuminating the room.
Half-burned, long since blown-out candles covered every surface in the room. The gigantic king bed took up most of
one wall. Atop it was the most beautiful sight she’d ever seen.

Among the white sheets and pillows, barely covered by a down comforter, Ricky lay on his stomach. His tanned skin a stark contrast to all the pale. She couldn’t see his face and crossed the room to stand at the end of the bed. Even in sleep, strength radiated from his body.

S
he loved this man.

Not giving herself another moment to second-guess her decisions, she went to the far side of the bed and stripped down. Goosebumps covered her skin. She shivered. He was out cold, but that didn’t smother her insecurity. She couldn’t believe she actually stood naked in a man’s bedroom, next to his bed. She rubbed at her arms and knocked a f
ew of the pillows to the floor, sliding between the sheets.

She snuggled in next to Ricky. He didn’t wake, but he did roll over onto his side and wrap an arm around her, tucking her into his body. He nuzzled her neck, sniffed at her hair. He mumbled something unintelligible, stretched out one of his arms, creating a pillow out of his bicep. As he began to snore softly, she drifted into the best sleep of her life.

***

Ricky hadn’t slept so well in a long time. He hadn’t awakened once the entire night. Whether he’d worn himself out completely or had finally drunk himself unconscious he couldn’t be sure.

He cracked his lids and
jerked upright. He wasn’t alone in his bed. He rubbed at his eyes, blinked, rubbed again.
Fear struck him like a railroad spike, all sharp and cold. This particular dream had played out before and each time
as
reality set in, he found himself devastated.
And all alone.

Holding his breath, he allowed his fingers to stretch over the sheets. When they made contact with soft, warm flesh, tears speared his eyes.

Shayne was beautiful. Lying on her stomach, her bare back exposed, showing off a birthmark just above the
swell of her covered backside.