Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
She smiled a comforting type of smile that felt far from judgmental. “I know how tough it was for you when he passed. We didn’t talk much about it, seeing how things between us ended abruptly, but I know how harsh he was toward you. You not missing him is completely understandable.”
“But it comes with a level of guilt.”
“Losing a parent always comes with a level of guilt. Even when you’re young.” She placed her duffel bag in the front closet before taking mine from me and doing the same. We were moving into a routine with one another after practice, and it felt so…good. “Do you want kids someday?” she asked.
“Yeah, I do. I just hope that I do better than him when it comes to raising all my kids. I’d want to love each kid equally, unlike my father.”
“He wasn’t as harsh with your brothers?”
I shook my head as I walked to the kitchen to get water. “No. Mostly me. Maybe because I was the oldest. Maybe because I wouldn’t allow him to snap at my brothers. It’s hard to say.”
“I read an article once about how no child has the same parent. Each one experiences their parents in a different light based on personalities, the time period, and the situations at hand. It’s like how my dad has a completely different relationship with Yara, Willow, and me.”
“Yeah. I just hope I don’t have any of my father in me to pass on to my kids.”
Avery shook her head. “You don’t, Nathan. You’re your mother’s child, not your father’s. And for what it’s worth, you’d make a great dad.”
“How can you know that?”
“I see you with our team. You treat everyone as individuals and care for them as if they were each the center of your universe. That’s what a good parent would do. Treat each child as a unique individual.”
“Those kids mean a lot to me.”
“You mean a lot to them, too.”
I poured two glasses of water and slid one across the island toward Avery. “We make a good team, don’t we, Coach?”
She shyly grinned and nodded. “We do all right.” She took a sip of water. “I’m going to go get the enchiladas from the garage fridge. I’m starving.”
“Sounds good.”
26
AVERY
The first game in the series against Hamilton High was off to an amazing start. The guys were on fire, and I couldn’t help but feel hopeful that we could win this thing.
I felt the pressure of the game riding on Cameron. I sat in the dugout, nearly chewing my nails off, as Nathan stood near the field, clapping his hands. The other players stayed ready on their bases. We had all bases covered, and all Cameron needed to do was hit one good pitch to get Caleb and Tommy home from second and third base. Then we’d win the game.
Unfortunately, Cameron was two strikes down. I saw it happening—the anxiety of the pressure building up in Cameron. Our practices had been amazing, and I felt as if he was getting stronger and stronger each week, but I knew the nerves were still eating at him the same way I was eating at my nails.
He was all in his head and not in his heart.
This wasn’t going to be good.
I stood from the dugout and began clapping along with the rest of our crew. “You got this, Cam!” I shouted out.
His body language said the complete opposite as his father, Adam, shouted at him from the stands not to screw up. That made my blood boil, but I couldn’t focus on the asshat in the audience. I needed to keep my focus on my player.
The more Adam ridiculed him, the more I cheered him on.
Out of nowhere, Nathan called for a time-out. I shot him a look as he gave me a small smile before he jogged over to Cameron. Nathan placed his hands against Cameron’s shoulders and whispered something into his ear. Then Nathan began to jump up and down and broke out into a silly dance, shaking his hips all over the place and waving his arms in the air like a madman. Cameron laughed slightly, and I watched as the heavy pressure on Cameron’s shoulders began to dissipate. Nathan kept dancing like a tree in a windstorm, and he lightly shoved Cameron’s shoulder. Cameron sighed for a moment before he began to dance like Nathan, too.
What in the world was happening?
Nathan clapped his hands together, pulled Cameron into him, and whispered one more thing before patting the top of Cameron’s baseball helmet and swatting him back out to the batting diamond.
Nathan jogged back over to me and crossed his arms, focusing back on the field.
“What was that?” I asked, keeping my eyes on Cameron.
“Footloose,” he replied. “Always helped me get out of my head and more into my heart.”