“Yes, I wanted to come talk to you for a little bit.”
Great. Another heart-to-heart. The last one had caused a lot of heartache. This time I was going to remember I wasn’t a kid who needed guidance but an adult who knew her own mind.
“Of course, come on in.”
I set my guitar case on the table and went to the counter to get two glasses of sweet tea. Mrs. Elaine loved sweet iced tea.
“I hear from your daddy that the boy who was helping out is gone,” she said from behind me. My stomach knotted up. I didn’t want to talk about Cage with her. I couldn’t. She didn’t understand. No one did.
“Yeah, he is.”
‘That’s good. He just wasn’t the kind of boy you needed to be around. There are such good boys out there. Boys that will make good husbands and fine men.”
If she wasn’t Josh and Jeremy’s mother and if she hadn’t been there for me growing up I’d show her the door. I owed her respect for those things and biting my tongue was best. I would just nod and then get rid of her.
“You know Chad has been asking about you a lot. He talks to me when Jeremy comes home. I think he is smitten with you.” She grinned as if she had just let me in on a big secret. I was aware Chad liked me. He wasn’t being secretive about it. The texts were getting on my nerves. I’d asked Jeremy to tell him to stop.
“He is going to inherit all that land and the construction company from his dad, ya know. He’s a great catch.”
He was also a momma’s boy who whined when he didn’t get his way. His chest was also scrawny and thin. Once you’d touched Cage York’s chest there was no settling for less.
“Hmmm,” I replied, taking a big gulp of my tea. Please let this conversation end soon.
“I’m having Chad and his parents down Labor Day weekend. Jeremy will be home too. I thought maybe you would like to come over and celebrate with us. It will be the same thing we do every year. Ribs on the grill. My potato salad you love so much and green bean casserole.”
“Um, well, uh, thank you Mrs. Elaine but I’m not sure yet what Daddy is planning on doing and—“
“Oh, he is invited too of course. We haven’t had a family gathering between our families on a holiday since before Josh passed away. This will be good for all of us.”
A door slamming and yelling interrupted our conversation. I jumped up and ran out on the porch. Daddy was blocking my view. I couldn’t see who he was yelling at but I knew the car he was standing in front of. It was Cage. What was he doing here?
“Oh my. What is that boy doing here? Should I call the cops?”
“Shhh, no. Don’t call anyone,” I snapped and turned my attention back to the driveway.
“I told you not to come back around here, boy. “ Daddy roared.
“I shouldn’t have left. I want to talk to Eva. You should’ve never made me leave without talking to her,” Cage replied.
What?
“I gave you a choice and you chose your baseball career over her. Ain’t no boy good enough for my girl that would choose anything else over her.”
Cage slammed his fist down on his car hood. “ I didn’t choose anything over her. You threatened my life and my education. It was never about baseball. Fuck baseball!”
“Get in that car and leave. Don’t come back. I’ll call the cops next time and you’ll go to jail. Don’t mess with me. I protect what’s mine.”
Cage’s eyes shifted and our gazes locked. I didn’t understand what I’d just heard. I didn’t know what had happened between my daddy and Cage. At the moment I didn’t care. I was getting to look at him again. He was here and I could see him. He didn’t look like a guy who wanted to throw me aside.
“I love you, Eva Brooks. No matter what you’ve been told or what you think of me. I love you!”
Everything and everyone melted away. Cage was yelling for everyone to hear that he loved me. Even with my daddy breathing down his neck. I couldn’t move. I didn’t know what to do. He had left me. Without saying a word. Now he was back and he said he loved me. What was the truth? Love didn’t just run off without an explanation. He’d broken my heart.
Cage turned and to open his car door and climbed inside. Numbly, I watched him pull out and drive away.
I let him go. Why had I let him go?
Chapter Twenty-Four