Page 90 of On the Ropes
“Away games, traveling, spring training,” Rowan said. “It wasn’t kid stuff anymore. Dean was the only one who got it. When I blew out my arm in the majors, he didn’t pity me or tell me a bunch of bullshit about silver linings. He knew I was in a lot of physical pain and that I needed a friend that knew what it was like to have all that pressure on you. To be perfect all the time.”
I squeezed Rowan’s shoulder.
“I don’t know exactly how kids are gonna use this park,” I said. “But Rowan and I got to just be here. Felt free and happy. It would be nice for other kids to feel that way too.”
My gaze slid to Tabitha’s, and her smile was a sweet reveal that felt just for me. A few seconds went by and then Rowan cleared his throat and Eddie coughed. Tabitha blinked and turned her camera off.
“You know, that was a lot of good stuff,” she said quickly. “I’m going to shoot a bit of the gardens and take a couple of pictures. The internet is hooked on this pocket park transformation now. I’ve got to feed them some juicy updates.”
Tabitha wandered off with her camera while Rowan dug around in the grocery bag he’d placed on the ground.
“I’m still furious about the video game betrayal,” Alice said primly.
Eddie shot me a sly grin while lighting his cigarette. “Hell, it was a decade ago. And you’ve been holding out on me. Didn’t know you had a stash of Annie’s romance novels.”
“Yeah,” Rowan said, voice muffled. “And they’re apparently hidden behind a secret bookcase because I’ve never found ’em and I was a teenage boy living in that house. I know how to hide shit.”
“Yes, video games apparently,” she replied.
Rowan cracked a sheepish smile before pulling out two white boxes. “Are you gonna be mad, or are you gonna eat the cannoli I brought you?”
I followed Tabitha as Alice and Eddie cheered and grumbled, respectively. She bit the tip of her thumb and grinned when she saw me.
“You know, before I met you in school, I had no idea you were such a little hellion,” she said. “Freeze tag. Sprinklers. Illicit video games.”
“I hide my inner bad boy pretty well,” I said.
“I don’t think it’s that hidden.” She pressed up onto her tiptoes and kissed me. “All the footage I’ve taken about this street and its history represents the best of what I love about living here. Of what I miss. And…” She paused, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I know how easy it is to focus on the worst that was said about you, after you retired. I do the same thing. But I only see pride and respect. This block loves you.” She held up her camera. “That’s what I see. Whether you take that job in Vegas and move or decide to stay here, that’s a constant that won’t change.”
I lifted her chin with one finger and kissed her. There was nothing I could say. Thank you didn’t feel like enough. Please don’t go to Texas felt like too much.
“What are you doing tonight?” I asked.
“I’ll probably take a look at what I filmed and then shower off all this gardening. Get some real work done. And I have to start packing.”
I shoved my hands into my pockets. Loosened my jaw. “Do you want company?”
“Desperately.”
I bent down and kissed her temple. “I’ll come see you.”
I stood on the sidewalk until the door shut behind her. When I finally turned around, Rowan was there.
“Not eavesdropping, I promise,” he said. “Eddie asked me to get more napkins.”
“You’re all good,” I said, slapping a hand on his back. “I’ll come with you.”
Rowan peeked over his shoulder. “Okay, I’m really happy we didn’t accidentally spill how many girls I made out with on Eddie’s stoop. Or that he made it way too easy to find his beer.”
“The video game thing was a smart distraction.”
“Is everything okay with you and Tabitha?”
I weighed my answer. Everything was great. But that wasn’t what he was asking. “Yeah, we’re okay. Why?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “The way you two were looking at each other seemed kinda…intense.”
I ran a hand through my hair. “We’ve been hanging out pretty much constantly. And having sex. A lot of sex.”
