Broken Road (31 page)

Ileana hung up and looked at Angel in shock. “I think your stalker dude is actually a dudette.”

“It was a woman?”

“Yeah. Definitely. She asked if I spoke English, and when I said no, she said she had ‘el wrongo numero.’”

“You hate it when people do that,” Angel said.

“I know, right? What a dumbass.” Ileana looked down at the phone and pressed the callback key. It began to ring, but there was no answer.

“It’s a pay phone,” said Angel. “I’ve tried calling back the other times.”

Ileana hung up and stared at Angel. She wished the woman had said more. She was almost certain she had heard that voice before, but just couldn’t place it. The few words the woman had said were not enough for Ileana to fully recognize her voice.

“This is just insane. Only you could get a woman to stalk you.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

“H
ey, son. How are you?” asked Jim brightly. It had been close to two weeks since he’d spoken to his eldest son, and he missed him terribly.

“I’m good, Dad. Nice to hear your voice. The last three times I’ve called, you haven’t been home.”

“Yeah, I know. Sorry about that. I’ve been working a lot lately. Y’know, that college of yours doesn’t come cheap. The scholarships helped tremendously, but—ouch!” Jim yelled.

“What happened?” asked Jarrod, concerned.

“I guess your mom didn’t appreciate my comment about the cost of college. She threw a banana at me. It hurt. It wasn’t even ripe yet!”

Jarrod laughed while picturing his mom getting mad at his father and tossing the banana at him. He’s lucky she didn’t have a knife in her hand at the time.

“Man, I miss you guys,” he said, feeling suddenly homesick. He sat down on his bed and looked at the framed picture of him and his family that was sitting on his night table. The picture was taken last winter at a Giants game. He smiled as he recalled what a great time they had. Alec had painted his face blue and white and looked like a total idiot, yet he’d cared not one iota. He was far from being the only blue-and-white-faced fan there that day.

“We miss you too. So, tell me, how’s everything going?”

“Not bad. Classes are okay. Some are a little on the boring side, but I have to take them, so I will. Baseball’s going great, though. My arm is feeling really good.”

“Not too sore?” Jim asked worriedly.

“A little. But it’s getting better.”

“How often do you practice?”

“Every day after classes and sometimes on the weekends.”

“You’re not overdoing it, are you?”

“Nah. Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.” He returned the picture to its place and picked up the one of him and Angel that Ileana had taken of them a few weeks ago. Angel was sitting on his lap with her head tilted a bit to the side so that it leaned against his. She was wearing his favorite red shirt that fit just a little too snugly, emphasizing her beautiful bustline, while he had on a plain pair of black shorts and a blue Gators baseball T-shirt. They were both smiling, but Angel’s smile outshined, outdid, and outstripped any and every smile since the beginning of time. Well, that was just Jarrod’s opinion, but as far as he was concerned, it was the only one that mattered.

“I’m glad to hear it. I called to give you some good news. I just hope you’re ready to hear it,” said Jim excitedly, yet a bit on the uncertain side.

“Now you’ve got my interest. What is it?”

“I spoke with Mr. Wyatt today. He called to see how you were doing. Nice of him, huh?”

“Yeah, definitely,” Jarrod said eagerly as he stood up and began to pace the length of the room.

“I told him you were doing great and that you’re attending college in Florida.”

“Did he say anything about baseball?”

“Yup.”

“Well?” Jarrod said anxious to hear what Mr. Wyatt had said.

“He asked about your health and recovery. I let him know how you’ve come a tremendous way in such a short period of time and he was really impressed. I also let him know you made the university’s baseball team, that you’re doing great, and that your arm is almost where it was when he saw you pitch that day.” Realizing he had brought up a memory that might cause Jarrod pain, he added, “Sorry.”

Jarrod’s euphoria quickly faded as he recalled that day. Yes, it was wonderful that he had pitched so well and that a professional scout for a top-notch league team was there to witness it. But it was also the day he lost his best friend and practically died himself, a day that would be ingrained in his mind forever. He still missed his friend and thought of him every day.

Sobering up, he said to his father, “It’s fine. Go on. Tell me more.”

“He was happy to hear you’re doing so well. Here’s the good news. He’s going to be in Jacksonsville the weekend of the twentieth and was wondering if you could meet him there. He’d like to talk and see how far you’ve come along. What do you think? You up to it?”

Jarrod couldn’t respond. He stood motionless in the small confine of his room with the phone pressed to his ear, staring into blank space.

“Jarrod? Jarrod? Son, are you there?”

“Huh?”

“You okay?”

“Yeah. Dad, this is unbelievable.”

“It is. But—”

“But what?” Jarrod interrupted. Sentences that began with the word “but” never ended well.

“Do you think you’re ready? I mean, you’ve been through a lot, and the accident wasn’t all that long ago. It takes awhile to recover fully from something like that…”

“I’m ready,” Jarrod said confidently.

“Are you sure?” Jim asked. He didn’t want his son to be disappointed if he tried out and wasn’t quite ready. It might discourage him from ever trying again.

“I’m sure.”

“Do you want me to come down and meet you in Jacksonville? I mean, for moral support.”

“Actually, that would be great, if it’s not too much trouble. I’d love to see you and, well, yeah, I could use the support.”

“Then I’ll be there,” Jim said.

“Thanks.”

“You got it.” In a more somber tone, he added, “Listen, Bud, I don’t know if I’ve told you lately, but I’m proud of you. You’ve been able to achieve something most men wouldn’t even attempt. You’ve never given up, and as your father, I have no words to describe how proud of you I am.”

“That means a lot to me,” said Jarrod.

“You should be proud of yourself as well.”

“I am,” he said, smiling. “Um, Dad, I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind me bringing someone along.”

“Angel?”

“How do you know about Angel?” Jarrod asked, surprised. He hadn’t mentioned anything to his parents about her simply because he knew his mother would drive him nuts with questions. She was great at minding her own business when it came to others, but when it involved her two sons, she had no boundaries.

“Alec told me.”

“What else did he say?”

“Not much. Just that she’s very pretty, seems sweet, and that you’re crazy about her. Oh, and that she happens to be Morgan’s cousin. How’s that working out for you?”

“I don’t even know if Morgan knows that we’re dating. She threw a conniption when she found out that Angel and I were interested in one another, but I haven’t heard from her in awhile and you know what they say…no news is good news. All I know is that Angel and I are doing great. She’s special; she makes me very happy.”

“I’m glad to hear it. If you’re happy, we’re happy. I’d love to meet her so definitely bring her along. Wait, your mom wants to say something.”

“Jarrod, it’s Mom. Are you bringing Angel to Jacksonville?” she asked excitedly.

“Hi, Mom! Yeah, I was thinking about it.”

“Great. We’ll meet her then.”

“Are you coming too?” Jarrod asked cheerfully.

“I am now.”

“Great. I’m sure she’ll be happy to meet you too. Do you think there’s any possibility that Alec can come as well?”

“Sure. It’s the weekend, so he won’t miss any school. I’m going to give the phone back to your father now. He’s tugging on my arm, and I’m about ready to throw the whole damn fruit bowl at him if he doesn’t stop. Love you, honey.”

“Love you too. Bye.”

Jim got back on the phone and said, “Jarrod, first let me call Griffin Wyatt back and get the details as to where and when you two can meet. Then I’ll figure things out from this end and call you back, alright?”

“Yeah. Sounds good.”

“Alright then. I’ll talk to you soon. I love you, son.”

“Love you too. Tell Alec I said hi.”

“Will do. Bye.”

After he hung up, Jarrod immediately sat down on his bed, only to stand up two seconds later and run as fast as his legs would take him to Angel.

Chapter Thirty

“O
h my God,” exclaimed Angel as she jumped into his arms, wrapping both her legs around his waist as he twirled her around numerous times.

“Isn’t it great?” he asked as he tumbled forward, dropping the two of them onto her bed. Angel lay still with him above her and gently pushed aside a stray lock of hair that had fallen over his eye. She looked into his eyes and said, “I love you.”

“I love you more,” he said.

“I’m so happy for you…”

“For us.”

“For us,” she repeated as he bent down and kissed her. Then he abruptly jumped up from the bed and said, “I want you to come with me to Jacksonville next weekend.”

Angel sat up and looked at him sadly. “My parents are coming up that weekend, remember? I told you the other night.”

He looked devastated. He so wanted her by his side at this incredible moment in his life. It broke Angel’s heart to see the distraught look on his face. She walked over to him and put her arms around his waist, bringing their bodies close together. He slowly wrapped his arms around her waist and gently leaned his head upon hers.

“I’ll call my parents and ask if they can postpone their visit,” she said. “They’ll just have to understand that this is something that is important to you. I mean, to us.”

“What do you mean, ‘postpone’ the visit?” Laura said, displeased.

Angel fully explained the situation to her mother. “I wouldn’t ask you and Daddy to postpone the visit if there was any way around it.” Even over the phone, she could sense her mother’s intense displeasure.

“But we haven’t seen you in weeks. You’ve been so busy at school and with your new boyfriend that you haven’t made time to come home and visit anymore.” Angel could hear in her mother’s voice that she was about to cry. She was getting that raspy, faltering voice with just a hint of a whimper.

“Mom, I’ll make it up to you, I swear,” pleaded Angel.

“How, Angel, how?” said Laura.

“I don’t know, but I will. I promise.”

There was a brief moment of silence, until Laura suddenly said, “Well, I know how you can. I want you to come visit us this weekend here in Bradenton.”

“Oh.” Angel immediately thought about Jarrod’s suggestion that he and she go away this weekend. She hadn’t said yes to him. Yet. But this might work out. She needed more time to decide if she was ready to take such a big step, and she didn’t want Jarrod to feel hurt or offended if she decided she wasn’t. She could just tell him her parents insisted she come this weekend; otherwise, they wouldn’t postpone their visit to Gainesville. She wouldn’t be lying and she would be able to gain more time. Plus, the following weekend they would be going to Jacksonville together, and there was no way they were going to share a room with his family staying at the same hotel. Yes, this was a good thing.