Out of Her League (24 page)

Getting mad was counterproductive, given the amount of time she had left to transport them all to the game. So she docked each twin a dollar and a quarter, and corralled all four kids into the car.

Why did her life always run on fast-forward?

The twins squabbled in the back, even though Toni sat between them. With an admirable calm, considering the teenager couldn
’
t be used to such commotion and arguing, Toni ignored them both, even when they climbed all over her.

“
Guys?
”
Evie settled into the passenger seat, and Adam started the car.
“
What ever happened to rule number four?
”

“
He
’
s not my em-eny,
”
said Danny, throwing an arm around Benji
’
s neck and yanking him as close as the seat belt and Toni
’
s body would allow.
“
He
’
s my brother.
”

Evie
’
s eyes met Toni
’
s, and they smiled at
Danny
’
s persistent mangling of
enemy
. They really were cute—sometimes even when they were awake.

Evie hadn
’
t lied to Joe when she
’
d said she was fond of Toni. The girl fit into the Vaughn household as if she belonged there. Evie was used to having most of the kids in the neighborhood at her house in the summer. She was one of the few parents on the block at home all day, and it didn
’
t bother her to have kids there, as long as they behaved. But the extras were usually boys.

Having a girl a
round, especially one who so ob
viously needed a woman
’
s attention, gave Evie a warm feeling that she hadn
’
t had since the last time one of the boys had sat on her lap and cuddled. However, Joe
’
s sad face when he talked about Toni not being around had struck a chord in Evie. He loved his daughter—and in Evie
’
s book, the depth of that love in such a rough, gruff man made up for a lot of annoyances.

She focused on the twins, who were now giving each other noogies.
“
If he
’
s not your enemy, then why are you fighting?
”

“
We aren
’
t fighting.
”
Benji sat up, which at least put him back on his own side of Toni. He appeared genuinely puzzled at her question.
“
Besides, Mom, we
’
ve been trying to keep to the rules, but you haven
’
t even noticed how we
’
ve been drying our Hot Wheels off instead of throwing them into the sink. What good is trying if you don
’
t even notice?
”

Evie
had
noticed, mainly because the two of them had used her last pair of un-run pantyhose to do their
drying. She deserved it for hanging those hose to dry in the bathroom, then putting the twins into the tub.

“
Give it up, Mom,
”
Adam said.
“
You lose.
”

Evie sighed and faced forward. Sometimes she felt as if there were a great big
L
on her forehead.
Loser
. She couldn
’
t seem to win. Her life spun out of control. Never enough time to do what had to be done. Never enough money to do what she dreamed of doing. Never enough Mommy to go around.

Then Scalotta had the guts to say she might not be doing what was best for her kids. How could that man haunt her dreams, when most of the time she wanted nothing more than to kick him in the shins? Or make him disappear—
Poof!
—never to bother her again.

The way he
’
d been dating nearly every unattached woman in Oak Grove above the age of consent and below Social Security was the talk of the town, right below
“
the bet.
”
Though his relationship with Un
ruly Julie hadn
’
t lasted more than a single date, still, Evie harbored a secret fear that one of his honeys would convince him that anywhere was better than here, and he would indeed be gone—Poof!—and Toni, too. Evie wasn
’
t ready to lose the girl yet, even if it meant putting up with Scalotta at twenty paces.

They pulled into the parking lot, to find Joe sitting alone at the top of the home-team bleachers. He looked so lonely the
re, the setting summer sun blaz
ing on his hunched shoulders and shading his silver-blond hair white.

Evie glanced at Toni and caught her frown. Some
thing was going
on with those two—and it was re
ally none of Evie
’s business. But the tension be
tween them troubled her.

The twins tumbled out of the car, shrieking,
“
Joe!
”
—then raced straight for him. No matter how many times she admonished them to call him
“
Mr. Scalotta,
”
they still called him
“
Joe.
”
He didn
’
t seem to mind. In fact, he really got along well with them, having a lot more patience with their antics and chatter than Evie did.

They swarmed up the bleachers and sat, one on either side. His smile was warm, and Evie heard his laugh rumble across the heated air, then dance down her spine. What was it about this man that set her teeth on edge and shifted her body into overdrive?

Toni and Adam pulled the equipment out of the back.
“
We
’
ve got it all, Mom,
”
Adam said.
“
Go
on.
”

She smiled her thanks and meandered toward the field, watching Joe with her two sons. They talked to him the way they talked to everyone they met. But they also leaned into him, put their hands on his arm or his knee, completely trusting of this huge man who had so recently been a stranger.

Joe
’
s face lit up as if he
’
d discovered a secret, and he reached over and playfully turned Benji
’
s baseball cap around. His eyes met hers over the boy
’
s head, and there passed between them one of
those moments she often remembered in the darkest part of the night. Though she
’
d made mistakes of epic proportion in her life, she wanted, right now, to make another. She wanted to kiss Joe Scalotta again. She wanted to kiss him, and she didn
’
t want to stop there.

With the double-vision granted to all mothers in childbirth, Evie held Joe
’
s gaze and was still able to observe the twins grin, giggle; then Benji pulled his hat forward, and Danny slid his backward. They bounded down the bleachers and raced after Adam and Toni.

Evie stopped at the foot of the stands.
“
You do realize they
’
re onto you.
”

Confusion dropped over Joe
’
s features like a storm cloud over a sunny afternoon.
“
Who?
”

“
The twins. It
’
s their favorite game.
”

“
You
’
ve lost me.
”

“
I told you they
’
d switch on you. They think it
’
s a riot when you call them by the wrong name.
”

He grinned, the expression lighting his eyes, and she had to smile back, even though she was still annoyed with him for questioning her parenting, and for being so darn attractive. He couldn
’
t help it, but that didn
’
t mean she had to like it.

“
But I
’
ve figured out how to tell them apart.
”

“
Uh-huh.
”
Her voice reflected her skepticism.

“
No, really. I talk to them until one of them lets slip who
’
s who. Then I turn back their caps, or turn up their sleeves.
”

“
And as soon as you look away, they switch.
”

“
What?
”

She laughed at the shock on his face.
“
They just did it with their hats. They might be seven, but they
’
re not stupid.
”

Joe shook his head and gave a wry chuckle.
“
I thought I was so clever.
”

“
Cleverer minds than yours have been foiled by those two. They have an uncanny ability to know when someone can tell them apart on sight.
”

“
And how many people possess this mystical ability?
”

“
Me and Adam.
”

“
What about their teachers?
”

“
They
’
re in separate classes. It
’
s better for them not to be together all the time. So each poor teacher knows which one is in his or her class from day one.
”

“
And have they switched on their teachers?
”

Evie smiled.
“
Only once.
”

He nodded.
“
I see. You caught them.
”

“
Yep.
”

“
And then?
”

“
It wasn
’
t pretty.
”

“
So what should I do?
”

“
Keep going as you have been. But as soon as you make your mark, assume they
’ve switched. Af
ter you
’
ve identified them a few times correctly, they
’
ll think you
’
ve acq
uired the gift and quit yank
ing your chain.
”

“
Sounds like a plan.
”

“
I
’
m great with plans.
”

His gaze sharpened on her face, as if she
’
d said something fascinating, though Evie couldn
’
t think what that might be. Before she could ask, Adam called to her, and Evie became caught in the whirl of pregame warm-ups.

The increase in the size of the crowds for these games had so far been an annoyance more than a problem. Little Leag
ue, in all forms and sizes, car
ried a written rule of good sportsmanship—for the coaches, players and parents.

No one was allowed to taunt an umpire or a player. The umpires, being older players themselves, made mistakes. They were learning, just like the players, and to argue a call was not permitted. Not only did it encourage everyone to argue everything, but arguing with authority figures set a bad example for players. If something needed to be discussed, the coach and the umpire spoke quietly, away from the scene of the action.

It was the coach
’
s responsibility to keep the team and the crowd in line. Evie always nipped trouble in the bud, just as her father had taught her, and had therefore never had a serious crowd problem before. But there was an exception to every rule.

The culprits materialized as a gaggle of sixteen
-
year-old girls who had their sights on Adam. Since he never noticed anything that wasn
’
t wearing a baseball uniform, they had taken extreme measures, fashioning them
selves into the Adam Vaughn per
sonal cheerleading section.

The entire thing, though embarrassing to Adam,
was not cause for ejection from the game. Tonight, however, their cheers for Adam turned to catcalls for Toni, when Evie
’
s closing pitcher walked in a run. The fact that Adam had taken notice of a girl in a uniform had turned his crowd of admirers into antagonists.