Crack!
It felt right coming off the bat, and my hands vibrated with the impact. The crowd was going wild as I threw the wood down. I didn’t watch, just dug my cleats in, heading for first, my eyes on the base coach. His arm was spinning — no homer, but he thought I could make a double — so I bore down and made my turn, my cleat hitting the edge of first just right, throwing up dirt to get to second.
I was fast for a big man, but this was going to be close. I went down, dust flying up all around me as I slid. My cleat connected an instant before the ball cracked into the baseman’s glove. I was back on my feet, and looking for the blue shirt to make the final call, but the play wasn’t over. The second baseman turned and sent the ball whizzing to home.
“Safe!” my umpire yelled, his arms splayed out, but I barely heard him because I was on the run again, heading for third as I watched Todd digging hard for the score.
Todd went down outside the zone, his hand touching the plate as the ball smacked into the catcher’s glove.
“Safe!”
The catcher didn’t hesitate and threw to third while still on his knees. I had time, but went down anyway, coming back up and was dusting myself off as another, “Safe!” was called.
“Nice hit!” the third base coach said, and I shot him a grin.
Glancing up at the stands, Eliana was jumping up and down, clapping, the popcorn she had tucked under her arm spilling everywhere. Mom and Zoe were clapping too while Nana just beamed.
Turned out, my good luck charm was even more powerful in person. We beat the socks off the Sox, putting that beautiful W next to our name. I scored twice, and nothing got by me at first. I even signed the ball for the kid who’d stolen the out from me earlier.
The press jungle seemed to take forever as I answered questions and bragged on my team. I signed more balls and hats, and even one kid’s bicep before tramp stamping two giggling groupies who flirted outrageously with me.
Then Eliana was in my arms.
“I thought you two were heading back to California,” I said to Mom, my girl still tucked under my arm.
Mom was grinning. Like, really grinning. A cat who had not only eaten the canary but was using a feather as a toothpick kind of grin.
“Well, your nana and I decided to do some pre-wedding planning.”
I looked down at Eliana, whose eyes were huge in her face. She gave me an I know nothing about this shake of the head.
Mom went on. “We were thinking that,” she glanced over at Nana with a sad look, “since she…”
Nana hmphed and jumped in. “We were thinking that since I’m going to be kicking the bucket, and since you two are already engaged, you should get married sooner rather than later so I can be there.”
“Uh…”
My lips felt numb. My tongue did too. I was pretty sure my brain had dissolved into mush.
Mom was bouncing up and down. “Well? What do you think? A November wedding would be perfect! The World Series would be over that first week. You could get married that Saturday or Sunday.”
“Uh…” That sound came from Eliana. Her fingers were digging a hole in my ribs.
“You don’t have to do a thing except pick out your dress and colors and things. We’ve already contacted a wedding planner, and she can meet with you tomorrow morning.”
“Uh…”
“Kane Bartholomew!”
I snapped to attention at the name. “Yes, Nana?”
“Are you going to grant your grandmother her dying wish, or are you going to break her heart?”
Very slowly, I looked down into wide blue eyes. An enormous fake smile was frozen on her face, her freckles aglow on her nose. “Well, dear, what do you think?”
She blinked. That was good. Movement was good, I supposed.
“Dying wish,” Nana grumbled.
Eliana exhaled. “Sounds like fun.”
***
“You okay?” I asked Eliana after she plopped down on the bed, looking like a starfish against the pale duvet.
“I still can’t believe that just happened.” She groaned and turned on her side to pull a pillow over her face. “Seriously. We’re really really really getting married now. As in ‘I do’ and ‘you may kiss your bride’ and ‘till Nana’s death do us part.’” She pulled the pillow off and looked at me. “I’m sorry, that was terrible. Sometimes the edit filter in my brain doesn’t work right.” With a long sigh, the pillow was on her face again.
Adorable.
I grinned, although she was too busy smothering herself to see it. Climbing on top of her until I was straddling her waist, I pulled the pillow off and tossed it aside, then held down her wrists to keep her still. “Come on, is the idea of being hitched to me all that bad?”
She bucked up, tossing me forward until we were nose to nose. She swallowed hard, her breathing increasing as she looked up with those glorious blues. “I don’t even know Nana’s name. I was told to call her ‘nana’ from the very beginning. I don’t know your sisters’ names. What they do for a living. How your relationship is with them. I wish…” She trailed off with a little shake of her head.
I let go of one of her wrists to push her hair back from her face. “Nana was born Evelyn Niswonger — don’t call her Evelyn, it will break her heart — and married Charles Steele sixty-six or so years ago. Grandpa died three Easters ago of a heart attack. They had five children. My dad is the eldest. I have two aunts and two uncles. They all work at Steele Global although Dad is the CEO now. I also have nine cousins. Three of them have kids now, so family reunions are getting more and more interesting.”
“Your sisters?”
I couldn’t stop the smile as I thought of the two brats. “I’m the oldest at almost twenty-six. Kristen is three years younger and is in the process of becoming a lawyer at Berkeley. She’s a smart-ass know-it-all, so the profession is perfect for her.”
Eliana smiled up at me. “You love her.”
“Yeah. I haven’t always loved her. Mom swears that I tried to convince them to flush her down the toilet when she was a baby.” I chuckled. “I probably did. And when she got older, she’d steal my toys. Hit me, then when I hit her back, she’d go running off to tell, and I’d get into trouble. Typical sibling stuff, right?”
Eliana’s smile dimmed. “Only child, remember? Sounds like fun.”
I kissed her nose. “It was fun. Then Kaitlyn came along three years after that. She’s twenty and the artist of the family. Photography. She’s at Berkeley too — she and Kristen share an apartment — but she’s already a primary photographer for Steele Global. She’s super cool. Very laid back. The exact opposite of Kris.”
“Will they be at the wedding?”
“I’m sure they will be. Pointing and laughing most likely. Of the three of us, I’ve been the one most adamant about not getting married. They’ll have great fun rubbing my nose in it.”
“I can’t wait to meet them.”