Summer in Manhattan. Katherine Garbera
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does that sort of thing?”
“I do.”
“Do I have to guess who it is?” she asked when he didn’t elaborate.
He winked at her. “Me. That’s what I do. But since we are friends, I will give you the name of one of my colleagues.”
“Really? I knew you were a lawyer but you seem more like a criminal defense one.”
“Why did you think that?”
“You seem tough and I know you were a cop. What made you want to do family law?”
“Growing up the way I did made me very aware of how complicated family legal matters can be.”
She reached across the table and put her hand over his, squeezing it gently. He made that statement so nonchalantly that she almost believed that he didn’t really feel anything about it, but there was a note in his voice that gave him away. That made her realize that his past wasn’t perfect.
Just like hers.
Both of them had come from families that were less than perfect.
They were closer now than she’d have thought at the beginning of the meal and a part of her didn’t regret it at all. Another part of her did. She wasn’t too fond of discovering more ways to bond with Hoop.
Hoop hadn’t meant to bring up the other guy but frankly he was pissed at himself and Rich for the situation. He should have followed his gut the night they’d met but instead he’d done what he thought was right.
Made the adult decision.
So now he was sitting across from the woman he wanted, listening to her talk baseball stats and getting turned on. And she’d friend zoned him. Probably the smartest choice. He was a man known for his logic, but with Cici that had never been the case.
And that would have to be enough because pressuring a woman into a deeper relationship went totally against the grain. He wasn’t about to do it now with Cici.
“I know some people say Derek Jeter is the all-time greatest but if you look at the stats, he’s no Babe Ruth or Ty Cobb. It’s almost like he’s not even playing in the same league. You can’t beat those guys who made the sport great. They set standards using equipment that was rougher, heavier, not machined to make the game easier, you know?”
He did know. He also knew that nothing excited him as much as hearing her talk about baseball. There was that passion again that he’d first noticed at the Olympus in February.
Regret didn’t taste good with port, he thought.
“Which is why I invited you to the baseball game together,” he said. “We could have a really good time.”
She smiled and then sighed.
She leaned forward, putting her elbows on the table and resting her head on her left hand. She looked at him from under those heavy brows and thick lashes and he suddenly couldn’t really pay attention to anything but the fall of her dark hair against her cheek. Why had he never noticed how pink her lips were before this? Or how kissable her mouth was?
She sat up, leaning forward toward him. “I’m trying to be smart for my baby. I never expected to be a Mom…not like this and I need to focus on that. And I’m going to be totally honest here, you distract me.”
“Well, let’s fix that. We need to figure this out,” he said. “The more we try to deny it, the more it will grow and then how awkward will getting together with Garrett and Hayley be?”
She shook her head and took another sip of the green tea she’d ordered after dinner. “Nope, it’s not going to work. I see where you are going. But we had a shot and now I have this little bean. I can’t…”
“You can. It’s not like I’m not a decent guy. You liked me enough to kiss me in Olympus and once again in the cab when I took you home.”
She put her mug down on the saucer and gave him a hard look. “But you didn’t like me enough. I’m sorry. I’m not trying to be difficult. But you hurt me, Hoop. You made me feel like I wasn’t enough. I don’t like that. I act stupid when I’m hurt like that.”
Her words wounded him but only because he hadn’t thought of things from her point-of-view. He had pushed her away. She’d been willing to give him a chance; a real chance, but he’d been a guy.
“I’m an ass.”
“Agreed,” she said, with a smile. “Just kidding…you’re not an ass. I think you are actually a really nice guy. The kind of man who is responsible and a good friend.”
He hadn’t thought that he’d hurt her but now it consumed him. Made him realize how arrogant he’d been in thinking he could come back to her. He owed her. He needed to show her she wasn’t the problem. That they could, at the very least, be friends. “Let me be a friend to you, Cici. Let me prove I can be a good friend to you.”
She shook her head. “Ugh. You’re not going to take no for an answer, are you?”
“Nope. Sorry, it’s not in my programming to give up on something that means a lot to me.”
“And I mean a lot to you?” she asked. “We don’t really know each other.”
“I know. But I think we could be good friends,” he said. At least to start out with. She was having a baby and he knew how fragile families were. He’d gone into family law because he wanted to help bring people together.
“Okay. I’ll go to a baseball game with you and then we can see what happens next.”
Hoop was at her door early for their date. She almost didn’t answer it but she had decided as soon as she’d found out about her little bean that she wasn’t going to run away any more. It was a baseball game. No big deal, right?
She opened the door and he stood there wearing a faded Yankees t-shirt and holding his glove loosely in one hand. His jeans were faded too and clung to his thighs.
She sighed. He was too good looking. It would have been nice if his nose had been broken and hadn’t healed properly or maybe if he had a little bit of a beer belly. But no.
“You okay?”
“What? Yes, sorry about that,” she said. She pulled the door closed behind her and locked it.
“What are you wearing?”
“My Red Sox shirt.”
“I can see that, why?”
“I’m a Red Sox fan,” she said. “I grew up in Connecticut.”
“This is going to be awkward,” he said, smiling.
“More awkward than me being pregnant?” she asked with a grin. She had decided to own it. She’d been hiding the pregnancy from her friends and family because she’d been uncomfortable and embarrassed but talking with Hoop the other night at dinner had helped her get clarity. She had decided to have the baby and she was going to figure out how to be the best damn mother she could be.
He threw his head back and laughed. She smiled, realizing just how long it had been since she’d heard him laugh. It had been that night in the club. Pre-pregnancy.
“Fair point. I have season tickets,” he said. “You’re going to be sitting in the heart of the Yankee Country.”
“I’m tougher than I look,” she said. “Plus, my team is going to whip yours and I’m prepared to be a generous winner.”
They took the subway to Yankee Stadium and Cici got a few comments on the way. There were Red Sox fans on the subway as well. But she and Hoop both ignored them.
“Maybe this wasn’t the best idea for a first date,” Hoop said. “But you’re the first girl I’ve met in a long time that actually loves baseball.”
“This