Behind him, he heard whistling. Mallory's voce yelling, “Come on, Nina. You can do it.” And then everyone else right along.
God, he loved her. Loved her more, when Nina’s pop fly landed in the short stop’s glove and she kept clapping, kept whistling kept cheering his daughter on.
Nina waved at him, rolled her eyes at the taunters and sent a thumbs up in Mallory’s direction.
Whatever else happened, Breton determined right then, he was going to make it to Mallory’s house tonight.
He had to convince her to listen. Not only for his sake, but for Nina’s as well. They needed her as much as she needed them.
Chapter Fifteen
Carolyn asked her if she wanted company after the game, but all Mallory wanted to do was go home, take a long hot bath, tear those damn magazines to shreds and sleep.
Maybe she’d drink a beer or two, too. But she didn’t want company.
The tears that had been threatening to fall all night were perilously close now. And she wanted solitude when they finally did fall.
She waved to her friend and could almost feel the hot water of the bath she longed for as she opened her door.
And found Brenton sitting on her couch.
She didn’t have the strength for this.
“Don’t you have a post game celebration to attend?”
“Don’t you?”
She shook her head. “In case you’d missed it, I resigned. This isn’t my season anyway.”
He stood and walked to her.
“I’m really going to have to start locking my door, hmm?”
As he closed in, she thought about backing away. But she was too exhausted to bother.
It looked as if he’d move to hold her. Lord, she wanted him to hold her. Instead, he stood just inside her personal space. Close enough to bother, but not too close. Not close enough.
“Mal, I’m sorry....”
She did move away then. Cut him off before he could continue.
“Listen Brenton. I’m sure you have a thousand explanations. And I probably want to hear them. But not now. Now I’m tired and I have a headache. I can’t fight you.”
Her words were true. She knew it the minute they were out. Hell, she’d lost the fight the second she’d seen him talking to her daddy.
“I don’t want to fight.”
God, he looked so sincere. So damn sexy.
She reached up and brushed the wayward hair from his forehead. He was such a good father. Such a good lover. And a good man. If only…
“I don’t want to fight.” He said the words again. Whispered them against her hair as he pulled her close. She leaned into him one last time.
“I want you to marry me, Mallory.”
The words weren’t even a shock. Somehow she’d known he was going to say them. But they weren’t a question either. He had some strange idea that if he wanted something, he’d get it. Not that she’d done much to disabuse him of that notion.
Still she had an answer. And he wasn’t going to like it. It was time Brenton learned he couldn’t win every time.
“I can’t.”
He seemed stunned by her answer. He’d mistaken her signals. She wasn’t surprised.
“Why?”
He wanted her to list the reasons. Maybe she should draw up a top ten list. It didn’t really matter. How would he take the news she was leaving?
She thought about telling him then, but she didn’t want to. Didn’t want to have this conversation. Not then. Not ever. Didn’t want to take the chance he’d change her mind.
Instead she pressed her lips to his, marking the kiss in permanent ink on her memory.
Then she pushed him out the door. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Okay?”
She watched him leave and let the tears finally flow.
Brenton relived the kiss a million times that night. If that wasn’t a good bye, he didn’t know what was.
Damn. He’d been so sure. The air practically singed his arms when they were together. Surely she felt that and knew how special it was.
He’d been so surprised when she’d just let him hold her. And that kiss.
She loved him. He was sure of it.
And he loved her.
So why was he sleeping alone tonight, and why had she turned him down flat on his proposal?
It didn’t make sense.
Somehow he’d convince her. Tomorrow.
It wasn’t the alarm or the sunrise or anyone banging on her door that woke Mallory the next morning.
Bone tired, she climbed out of bed and tried to ignore the sadness that wrapped itself around her body.
She had to look at today as a positive step. A new beginning. A chance to make her mark on the world.
The green lights glared at her from the silent alarm clock. Five in the morning. In exactly three hours her brother, Toby, was delivering the U-Haul trailer he’d promised. He’d agreed to let her stay with him on the coast for a couple months.
Had listened to her litany of reasons for leaving. Had agreed with most of them.
But he’d made her promise she wasn’t leaving town over Brenton.
She sighed and made her way into the kitchen. Stirring a cup of instant coffee she thought about her reasons for leaving Serendipity.
Brenton definitely played a part in her decision. She couldn’t imagine running into him and pretending they were simply passing acquaintances. Couldn’t imagine hurting the way she did right then every time she heard his name or Nina’s.
But he wasn’t the only reason she was leaving.
Her entire life was wrapped in this city, in coaching. It didn’t take a psychologist to tell her she’d spent her whole adult life trying to be another son in her daddy’s family.
It wasn’t enough.
She wanted to be accepted for who she was. Without softball, without coaching, period. She wanted a life where she wasn’t simply Coach Baber’s daughter or her brothers’ baby sister.
And she wanted to prove she could make it out in the big bad world. Away from the home she loved. Away from the people she knew. Away from the town she’d fought to protect.
If Nina had been telling the truth, at least her relationship with Brenton had helped the town.
Putting her cup in the sink, she pushed thoughts of Brenton away. She didn’t want to think about him. About his kisses. About his voice. About that damn proposal last night.
What the hell was wrong with him anyway? Was she supposed to forget everything and jump in his arms?
Images of her father talking to him at last night’s game played in her mind.
Well, maybe her daddy could forgive Brenton. Maybe he felt Brenton wasn’t at fault.
And maybe Brenton wasn’t completely at fault. It didn’t matter. He’d started the entire fiasco. And she couldn’t forgive and forget. She sure couldn’t trust.
He’d known, had to have known about the meeting. And he’d never bothered to say a word.
No, leaving was her only choice. She’d come back some day, but for now, while her father was healthy, she had to try life on her own. She’d spend the summer sending in resumes and going to interviews. Forgetting Brenton as much as that was possible.
She’d protected her heart just fine before he’d come along. Give her a few months and she’d be fine.
Brenton rehearsed the words he needed to say as he drove the last two block to Mallory’s. He’d tell her first about her father’s new job. And he’d show her all the reasons she should go back to the school.
Last night he’d heard the board wasn’t filling the position immediately. They were hoping to negotiate terms to keep her on board.
He’d call every newspaper in the state to cover her fight to save Serendipity. He’d lead the petition to have Coach J.D. Baber added to the Texas Coaches Hall of Fame.
Damn it all, he’d do whatever she told him to do to make her see they belonged together.
Hell, the whole town knew. Her daddy knew. Even her brothers knew.
He pulled up into her empty drive and walked to the door. She might not be home, but he’d just wait for her.
Except when he tried the front door, it wouldn't budge.
What?...Mallory never locked...
From across the street one of her neighbors called, “She’s packed up and moved with her brother.”
Fighting an instant of panic, Brenton thanked the neighbor and rethought his plans.
Okay. If she was with Tim, he’d get Jen’s help. If she was with Scott and Celinda at her old house, he’d just walk up to the front door and knock.
The packed up part left him worried, but not overly so.
Except when he drove up to Tim and Julie’s, Julie was out watering her marigolds, looking worried and sad all in one.
She let the pressure hose stop and walked over to meet him, not giving him a chance to ask a single question.
“She’s gone.”
Gone? What the hell was that supposed to mean?
“Gone where?”
For a second it looked like Julie wasn’t going to clue him in, but she must have seen something in his face to convince her. “She’s moving in with Toby down on the coast. For a while at least, maybe for good.”
The words ripped into him like bullets. Mallory gone. She couldn’t leave this town. It was everything to her.
“I need a number or an address. Some way to reach her.”
Julie squinted her nose against the sun in the sky behind him. “I’d really have to talk to her first.”
Dammit to hell. He didn’t have time for this.
“Come on, Julie. You know she belongs here. Help me convince her to stay. Hell, if anyone should leave it’s me. Help me out here.”
Mallory’s sister-in-law didn’t seem to agree with him, but after a few seconds she shifted, dropped the hose on the ground. “You might be able to catch her at the Baber house still. She was going there first to say goodbye to everyone. But I wouldn’t bet on changing her mind if I were you, Brenton. She’s pretty determined.”
Well, by God, so was he. Mallory was not leaving town. Not if he could do anything about it.
With a quick thanks he sped away. Somehow he’d convince her. He had to.
Mallory hugged her father one last time. “I love you, Daddy.’
“I love you, too, Hon.”
His hugs were so strong. So reassuring.
She fought the tears that threatened to fall once again. Seemed like all she did these days was cry. She would not be sad about this move. It was the right thing to do. And it wasn’t like she wouldn’t be back.
For now, this was more like an extended vacation. She hadn’t spent much time with Toby over the last couple years.
“You sure you want to do this?”
She nodded ignoring the voce in her head saying no, no, no.
“I’m sure.”
“Well, then, you’re going to be fine.”
She nodded. “You, too. You just need to rest. Maybe after I’ve been there a little wile I’ll even find you a place to work.”
Her father looked a little uncomfortable at her attempt to tease. “I should’ve told you last night, but I wanted to give Alexander a chance....” His voice trailed off as gravel out front sprayed against the porch.
Mallory turned to see who was driving like a maniac and felt her heart drop to her toes. She didn’t want to see him. Had hoped she’d sneak out of town without this meeting. Her brothers had hightailed it out of the front rooms already, obviously avoiding the scene. And her daddy wasn’t looking all that excited about sticking around either.
Well, fine. She’d do this on her own.
She moved to open the door, to confront Brenton. This time she wasn't exhausted. She’d make him understand in no uncertain terms he was no longer welcome in any part of her life.
She felt her daddy's hand on her shoulder and stopped.
“Before you go, listen to what he has to say. If you still want to leave, I understand. But don’t walk away now and end up with nothing but an empty box of could have beens.”
Her daddy’d been dispensing that kind of wisdom her entire life. And she’d never gone wrong listening to him.
This time she really wanted to ignore him though. She didn’t want to listen to Brenton. There was a reason he was a millionaire businessman. It was the same reason she’d ended up sleeping with him, hell, falling in love with him.
It was the reason she’d let her heart get broken.
She needed to remember that last part first and foremost as she talked to him.
She opened the door as he raised his hands to knock.
“Yes?”
She sounded cool, calm, collected. She felt like a trembling pool of hot candle wax.
Just seeing his face made her want to kiss him.
“You’re leaving?” The question was more of a statement.
She nodded.
“What about your fight to save this Serendipity? Who’s going to battle John if you leave?”
She shrugged. “I guess someone else will pick up the cause. I’m out of a job, and it’s time I moved on.”
She sounded so sure of herself. God, she really was a great actress.
And he seemed to be buying it. “You don’t have to leave. The board’s holding your job. They want to negotiate terms with you.”
She’d heard. “There’s only one term I’m interested in, so it’s impossible.”
“Have you talked to your father about this? He could have fought for his job, but he didn’t. Plus, he’s going to be pretty busy over the next few years.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Your father’s working for me now. We’ll be designing and building stadiums and gymnasiums all over the state for the next few years. Didn’t he tell you?”
Well, no, he hadn’t told her. But she wasn’t about to tell Brenton that.
At least she wouldn’t have to worry about her daddy sitting around the house all day with nothing to do. That would probably kill him faster than some silly heart attack.
“Thank you.”
Brenton shook his head. “Don’t thank me. Your daddy’s going to make this business better than ever.” He grabbed her hand. “You don’t have to leave if you don’t want to Mal. If someone has to go, let it be me.”
He really was a good man. But it wasn’t enough. She shook her head. “No. I need to leave.”
He pulled her down the steps after him. “At least walk with me for a few minutes. Let me tell you what I’m thinking.”
She knew what he was thinking. Knew it didn’t matter.
But she wanted these last few minutes all the same.