Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 106772 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 534(@200wpm)___ 427(@250wpm)___ 356(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106772 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 534(@200wpm)___ 427(@250wpm)___ 356(@300wpm)
“Anyway, yes. Brendan said the kids would go to boarding school so that they wouldn’t interrupt our lives. I said no. That was that.”
That was that, and now she was single.
And probably nowhere near ready to date.
We placed our orders, and I reluctantly let her pay. It wasn’t in my nature, and when I’d agreed, I didn’t think it would be the next weekend. Honestly, I thought last weekend was a one-and-done.
Antonia carried our coffees to the same table we’d sat at on our first visit. We even sat in the same seats, with Scout lying next to my chair.
“Samira, Edith, and Vera came to the hospital to see Miri this week,” Antonia said. “I’d forgotten I told Samira that Miri would host their book club meeting, so they brought it to her. They never made her feel like she was dying. They were so gracious. And a bit morbid because Miri said she was going to plan her own funeral, and Vera was on board.” She took a sip of her coffee.
“That must’ve been hard.”
“It’s all hard. I don’t know whether I’m coming or going right now.”
“How long until you have to go back to work?” I asked, taking a drink of my coffee.
Antonia pulled a sugar packet from the small ceramic holder. “I haven’t stopped working. The nurses set me up in a conference room for when I have virtual meetings, but other than that, I can do most of my work via email.”
“That must be nice.”
She lifted one shoulder. “I’m not going to be able to continue this way, but I’m not sure I have it in me to move the kids. Miri loves that money pit of hers. It’s their home. I don’t know if I can be the one to rip it away from them.”
I couldn’t even imagine the pressure she must have been under. She put the packet back and smiled at Samira as she approached with our food. “I’ll have the doughnuts ready for when you leave.”
“Thank you,” we said at the same time.
After a few bites, she looked at me and said, “So, I googled you while I was on the phone with my dad the other day.”
I hung my head in mock horror. As far as professional athletes went, I was pretty tame. I was never in trouble, not with my career or personal life.
“Let me guess: I’m your dad’s favorite player, and he’s coming to town to take a photo with me?” I leaned back in the chair and grinned widely.
Antonia laughed, and this time the sound went right to my heart. Why was everything so easy with her?
“Actually, he said you had a great career until you had to have surgery, and he wanted me to ask why you didn’t return to the game.”
I ran my fingers along my cup of coffee. My manager had asked the same question. At the time, the answer had been simple: Brianna.
“If it’s too personal, you don’t have to answer.”
“No, it’s not that.” I sat up straight and picked at my food. “I thought about returning, but there were things I wanted out of life that I thought my wife wanted. Turns out I was wrong. When I said I wanted to retire, she asked for a divorce. She wanted the glamorous life—the big city, the spotlight, traveling to away games. When I got injured, I realized there was more to life than baseball. I wanted to settle down in a small town, maybe start a family; she realized we wanted completely different things. She didn’t want kids or the quiet life I was craving. She wanted a husband who could give her the lifestyle she thought she deserved.” I paused, meeting Antonia’s eyes. “The ironic thing is, she’s now married to a basketball player, living exactly the life she wanted. We just weren’t compatible when it came to what really mattered.”
“Brianna was your wife’s name?”
This time, I laughed. “Thank you, Wiki.”
“She’s very pretty.”
“Ah, yes. Thanks to the internet for storing every image ever posted.”
“Did she really leave you because you wanted to retire?”
I nodded and took a bite of my sausage, egg, and cheese burrito. “It took a lot of therapy for me to learn Brianna left because she wasn’t happy. Not with me, her life, or the life we shared. She was right for leaving. We’re both happier being who we are now than who we were together. We were always better as friends, which is what we are now. We text or call each other occasionally.”
My eyes were on Antonia’s expressions, waiting to see what she would do or say. At first, Brianna leaving had gutted me, but then I’d woken up and realized I had so much more to offer than baseball.
“Wow, I’m sorry.”
I gave her a small shrug. “It was a long time ago, and I’m well over it.”