Eagle's Destiny (10 page)

Debi saw the look in my eyes, “Oh!  Look Elizabeth brought brownies.”

At the beginning of the game,
Lewis walked me out to the mound and looked over at Michael as he handed me the ball.  “So do I have to move the first baseman, or are you going to be able to concentrate?” he said as he ribbed me with his elbow.

I grabbed the ball from him, “Did you walk out here just to say that?”

Lewis laughed and nodded his head, “Gotcha!” he teased again.  He waved at Angel.  “You know me just trying to start rumors.”

“Oh get out of here.”  I pointed to the dugout.

Our team did well and I managed to keep it together.  The small group of women yelled every time Michael came up to bat and with every out at first base.  It was obvious they were throwing his timing off and he looked embarrassed with each scream. 
Our
team did not make it any easier as we all ragged on him in the dugout when we were up for bat.

After the game, a few of the bolder women came down to speak with him.  I recognized two of them from the restaurant last Sunday.  News traveled fast in a small town.  Even though Michael did not consider himself a celebrity, he was still a well-known photographer, and he was cute.  He shot me a look that pleaded.  Leaning over to Debi who watched with me, “So should I go over and save him?”

“Is he a good boy?”  Debi laughed.

“Yeah, pretty good.”  I nodded looking at
him
.

“Well then you better hurry before he goes with them.”  She laughed again.

When
I walked over to the group
, the women barely moved for me. 
I had to push my way through to Michael.  “Okay ladies, sorry, this one’s mine.  You need to give him back now.” 

He
took my hand and grinned at me.  A few of the women gave me killing looks.  I ignored them.

Michael slipped his arm around my waist, “Nice to meet you ladies.”  He waved as we walked back over to the team.  “Thanks for coming to the game.”  When we were out of earshot Michael leaned over, “So am I really yours?”

“Debi thought you needed saving.”

“I think I owe you my life.”  He bent over and kissed me on the cheek before he released me.

I blushed.  The entire team was
looking our way
.

We
drove over to the restaurant together.  “I enjoyed our date last night.”  He said.

“So did I, it was fun.  Thank you again.”  I shifted in my seat to be able to look at him directly.  He had a beautiful profile and when he grinned, I could see the little dimple at the corner of his mouth.

“I thought maybe if you’d like we go could out again next Saturday, you know, if you don’t have anything else to do?” 

It wasn’t like him to stumble over the words.  It was sweet to hear he could be a little nervous with me too.

“I’d enjoy that.  Are you going to be able to come out waterskiing this week?”

When we stopped at the stoplight, he turned to look at me.  His eyes looked like a liquid sky, “Yeah, if you let me drive the boat.”

I smiled, “It’s a date then.”

He pulled into the restaurant parking lot, “It’s a date.”

I reached into the backseat to get my bag as he opened my door.

“Are you changing your clothes?”  Michael asked as he closed the jeep door.  “I don’t know if it is the baseball uniform, but it seems like whenever you do you are a lot more outgoing.”

I looked at him with a puzzled face.  “What do you mean?”

“Look at the way you handled those women at the field, or how about you getting up to sing every Sunday night?”  Michael opened the door to the restaurant and suddenly the darkness enveloped us as we entered.

I laughed, “No, I’m
just
bolder when I’m around my friends.”

Michael shook his head and smiled, “I don’t know if that’s it.”

“I wouldn’t know that it is anything else
. 
I’m going to go change.  Could you make sure Debi has saved us a seat?  It would be just like her to make me sit with that group of forlorn looking women that were following you around today.”

He
flashed
a
grin
at me.  “Don’t worry I’ll take care of you.” 

I popped inside the women’s room with my bag and
entered
the handicap stall.  As I started to change my clothes, three women came through the main door of the restroom.  I recognized the voices of the women who had been talking to Michael earlier.  They were loud and boisterous.  I hadn’t recognized them as being from Mintock, most likely they were from the neighboring town of Ashley.  I was glad to be hiding in the stall.

“He is so gorgeous.  What a body, I couldn’t get over the tight baseball pants,” said the first women.

“Who was the tall chick who dragged him away?” the second woman questioned.

“Who knows, she certainly wasn’t around a few weeks ago,” The first woman responded.

The third woman piped in, “I saw them leave together, to come over to the restaurant.” 

I tried not to giggle and to dress as quietly as possible. 

The first woman spoke again, “There was nothing on his website about being married, so it’s probably not his wife.  Hey is there someone in the handicap stall?” 

I unlocked the door and stepped out.  They were surprised to see me.  I figured they would just let me pass by them.  I was wrong.  It was too reminiscent of high school.  The tallest woman who first spoke stepped in front of me.  “Hey are you the girl from the baseball game?  You know the one with Michael?”

I pulled my bag onto my shoulder.  “Excuse me I need to get through.”  Fortunately, she stepped aside as did the other two women.  Glad that they did, I was not sure what I would have done had they not moved.  I looked
back with my hand on the doorknob.  “Michael is a friend of mine.  I’ll let him know you’re interested.”

As I walked out
of the restroom
, the first woman had the last word, “Tramp!” she called
after
me.  I let it just roll off me.  At first, they did frighten me, but then I had gotten a good look at them and smiled.  I grinned knowing that there would be no interest in them on Michael’s part.

I joined Michael, Debi, Don, Angel and Lewis at our table.  Michael stood up when I arrived.  The effort endeared him to me.  I sat down next to him and he casually slipped his arm around my shoulder and leaned over.  “What took so long?” he asked.

I whispered, “I met your fan club in the bathroom.”  He gave me a puzzled face and I answered, “You know the gals from the bleachers.”

“Oh,” he nodded.

“They seem to be quite enamored with you.”

“Does it make you jealous?” he looked me straight in the eyes.

I glanced away and the blush came anyway.  I decided to answer truthfully, “Yes.”

Michael smiled, “Okay, I like that.”

Lewis leaned over and tapped me on the arm.  “Elizabeth, it’s time to start singing.  Do you know what you want to sing?”

I grinned at him, “Yes I do!  Come on up with me and help me find the song.”

Lewis led me up to the microphone and I whispered in his ear.  He nodded and found the song for me.  “Hey everyone, Elizabeth is going to sing something new for us tonight, so please forgive her if she’s a little rusty.  She told me she used to sing it with her Mom all the time.”  Lewis handed me the microphone.

“Hi!  Great game today, wasn’t it?  Of course it’s always good when you win.”  I waited for the applause to die down.  I looked straight at the three women, “This song is dedicated to some new friends, I just wanted to remind them, when they call you a tramp, always ask them to put a lady in front of the name.”

After singing “
The Lady Is A Tramp
,” I made my way back to our table amid the applause.  Michael gave me a puzzled look when I sat back down.  The waitress came by and we quickly ordered.  Since I had eaten so much the previous night and the brownies today, I only ordered a small salad with cheese and olives.  Michael ordered the gazpacho soup with bread and cheese. 

Debi waved her wine glass at me.  “No sangria Elizabeth?”

I must have turned a couple shades of green.  “No I think I’ll pass this week.”

Michael grinned at me, “Are you sure?  I’m driving.”

I pursed my lips together, “No I think I’ll stick to just the salad.”

Michael was such a tease but at least he knew when to stop.  Usually the teasing with Kevin pushed me to the edge and
it
ended up in an argument. 

It was good to be with my good friends and we
always
looked forward to being together on the summer Sunday nights.  Our group was a special one, and we never stepped out of bounds.  I wasn’t sure if I could ever explain to Michael the comfort and safety the group gave to me.  I hoped he would be able to see for himself and understand why I felt free to be myself in front of my friends.

Before
we
called it a night at the restaurant, our group made plans for the bonfire party on the following Friday.  I explained to
Michael
that our bonfires were usually grand affairs.  We built a large fire on the beach in front of my house because it was at the end of the beach.  The party included plenty of food and all of the neighbors in the area were invited.

As we drove home together,
he
finally questioned me about my song choice tonight.  “You know your song was great tonight, but did you plan to sing it?”

I laughed and leaned back in the seat.  “No, I had another one planned.  It just came to me at the last minute.”

“Did something happen in the bathroom with those women?”

“No,” I shook my head, “nothing happened.”

“Okay, you know they are not my type at all,” he said as he took my hand and squeezed it.

“Really, and what is your type?”  My heart beat a little faster.

He laughed as he pulled up in front of my back door.  Michael turned off the jeep and looked at me, “You are.”  He pressed my nose with his finger. 
He
leaned over and kissed me on the forehead. 

I felt the heat rising on my cheeks and was glad it was dark so
he
couldn’t see I was blushing again.  “Would you like to come in for coffee?”

Michael’s voice was reluctant, “I would love to, but tonight I have to turn in early.  I’m due in San Francisco tomorrow for a meeting, and there will be traffic in the morning.”  He got out and I sat in my seat waiting for him to open my door.  Normally I would never have stayed, but I could tell
he
wanted me to, so I did.  He opened the door and then reached for my bag on the backseat.

“Will you be back in time for waterskiing this week?”  I asked hopefully while walking up to the back door.  The dogs ran to the door with their usual exuberance and I could hear their snuffling under the door. 

“I wouldn’t miss it.  Is Wednesday okay?”

I turned to him, “And we have the bonfire on Friday.”

His smile was amused, “And we have our date on Saturday.  So yes, I think you and I have our week sewn up.”

Relief washed through me and it must have shown because he leaned down and kissed me softly on the lips. 

“You are just too sweet,” he whispered softly, all the amusement gone from his voice.  His arms wrapped around me pressing me against him.  I felt the deep rumble of a sigh in his chest and my own heart started to pound, “I really need to go home, but I really want to come in.”  He said following with another kiss, which was deeper, harder and lingered longer.
 
His
sigh was full of regret, “I have to go.”  He released me and took my keys from my hand to open the door.

It took everything I had not to pull him into the house as I stepped inside, “
Goodnight
Michael.”  I said turning to face him again, and his expression confirmed that he did not want to leave.

“Go inside before I change my mind.”  When he reached his jeep,
he
turned while I stood in the doorway and he called wistfully, “
Goodnight
Elizabeth.” 

I smiled and shut the door.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Nancy called early the next morning prodding me with questions about my date and the baseball game.  She squealed with delight in all the appropriate places.  Our conversation made me think of high school and my first dates when I would go through every word and action in excruciating detail.  These were stories I could not share with Debi or even my sister since they were married and somehow the wedding ring made you forget what it was like to be single.  They would laugh at all the silly little fine points we unattached girls would chew over
for hours
.

“You should be glad I wasn’t in the bathroom with those women,” she said with a heated tone, “I would have given them what for!”

“Nancy, I’m glad you were not there.  That would
have
be
en
all I needed
,
a cat fight in the bathroom.”

She laughed heartily, “
G
irlfriend
,
I
will
always have your back.” 

I laughed with her.  I knew that was more than true since her negotiation skills with my publisher were legendary. 

“Elizabeth, it definitely sounds like he is interested in you.  He appears to be quite the tasty morsel.”

“He
has invited
me out next Saturday, and I think he wants to spend the day with me.  He mentioned it while we were driving home last night.”  I couldn’t contain the excitement in my voice.

Nancy paused a moment, “That’s a good development.  It sounds like he is wooing you and not just trying to get into bed with you.” 

I laughed, “I think last night he was close to it though.”

She sighed on the other end of the phone.  “I’m looking forward to meeting him.  I can’t get up there before our road trip, darn it.”

I laughed, “You’ll just have to wait then, and trust me that I’m handling everything.”

Nancy roared with laughter, “Oh Elizabeth,” she continued to laugh,
“that is not a skill I associate with you.”

I frowned at her comment but giggled anyway, “Okay, knock it off.  I may not be as smooth as you are, but I do okay.”

She contained a giggle, “Okay, I’m sorry.  Yes, you are one smooth operator.”

The rest of the day I spent squirreled away with my writing.  By the end of the day, cabin fever started.  Jason had already delivered Debi’s homemade goulash for dinner.  The dogs looked lethargic and I needed to stretch my legs too.  Their ears perked up when I whistled to them and they followed me out the back door quickly.  Jason’s motorcycle took the place of Michael’s jeep by their back porch.  Michael would be either late or staying the night in San Francisco.  I had been curious about the reason for his trip, but he had not volunteered any information. 

I put my ear buds in, tuned my IPod to Snow Patrol and walked to the lakeshore.  The sun was starting to set.  In a few weeks, the tourists would be gone and the lake would belong to us again.  I could actually feel autumn coming in the air.  The leaves on the trees in between the houses would soon be turning their familiar burnt orange, yellow, and red colors.  This was my favorite time of the year even if it included raking leaves.

It was hard to realize that it had only been a week since I had arrived.  Being in
Mintock
usually
meant quiet time, a time to get away, to concentrate on my work, and enjoy friends.  Instead the past week had been a whirlwind all surrounding Michael.  He was a man that took a lot of energy, but then so did Kevin.  I shook off the thought.  I did not want Kevin to invade my thoughts again; there would be no good coming from that direction.

Caesar had been correct.  I was happy.  In one week, I became happy.  Had Michael done that?  My book was on its way and the writing was flowing well.  Was the happiness responsible? 

The dogs and I turned away from the cabin.  We started a slow jog.  Angel came out on her porch and waved.  I waved back but continued to run.  I was not in the mood for conversation tonight.

After arriving back home, I popped the goulash into the microwave oven and heated up the homemade rolls in the oven.  Not too pathetic of a cook, I made my own salad.  As soon dinner was prepared for the dogs, I ate at the dining room table while reading the paper.  I continued to write through the evening.  It was well after midnight by the time I shut the computer down.  While taking out the trash, I noticed Michael had not yet returned.  Still parked by the porch was Jason’s motorcycle.  My eyebrows raised and then I chastised myself for being a nosey neighbor.  Tammy was over eighteen and what she did was her own business, I was not her mother.  

Tuesday was a repeat of Monday.  Although when I took the dogs for
their jog in the evening, Michael’s jeep was back.  Seeing the jeep made my heart leap a little.  I rolled my eyes.  Why was seeing his jeep would making me happy?  I was being silly.  The run with the dogs tonight though was lighter and taken at a brisker pace.  Looking forward to seeing all three of my next-door neighbors tomorrow, I realized that I had missed interacting with them.  Maybe I was a little lonely too.  Yes, that was it.  The cabin had held me captive too long.  It was definitely cabin fever.  Of course, the remedy was easy if that was the cause, I could visit Debi or Angel.  I did not want to.

I awoke early Wednesday morning with a sense of excitement.  Day was ready to break.  I put on my sweats and decided not to jog with the dogs.  I did not want the distraction of the dogs.  I wanted to run.  The morning was still cool and the wind against my face felt good.  I ran faster than I normally would and the first two and half miles came quickly.  When I turned to go back home I slowed down to my regular pace.

Michael was sitting on the dock facing toward me.  It appeared that he was waiting for me and I smiled at the thought.  He lifted up his thermos when he saw me and waved me over.  The dock swayed as I walked up to him.

He smiled at me.  “You ran fast, I almost couldn’t make the coffee in time.”  Michael said as he poured a cup for me.

“Thanks,” I said as I sat down opposite him.  “This is a nice surprise.”

“I like to watch the dawn too.  Especially out here, it’s so quiet.”

“Are the girls up yet?”  I asked taking the mug he offered.

Michael laughed, “No,” he said with emphasis and he leaned back against the pylon with his legs stretched out.  “They usually don’t see much of the dawn.  Especially when they are on vacation, they are very similar when it comes to that.”

Michael wore an old San Francisco Giants t-shirt and jeans torn at both knees, both had seen better days.  He looked incredibly sexy with his day old beard and disheveled hair, as if he has just crawled out of bed.  His feet were bare, and I found myself looking at his feet.  His feet like the rest of him were long.  I had the strangest urge to play “
this little piggy”
with his toes.  I smiled.

Michael asked, “What are you smiling about?  My feet?”

I blushed and shook my head, “Nothing.”

“No, it was something.  It was about my big feet.  You know what they say, big feet…,” he trailed off
with a big grin on his face showing his deep dimples
.

I answered him, “Yeah, big shoes.”  I laughed still blushing at the innuendo even though I tried not to.

He laughed with me, “Oh you’ve heard that one.”

“Yes, I’ve heard that one.”  I tried to change the subject.  “So how was
your appointment in San Francisco?”

“Good, actually better than I thought.  I had to meet with my ex-wife, and our lawyers, and a judge.”  He answered.

Deciding to pry, I asked, “Nothing too serious I hope.” 

Michael’s face looked disgusted.  He took a drink from his coffee mug before he replied, “No, she only wanted more money.  Our agreement was that I would support her until Tammy turned eighteen.  Then the support would stop.  She wanted to change the agreement.  She felt it was too harsh to just turn off the money.”

I wrinkled my forehead, “So you had custody of the girls, and she didn’t pay you support?”

He shook his head, “No that was one of the stipulations of me getting the girls.  Maggie got it all, the house, and all the money, everything except the girls.  I agreed to pay her support for 6 years, to help her go back to school and get herself set up.”  He smiled quietly.  “I figured I got the best of the deal.  My lawyer got me exactly what I wanted.”

I looked at Michael with surprise on my face.  His devotion to his daughters was so strong that he gave up everything for them. 

“It was difficult for the three of us when we first started on our own.” 
He
admitted.  “I was astonished that Maggie could cut herself off so completely from the girls.  Her visits and calls became less frequent.  I tried to be there for my girls, but I know it must have hurt them deeply.” 
His
voice grew softer and filled with pain, and that ache showed on his face.

“What did you do?  I mean, you had to make a living, especially if you had to pay your ex-wife.”  I asked my voice filled with incredulity.  I wanted to reach out, to hold him if just to wipe the hurt from his face.

His voice became bitter, “Yeah, especially when she regularly threatened me that she would take the girls back if I didn’t pay her on time.  My little sister rescued us.  She is a saint.  Christina is financially well off, she had a big house in Oakland and she let us move in with her.  She had recently divorced too and said she was lonely.  I don’t know what we would have done without her.”

I thought he wanted to tell me, so I pressed him to continue.  “How did you work trying to raise your two girls alone?”

Michael’s face brightened.  “Very creatively.  I took shorter trips.  Christina was there in the evenings when I was gone.  I worked on my books more.  I took the girls with me when they had breaks from school.  Christina actually went with us too.” 
He
laughed and his eyes sparkled again.  “Remind me to tell you those stories sometimes.  Christina is not the most graceful of campers.”

I was glad his mood started to lift again.  “So what happened yesterday?  Did she get what she wanted?”

Michael shook his head laughing, “No.  Just the opposite, the judge
thought she was just trying to grab more money, which she was,” he shrugged his shoulders.  “The judge told her if she didn’t drop it, he would recommend that I go for back child support.  That took the puff out of her sails.”

“Well good,” I smiled at
him
.  “I’m glad it turned out right.”

“So am I.”  He grimaced, “Though Maggie did threaten or should I say promise to visit Tammy.”  He rolled his eyes upward, “That’s all I need is to deal with her.”

“I’m sure Tammy will be glad to see her.”

“Yes she will, even though she
would
never admit it to me.  The fact that Maggie is no good for her,
I know
she still needs her mother.”

“I’m glad you brought that up Michael.”  Inside my mind was screaming not to get involved but then when did I listen to myself so I continued.  “Michael, if this is too intrusive, let me know okay?  Is Tammy taking birth control?”

He looked at me with surprise on his face, “Is there a reason why you ask?” 

I grimaced but plowed forward.  “I noticed Jason’s motorcycle parked at your house very late Monday night, and well, I just wondered.”

Michael closed his eyes.  I could not tell if he was angry or confused, or maybe a little of both.  He finally let out a sigh and looked at me again, “You know I didn’t think to ask her.  I just assumed that she would take care of that sort of thing herself.”

I sighed too, “Generally young girls won’t just take care of it.  They’re still denying the possibility that they will have sex and then it is too late.  Would you like me to talk to her?”

“I can’t ask you to do that Elizabeth, but would you?  I’m afraid I’m not very good,”
he
shook his head, “with those types of talks.  I’m afraid her mother would give her all the wrong advice too.”

I smiled, “I don’t have much experience with those types of talks either, but I guess it might be easier coming from me than from you.” 

The relief showed on Michael’s face.

“I don’t mean to cut this short
,” I
said while standing up, “I’ve got to feed the dogs.  I disappeared without giving them their breakfast.  I’m sure they’re waiting by the door.  Let’s meet at one for our water skiing.  Okay?”

He stood up and slipped his arm around my waist while we walked back to our houses. 

“Yeah, that’s good,” he answered, “I’ll tell the girls, they’re really looking forward to the skiing.  In the meantime, I’m going to have a talk with Jason.”

We stopped in between our two houses and stood together, “Just don’t kill him, okay?”  I said laughing.