Hotbox (17 page)

I’ll admit I was a bit intimidated by how open Jayden was sometimes. I wasn’t used to someone that shared so much with me without expecting anything in return. Occasionally she’d ask questions on a general level, but still hadn’t pressured me to reveal much about my dad or my past. I appreciated that on some level, but at the same time, I felt guilty. She was the type of person that I trusted to share anything with, and I just couldn’t do it yet.

Our next game was Sunday at
five
, but before that, earlier in the day, something significant occurred.

It was the first time I met Joe Adams…

I was on the phone with Jayden at ten
that
morning.
We were talking about things in general (she was doing laundry) when I heard a male voice in the background and Jayden respond
ed
with, “I’m not going to be here.” After the voice spoke again, Jayden returned to me and said, “Hang on just a sec.”

“I’ll let you go,” I told her. “Call me back.”

“No, that’s okay.” I waited for about five seconds until I heard a door shut. “Sorry about that.”

“Was that your dad?”

“Yeah, he thinks his conversation takes priority over
everything
. He’s not very patient.”

“So…when can I meet him?”

“My dad?” she practically laughed.

“Yeah.”

She
was quiet for a few seconds…
“Maybe sometime soon. I don’t know.”

At least she was being honest.

“Is there any reason why I can’t come by today and introduce myself?”

She paused again. “Yes.”
             
“Yes there’s a reason? Why?”

She sighed. “Because you have a game to focus on
, Ty
. I don’t want you…rattled.”

“Rattled? You seriously think your dad has that much—”

“Yes.”

It was my turn to pause. “So he doesn’t like
any
guys around you, or is it just me?”

“Well… I’d say that all guys rub him the wrong way, but right now it’s just you.”

“Because you’re keeping me from meeting him.”

“No—”

“Yes. How do you think that makes me look?”

“He’s already mentioned that, but I told him it’s
me
that won’t allow you to meet him.”

“And he’s okay with that?”

She paused. “No. He’d like to meet you.”

“Then let me come over.”

With a sigh she said, “Ty, it’s not like you’re
never
going to meet him. I just don’t
want
it to be today.”

“Jayden, give me your address so I can come over.”
She didn’t say anything.
“Jayden, if I can’t meet your dad today, then I’m going to do really poorly tonight because I’ll be so upset that you’re ashamed of me and—”

“Oh, stop it!” sh
e laughed
.

“Well, what am I supposed to think?”

“You’re supposed to be happy I’m trying to make your life easier.”

“Just l
et me have my way.”

“Fine. But you’ll be sorry. I’m warning you, Ty… My dad probably knows more about your life than I do. I’m talking ab
out extensive background checks.
Driving record—”

“Clean.”

“—School records—”

“
Good
.”

“—Where you’ve lived, the jobs you’ve held, your family—”

Oh, g
reat.

“—He knows where you live now, what you drive,
who you work with, who you play with,
probably your entire schedule… He’s probably even had you followed for a day.”

Holy
crap.

“I’m serious, Ty. He doesn’t joke around when it comes to my life. My dad is amazing, don’t get me
wrong, but I’m his only child. M
y mom left us when I was seven. She ran off with another guy and never looked back.
He
not only
tries to make up for a lot
, but he’s also afraid that I’ll somehow leave him too
.” When I was s
ilent for a moment she asked, “
Now
d
o you still want to meet him?”

Hell n
o
. “Of course I do,” I replied. I did, but I didn’t. It was complicated.

She sighed. “Okay. Then can I tell you my biggest fear?”

“Of course you can.”

She paused for a second. “I’m afraid you’ll run for the hills.”

After hearing all of that, who would blame me? But I knew the best things were worth fighting for and Jayden was the best thing that had ever happened to me. I might duck and cover, but I wo
uldn’t dream of ever leaving her
.

“I could never do that,” I told her. “I promise. If your dad hates me
,
I’m really sorry. But
I can’t change how I feel about you.”

There was silence for several seconds before she very quietly said, “Okay.”

She gave me her address and I told her I’d be there around eleven. The last thing she said was, “Ty, just be honest with everything. He’ll know if you’re lying.”

What was I getting myself into?

I easily found Jayden’s house because of her car parked out front.
I’m not sure what I expected, but it seemed rather ordinary. It was a simple two-story house in a
nice
ne
ighborhood with similar houses.
I really was nervous as hell; if everything I’d heard about her dad was true, I could be dead within the next hour.

I took the deepest breath I could possibly
inhale
. She opened the door as I walked up the steps, looking beautiful as always. She closed the door most of the wa
y and kissed me on the porch.

“I’ve missed you,” she said.

“I’ve missed you, too.”

“Are you sure you want to do this?” she
asked
with a smile.

No
. “Yep, I’m sure.”

She
pushed
the door
open
and led me inside. I felt like I was
on my way
to
the
tortu
re chamber. There was a
game on TV and
her father
was sitting in a recliner watching it. He slowly looked up and
eyed
me warily.

“Dad, this is Ty,” Jayden announced.
He stood up from his chair and faced me.
“Ty, this is my father, Joe
.”

I reached out and shook
his hand. “It’s good to finally meet you.”

He didn’t say anything at first. He only stared at me with cold, interrogating eyes. I almost got a chill. Finally he said, “Have a seat,” and motioned to the couch.

I sat with Jayden and decided to hold her hand. I almost didn’t because I was afraid to touch her in front of him, but it was a normal thing for me to do and I didn’t want to appear fake. Then I did the only thing I
knew I
could do
well
: I commented on the game.

He glanced at the
TV and offered a reply, and then added, “T
hey’re gonna lose it.” He sat down in the chair and faced us. “
Y
ou play catcher
, huh?
”

“Yes. Since little league,
even
.”

He nodded. “Your dad must’ve enjoyed it, putting you in so young.”

And t
here it was.

“Uh, actually my aunt always took me. My father wasn’t around much.”

He nodded again
, eyeing me carefully
.

“My dad played baseball in high school,” Jayden informed me.

“Oh, y
eah? What position?”
I asked him.

He took his time answering,
“S
hort
stop.”

“We have an incredible short
s
top.
I don’t think I’ve seen him miss anything all season.”

He
studied
me for a moment. “Jack Houston?”

“Uh, yeah.” Why was I surprised that he knew? He probably knew all our stats, just like his daughter. “You should come see a game,” I suggested. “We play tonight at six
, and hopefully tomorrow at six
as well.”

He barely nodded his head. “Saw one last week
end
,” he said.

So h
e
was
checking up on me.
Jayden even looked surprised.

“Yeah? What’d you think?”

He paused
briefly
. “S
aw
a couple
inning
s
;
your team looks pretty good.”
A tiny smile
almost
appeared on his face when he
added
,
“You took some hard hits.”

With a smile I said,
“Yeah, it’s a much coveted base that I protect.” I realized he must have seen
at least half of
the game. One
collision
occurred in the
third
inning, the other was in the seventh.

Jayden’s phone rang
with a familiar song
. “Oh, that’s Cali
,” she said. “
I’d better answer it before s
he calls fifty times.” She
grabbed
the phone and
headed
into the kitchen.

The second h
er dad looked at me
,
I knew the small talk was over.
He leaned forward slightly and spoke in a low voice. “I’ve barely seen my own daughter in the past
few
weeks. Neither have her friends, for that matter. I like her friends; I don’t particularly care for
yours
. I better not hear of any more things said to her, about her, or in front of her. I especially don’t want to hear the things that I’ve heard about
you
. She may think the world of you, but it d
oesn’t mean that I have to.
I can look at you without
the rose-colored glasses.”

My heart dropped into my stomach. This man was already determined to hate me.
But I quickly remembered the beautiful girl in the other room, and I knew without a doubt my promise to her was real. Facing Joe Adams and his dis
dain of me
was pretty intense, but I’d faced my share of
harsh people in
the world, and I was
set on
keep
ing
Jayden in my life.

I
decided I’d better make sure he was act
ually done before I responded, so a
fter he gave me a hard stare for a few seconds, I nodded my head.
“I
understand how you feel. She’s amazing
. She deserves only the best.”

“
Damn right
she deserves the best.”
His look clearly stated that “the best” wasn’t me.

“I
’m sorry you haven’t seen her much. I
don’t want her to give up her time with friends or family. I wanted her to go boating yesterday and she wouldn’t go. I think Chris—”

“She and Chris
aren’t even speaking.
Apparently you’ve become quite a
problem
between them.”

I was speechless.
And
I felt stupid that I hadn’t realized that. She hadn’t even mentioned his name for the past week or talked to him on the phone.
S
he talked to Cali all the time
, but
I wasn’t sure if she comm
unicated with her other friends
,
as well
. I guess I never asked.

“What do you want me to say?” I finally
asked
.

He smiled for the first time. “I think you already know the answer to that.”

“You don’t want me to see her anymore? Because of things that you’ve
heard
?”

“You’re gonna tell me that you don’t have a different g
irlfriend every week
? You get what you can from them, get bored, and move on to the next one?”