be my baby.” Rennie stood as she collected a stack of applications to review that night. She slid them into her leather briefcase.
“So, when am I gonna meet Zach Foster?” Tyler asked, making her heart stutter.
“Mr. Foster is a very busy man. I can’t make any promises. Come on, let’s go. We still have to swing by the house so you can change.”
“Have a good night,” Terri said as Rennie ushered her son out the door.
A good night? Like that was possible. Even a good night’s sleep would be too much to hope for.
***
As soon as she’d found a spot on the bench, Rennie dialed her sister’s number. Jackie would understand her predicament. She was one of only two people who knew for certain that Tyler was Zach’s son. Rennie had kept the truth from her parents because they were close friends with the Fosters, and she didn’t want to put them in the uncomfortable position of having to lie to them about their own grandchild. She’d humiliated herself instead, claiming she had a brief affair with a man she barely knew when she left town. Her rebound guy, she’d called him. Her parents didn’t question her about it after she claimed the child’s father didn’t want to be a part of his life. At least that much was true.
Jackie’s husband, Mason, answered the phone. “Hey there, what’s new with my beautiful sister-in-law?”
Gotta love caller ID, Rennie thought wryly. Her brother-in-law was one of the good guys. He treated his wife like a princess and was an attentive father to their two-year-old, Alyson. He was the only other person who knew that Zach was Tyler’s father. Jackie told her sister that she couldn’t keep secrets from her husband, and Rennie agreed. The last thing she wanted was to cause tension in her sister’s marriage. Rennie reminded her kid sister all the time that men like Mason were few and far between. She knew how easy it was to get caught up in the day-to-day grind and forget to tell her partner how much she loved and appreciated him. Then one day, she’d wake up and realize it was too late.
Trying to shake off her melancholy mood, Rennie said, “Same old, same old. How about you? How’ve you been?”
“I can’t complain. When’re you coming over for dinner? I miss beating you at ping pong.”
Rennie laughed. Whenever she went to their house for dinner, she, Mason, and her dad made a beeline for the games room. They would waste the night away playing pool, ping pong, and vintage arcade games. Her mother swore they were worse than the kids, but Rennie loved every minute of it. Spending quality time with Mason and her father reminded her good men were still out there. Maybe one day, when the time was right, another one would walk into her life. “Save the trash talk for another day. I need to talk to my sister. Is she around?”
“Yeah, she’s out in the backyard planting some flowers. Hang on, I’ll get her for you.”
She heard Mason call his wife sweetheart. It reminded Rennie how much she missed the little intimacies of married life.
“Hey, sis,” Jackie said, sounding winded. “This is a nice surprise. I didn’t expect to hear from you tonight. Doesn’t Tyler have a game?”
“Yeah, I’m here now,” she said, smiling and waving to parents claiming the bench two rows in front of her. She lowered her voice. “You’re never going to believe who walked into my office today.”
“Who?”
“Zach.” Rennie waited for a reaction. Her sister would be as stunned as she had been that afternoon.
“How the hell did he know where to find you?”
Rennie was still using her married name, Alexander. Even if he’d Googled her, it wouldn’t have been easy to find her. “Call it dumb luck.” Rennie watched her son take the pitcher’s mound. The intensity in Tyler’s dark eyes reminded her so much of Zach. She always felt a pang of guilt and uncertainty when she saw him in his baseball uniform, following in his daddy's footsteps. “One of the
“So, when am I gonna meet Zach Foster?” Tyler asked, making her heart stutter.
“Mr. Foster is a very busy man. I can’t make any promises. Come on, let’s go. We still have to swing by the house so you can change.”
“Have a good night,” Terri said as Rennie ushered her son out the door.
A good night? Like that was possible. Even a good night’s sleep would be too much to hope for.
***
As soon as she’d found a spot on the bench, Rennie dialed her sister’s number. Jackie would understand her predicament. She was one of only two people who knew for certain that Tyler was Zach’s son. Rennie had kept the truth from her parents because they were close friends with the Fosters, and she didn’t want to put them in the uncomfortable position of having to lie to them about their own grandchild. She’d humiliated herself instead, claiming she had a brief affair with a man she barely knew when she left town. Her rebound guy, she’d called him. Her parents didn’t question her about it after she claimed the child’s father didn’t want to be a part of his life. At least that much was true.
Jackie’s husband, Mason, answered the phone. “Hey there, what’s new with my beautiful sister-in-law?”
Gotta love caller ID, Rennie thought wryly. Her brother-in-law was one of the good guys. He treated his wife like a princess and was an attentive father to their two-year-old, Alyson. He was the only other person who knew that Zach was Tyler’s father. Jackie told her sister that she couldn’t keep secrets from her husband, and Rennie agreed. The last thing she wanted was to cause tension in her sister’s marriage. Rennie reminded her kid sister all the time that men like Mason were few and far between. She knew how easy it was to get caught up in the day-to-day grind and forget to tell her partner how much she loved and appreciated him. Then one day, she’d wake up and realize it was too late.
Trying to shake off her melancholy mood, Rennie said, “Same old, same old. How about you? How’ve you been?”
“I can’t complain. When’re you coming over for dinner? I miss beating you at ping pong.”
Rennie laughed. Whenever she went to their house for dinner, she, Mason, and her dad made a beeline for the games room. They would waste the night away playing pool, ping pong, and vintage arcade games. Her mother swore they were worse than the kids, but Rennie loved every minute of it. Spending quality time with Mason and her father reminded her good men were still out there. Maybe one day, when the time was right, another one would walk into her life. “Save the trash talk for another day. I need to talk to my sister. Is she around?”
“Yeah, she’s out in the backyard planting some flowers. Hang on, I’ll get her for you.”
She heard Mason call his wife sweetheart. It reminded Rennie how much she missed the little intimacies of married life.
“Hey, sis,” Jackie said, sounding winded. “This is a nice surprise. I didn’t expect to hear from you tonight. Doesn’t Tyler have a game?”
“Yeah, I’m here now,” she said, smiling and waving to parents claiming the bench two rows in front of her. She lowered her voice. “You’re never going to believe who walked into my office today.”
“Who?”
“Zach.” Rennie waited for a reaction. Her sister would be as stunned as she had been that afternoon.
“How the hell did he know where to find you?”
Rennie was still using her married name, Alexander. Even if he’d Googled her, it wouldn’t have been easy to find her. “Call it dumb luck.” Rennie watched her son take the pitcher’s mound. The intensity in Tyler’s dark eyes reminded her so much of Zach. She always felt a pang of guilt and uncertainty when she saw him in his baseball uniform, following in his daddy's footsteps. “One of the
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