Just for Now (Sea Breeze #4)(19)

Chapter Seven



Preston



It was off-season for me. Other than workouts, I was free after classes. Last year I’d started partying early every day. This year things would be different.

I pulled up in front of the youth football fields. According to the paperwork I’d filled out for Brent to play, his practices would be here every Tuesday and Thursday from five thirty to seven.

I made my way over to the side of the fence where parents were sitting on lawn chairs and watching. When I finally got to play baseball, parents had always shown up for our practices too. My mom, of course, never came. I knew she’d never come to Brent’s practices or his games. I didn’t want him to feel as unwanted as I had. I could change that for him. I could be here. Cheering him on. He wouldn’t know that kind of rejection and loneliness.

When I got to the gate, I watched the boys warming up and doing stretches and tried to figure out which little guy was Brent. Little boys in football pads and helmets all look the same.

“You don’t look old enough to have a son out there. You must be someone’s big brother,” an older female voice said from behind me.

I glanced back over my shoulder to see someone’s mom smiling up at me from her chair. She was close to forty, but she was dressed like she was in her early twenties. I could tell from her inexpensive, snug-fitting clothing that she couldn’t afford me. Besides, I wasn’t working right now. I was here for Brent.

“Yes, ma’am. My brother is playing this year,” I replied. Women her age hated it when I called them “ma’am.” It made me smile. She’d back off now.

I turned back to the field just as the coach called out, “Go get water.”

The boys pulled off their helmets and came running over to the fence where the large containers of water were lined up.

Brent’s eyes locked with mine, and he paused before a big smile broke out on his face. He passed the line for water and came straight for me.

“Preston! You’re here.” The excitement in his voice made my heart ache a little.

“Of course I’m here. You’re practicing. I didn’t want to miss this.”

Brent’s chest puffed up. “I get to play running back. Coach said I got speed.”

“Hell yeah, you got speed. You’re related to me.”

The toothy grin on his face just got bigger. “I gotta get water and get back out there. You gonna be here until I’m done?”

If I’d had any other plans I’d have canceled them. The hopeful look on his face was impossible to ignore.

“Yep. You and me are gonna go get a big fat cheeseburger when this is over, and then I’ll take you back home.”

Brent whooped, then waved before running over to the water line. He kept glancing over at me to make sure I hadn’t moved. I wasn’t going anywhere.

“You’re related to Brent Carey?” The surprised tone in the woman’s voice behind me didn’t go unnoticed.

My protective instincts kicked in, and I turned around to look at her. “Yes, I am. He’s my little brother,” I replied, daring her to say anything about him. I didn’t care if she was a woman. I wasn’t going to let her catty, gossiping mouth say or do anything to hurt Brent.

“Oh, well. It’s just that no one ever comes around for him. Not at school or anything. I didn’t realize he had an older brother.”

She didn’t deserve an explanation. But dammit, I didn’t want her talking about my family. I knew what it was like to have the mothers of the other kids talk about you and your family. It hurt. Kids shouldn’t have to deal with that.

“He does” was my only reply. I turned my attention back to the field. Brent was watching me as he got into position. I was going to ignore the snide comments from idiots who had nothing better to do than talk about other people.

For the next hour and a half I watched Brent practice. He was good. Better than good, and his coach was right. The kid was fast. He needed some gloves if he was going to be handling the ball that much. We’d go get those tonight.

*

After we purchased the receiving gloves and Brent was one happy kid, we made our way to the Pickle Shack. This was the one place in town to get a good burger. That, and I knew Brent liked the arcade games inside.

I followed Brent inside and told the hostess we needed a table for two.

“A booth okay?” she asked, batting her eyelashes at me.

The girl was maybe sixteen. Damn, they learned young. I nodded, and she spun around and strutted toward a booth in the corner. I fell in step behind Brent, but my feet stopped when my eyes locked with Amanda’s. She was sitting at a large curved booth with three other girls and two guys. I hadn’t seen her since she’d left me in the parking lot of my apartment building three days ago. I’d thought about her endlessly but I had kept my distance. Seeing her here was a jolt. The time away from her had almost helped me deal with what I’d done, but looking into her pretty green eyes now, I knew I’d never get over it. She was so damn sweet, and I was the world’s largest ass.

“You coming, Preston?” Brent asked, shaking me out of my trance. I tore my gaze off Amanda and made my way to our booth. I wanted tonight to be about Brent. I didn’t need images of Amanda’s hurt expression haunting me. I also didn’t need to see her sitting so close to some dipshit who wasn’t good enough for her. I didn’t know him, but I knew he wasn’t good enough. No one was.