Unforgettable (Cloverleigh Farms #5)(85)

Twenty-Seven





April





On Saturday afternoon, Tyler and I stood side by side at the Carswells’ front door.

He looked at me, his hand poised to knock. “Ready?”

“I don’t know.” I looked up at him and grabbed his fist in both my hands. “I’m scared.”

“Don’t be scared. It’s going to be okay.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I just do. Listen—close your eyes.”

“What?”

“Come on, do it.”

I closed my eyes and he took me by the shoulders, turning me to face him.

“Now hold out your hands.”

I peeked with one eye. “Why?”

“Hey. No cheating.”

Sighing, I closed them both again and held out my hands. A moment later I felt him place something light and feathery on my palms. “Okay, you can look.”

I opened my eyes and looked down—my hands were full of bright green clovers. I gasped. “Oh my gosh! Where did you get these?”

“From Sadie,” he said. “They’ll be right in my pocket. Feel better?”

Laughing, I nodded. “Yes. But let me keep one.”

He took one from the little pile and tucked it into my purse. Then he took the rest of the pile and stuck them back in the pocket of his jeans. “Should I knock?”

I took one more deep breath. “Yes.”

He knocked three times then took my hand.

A moment later, the door opened, and my pulse skittered.

“Hello.” Robin Carswell smiled, looking back and forth between Tyler and me. “Well, this is a surprise.”

“Hi, Robin.” My stomach was flipping wildly. “I brought a friend. I hope that’s okay.”

“Of course. I understand,” she said, although there was no way she could. “Come on in. It’s nice to see you both again. I didn’t realize you two knew each other.”

We stepped into the front hall, my heart pounding so loud I was sure she could hear it. “Thank you. Yes, we’ve—we’ve been friends a long time.” My voice sounded weird to me. High-pitched and quivery.

Robin shut the door behind us and smiled sympathetically. “I know you must be nervous, April. But I think it’s wonderful what you’ve decided to do. Chip is anxious to know you.”

I swallowed, exchanging a glance with Tyler, who looked astonishingly calm. “I think I’m a little of everything right now. But I’m anxious to know him too.”

“Why don’t you sit down in the living room?” She gestured toward a room on the left. “Chip’s upstairs. I’ll go get him. He’ll be thrilled to see you again, Tyler. He was disappointed to hear you’d gone back to California and wouldn’t be coaching anymore. He learned so much from you.”

“He’s an excellent student and a talented pitcher. I’d be glad to work with him again.”

She beamed. “That would be wonderful. And I can’t thank you enough for encouraging him to take the Clemson scholarship. I don’t know what you said, but it got through to him. He accepted it last week.”

“I’m happy to hear it.”

We entered the living room and took a seat on a gingham-covered sofa. I felt like I had no idea what to do with my hands and clasped them anxiously in my lap. I couldn’t believe how at ease Tyler seemed. Was it an act?

“Make yourselves comfortable,” Robin said, heading up the stairs. “I’ll be right back.”

“Okay.” As soon as she walked out, I looked at Tyler. “How are you so calm right now?” I whispered. “I’m dying.”

“I’m not calm, babe. But I’ve had a lot of practice keeping cool under pressure while on the mound.”

“Oh. Right.” I moved a little closer to him, hoping some of his never-let-them-see-you-sweat would rub off on me. To distract myself from my nerves, I looked around at the room. It was comfortably furnished with a beautifully polished wood floor, a rug beneath the coffee table with fresh vacuum lines, and a vase full of fresh tulips on top of it. An upright piano stood against one wall, and I wondered if Chip or his sister played.

Footsteps coming down the stairs had me jumping to my feet, and Tyler stood slowly, placing a hand on my lower back.

For a second, I panicked. What if this was the wrong decision? What if we should just leave this kid alone? What if the decision to meet him was just selfish on my part—something I needed in order to move forward, but he didn’t? After all, the situation was potentially going to get publicly messy with Tyler, and—

Then he walked into the room—that beautiful baby whose eyes I’d looked into so long ago—and his handsome smile melted my heart. “Hey,” he said, extending his hand. “I’m Chip.”

“I’m April,” I said, taking his hand and returning his smile as my heart fluttered with happiness. “It’s so nice to meet you.”

“Hey, Coach,” he said, shaking hands with Tyler too. “My mom said you were here.”

“Good to see you again, Chip.”

A little girl came sliding down the banister into the front hall, where she jumped off before coming to stand next to her brother.