Page 105 of For The Ring

“I . . .”

“Did you guys see this?” Gregory cuts in, from the other side of the cabin. “Nakamura fired Dan Wilson this morning. It’s everywhere, beat writers had it first, but now it’s confirmed out of Nakamura’s camp, from his old team, the Yomiuri Giants. They say that he still firmly wishes to sign with a major league team and that there will be an update on his decision in the coming days as the prospective teams send in their final offers.”

Frankie doesn’t say anything about the text she got. And neither do I.

Which leaves Javy and Gregory to speculate on where they think Nakamura might end up.

But she knows.

And it might change everything.

There’s nothing to do but wait. We land in Teterboro, get in the cars and head back home. Javy and I in one car back to his house to drop off our stuff, Frankie and Gregory in another.

Javy’s texting Maria that we’re on our way when I blurt it out.

“I told her I love her.”

He drops the phone and, by the time he’s managed to fish it up, I take control back over my own freaking mouth.

“Well, that’s good, right? Especially after all the shit I had to listen to last night. Fucking like a couple of kids who can’t keep their hands off each other or their voices down.” He mutters something else in Spanish that Ialmostunderstand, but choose not to think too hard about. “Did she say it back?”

“She said it first.”

“Knew she had bigger balls than you.”

“No argument here.”

“So, what’s the problem? This is good, right?”

“It is. It’s good.”

Javy lets out a low whistle. “Even better. Same city, though you might want to split the difference, live in maybe Upper West Side or some shit.”

“Man, real estate? Really?”

“Yeah, sorry. So what’s the problem? Is it just that you’re a fucking greedy bastard and you want her near you all the damn time and fuck the Yankees?”

“Yeah, exactly. Fuck the Yankees.”

“You gotta let it go, brother.”

“It’s more than that, though.”

“What?”

“She’s got a thing about being with a guy in baseball and, when she got fired, that’s when . . .”

“So you think she won’t want . . .”

“I don’t know, I’m actually kind of afraid to ask, and she hasn’t said anything.”

“Shit,” Javy mutters. “What are you gonna do?”

“I can’t stand in her way. This is the only thing she’s ever wanted. I’m gonna . . . I’m gonna head over there and tell her that. That she should take the job and it’ll . . . it’ll be fine.”

Javy clicks his tongue. “I’m sorry, man.”

“Yeah, me too.”

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