Page 5 of The Cannon
“Thank you for the dance. I’m sure I’ll see you again.”
But as she turns I catch her by the arm.
“Wait. A gentleman returns his partner to the table.”
“Oh my god,” she mumbles.
I place my hand softly against her back and guide her toward her seat.
“No. I’m going to my parents’ table.” She moves ahead of me.
Even better.
As we come closer the family is watching. I caught an eye roll from Bristol telling them I’m bothering her. Doesn’t she know the more she resists the more interesting she seems?
“I’m taking off. Wanted to say goodnight to you all,” she says.
“Oh no. Stay a little longer. Sit here, darlin’,” Mr. Swift says pulling an empty chair out.
I take my seat and she takes one across from me. This is an unexpected bonus.
“You’re a smooth dancer, Sawyer,” Mrs. Swift says.
“Thank you, Mrs. Swift.”
“Call me Lucinda. Let’s all be on a first-name basis.”
“Alright.”
“Is it true you never played ball in high school or college?” Brick’s wife says.
“Never went to college. There wasn’t an opportunity to play when I was a kid. I moved around a lot.”
“Remarkable. Really,” Lucinda says.
Now I have Bristol’s attention, head tilting in a question.
“Foster homes. You know. Baseball wasn’t on the radar.”
A slight shoulder sag tells me there’s a soft spot in her heart.
“Bob Carter got a call talking about this young guy hitting in the batting cages in Fort Worth,” Brick says.
“What?”
“Yeah. He sent someone to take a look.”
“So, this guy shows up one day and he’s watching me. I thought I had a pervert on my hands.”
“How old were you?” Bristol says.
My gaze finds hers. “Twenty-three.”
“Unbelievable.”
“Yeah. Life changed that day. I’ve been working my way up in the farm leagues since then. Until I got called up to the show.”
“What about family?” January says.
