Page 24 of Knox
“Absolutely, and Archer knows to put all of our games on the TV for you to watch.” I’d made sure to pay for all the subscriptions so they could catch every game that was televised.
Things were going really well with Archer too. We’d hired him right away, but since Mallory was still in the hospital at the time, he hadn’t moved into her house. I’d started bringing Grady over to her place every day so he could get used to Archer without it feeling forced. They clicked fast, which was nice.
Archer would read books, they built LEGO towers, and Archer would help with lunch and snack time. He got along with everyone, which I figured was part of what made him so good at the job. Even Knox had taken to him.
Now that I was heading to Arizona and Mallory was recovering at home, Archer had officially moved in with her and Grady. Debra was there too, helping out when she could, but she couldn’t keep up with a four-year-old the way Archer could.
“But it’s not the same.” Grady pulled back and looked into my eyes. His little lip wobbled.
I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him against my chest again. “I know, and I’m sorry.”
I glanced at Knox, and he gave me a sad smile. He knew how hard this was for Grady and me. While he and I could look forward to seeing each other when Knox flew down in a few daysfor spring training, it would be a while before I’d see Grady in person again.
Grady clung to me tighter, his little fists balled in my shirt and his face buried in my neck. I didn’t move, didn’t say anything. I just held him because I wasn’t ready to let him go.
“I don’t want you to leave,” he whispered again.
“Me either, bud, but I have to.”
I didn’t know what else to say. I wasn’t going to lie to him because two months was forever when you were four, but at the same time, it did pass quickly.
His head lifted, tears running down his cheeks. “Then don’t go.”
If I stayed a second longer, I wasn’t going to make it out of there without breaking down. I forced a smile and wiped under his eye with my thumb. “Spring’s coming. You’ll be at all of the home games, and maybe even some on the road. We’ll make it work.”
He nodded slowly, like maybe he could hold on to that part. “Can I call you before bed tonight?”
“Always. Every night.”
I kissed his forehead and then stood. Knox rose too. He’d kept his distance, letting me have that moment with my son, and I appreciated it more than I could say.
Grady stepped back, wiping his eyes. “Bye, Daddy.”
“Bye, G. Be good for Mommy and Archer, okay?”
He nodded again. I grabbed my bag and followed Knox toward the door, but I looked back one more time. Grady hadn’t moved. He just stood there in the kitchen, arms at his sides, watching me walk away. That hit me right in the gut. My throat tightened, and I swallowed hard.
“Text me when you get to the hotel,” Knox said.
I nodded. “Okay.”
His hand brushed my arm. “Drive safe.”
It was something people said all the time, but after what happened to Mallory, it meant so much more. “I will.”
I leaned in and kissed him goodbye.
I droppedmy gear bag by the door and rolled my shoulders before kicking off my shoes. Day one of training was done. It wasn’t a hard day, it was just long, and I already felt it in my legs.
The apartment the team had set me up in was fine. It was clean, with basic furniture and a TV mounted too high on the wall. It still smelled faintly like the bacon I’d cooked that morning.
I sat on the couch, grabbed my phone, and video called Knox. It was early evening back home, and Grady would be outside if the weather had held.
Knox answered on the third ring. “Hey. Hang on. G’s up at bat.”
He turned the camera, and there was my son in the backyard with his plastic bat, bundled in a hoodie, sneakers half-tied. Archer stood a few feet away with a whiffle ball, tossing it underhanded. Grady swung and made contact. As the ball bounced through the grass, he took off running toward one of the flat plastic bases I’d bought last month.
“Atta boy, G,” Knox cheered.
