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I grab her right wrist. Very gently.
Piper looks back at me, realizing I’m not only standing but I’m close to her. She has to look up at me.
“About what happened at my house,” I say.
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I owe you an apology for that. On behalf of myself and my idiot teammates. It’s not an excuse, but they were drunk. They thought… well, it doesn’t matter what they thought. They should not have taken my phone and sent you what they did.”
“Okay,” Piper says. “I appreciate you saying that.”
“You did rush right over though, huh?”
Piper pulls her hand away. “There it is. You have to make it about yourself. Trying to be all cool now, right, Cutter? I can’t even imagine what you said about me to your baseball buddies. Did you lie to them? Make up some sex crazed story?”
I reach for the check on the table and unfold it.
“Beach themed,” I say as I study the check.
I can’t believe this but I’m studying Piper’s handwriting. The big C in my name. The way she crosses both t’s with one line. The loops in the B of my last name. And her messy signature which somehow tells the exact story of her life.
“Goodbye, Cutter,” Piper says.
As she starts to turn again, I see her son approaching.
Ut-oh.
Piper gasps. “Saxon. What are you doing?”
“You walked away,” the little guy says. Then he shrugs his shoulders. “Thought you left me behind.”
“When in the world have I ever left you behind?” Piper asks.
“Who’s this?”
Her son points at me.
I can instantly tell this kid is very protective of Mom. As he should be.
“I’m Cutter,” I say, offering my right hand to him. “I swim at the pool.”
Saxon looks to Piper for approval to shake my hand.
Piper nods.
Saxon throws his small hand into mine and tries to grip with some force.
I respect that he knows how to offer up a firm handshake, even if my hand swallows his up with ease.
“I’m a baseball player,” I say. “I have a bad shoulder. So I need to swim. Get myself back in shape and back into games.”
“Like real baseball? Like on TV?”
“That’s right. Jersey Cawlee. Do you watch baseball?”
“Nope,” Saxon says. “I’m into music. I play piano.”
“Really? That’s really cool. I wish I could do that.”
