Hit and Run (Hot-Lanta #4)

  Jane cried into her hands, clearly upset by Molly’s words. “I don’t know what to think.”

  “You better figure it out…and soon,” Molly replied, getting up from the couch. It was time for tough love. “There is only so much push back Brady will take from you before he decides to move on. And if he moves on, you will hurt more than you ever have before, because you will realize once he’s gone how much he truly mattered to you, how no matter the circumstance, you won’t be able to live without him. Trust me, I know what it’s like to lose the love of your life, and guess what, Jane? It’s a pain you won’t be able to live through; I barely did.”

  Molly left Jane crying on the couch, angry and upset with her friend. She wanted to hug Jane and tell her everything was going to be okay, that she didn’t have to have her own baby to feel fulfilled, but Molly couldn’t put herself up to it. The way Molly saw it, Jane was wasting her life away, worrying about something so minor when it came to her marriage. Sometimes you have to break someone down to help them realize what they truly lost.

  Needing to talk to Brady, Molly called him.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey, Brady. It’s Molly.”

  “Kind of gathered that from the caller ID. What’s up? Is Jane alright?”

  “Um, not really.” There was shuffling noises on the other end of the phone, indicating to Molly that Brady was most likely putting himself together so he could help Jane. “Before you jet off on an airplane, there is nothing physically wrong with her. She just is having a hard time right now. She told me the reason why she’s pushing you away.”

  “Really? What is it?”

  “It’s not my story to tell, Brady. You’re going to have to ask her yourself.”

  “Wow, thanks for the advice Molly. How come I didn’t try that already? Oh, wait. I fucking did; she just won’t talk to me.”

  “Settle down,” Molly said soothingly.

  “You’re telling me to settle down when you know something about my wife that I don’t know?”

  “Yes, I am. Remember what you’re trying to do here. You’re trying to win her back, prove to her that she can trust you with this information, and move on from it. Don’t you think it would be better to hear it from her than from me?”

  “No,” Brady said shortly.

  “Too bad. Be a grown up, Brady, and do this the right way.”

  “What if she doesn’t tell me?”

  “Then you’re not doing your best to show her what you two had before you lost the baby.”

  Brady was silent for a second and then said, “What if I give you ten grand for your knowledge?”

  “Really, Brady? Bribery? That is so beneath you.”

  “I know,” Brady chuckled. “Thought I would give it a shot. I’m desperate here, Molly. I love her…I love her so damn much.”

  Molly’s heart ached for him. “I know, Brady. It will get better. Just keep doing what you’re doing. I know you couldn’t see it, but she smiled a couple of times when you were on the phone with her. I think this weekend will help. Just don’t push her too hard.”

  “I won’t,” Brady promised.

  They said their good byes, Brady wishing Luke the best, and hung up. Molly prayed Jane would open her heart to Brady, because Molly knew better than anyone that Jane needed Brady in her life; he was her other half.

  Chapter 10

  **Nash**

  Bottles crashed to the ground, spiraling across the tile floor. The incessant ringing of his doorbell echoed through his house as he fought through the early morning grey to get to his front door.

  Opening it wide, he saw an image he wasn’t expecting. Fallon was standing in front of him, but instead of wearing obnoxiously large clothes, she was wearing a pair of yoga pants and a regular sized T-shirt with a picture of a pug on the front. Her hair was pulled back into a pony tail and her face looked fresh, as if she’d just washed it. A little backpack hung in her hands and a huge smile crossed her face.

  “Good morning, Sunshine!” Nash attempted to shut the door on her, but she stopped him, stepping into the entryway. “Or should I say good morning, Grumpus?”

  “You should say goodbye because you’re leaving,” Nash said, pressing the palm of his hand against his throbbing eye.

  “I’m not going anywhere without you. We have a date, remember?”

  “How could I forget? You sent me a text message about it every hour yesterday, hence the empty bottles on the floor.”

  Fallon looked around him to see the drinking binge he went on last night. “Seems like you had a little party last night without me.”

  “Yes, so you can understand if I ask you to leave.”

  “Nope,” she said, barging in. “Let’s get you dressed. Where’s your bedroom?”

  She started walking toward the right direction when Nash rushed off to stop her. There were things in his room he didn’t want her seeing, some of his prosthetics to be exact.

  “Fine, I will get ready. Just stay in the living room and don’t snoop around.”

  “Can’t promise you anything.” Nash watched as she walked in the living room, checking every little detail out. He needed to hurry before she examined things too closely.

  Luckily, he was able to get his prosthetic on before he answered the door, which was why it took him so long. He must have done something wrong, though, because it wasn’t feeling as comfortable as it normally did.

  Nash entered his bedroom, locked his door, and sat on his bed. He pulled his shoes and sweatpants off so he could see where he went wrong. He pulled the prosthesis off and noticed the foam of the socket wasn’t situated properly. Adjusting it so it sat more comfortably, he placed it to the side to take a quick shower.

  Grabbing one of his crutches, he hopped to the bathroom, sat down in his shower, and quickly washed his body, ignoring the missing limb. Showering was one of his least favorite tasks to do during the day, since he was reminded every time of what he was missing.

  He dried off, brushed his teeth, and got dressed, making sure to adjust the socket properly so he was comfortable with whatever Fallon had in mind.

  Ready, he walked out to the living room, where Fallon was lying on the ground, looking under his sofa.

  “What are you doing?”

  She looked up from the floor and smiled as if she’d just been caught stealing something from him.

  “You’re dirty. Did you know you have a collection of skittles under here? I think you could taste the rainbow at least ten times.”

  “Something to look forward to. Let’s go,” Nash said gruffly, dragging Fallon off the floor.

  They stepped outside, Nash locked up, and then he turned to look for Fallon’s car, but didn’t see one.

  “Uh, am I driving?”

  “Why drive when we can Segway!” The cheerful tone in her voice and the mention of a Segway had Nash’s stomach revolting against him.

  “I’ll drive.” Nash went to his garage door, but was stopped by Fallon.

  “We are riding the Segways,” she said between clenched teeth, clearly trying to be scary.

  Nash looked around and then said, “Do you have a mask I can wear so people don’t recognize me?”

  Fallon put her hand on her hip and studied Nash. “Are you really that concerned about what people think about you? Damn, live a little. Who cares what people think? They’re just people. They have faults of their own. What’s life if you’re just going to sit back and wonder how people will judge you?”

  When she put it like that, Nash felt like an idiot. It was easy for her, though. She had a carefree attitude. Nash didn’t even really understand the term carefree, but by the looks of what Fallon had planned for the day, he was going to learn rather quickly.

  “Fine, which one is mine?” Nash asked.

  “This one!” Fallon bounced up and down in excitement. “But, safety first.” She pulled out a camo covered helmet and knocked on it, proving its strength. “Got to protect the noggin.”

&nbs
p; Nash rolled his eyes and grabbed the helmet from her. It almost looked like one of the helmets he used to wear out on the field, just a little more commercialized.

  Fallon grabbed her helmet, which had a fake Mohawk on it, something he saw boys in the neighborhood wear. It looked ridiculous on her.

  “Isn’t that meant for little boys?” Nash asked.

  “Is it?” she looked at the helmet and shrugged. “I liked that I could ram my head into a man’s crotch if he ever came after me on my Segway. Looked like I could do some real damage with these spikes.”

  “If you say so.” Nash observed the Segway and said, “Should I just get on?”

  “Yeah. It’s simple to operate. It detects your balance and moves according to where you’re putting pressure on the sensors.”

  Detects balance. At that moment, Nash knew he was in for a world of hurt.

  Taking a deep breath, not wanting to show any weakness, he got on the Segway and turned it on. Right away it started to move forward because he was leaning forward. He pulled up and adjusted his stance. It wasn’t as bad as he thought it was going to be. He could do this.

  “Ready?” Fallon called out, moving her Segway into the street.

  “Yeah, are we going far?

  “Just enjoy the ride.” She led the way, Nash falling closely behind.

  Enjoy the ride? There weren’t many things he enjoyed anymore, and fresh air sure as hell wasn’t one of them.

  It felt weird being outside when he usually spent his time being a hermit in his house, scaring away solicitors and getting lost in a few bottles of beer. The morning air was a bit of a welcome change though. Nash almost felt…refreshed with the morning fog lifting and the sun trying to peek through.

  He would never admit that, though.

  Silently, they rode through Nash’s housing development, taking up a little portion of the street until Fallon veered off to the side, onto a bike path that led to a well-known lake in his area. Was she taking him there?

  Not asking questions, he continued to follow her. Occasionally, he would glance down at her ass, appreciating the display only a yoga pant could carve out on a woman. Nash told himself he wasn’t interested in caressing her ass, he wasn’t interested in seeing how it could move around him, how it might feel to grab a handful of it. Nope, not interested at all.

  The trees that encased the bike path broke apart and the lake appeared. It was borderline a pond, but what qualified it to be a lake was that it was just big enough to hold a number of little row boats.

  Off to the side was an old wooden pole, used in its day to tie down horse’s reins. Fallon parked her Segway right next to it and pulled out a chain from the front pouch of the steering stick. She tied her Segway to it and then got off.

  Nash parked right next to her. “You know those are for horses, right?”

  Fallon patted her Segway. “Isn’t the Segway this generation’s horse?”

  “No.”

  “Such a Debbie Downer. Come on, let’s get your steed tied down. We have some fishing to do.”

  Nash was surprised. When they were going down toward the lake, fishing hadn’t crossed his mind, but that was because he didn’t think they had fish in the small lake.

  “Are you sure there are fish in here?”

  Fallon looked out at the crystal water. “I guess we’ll have to see.”

  They tied up his Segway and walked toward a small dock where a boat was latched onto a pole.

  “Get in,” she gestured to the boat. “I have to go grab something real quick.”

  Nash wished he knew her exact plans, because he never liked to be blindsided. Hanging out with Fallon felt like he was wearing blinders twenty-four-seven.

  She came back with a canvas bag full of what seemed like fishing gear. He could tell by the poles that were sticking out the top.

  Like a gentleman, he helped her in the boat, offering a hand. He was an ass most of the time, but he wasn’t a barbarian. Last thing he wanted to see was Fallon slip when she was getting into the boat and then crack her head open. He wasn’t sure if one Segway would be able to hold them both, especially if he had to balance with her in his arms.

  She undid the boat and handed the paddles to Nash. “Time to row.”

  “What, you’re not going to do the rowing?”

  Fallon leaned over and squeezed Nash’s biceps with approval. “Pretty sure you can handle it there, Muscles. Plus, I have to get our poles ready.”

  Nash rowed them out to the middle of the lake. Morning dew lifting off the water painting a picturesque moment for Nash to remember. He wasn’t much of a nostalgic man, but he had to admit, being out on the lake in the early morning was pretty.

  Fallon dumped the contents of the canvas bag on the bottom of the boat and grabbed two pink poles with matching Disney Princess fishing reels.

  “You have got to be kidding me,” Nash said.

  “What?” she shrugged. “They were a BOGO. I don’t ever pass up a deal like that.”

  “BOGO?”

  “You know, buy one get one.”

  “They didn’t have any other colors?”

  “No just the princesses, but don’t worry. I watched a video clip on the YouTube the other day of a little girl catching a twenty pound trout with a pole like this.”

  “Doubtful.”

  “I’ll show you! It was on the YouTube. That place doesn’t lie.”

  “Oh, it most certainly does,” Nash said. “You can’t believe anything on the internet anymore. And it’s not called the YouTube. It’s just YouTube.”

  Fallon didn’t respond. Instead, her little tongue peeked past her lips in concentration as she put together the Disney Princess poles. Nash had rowed the out to the middle and decided to offer her some help.

  “Want me to do anything?”

  “Yeah, might be good if you get the leeches away from our food.”

  “What?” Nash asked, scooting back in his seat. He looked down to see a box of leeches poured to the side, heading toward a container of scones. “Why would you bring leeches on the boat?”

  Exasperated, Fallon said, “Haven’t you ever seen The Great Outdoors with John Candy? They use leeches to fish. You can learn so much from John Candy movies. For instance, how to get home when you can’t fly anymore. Clever, clever comedy.”

  Nash held up his hands and tried to understand what she was saying. “So, you’re telling me that you base some of your life lessons off of John Candy movies?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?” she asked, insulted.

  “Um, maybe because in Uncle Buck, the dude carries an axe in his car to scare off teenage boys. Maybe because he decided to join the army in the movie Stripes so he could lose weight. Or the fact that in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles he thinks he can drive the wrong way on the highway while the back of his car is smoking?”

  Fallon’s face lit up. She scooted closer to him and put her hands on his knees. Nash ignored the warmness from her palms.

  “I want to hump your face right now.”

  “Excuse me?” Nash said, caught off guard.

  “I can’t believe you love John Candy movies too! What’s your favorite? Mine’s Uncle Buck.” She dropped the tone of her voice and said, “Here’s a quarter. Go downtown and have a rat gnaw that mole off your face.”

  She bounced up and down, rocking the boat in excitement.

  Nash straightened up and said, “I’m pretty sure he says, ‘Take this quarter, go downtown and have a rat gnaw that thing off your face’.”

  “Ahhh!” Fallon squealed, throwing herself into Nash’s arms. “Oh, my God, now I know what we’re doing when we get back to your place.”

  Nash held her against his chest, her chin resting on his shoulder. She was light and she smelled like fresh soap with a hint of floral. But before he could figure out what kind of flower she smelled like, she pulled away and grabbed the box of leeches, picking some up that got away. She sealed the lid and said, “Don’t want to fall asleep and w
ake up with those all over us.”

  “That would be a mistake,” Nash replied, a little dreamy from the hug she gave him.

  “It would be.”

  For the next few minutes, Nash studied Fallon’s excited movements. She was forceful with the poles, making sure they were secure, but when it came to putting the hooks through the leeches, she gave them each a little coddling before she jabbed the hook through their heart.

  “Now, listen to me, you’re going to be a good little leech and get mama a big fish. You hear me? You are sacrificing your life to make me look good. I will forever appreciate that. Don’t forget me and this moment.”

  With that, she pierced the fucker and then got in position to cast away. “Oh, here.” She handed Nash his pole, leech attached and everything. “Do you know how to fish?”

  “Please,” Nash said, casting his leech like a pro.

  “I’m impressed, Nash. I didn’t think a recluse like yourself would know how to fish.”

  “I did have a life before the accident,” Nash said, not thinking about the words coming out of his mouth. He cringed and waited for Fallon’s barrage of questions, but instead, she cast her pole and sat in silence…something Nash wasn’t familiar with where Fallon was concerned.

  Together, they enjoyed the peaceful morning…sharing the silence and passing each other scones and juice boxes back and forth. Nash hated to admit it, but he was having a really good time. He actually enjoyed Fallon’s company. The revelation blew his fucking mind.

  **Jane**

  The crowd grumbled in unison at the umpire’s call of a foul ball. Parker was up to bat with two runners on, his hit down the right field line would have scored those runners if the umpire wasn’t so stingy with his call.