Read Online Rachel Laine (The Women of Merryton Book 3) by Jennifer Peel - Free Book Online

talks we had about him behind closed doors.
I think my parents were even more upset about the situation than I was. I guess
it made sense, since they lost their daughter, and in their minds, Andrew took
advantage of her. I didn’t tell my dad about the conversation I’d had with
Andrew the previous night. I knew it wouldn’t be well received. It was
unfortunate that I could believe Andrew’s story about Sydney, and probably my
parents could, too, but they would never admit it.
    I
reiterated to my dad the need to play nice and to keep it private. My worst
nightmare was to give Andrew any reason to involve the law. I didn’t want to do
that to Drew. And for all we knew, Andrew may very well decide fatherhood
wasn’t for him. He could still walk away, but with each passing day I saw that
hope fade.
    Andrew,
like he said he would, called us before he headed to the ballpark for game one
of the series. He asked if he could talk to Drew, and I agreed. I heard them
talk about football practice and school. After their chat, Drew handed the phone
back to me.
    “Hey,
Rachel Laine, would it be all right with you if I brought something back for
Drew?”
    I
tried to think of a reason to say no, but I came up short. “Nothing too
expensive or extravagant.”
    He
laughed. “How did I know you were going to say that?”
    “As
long as we are on the same page.”
    “I’ll
try my best,” he promised.
    “Thank
you.”
    “Is
there anything you want from Chicago?”
    “Uh…”
I was caught off guard. “No, I’m good. Thank you.”
    “Okay,
well, if you think of anything, just name it.”
    “Again,
thank you, but you don’t need to buy me anything.”
    “Oh
… you thought I was going to buy you something? That’s awkward. I was only
wondering if you wanted me to pick something up for you. You would have to pay
me back.”
    I
almost dropped my phone I felt so dumb. I even blushed. I hadn’t blushed in
years.
    He
roared with laughter. “I’m kidding.”
    “Goodbye,
Andrew.”
    “Oh
come on, you have to admit that was funny.” He was still laughing at me.
    I
didn’t respond. He was an idiot.
    “I’ll
call you later.”
    I
didn’t even get to say don’t bother before he hung up. Not that he would
have listened.
    When
I hung up, Drew looked up from his homework. “Hey, Mom, Andrew said we should
watch part of the game. So can we?”
    Great,
a night of watching men spit and stand around scratching themselves in various
locations. “As long as your homework is all done.” I smiled at him.
    He
grinned and went back to finishing his math while I finished up dinner. Tonight
was an easy night of grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. Drew was
disappointed—he thought we should roast every meal over the fire now.
    I
folded laundry as we watched the game. I figured I could at least do something
productive while watching the spitting and scratching. Drew was enthralled and
talkative.
    “Did
you know that Andrew can throw the ball a hundred miles per hour?”
    “That’s
pretty fast.”
    “He
told me that if I practiced really hard, I could someday, too. Can I sign up
for baseball, Mom?”
    I
had known it was coming, but I hadn’t thought it would be this soon. “If you
want to.” My exterior was calm, but my heart burned.
    He
pumped his fist into the air. “I can’t wait to tell Andrew.”
    All
I kept thinking was that I had to tell Drew who Andrew was. It had only been a
few days and he was already forming an attachment. I only hoped Andrew wouldn’t
disappoint him.
    I
was deep in thought about the Andrew predicament when my phone went off. I
shook my head and picked it up. It was a text from Andrew.
    Tell
Drew to watch the Spartans pitcher. He throws a good 4-seam fastball.
    I
relayed the message to Drew. He was already glued to the TV anyway.
    “Hey,
Mom, did you know that there are different ways to hold a baseball when you
throw it?”
    “No,
I didn’t know that.”
    “Yeah,
Andrew told