Total pages in book: 28
Estimated words: 26448 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 132(@200wpm)___ 106(@250wpm)___ 88(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26448 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 132(@200wpm)___ 106(@250wpm)___ 88(@300wpm)
She walks up to me. “He said that he was moving to Whiskey Run. He said—” She silently claps her hands together. “He said that he has something unfinished that he needs to take care of.”
My mind starts to whirl, but I rein it in quickly. I’m not the naïve girl that believes in forever anymore, and there’s no way that Ryker Kirby even remembers me after all this time. He’s not going to quit his job and move back to Whiskey Run for some girl he knew twenty years ago. “Caroline, that could be anything. His dad still lives here. He’s a patient here. Maybe he wants to be close to him. Don’t try and figure out what some man is thinking—”
“Some man? Some man? He was our friend, Isabel. He’s not just a stranger on the street.”
I roll my eyes. “Well, I’m not going to speculate on why he’s quit his job or why he’s coming here of all places. I’m sure he has his reasons.” I point at the closed door. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a patient waiting.” I point at her. “And I’m sure you do too.”
I don’t have a break for another two hours, but when I do, I slip off to the break room and pull my phone from my pocket. I do a quick Internet search, and the feed is full of news about Ryker’s recent retirement. I click on the first one and do a quick scan. The baseball community is shocked. Some people are really mad, making threatening remarks. Some people are supportive, and some people are speculating on the reasons why.
A few different theories are discussed. Some say it’s drug rehab, which makes me mad. Anyone who would think that doesn’t know Ryker. Some say he has a gambling problem, which is ridiculous because he’s always been one of the most responsible people I know.
I go down the line and see a video. Before I can talk myself out of it, I click on it and watch, staring at Ryker as I do.
“We’re here with Ryker Kirby, the designated hitter for the Lonestar Thunder. At the championship game, you recorded five at bats, four hits, two homeruns, one triple, one double and six RBIs. It’s been the best hitting game in the whole league this season. You are at the height of your career, and analysts say that you’re not slowing down.” The interviewer pauses. “So why now? Why are you retiring now?”
“It’s time,” Ryker says.
The interviewer is openly not happy with that answer. She tries to ask the same question but in a different way. “So what are your plans after retiring?”
Ryker nods his head and looks directly into the camera. “I’ve spent years chasing wins… Now it’s time to chase what matters.”
The people in the background all start cheering, and the interviewer tries to get control of the interview, but Ryker decides it’s over. He moves away from the woman with the microphone, and the camera follows him to where some kids are standing. He squats in front of them, signing hats and shirts. With my hand over my heart, I suck in a breath. He didn’t mean me. There’s no way he meant me. I broke his heart, and any chance we had I demolished a long time ago.
No, there’s no reason to get my hopes up because Ryker Kirby is way out of my league. The faster I come to terms with that, the better off I’ll be because my divorce was hard. Getting my hopes up about Ryker Kirby will just destroy me.
CHAPTER 3
RYKER
I should have known making an announcement like I did that paparazzi would follow me. As soon as it hit the news, I’ve been followed. All I wanted to do was get to Whiskey Run and to see Isabel, but I knew if I showed up with every news station in the South following me, I wouldn’t be able to get close to her. So I had to get things done over the last month from Texas.
There was one house I wanted, and I was determined to buy it. The people that were living in it didn’t want to sell, but they had their price, and I gladly paid it. As soon as they were out, I started renovations, hired designers, and put it all in motion.
I’ve done my best to put all the rumors to rest. It has been said that I was entering rehab, that I had a gambling problem. The latest was that I was dating the general manager’s daughter and he fired me. I let him take care of that one because he knew it wasn’t true. I didn’t realize that everyone would come unglued because I was retiring, and I’ve tried to lay low.
It’s now two weeks into December, and I refuse to put the move off any longer. The inside of my house is done, and even though they’re still working on the outside, I don’t care. I’m tired of being away from Isabel. I don’t know what it is, but I’m watching social media every day as if it’s going to be some big joke and Isabel’s status is going to change from single to married again.