“He’s at practice right now. What you have to prove to him right now is that despite not being there, by no fault of your own, you aren’t going anywhere now.”
“That I can do.”
“He needs consistency but expect pushback. He’s had to be strong for himself, for his mother and sick grandmother. He doesn’t know any other way. Accepting help from you will make him feel weak, and you know what happens to the weak ones around here.”
They get eaten by the wolves.
“Build trust through presence, but don’t try to force anything else. He’ll let you know when he’s ready for more.”
I thank him, shaking his hand once more before leaving the school and heading to the baseball field. The facilities around here are shitty at best. Grass covers much of the diamond, patches of weeds threatening to engulf the dirt, but the boys on the field don’t seem to mind, and why would they? They know nothing else. Sports, well, any sanctioned activity was never my thing. My grades were never good enough and when I brought them up after Tinley moved to town, all I could see was her. There was no way I was wasting my time hanging out with athletes when her arms were waiting for me.
I spend the entire practice leaning on the fence watching the young man I helped create, and to say the least, I’m in awe. He bats, runs, and cheers on his team like a completely different person from the one I saw outside of that store days ago. Here, he can be himself. Here, he doesn’t have to worry about extra cash or fighting for clout. His reputation on the diamond is built through his hard work and determination. The kids here respect him for that alone, not the power he has been granted through working for Cedric. This is something I can work with. This gives me more hope than I’ve had since seeing him in that parking lot with Tinley and realizing I’ve missed his entire life up to this point.
When practice is over, Alex walks right past me without even looking in my direction, and although it hurts, I know exactly where he’s coming from. If I were in his situation instead of the horror of knowing my father was dead after killing my mother, I’d act the same damn way. If I made it that long without a dad, I sure as hell wouldn’t need one now.
But I’ll be right back here tomorrow and the next day and then next until he’s ready to look in my direction.
Chapter 12
Tinley
“How was practice?” I ask as Alex climbs in the car.
He ignores me, and although it crushes another little piece inside of me, I’m just happy he’s actually here, sweat still clinging to his skin from practicing hard instead of gone, skipping another practice because he knows he won’t be able to play in this week’s game.
I don’t ask him about Ignacio even though his expensive truck stands out like a sore thumb in the school parking lot. Did they talk? Have they spent time together since that text after Alex first heard about his paternity? I know Alex came home with more information on the man than I’ve ever been privileged to, but he’s never mentioned that they sat down and discussed anything since.
“I want you to tell that man to stay away from me,” he says as we pull up outside of the house, the first words he’s spoken to me since he left me sitting in the living room days ago.
The silent treatment from him isn’t a new thing, but it never lasts this long.
“I’ll speak with him,” I assure him, but I don’t say that his dad being around might be a good thing.
I watch Alex go inside after slamming the car door and ponder what my next step should be.
Tinley Holland, the woman who fell head over heels for the bad boy over fifteen years ago, doesn’t deserve to know a single thing about Ignacio Torres’s life. Her lies alone don’t give her that right, but as Alex’s mother, I need to know what kind of man his father is before I start planting seeds that spending time with him wouldn’t be all that bad.
Alex told me good things about his dad that he learned, but that doesn’t mean they’re all true or accurate. Kids see what they want to see. They use bits and pieces of information as ammunition in arguments, not taking into account all the bad things that they may have heard. If it doesn’t suit them, it doesn’t exist.
Despite wanting to stay as far away as possible, I have to get to know the man that is insistent on spending time with my son. I fire off a text to Alex, reminding him that he’s still grounded and to stay home before heading across town.