After closing the door, I try my hardest to slow my heart rate, but I know I have to call Casey. I get into the truck and drive over to the football field. I get Ethan out of his seat, then grab his equipment from the back. “You finish your food?” I ask, and he just nods. “Have a good game,” I say and kiss his head.

I wait for him to get to his coach before I grab my phone out of my pocket and call Casey, who answers after three agonizing rings.

“’Bout fucking time you took your head out of your ass,” he says.

“Kallie’s back in town.” I don’t even bother acknowledging his previous statement. There are a lot of things I feel for the whole family, but I can only step in the ring with Casey.

“I was calling to give you a heads-up.” I hear a chair scrape, and I wonder if he’s at home with her.

“Cut the bullshit,” I hiss. “The last thing you would ever do was help me.”

“Wasn’t me who had a kid with someone else, was it?” He always hits below the belt. “Either way, I just wanted you to know she’s back.”

“I saw that,” I say, then my voice goes soft. “She saw me already. I was in front of the station with Ethan.” I don’t know why I say it, but I do. I say it because I know that if the roles were reversed and I saw her with a child she had with someone else, I would need to bury my sorrows in a bottle of whiskey. Fuck, just the thought of it makes me sick.

“Fuck,” he hisses. “Needless to say, I think it’s a good idea if you both avoid each other.”

“Works for me,” I say and disconnect the call. I walk over to the stands and take my usual spot. A couple of parents wave at me, and some of the dads walking by stop and shake my hand.

My foot moves up and down with nerves, and I force myself not to go back to the past. I force myself not to think about how the whole family kept her from me. I force myself not to go back down the black hole of what happened when she left.

“Hey.” I spot Beau climbing the bleachers, and he sits next to me.

“Hey there, future mayor,” I joke with him. He’s dressed in slacks and a white button-down rolled up at the sleeves.

“Very funny,” he says, shaking his head. “What’s the scoop?”