wasn’t flattery,” he told her.
In fact, for the first time since his own divorce from a woman who’d married a baseball celebrity, not a has-been, he was actually feeling a stir of real interest in a woman, and age was the very last thing on his mind. Of course, given the multitude of complications involved, he’d have to be out of his ever-loving mind to do anything about it.
5
The meeting with Cal Maddox had shaken Maddie more than she wanted to admit. Until now, Ty had been a near-perfect kid. He’d never given them any trouble. He’d made good grades and excelled at baseball. Now all of that was at risk. It made her see that building some sort of bridge between Tyler and Bill was more important than ever, but how could she possibly do that without further alienating her son, who claimed to be dead set against his father being in his life?
Maybe she was going to have to swallow her pride and go to Bill and plead with him to take the initiative and make more of an effort to understand his son’s point of view. Perhaps if he realized what was at stake, he would keep Noreen out of the picture, at least when he was spending time with Tyler. Right now Bill seemed stubbornly determined to unite them into one big happy family, no matter how his children—especially Ty—resisted the idea. Maybe she could make Bill see how desperately Ty needed some one-on-one time with his dad.
Determined to fix things for her son’s sake, she headed for Bill’s medical office in a small brick complex he and a business partner had built several years ago. Its professional suites also housed a dentist and an orthopedic surgeon, as well as an outpatient rehab facility for the surgeon’s patients.
She used her key and slipped in through the back door. It was the only way to avoid the waiting room and all the curious glances she was bound to receive there. Instead, however, she ran smack into Noreen, who was coming out of Bill’s office with her lipstick smudged and her uniform mussed. Maddie had to wonder how the patients would feel if they’d witnessed the same thing.
“Maddie!” Noreen said, looking dismayed as she smoothed the wrinkles in her uniform. “What are you doing here? I had no idea you still had a key.”
Maddie bit back an angry retort. The truth was that Noreen had more of a right to be here than she did and that grated.
“I need to see my husband. I gather he’s in his office,” she said and brushed right past Noreen without further comment.
When she firmly closed the door behind her, Bill looked up from the files on his desk and regarded her with uncertainty. “Maddie, I wasn’t expecting you.”
“Obviously,” she said, noting the fact that his tie was askew and his thick blond hair was messed up. “You know, if you keep this up, your reputation in this town is going to suffer.” She leveled a look into his eyes. “But then, Helen has already pointed that out, hasn’t she? I’d recommend a few minutes in front of a mirror before you start seeing patients.”
His cheeks colored, a sure indication of his embarrassment. “Why are you here?” he asked stiffly. “Just to pass judgment on me?”
“Not my job,” she said briskly, fighting the urge to say a whole lot more. She couldn’t afford to stir his temper, not when she was on a very specific mission.
“Did you come to apologize about Saturday?” he inquired. “If so, Noreen’s the one you really should be talking to.”
“Don’t push me,” she warned. “I’m here about Tyler. I just had a very distressing meeting with Coach Maddox.”
Bill flashed her a startled look. “Why wasn’t I told about a meeting?” he demanded.
“Because Tyler didn’t want you there,” she said bluntly. “And that’s the heart of the problem. You asked me the other day to help you mend fences with Tyler. I can’t do much more than tell him repeatedly that you’re still his father and that you love him. Obviously he doesn’t believe me. You’re going to have to prove to him that your feelings for him haven’t changed before he ruins his grades and his chances to become the pro ball player he’s dreamed of being.”
“What are you talking about?” Bill asked. “Ty’s always had excellent grades.”
“I haven’t spoken to his teachers yet, but Coach Maddox has. Ty’s having trouble in everything. I can only do so much. You’re going to have to help me fix this.”
To her surprise, Bill looked uncertain. “I don’t know how,” he admitted with rare candor.
“For starters, you could show up to pick up the kids when they’re expecting you,” she said. “Noreen is not an acceptable replacement, especially not to Tyler.”
“He’ll just have to get used to—”
Maddie cut him off. “You wanted to know what you can do, right? Then I suggest you listen to me. I’m trying to help before our oldest son spins completely out of control.”
He exhaled an exasperated huff. “Fine. Whatever.”
“Baseball brought you and Tyler together once,” she reminded him. “I think that’s the connection that can reunite you now. He’s struggling, Bill. The coach says his pitching is off and his place in the starting rotation is at risk.”
“That’s absurd!” Bill snapped. “He’s the best pitcher they have.”
“Not right now, he isn’t,” she told him. “I think you need to come by the house—alone—and give him some pointers the way you used to.”
“He’ll never agree to that,” Bill said. “He’s not listening to me these days, much less spending time with me. If I show up, he’ll just hide in his room.”
“Then go to him where he can’t hide,” she suggested. “Stop by practice this afternoon. You used to do that all the time, just to hang out and see how he was doing. I know he loved that.”
Bill’s expression turned thoughtful. “I could,” he said, then shook his head. “It might make things worse.”
“You won’t know till you try.” She stood up. “I don’t think I need to remind you how important this is.”
“No, you don’t,” he agreed. “I’ll make the effort, Maddie. I promise.”
In the past she would never have questioned one of his promises, but these days she didn’t really know this man at all. At least she’d made the overture. Now it was up to him.
“Today?” she said.
He hesitated and her temper stirred, but then he nodded. “Yes, today.”
When she turned to leave, he stopped her.
“Maddie…”
“What?”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she said, forcing a cheery note into her voice. “Way too busy.”
“Oh?”
His surprise rankled. Did he think she was sitting around pining for him?
“I guess you haven’t heard,” she said. “Helen, Dana Sue and I are going into business together.”
He stared at her. “What kind of business?”
“We’re opening a fitness club for women.” She might not have made a firm decision before, but the incredulous expression on Bill’s face was enough to solidify her resolve. Not that she was ready to tell Helen and Dana Sue just yet. “You’ll have to tell Noreen all about the postpregnancy classes we’re going to be offering. Maybe it will help her get her shape back. I noticed just now that she’s put on a few pounds that pregnancy alone can’t account for. I’m sure she must be aware of your tendency toward a wandering eye.”
Before he could say a word to that sarcastic observation, she