Restoring Hope by C. P. Smith Page A

her.
    As she got closer, Nicky saw her and shouted, “Hey, T-Hope come sit by us.” She smiled at Nicky, and he watched as she reluctantly made her way over to the two of them.
    “Hi, Nicky.”
    “Hiya, T-Hope. You playin’?” Nicky asked.
    “Well, they were short players and Big Daddy wouldn’t take no for an answer, so, yeah, I guess I am.”
    “Cool. What position?” Nicky asked as he scooted Nic over so she could sit next to him. Nic was beginning to think his son had a crush on her as he watched him puff out his chest.
    “Well, I used to play pitcher with my friends when I was a kid.”
    “You were a pitcher?” Nicky asked, sounding like he was shocked.
    “Hey, girls can pitch,” Hope defended and then nudged shoulders with his son. Nic waited to see if she would say hi to him and after a moment or two of silence; she looked up at him finally and with a small smile said, “Hey, Nic.”
    Those two words washed over him, the breathy quality to it like she couldn’t breathe for saying his name. His reaction was immediate; his lip twitched at the sound of his name coming from her lips and then he grinned. Not a “nice to see you” grin, but a grin that could call a woman to him from twenty feet away. He watched as her eyes went to his smile and then she looked away. They were quite a pair , Nic thought. Both attracted, but neither one of them willing to do anything about it for their own reasons.
    Big Daddy walked over and started shouting positions at the team. When he called Nic and Hope’s names one went to the pitcher’s mound and the other to home plate. Nic grabbed his mitt and ball so they could warm up her arm, and they both stood.
    “Show me what you got, sugar,” he whispered in her ear as they made their way to the field. Hope grabbed the ball from him, crossed her arms and for women everywhere said, “You doubt a woman can pitch?”
    “Oh, no, sugar, I think you’re capable of doin’ just about anything you set your mind to.”
    Hope rolled her eyes like she seemed to do whenever he was around and then chuckled “Whatever,” as she walked to the pitcher’s mound. Henri came over from first base to say something to her and when he was done, felt the need to slap her on that sweet ass. No doubt, he thought since she was playing ball with the boys, it was appropriate. Nic narrowed his eyes at the man and watched as he walked back to first base, grinning. For a brief moment he wished he were on the opposing team, so he could hit a line drive right into Henri’s skull.
    “Ready?” Hope shouted, and Nic turned his attention back to his job. Securing the catcher’s mask over his face and kneeling down, he brought his glove up, and readied himself for her first pitch.
    To say he was surprised when she threw a perfect strike was no lie. When she threw five more, he was impressed. She looked fragile, angelic, as if a hard wind would blow her away. But, watching her he could see she was made of tougher stuff, hadn’t been coddled as a child or raised to be a debutant like Kat had been. As the game began he enjoyed watching Hope as she waited for his signals, her eyes intent on him as each batter came to the box. The longer they played, he watched her become bolder with the batters, taunting them as she struck each one out. It was then he realized she wasn’t timid or shy, she was guarded, had a wall around her so no one could get in. He’d been attracted to shy Hope, but this Hope, the one who forgot to put her shields up, who high fived her teammates when an inning was over, this Hope was sexy as hell.
    It was the bottom of the fifth; the score was tied and the batter was taunting Hope.
    “Come on angel face, show me what you got.”
    Hope cracked her neck from side to side, feeling alive for the first time in a long time. She’d forgotten how much she loved to play. Had forgotten all the times she and the other kids would grab whatever they could find for bases, and if they didn’t