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hand and
    using effort not to wince as she overdid the firmness on her
    end. “Nice to meet you. You’ve got a really nice kid there.” I
    nodded in Brittany’s direction.
    “ank you. I was just wondering if there was
    anything my daughter should be doing at home to help her
    with her batting skills.”
    It was difficult, but I managed to keep my face neutral.
    At least I hoped I did. “I think she’ll get the hang of it
    during practice. is was only the first day and sometimes
    it takes a little while. No need to worry, there’s plenty of
    time. She’ll be fine.” What I wanted to say was, Are you
    serious? She’s five, for Christ’s sake. Give the kid a break.
    Marjorie Sullivan didn’t look all that impressed with
    my answer and I suspected I’d just dropped a couple
    notches on her list of esteemed teachers and coaches.
    “Well, maybe I’ll have my husband work with her anyway.”
    I nodded, not that it mattered because she was
    walking away. I followed her with my eyes, still just this
    side of a little freaked by the amount of pressure she put
    on her kindergartner. Before I pulled my gaze back to my
    own world, I noticed Max and his mom. She was finally off
    the phone and as she handed him a water bottle, she
    looked at me. And totally sized me up. She was a good
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    twenty feet from me, but her eyes crawled up my body so
    intentionally I could almost feel them. I didn’t normally
    mind when somebody checked me out. Hell, it was
    flattering most of the time. But this just felt…a little dirty.
    She wasn’t unattractive, but the way she leered at me made
    her less good-looking than I might have originally
    thought.
    Okay, so Max’s mommy might be family. I wonder if
    Max’s daddy knows that.
    I filed it away, along with the fact that though she
    couldn’t be bothered to come and introduce herself, she
    apparently had no qualms about undressing me with her
    eyes right there on the baseball field with her son standing
    next to her. Shaking my head, I forced myself to look away
    and continue cleaning up. When I finally ventured another
    peek, the Lexus was pulling away.
    1
    “So? How’d it go?” Maddie’s voice wasn’t quite as
    exuberant as usual, which I blamed on pain medication.
    Much as I wanted to give her a hard time, I suspected she
    was feeling crappy enough on her own without me adding
    to her misery.
    “Not bad at all. It was interesting, that’s for sure. And
    different.” I mixed some tuna in with Steve’s dry food as I
    spoke into the phone. He did a little tap dance on the
    kitchen floor at my feet, giddy with anticipation. “You
    didn’t tell me some parents might stay and watch.”
    “Ooo, did I leave that part out?”
    “Conveniently, yes.”
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    “Sorry about that. It doesn’t happen often. Usually
    they just want to dump their kids and come back later.
    Anybody give you any problems?”
    e way she said it made me think she’d had some in
    the past and a feeling of dread sat in my belly like a peach
    pit. “Not today. ough there was one mom who was a bit
    overzealous in her cheering. I mean, it was practice, for
    God’s sake.”
    “Yeah, you’ll get that.” Maddie sighed and I could hear
    her grunt as she shifted positions. “Some aren’t involved
    enough and some are so over-involved you’re afraid you
    might bump into them, they’re so close.” She seemed to
    hesitate a little bit and then said, “Um, did anybody ask
    about your marital status?”
    “My what?”
    “It’s just…I tend to keep my sexual orientation under
    my hat.” I groaned and she went on. “I know, I know. I
    don’t like it either, and I know how you hate feeling
    closeted, but it’s just better that way. Trust me, there will
    always be somebody who thinks a homosexual teaching
    their kid is a gigantic no-no, and they’ll be sure to make a
    big stink out of it.”
    I hoped my silence told her how much I hated this
    little