The Curve Ball (Indianapolis Lightning Book 2) Read online

“Sure.”

  We both head for the garage door, I stop to hold the door open for Riley. I reach over and snatch my keys and wallet off the table once she’s passed through. I slip my wallet in my back pocket then pat all of my other ones to make sure I have my phone with me. Once satisfied that I have everything that I need, I secure Evie into the back seat, snapping her car seat into the base like I’ve done it a time or two now.

  Once in the driver’s seat, Riley gives me the address of where we’re going so I can plug it into my GPS. Once that populates on the screen, we’re off to the appointment.

  It takes maybe ten minutes to get to the doctor's office. Before we get out of the car, I pull my baseball had down just a tad bit lower on my head. I hope no one recognizes me while we’re here. The last thing I need is someone snapping a picture of me with Evie and leaking it to the press. So far, I haven’t received any messages about anything being leaked yet, but I’m sure it’s just a matter of time. Lucas should be working on that press release for me, hopefully today.

  We enter the doctor's office and head straight for the receptionist's desk. I hand over my insurance card, realizing that I haven’t yet had Evie added to my insurance. The front desk lady assures me that it is okay, and they can put the information on file and get things sent to them in a few days, once I can get her added. I never even thought of that until now. I make sure to add Riley, along with my parents and Jillian, as people who can have access to Evie’s medical records. Erica had already listed me on the paperwork as her father, so that wasn’t an issue, at least.

  With all the paperwork taken care of, I follow Riley to an open seat. Thankfully, it is tucked away from the main entrance and allows me to be out of the main view as people enter and exit. I pull my phone from my pocket as we wait and shoot off a quick text to Derek, asking him if he can stop into the team's office and ask what I need to add Evie to my insurance. I’m sure there's some kind of paperwork that I’ll need to fill out, and maybe they’ll give it to him to bring to me.

  “Evelyn.” A nurse calls out my daughter’s name from an open doorway. Riley and I both stand and I grab the baby carrier and head towards the nurse. I know the moment she recognizes me, as her eyes go all big like saucers, but she quickly recovers as we reach her. “Right this way,” she says, a blush flushing her cheeks.

  “Thanks,” Riley tells her as we follow her down a hallway. We stop at an alcove that has a scale and a measurement device on the wall to measure kids' heights.

  “We need to get Evelyn’s weight and length, can you please take her out of the seat and strip her down to her diaper?” the nurse asks. I watch as she takes out a paper sheet and places it on a device on the counter.

  Thankfully, Riley is with me as she’s already taken Evie from her seat and has laid her down and is starting to remove her clothes.

  “Why do you need her stripped-down?” I ask.

  “We need to be as accurate as we can get for her weight. So many medications are based on weight, and if we have a couple of pounds of clothes in the way, it could cause the doctor to miss-dose her, and we wouldn’t want that,” she tells us as she writes down what the screen says. “You can re-dress her now,” she tells Riley once she’s got the info she needed.

  Once Evie is back in her sleeper, the nurse stretches her legs out and marks the paper sheet with her pen, both at her head and where the bottom of her foot reaches. “You can pick her up now,” she says, and I step in and pick Evie up. She’s stayed calm through all of this so far, and I’d like to keep it that way. I watch as the nurse pulls out a small tape measure and stretches it out between the two marks she made on the paper then note that on her note pad. “Follow me, and we’ll get you guys into a room.”

  We do just that and follow her into an exam room just around the corner. “What brings you in today?” she asks.

  “Evie’s been running a fever since last night. I noticed she was also tugging at her ear yesterday before the fever started, and she’s just been a little cranky the last twenty-four hours,” Riley tells her.

  “Poor girl,” the nurse says, pulling her stethoscope out of a pocket. “Mind if I listen?” she asks, and I shift Evie so that she can access her chest. We stay quiet while she listens to her. “Any other symptoms?” the nurse asks, writing down a few more things on her pad.

  “She’s been chewing on everything, so we weren’t sure if this all was related to her maybe teething,” I speak up for the first time since we entered the room.

  “That’s definitely a possibility. Let me get all these notes entered into the system, and the doctor will be with you in just a few minutes.”

  “Thank you,” Riley and I both tell the nurse as she exits the room.

  “She recognized you,” Riley says just above a whisper once the door latches. “Do you think that will be a problem?”

  “You picked up on that, did you?” I ask, a little shocked she noticed, too.

  “I did, but she recovered quickly.”

  “She did,” I say as Evie starts to fuss a little bit in my arms. I shift her, so she’s lying on my chest rather than having her back to my front. Riley hands me the bottle she made and tucked into the diaper bag. I shift Evie once again, offering her the bottle that she accepts quickly. “I’d hope that she wouldn’t say anything to anyone about me being in here with my daughter. That would be quite the HIPPA violation.”

  “You’re right about that. I don’t think you’ll have an issue. Jillian texted me this morning that this is the office that they bring the girls, and they’ve never had an issue with them leaking anything,” Riley says, reassuring me that we’ll be okay here.

  “Knock, knock,” a voice rings out as the door slowly swings open. A youngish doctor steps through the doorway, looking at Riley and then myself. If he recognizes me, he hides it well. “Hello, I’m Dr. Shane, I hear Miss Evelyn isn’t feeling well,” he says as he heads straight for the small sink and washes his hands.

  Once he dries his hands, he motions to the exam table. “Do you mind laying her down up here?”

  “Oh, of course,” I say, taking the bottle from Evie and placing her in the middle of the table.

  I stand close by as he listens to her, then checks her ears, nose, and mouth.

  “She definitely has an ear infection going on, so I’ll call in some antibiotics for that. Her gums are a little swollen, so your assumption that she might be teething is probably correct. Once the tooth breaks the skin, things should get a little better, but she might also start pushing through a few at a time, thus stretching out that time that things will bother her. Tylenol, as needed to help with the pain and or fevers that can come along with it, is perfectly fine, but if you notice the ear tugging again, bring her back in so we can take a look at the ears.”

  “Did you get all of that?” I ask Riley.

  “Yes,” she says, a little chuckle escaping as she gives me an inquisitive look. “Did you get all of that?” she throws my question back at me.

  “Not really,” I tell her honestly. I turn back to Dr. Shane. “I just want to make sure that if Riley has to bring Evie in for any reason when I’m gone for work that she won’t have any issues doing so.”

  “As long as she’s been listed as an approved person to seek treatment and receive information, then you’ll be all set,” he assures me.

  “Okay, just making sure,” I tell him. “I have to head out of town this week and don’t want there to be any issues if something was to arise, and they needed to come back.”

  “I’ll make an additional note in her chart, but you should be all set with the signed release.”

  “Thanks. It’s been quite the whirlwind of a week since I even found out about her, so this is all new territory for me, Doc,” I find myself rambling to him.

  “I’ll have to admit, I was a little shocked to walk in here today and find the two of you with Evelyn and not Erica,” he tells us.

  “Yeah.” I blow out a breath, take off my hat, and run my
fingers through my hair before I put it back on. “She showed up on my doorstep last week saying that Evie was mine and that she couldn’t do it anymore, and left. We had a paternity test done as quickly as possible, and thankfully my friends stepped in right away to help me out,” I tell him.

  “That’s good. I’m guessing you have things set up for while you’re gone on the road, then?” he says, motioning to Riley.

  “Yeah. Riley, here, is Evie’s nanny. She’s a family friend, so I know I can trust her with my girl.”

  “Support, especially with an infant, is important. Our office is always just a phone call away, if needed. Even in the middle of the night or on the weekends, you can call after hours and our answering service will page the on-call doctor to call you back. We also have evening and weekend appointments for sick visits, so just keep that in mind for the future.”

  “Thank you, Dr. Shane,” I tell him, offering my hand for him to shake. Evie starts to fuss again, so I scoop her up into my arms.

  “You’re welcome. I’ll get that script sent to the pharmacy indicated in the computer when you checked in,” he indicates as he heads for the door. “Any other questions before I head out?” he asks.

  I look over at Riley, to see if she has anything, before I speak up again.

  “I’m good,” she states to both of us.

  “Doesn’t sound like it, Doc. Thanks again for your help.”

  “Anytime, that’s what I’m here for,” he says reassuringly. “You can head right out, no need to stop at the front desk to check out.”

  “Thanks,” I call out to his retreating back. Riley takes Evie from me and starts getting her strapped into the seat, and a few minutes later, we’re making our way out of the office.

  “I’m glad we got that out of the way,” I tell Riley once we’re all buckled into the car. “He seemed nice,” I add.

  “I agree. He knew his stuff and was efficient,” she says as she shifts in the passenger seat. “Did you want to stop at the pharmacy on the way back home, or I can run out in a little while and pick it up?”

  “We can stop there and see how long it will be. I’ll probably have to pay cash for it today since she isn’t on my insurance yet.”

  “You’re probably right,” she agrees with me.

  I pull out of the parking lot and head for the pharmacy. Thankfully, it doesn’t take long after we arrive for them to have the prescription ready.

  “Do you want to practice giving it to her?” Riley asks once we’re home and settled into the living room.

  “I guess,” I tell her, a little nervous about it, if I’m honest.

  “It isn’t hard, I promise.”

  “That’s what she said.” I try and crack a joke to lighten my anxiety.

  “You didn’t just say that!” Riley barks out a laugh, and her entire face lights up.

  “I did,” I confess, hanging my head in mock shame, and she giggles at my antics. I’d do it all again to get that sound to come from her lips. “Okay, walk me through this again,” I tell her, getting back to the topic at hand.

  “Measure out the medicine. I always say to read the dosage instructions each time so that you don’t ever mess them up,” she suggests. I read the label then stick the syringe tip into the stopper the pharmacy put into the bottle to make it easier to dispense the medicine. I pull the plunger part and fill the syringe to the correct dosage, then flip the bottle back over and pull the tip from the bottle.

  “Okay, I’ve got it ready,” I tell her as she shifts Evie on her lap.

  “Now, pinch her cheeks lightly, put the syringe in her mouth, angling it towards her cheek, and then squirt it all in her mouth.”

  I do as she instructs, thankfully getting it all in her mouth on the first try. “That was great,” Riley tells me, patting me on the back once I’ve finished.

  “Thanks,” I tell her as I step back. I take the medicine and syringe into the kitchen. The meds have to be kept in the fridge, so I place the bottle in there and wash out the syringe.

  “I’ve got everything under control here if you want to head in to practice,” Riley tells me when I rejoin them in the living room.

  “I probably should,” I admit. I pull off my ball cap and run my fingers through my hair a few times before pulling it back down. “I’ll be back later,” I tell her as I bend down and place a kiss on the top of Evie’s head. This brings me incredibly close to Riley’s lips, and I find myself wanting to kiss her again. All I can think of at this moment is what it was like to have her lips locked with my own. My eyes flick to hers, and I can see the same desires in her eyes. I push away quickly before I can say fuck it and take her mouth with my own.

  I take off to my bedroom, grab my bag, and head out the door like I’m being chased.

  Twelve

  Riley

  I carry Evie outside in the backyard, sitting her down on a blanket I’ve spread out on the grass. Summer has fully arrived in Indianapolis now that we’re well into June. My first few months working for JJ and taking care of this precious little girl flew by. We’ve found a sound system that works for all of us. When his schedule allows, I take one day off per week. I usually end up still staying here at his house, since it’s a pain to pack up what I need for just one night at Derek’s old condo. But it is nice to have a day that I know I’m not required or on call and can just do whatever I want.

  Evie sits on the blanket, shaking one of her toys. She seems so big now, at just over six months old. It looks like she’s doing something new every day. She just mastered the unassisted sitting milestone in the past couple of days, and I can’t wait for JJ to see it in person. I sent him a few video clips of her doing it, since he’s on the road for a couple of games. He’s scheduled to get home late tonight, they had an early game today and then he’ll fly home once it ends.

  “Evie, baby. Who’s a big girl?” I ask her, grabbing her attention as I lay on the blanket a foot or so away from her. I pick up one of the toys and shake it for her, getting a shriek of excitement as she shakes her hands faster and babbles. The toy she’s got in her hands goes into her mouth. She’s teething yet again, already working on her third tooth. Girlfriend has been a teething mess since she was three months old.

  “Auntie RyRy!” I hear my name called, turning to see my nieces and sister-in-law coming out the back door to join Evie and me outside.

  “How are my favorite girls?” I ask, pushing myself up to sit with my legs crisscrossed. They both practically jump into my lap, trying to hug me.

  “Good!”

  “Can we play?”

  I don’t really catch who says what to me, as they’re both excited to be here.

  “Sure can,” I tell both of them, “and I missed you both so much.” They both pull back from our group hug. I look up at both of them, bouncing my eyes between the two. “Are you sure you both haven’t grown since I last saw you?” I ask in a teasing manner. I just saw them yesterday, so I know that they haven’t really grown a noticeable amount overnight.

  “Maybe!” Penny says, attempting to twirl in a circle.

  “Careful, Pen, you don’t want to hurt Evie.”

  “Sorry, Aunt Ry,” she says, jutting her bottom lip out in the fakest pout I’ve ever seen.

  “Hey, how are you feeling?” I ask Jillian once she joins us outside. She sits down on one of the lounge chairs and puts her feet up. She’s about six months pregnant already. I can’t wait to meet my nephew in the fall. They found out just a few weeks ago that it was a boy, and Derek is over the moon excited about having a son join the family.

  “Eh, feeling about as big as a house, hot all the time and I’ve started feeling like I’ve got to pee at least once an hour. I never remember it starting this early with the girls, but man, this boy is killing me.”

  “It will all be worth it come October.”

  “I know, I know. I just have to make it through the next few months,” she muses.

  “Well, you just sit back and relax and let me
wear these girls out for you.”

  “You’re the best, Riley.”

  “I know.” I smirk. I love helping out, and it’s not like it’s a hardship to spend time with my family.

  “Hey, girls!” I turn my attention back to my nieces.

  “Yes?” They both give me their attention.

  “What do you say we put on our swimsuits and take Evie into the pool?”

  “Yes!” they both cheer out.

  “We already have our suits on!” Addison tells me as she starts pulling off her shirt and shorts.

  “Perfect! Then you’re one step ahead of me,” I tell her. I pick Evie up, holding her up like she’s an airplane. I bring her in close, blowing a raspberry in the crook of her neck, making her full-on belly laugh. It's one of the best sounds ever, so I do it again, getting another squeal of laughter from her and the girls.

  I lay her down and start stripping her from the outfit I’d dressed her in this morning. I thought ahead and brought out a swim diaper and one of the cute little suits that were in some of the clothes Jillian brought over now that they know they’re having a boy.

  “Are you ready, Aunt Ry?” Penny asks a few minutes later. While I finished getting Evie ready for the pool, Jillian made sure the girls were sun screened up. I’d put my bikini on before we came outside, so all I have to do is take off my cover up.

  “I’m ready,” I tell them. I grab the baby floating thing we picked up for Evie to sit in and float around the pool and help Penny and Addison get their floatation devices on. With only one adult and three kids, I feel a little better if they have them on, even though I know they can swim fairly well with all the lessons Jillian has had them in.

  I count down and watch as they both jump into the water, splashing it everywhere from their cannonballs. I enter slowly, using the stairs with Evie in my arms. She shrieks with excitement when her toes first hit the water, and starts kicking her legs once they’re fully submerged. She loves being in here, and we’ve started spending time doing just this most afternoons. It helps wear her out, and then she sleeps so well come bedtime. I’ve successfully gotten her on an excellent schedule, sleeping all night for about twelve straight hours. It is glorious.