Love Bats Last (The Heart of the Game) Read Free Page B

.100. He managed to put down a good sacrifice bunt on occasion, but that was about it. Alex couldn’t imagine life without the challenge of hitting. Reading the pitchers and learning their patterns, watching the seams, tuning his body to the pace and the arc, the ritual and the focus, it ran in his blood.
     

     
    The last light of day glowed a dim line under fast-moving clouds along the horizon as Alex and Scotty crossed the Golden Gate Bridge. Whitecaps peaked on the waves in the bay, and the wind had picked up in the past half hour. The city and the hills of the Marin Headlands were shrouded in clouds by the time they turned off at the first exit at the end of the bridge.
    “Maybe it’s not such a great time to head to the coast. Looks like a mighty storm headed this way,” Scotty said, pointing to the northwestern horizon. “I thought we’d get hammered before the end of the seventh inning.”
    Alex shrugged. “If I waited for a break in the odd weather patterns we’re having, I’d never get anything done.”
    He fired off the strange weather events in his mind: earliest frost, hottest summer days, longest stretch of winter with no rain and now rain, warm rain, that just wouldn’t let up. If late rains kept up into May, they could affect the fruit set at his vineyard for the second year in a row. El Niño , they called the storm pattern that brought these rains and winds. But there was nothing child-sized about its effects.
    The rain and wind intensified as he nosed the car over the last ridge separating the headlands from the sea. In the distance, a side road snaked down toward the Point Bonita lighthouse.
    “Wouldn’t want to be out there in waves like this,” Scotty said. “How far is it to this seal hospital?”
    “Rescue center. It’s about a half mile from here. The whole place looked pretty ramshackle on the website. I was surprised to read that they’re doing some first-class science out of such a small place.”
    “Is this science or a woman piquing your interest?” Scotty gave him a sidelong glance. “Rescuing river maidens might be your new calling.”
    “Just curious.”
    “I know about curious. Not exactly what we need right now.”
    Scotty was right; chasing about the coast was the last thing he should be doing. He needed to rest up and stay in the zone. He’d set a high bar for the season and even on his best days he wondered if he’d overreached. He’d seen what overreaching had done to McQuinn last season, watched the guy wind himself so tight that he’d started making mistakes. But unlike McQuinn, Alex knew how to keep his perspective. At least he hoped he did.
    His car hugged the curves as he eased it down the hill to Rodeo Beach. It’d been a favorite haunt, yet how many years had passed since he’d been there?
    He turned onto a road that edged a small lagoon just past the beach. The hills of the headlands jutted down to steep cliffs and pitching waves. He opened his window, breathing in the salty marine air.
    Driving to Trovare and donning a tux, smiling at people he barely knew, lost all its appeal.
    “Mind if we skip Trovare tonight?” Alex asked.
    Scotty shot him a look. “I was looking forward to meeting some of those society babes up at your place.”
    Alex shook his head. “They eat boys from Nebraska for breakfast.”
    “Sounds intriguing,” Scotty said. “I might like being someone’s breakfast.”
    “Trust me on this one,” he said as he punched at his cellphone.
    “Alex, it’s storming up here,” Sabrina said when she answered. “It came in fast, and Mother’s furious. She still doesn’t believe she can’t command the heavens.”
    Alex laughed. “I’m going to skip the party. Forgive me?”
    “I always do. I’ll find a way for you to make it up to me.”
    He knew that playful tone. “No dates or set-ups, Sabrina. None. Zero.”
    “You left out infinity.”
    “That too.” He took in a breath. “And would you tell Emilio that I’ll meet