Chapter 9: Striking Out
From the bathroom, Dave hollered to Kirby. “What do you want to do tonight, after work? Or maybe we could have the whole day together. Do you think Bud would give you the day off in celebration of the fact that you have a new lover?”
No answer.
“Kirby?”
No answer.
“Babe, where are you?” He walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist and saw that the bed was empty. Rushing into the living room and then the kitchen, he called for her. He went back into the bedroom and saw that her clothes were gone, and noticed his phone sitting on the bed with Trevor’s message displayed and marked as ‘read’.
With a sigh, he sat down on the bed and ran his fingers through his wet hair.
He already could tell she mistrusted Trevor, but didn’t know why. Seeing that Trevor texted me must have sent her into a panic, and now she’s gone…
He dressed quickly and called her phone. She didn’t answer. He texted her.
Baby, I can explain. Let me explain?
No answer.
He checked his watch. The hardware store would be opening soon, and perhaps he could intercept her on her way to work. He rushed out the door, forgetting his coat and gloves, and not wanting to waste any time going back for them. Freezing hands were a small price to pay for finding her as soon as possible. God, I can’t let this woman get away, not now!
He stopped at LuLu’s on the way and ordered Kirby’s favorite drink – a lavender infused latte with soy milk – thinking it was probably something she would appreciate even more than flowers the “morning after”.
Arriving at Bud’s store a few minutes before it opened, he peered through the windows and noted that that the lights were still turned off. So he sat on the curb to wait. After a few moments, he heard the key jangle in the door and jumped up, expecting to see Kirby opening the store, but it was just Bud.
Bud looked at him questioningly, and then opened the door and motioned for him to come inside.
“Mr. Kensington. You’re our first customer of the day. Come on in out of the cold,” Bud said, kindly.
“Oh, I, uh—actually, I came by to see Kirby. Is she working today?”
“Well, she was supposed to, but I got a call that she wasn’t feeling well. I told her to take the day off and rest up.”
“Oh. I see.” Dave’s face looked dejected.
“Something tells me she means a little more to you than just a really excellent sales associate, and that you aren’t still sore at all that she mixed up your order,” Bud said. “Why don’t you come on in and warm up before you continue your hunt for Kirby this morning?”
Reluctantly, not wanting to waste any time getting to Kirby’s side to start fixing whatever was broken, he followed Bud into the store. As Bud prepared the cash register area for the day’s business and took a few calls, Dave warmed his hands by the wood burning stove and sipped on Kirby’s latte. It seemed a shame to waste it and, wow, Kirby had excellent taste – light notes of lavender infused the nutty soy milk with a delicate flavor of fresh flowers, and it was as beautiful as Kirby.
“You ever been married, Bud?” Dave asked. It was perhaps a more personal question than he was used to asking of shop keepers he barely knew, but something about the way his beautiful night with Kirby had ended had left him feeling raw and vulnerable and wanting to connect with someone, anyone, who might understand what he was feeling.
“Yep, my LuLu passed on twelve years ago,” he said. “She was my moon and stars, and not a day goes by that I don’t grieve for her and miss her.”
“LuLu’s? Like the coffee shop next door?”
“The same. It was her shop, right next to mine. She was such a treasure in this town, all the locals thought of her as a grandmother to them and her coffee shop was such a popular place too. Still is. I sold it after she passed away to a woman LuLu loved like a sister, and we both agreed we should keep the name the same.”
“That’s so sweet. It’s like a permanent reminder of how much this town loved your wife,” Dave said.
“Yeah, but it’s also a permanent reminder I’ll never see her again, not in this life at least,” Bud said. “We were high school sweethearts, born and raised in Breckenridge. We raised our family here, made a real nice life together. I miss her.” Bud wiped a tear from the corner of his eye and didn’t appear ashamed to be seen crying in front of another man.
Dave bowed his head to give Bud a private moment before speaking again.
“I’m sorry, Bud. I wish I could have known her. I grew up here my whole life, but we lived on the outskirts of town and didn’t come into town often. I feel like I missed a chance to know someone extra special.”
“You know, I see a bit of her spark in folks, and know that she impacted a lot of lives in this town for the better, so it’s not like she’s really gone. Take Kirby, for example. My niece, Scarlet, is Kirby’s best friend. They spent a lot of time over at LuLu’s as little girls, and I know my lovely wife was a big part of their childhood. So, I don’t think you missed a chance to know someone special at all. You know Kirby, so you know someone special. She’s a gem, that one is.”
Dave bowed his head again, his heart pounding in his chest at the mention of Kirby’s name. Bud was, of course, right.
“I need to find her, Bud. I need to talk to her. It’s sort of complicated, and I don’t know if you’re even interested in the story—“ Dave started to say.
“Oh, I think I’ve heard this story before, son,” Bud replied. “Let me guess. You and Kirby hit it off, you’re the reason she’s perked up from a wall flower to a rose in full bloom these past few days, and now you’ve gone and done something stupid and screwed it up, and you are wondering how to make it up to her.”
Dave laughed. “Yeah, in a nutshell, that’s pretty much it. Only, I don’t know if I screwed it up, at least not on purpose. It’s more like I think we had a miscommunication. I got this text message morning from a guy, Trevor, and she took off—“
Bud interrupted Dave again. “Trevor von Stoup?”
“Yeah, we’re working on a real estate negotiation—“
“So, you don’t know the story,” Bud stated.
“I know Kirby doesn’t have a lot of respect for Trevor just based on stuff she’s said, but no, if there’s a story there, I don’t know it,” Dave replied.
Bud sighed. “You need to know it, son. If you’re going to know Kirby, you gotta know that story.”
“Will you tell me? Please? She’s everything to me, I need to know how to make things right with her, I have to try,” Dave said.
“I can see that, I can see that. I believe you. I think you’re good for Kirby, and I can see the anguish in your eyes thinking you’ve hurt her somehow, even inadvertently. I know that look. You love her, don’t you?”
“Yes, I love her.”
“Alright, well, then you need to know that she is a former beauty queen. She was Miss Breckenridge at 16, Miss Eagle County at 18, and a runner up for Miss Colorado at 21. Did you know that?”
“No, I just thought she was amazingly beautiful, I had no idea…”
“You never met a beauty queen like Kirby. So down to earth, so eager to help others. She taught school for several years over at the elementary. She was a special education teacher. On the side, for free, she tutored at risk kids, kids from the hills who didn’t get much support at home for their education.”
“Wow, I had no idea. All this time I thought she just worked here,” Dave said, and then realized how that sounded. He corrected himself quickly. “I didn’t mean anything by that; you have a fine store and working here is nothing I would be ashamed of.”
Bud laughed and waved his hand dismissively. “No, it’s fine, I knew you what you meant. She’s only worked here a little over a year. After Trevor was done with her, I was the only one in this town that would give her a job.”
The two men sat quietly together talking for most of the day, being distracted only by a few customers coming in and out. Most of them were locals who thought it was pretty neat to get to meet Big Dave behind the counter of their hardware store, and he could not have been more warm and welcoming. Signing autographs on paper bags was a first, but he didn’t mind. During that time, he heard the entire story of how Trevor had run a smear campaign against Kirby, leaving her reputation in question and her prospects for ever teaching again – something that she had loved – in the mud.
“Wow, I had no idea,” Dave said. “I mean, she never mentioned any of that, and she is such a positive, light person, despite having been through so much. I just don’t understand why she never told me, and I can totally understand why thinking that I was friends with Trevor was a big turn off.”
“Just give her some time,” Bud said. “She’ll come around. You two are good for each other, I can see that. Don’t give up.”
“The worst part is, I don’t even like Trevor. And she doesn’t fully realize that. I mean, she thinks I’m buddies with him, but I’m not. He wants to sell my parents’ old place to me, but he wants too much money for it.”
“Not surprising. The von Stoup family has always been all about the bottom line,” Bud replied.
“Well, now Trevor wants to negotiate after I told him I wouldn’t pay more than market value. He said if I dump Kirby and never see her again, he’ll give it to me for 50% of market value. I mean, I really want that property, Bud. I want to rebuild my childhood home and settle down, start a family with the woman I love, and get on with my happy ending. But Trevor’s making that almost impossible for me here. His family owns most of the properties that are available. I’ve never seen such a financial presence in a town this size.”
“Welcome to von Stoup Town,” said Bud. “You’re right, not much happens around here where dollars are exchanged and they don’t have a hand in it. I feel for you, I really do.”
The late afternoon, winter sun was already starting to set by the time Dave left Bud’s store, and he tried calling Kirby again.
“Kirby, I need to talk to you, I need to explain. Call me,” his message said.
She never called back.
He texted her. Kirby, I have to talk to you. I understand what you’re going through. Please let me explain?
She didn’t text him back.
He went by her house and knocked on her door, but no one answered and the lights were out and the curtains drawn.
Dejected and hopeless, he went back to his condo.
He poured himself a glass of wine, slipped into a pair of soft, flannel pajama pants, and curled up on the couch. The snow was falling outside, and he wasn’t sure how long he sat there watching it drift and thinking about Kirby. He missed her already, her smile, her warmth, talking to her, holding her. You’ve lost a lot games, Big Dave, but never one as big as this. It’s like the World Series – one bad pitch and the whole thing crumbles. You’ve struck out, Big Dave.
The sound of his phone ringing stirred him from his stupor, and he reached for it frantically, hoping it was Kirby. The ringtone gave it away though, and he knew almost immediately it wasn’t her.
“Hi Duke,” he said, drearily.
“Woah, woah, what’s with all the gloom? You okay, man?”
“Yeah, just girl trouble.”
“I knew it! I knew you had yourself a new girl up there in the mountains.”
“Well, I wouldn’t say I have her anymore…”
“Well, hey, let me cheer you up with some good news.”
“I dare you to try. Go ahead, I’m listening.”
“Ben Lingfeld is out.”
“Out? What do you mean?” Dave sat up tall and listened intently. The veteran pitcher for the Rockies who Dave had been traded for to the White Sox was a legend.
“Tore a ligament in his wrist, going for surgery tomorrow, and the Rockies want you back.”
“Me? Why me?”
“Because the draft is done, the free agents are all set and settled for the season, and you’re not. Just say the word, man, and I’ll get the contract to you. They’re offering to match Lingfeld’s salary, so 3.5 million for the year, and an option to stay on if it all works out after this year. What do you say? Isn’t that great?”
“I gotta think about,” Dave said.
“Think about it? Are you kidding me? This is the break we’ve been waiting for, and you’ve got to think about it?!?”
“How much time do I have before I have to sign?”
“You’ve got three days to think it over. Call me.”
Duke was right, it was the break they’d been waiting for. And to pitch again at Coors Field would be more than a dream come true. He could still buy property in Breckenridge, if he ever found any, build his house, and settle here in the off-season, and Denver was not so far away that he couldn’t come back for a day or two here and there to see Kirby… If she wanted to see him, that is. But to be so far from her, to be all the way over in Denver when she was here, nearly broke his heart to even think about it.
But face it, she won’t even return your calls. Maybe you should just look out for you, and not worry about her anymore. She doesn’t want anything to do with you, he thought to himself.
He texted her one more time before deciding he was venturing into stalker territory and put his phone away for the night: The Rockies called, it said, and that was all.
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