We returned to the hotel so I could change and get my gear. Coach Conde had another two pitching prospects he wanted to try out. I was stretching and doing some warm-ups when things got interesting.
A classic Chevy pulled up and came to a screeching halt. Out jumped two men with Luis.
“
You could tell that Luis wasn’t happy to be there. He nodded, and they began to stomp over to the field. I looked over, and Cassidy had her headset on, listening to music, and wasn’t paying attention. Well, shit!
As they came toward me, I assumed the stance Carlos suggested for a bar fight. My left arm was across my chest, and my right had the elbow at my side and my right hand close to my face. As they got closer, I could see them better and suspected that the two men were Luis and Sarita’s father and uncle or older cousin.
Luis hung back, but the two men flanked me. I got the impression that they’d done this before. I heard Cassidy scrambling to get on the field to act as my bodyguard.
“You’re the guy who took advantage of my daughter?” the older man asked.
“I’m assuming you’re talking about Sarita?” I asked.
“Sí. She tells me you abandoned her,” he said, poking me in the chest.
That was when Cassidy stepped between us and pushed me back to give her room.
Both men looked at each other and then glared at me.
“Maybe she is better off without a …”
Let’s just say what her dad said was rude.
“I’m not sure what the problem is. Your daughter and I went out a few times, and it just didn’t work out,” I tried.
“The problem is, you took her innocence! Now you act like it’s no big deal. I expect you to do what’s right, or I’m going to kick your ass. Just so we’re clear, I will kick this little girl’s ass, too, if I have to.”
“Before you get yourself hurt, I want make you aware of who this ‘little girl’ is. Her father is a retired major in the United States Marines. Not just the Marines, either; he was in their version of Special Forces. This ‘little girl’ learned how to fight from some of the best men they had to offer. If that wasn’t enough, they were stationed in Japan. That was where she learned from a master. This ‘little girl’ knows hundreds of ways to make you cry like a baby without breaking a sweat.
“Heck, if I asked her to … it would be like
I noticed a little quiver go through Cassidy’s body. That meant they had better not make an aggressive move, or she would attack. I was about to call her off when Sarita’s dad made a grab for Cassidy. She’d wanted to knock me out ever since Carlos had shown us how to do it. His right hand grabbed her left shoulder, so she used her right forearm to pop him with a bone strike behind the ear.
The difference was that unlike the love tap Carlos had given me, Cassidy wasn’t playing around. I watched as his eyes rolled up into his head, and he just collapsed. The other man took a step back.
“Cassidy,” I called to stop her. “Let him take care of Sarita’s dad.”
While the other man took care of Luis’ dad, I motioned for Luis to come over.
“What the hell just happened?” I asked.
Luis looked over at the two and shook his head.
“Sarita complaining about you finally got my dad’s interest. He sat her down to find out what you’d done, and she admitted that she slept with you. I think she realized what a mistake that was as soon as she said it. Dad became angry. He got my uncle to come with him. Dad planned to make you do the right thing and marry Sarita. I’m sorry, I had to tell him where he could find you,” Luis said.
By that point, Luis’s uncle had gotten his dad to his feet. His dad looked a little unstable and had to be helped back to the car.
“Tell your family that I will meet them at dinner tonight at my hotel. We can talk it out then,” I said.
Luis nodded and left to help get his dad home. I really wished my mom were here. She had talked parents off the ledge before. She’d done it with Cal when he caught Pam and me together, and had bailed Greg out more than once. I would just have to face them on my own.
◊◊◊
Fritz was not a happy man when Cassidy told him what happened. It was made clear I wasn’t going to dinner alone. Not that I’d asked to, but Fritz made sure I knew all three of my security people would be with me tonight.
I received a call from the front desk when they arrived. Somehow, I expected the whole family would be there for dinner. Instead, it was just Sarita and her father. I decided that we didn’t need to outnumber them, so Cassidy and Paul grabbed a table next to ours.
Sarita looked like she might be sick, while her dad had an indelible scowl on his face.
“I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced. I’m David, and this is Fritz,” I said to start the evening off.
“Marco” was his one-word answer.
This wasn’t awkward at all!
“You look nice,” I said to Sarita.
“Don’t talk to her,” Marco growled.
