The door was unlocked, like it always was when they knew he was coming over. He walked through the house,
�Hello?� he shouted as he made his way towards the kitchen; following the smell of food.
�Hi Derek.� Maria smiled as she walked over and gave him a hug.
�Hey man. Get your own wife.� He simply smiled at Tino.
�What�s up?� He shook Jorge�s hand and sat down.
�Nothing much.�
They were getting together for a round of morning golf. Actually, it was just an excuse for them to get together, hang out alone and not be bothered.
�Where are the kids?�
The house was way too quiet for a family with three kids.
Tino shook his head, �You are so detached from reality.�
He frowned at Jorge, �What�s he talking about?�
He laughed, �Man, its 9:00 in the morning; they are in school.�
He shook his head and smiled, �Wow, I totally missed that.�
Maria placed a full plate in front of Derek, �Anything else you want?�
He shook his head, �No, thank you.�
She patted him on the shoulder. The thing with having many married friends was that they had wives that took pity on his poor lonely single soul so he was spoiled; sometimes more than their husbands.
�I�ll take care of the dishes later. You boys talk amongst yourselves freely.�
�Baby, you can stay.� Tino smiled at her. They all knew she wasn�t going to bother.
�And listen to you guys talk in code? No thanks.�
She headed out of the kitchen and they looked around at each other laughing.
�So, what's been going on?� He stuffed a slice of bacon in his mouth.
�Nothing much. We decided to have a Super Bowl party. You game?�
No one could throw a party or a BBQ like Tino and Maria. Unfortunately, he was going to have to miss it.
�Man, wish I could but I�m going to the game. You guys don�t want to come?�
Tino shook his head, �Nah man, can�t. The kids are excited about the party. I already old them so I�m obligated. Nothing worse than disappointed kids; they make your life hell with the guilt trips.�
He and Jorge laughed and began telling each other stories. He could only smile and listen. He loved hearing the stories but sometimes he just couldn�t relate to their husband and father anecdotes.
�When is the last time you talked to A-Rod?� Even though Alex was on the team last year and had a good year, he was still A-Rod to some of the guys. In his eyes, that wasn�t a good thing. The connection wasn�t there yet. Sure, they patted him on the back and supported his good efforts but they weren�t comfortable with calling him something other than what everyone else called him.
�A couple of weeks ago. Why?�
He didn�t call him as much now that he was a father. Anytime one of his friends had a new baby he backed off a bit. He knew that was the most important thing to Alex. Besides, its not like he could call him up and invite him to the Jamaica or something. He had a family.
�He is so in love with that baby. Dude, he�s a different person. Laura and I were in Miami and we hung out with him and Cynthia a couple of times. That little girl is going to have him wrapped around her finger.�
It kind of surprised him that not only had Jorge talked to Alex but he�d hung out with him. Other than when they were both in New York during the off-season, Derek hadn�t seen Alex at all.
Tino was rather quiet. It was his first year back to the Yankees and he and Alex had yet to be teammates. Last year, Tino warned him to watch his back where Alex was concerned. He still didn�t like the shots Alex took at Derek in years past. Tino felt there was a reason those things were said. He said it�s impossible to take a shot at a friend on accident.
**
�Ok, I�ve put it off as long as I can but I have to have an answer before I go back home to Maria.�
Jorge and Derek waited for Tino. The way he said it made Derek think something unpleasant was about to happen.
�Are you any closer to finding a wife?� Tino held his head down and closed his eyes.
Derek laughed, he knew it pained Tino to have to ask that.
�Tell your wife she is no closer to planning a wedding than the last time she asked.�
All of their wives; Laura, Maria, Cynthia were concerned about his love life. He called them the Wives Club; and they were always eager to add new members.
�Hey, you guys want to go to Ybor for lunch?� Tino asked.
�I can�t. I�m getting Carmen�s car detailed.�
�Wow, that�s pretty intimate.� Jorge playfully shoved him.
�How?�
�Doing errands and stuff like that? Next you�ll be picking up her dry cleaning.�
He looked over at Tino for support but quickly saw he wasn�t going to get any.
�Whatever. It�s no big deal.�
Jorge nodded, �Ok, well tell us this. Who�s paying for it?�
He rolled his eyes and they laughed. Tino placed his arm around Derek and led him towards the green,
�That�s ok man. You don�t have to answer that.�
037 | No Ordinary Girl