But I’d never take someone’s mom from them. I’d never leave a poor sixteen-year-old kid so wracked with guilt that she becomes an addict. I can’t have the public thinking that of me. I may not be a lot, but I’m not that guy.
Shit, I’m going to have to go along with this stupid plan.
Chapter 19: Andi
When my phone lightsup showing Hannah LaRosa is calling, my first instinct is to throw the phone out the window. There’s nothing she can say to reverse the disaster that last night was.
Especially not after a picture surfaced on Instagram, followed by multiple videos with that picture showing the four of us outside Prima. In reality, Brandon and I were snapping at each other.
Have I mentioned I hate that man?
But in the picture, all you see is his body, bent toward mine, his nose inches from my ear.
If I didn’t know better, I’d think it was an intimate moment, not him telling me I smelled desperate.
More fuel to the bonfire that was my career.
I leave in two days for Birmingham and then have the meeting with Nathan two days after that. Unless I can come up with something good, there’s no reason why I’d be with two players from the Boston Buzzards on what looked like a double date.
“Yes, I saw. I know it’s bad.” I don’t even bother saying hello. “But that oaf won’t even sit down for a civilized conversation, so what can I do?”
“He wants you to come down to his place to talk. He doesn’t want to be out in public.”
“I’m supposed to work today. I travel this week, so I have to get five days of work done in two. Plus, I still need to get a run in. I’m trying to wait until it cools down a little.”
Hannah laughs. “That’s something I do not miss about playing soccer. If I want to work out, I do. For the record, I never want to.”
“There are definitely days I want to skip it, but God forbid I can’t keep up. It took me this long to get in the door. I don’t need to give them an excuse to kick me out.” I pause a moment. “Another excuse, that is. Though I’m a little pissed at the straws they’re currently grasping at.”
Hannah says, “It’s hard to fight for your place in a world that sees you as lesser simply because you’re female. I know. I applied for an awful lot of sportscaster jobs. They couldn’t come right out and tell me they wouldn’t hire me because I’m a woman. They did feel free to use my weight—sorry, myimage—as an excuse. I can’t wrap my mind around how we live in a society that doesn’t think women have a place in sports.”
“Yeah, I know. It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, but it’s what’s going on. I’m probably going to reach out to my union. I haven’t done anything wrong, but they are making me feel like I have.”
“I’ve never had a union, but that might be a good place to start.”
I don’t really do much with my union, other than pay dues. Maybe it’s time to put those dues to good use. “Still, I need to do some damage control on my end. You know, cover my ass a little. If I can do that first, then I’ll reach out to the union.” I think about my upcoming meeting in Atlanta. I don’t have a lot of time to lose. If Brandon wants to talk, maybe I should listen. “Fine. I’ll drive down. Text me his address.”
