“What the hell is wrong with him?” I yell, pushing the call button again.
Hannah steps forward and takes the phone from my hand. “You need to stop bombarding her-”
“I need to talk to her!” I interrupt, reaching for the phone, but she pulls it to her chest.
“You’ll freak her out!” she calls back at me.
I let my arms fall to my sides. “I care about her, that's all.”
Hannah nods solemnly. “I get that, and I know she cares about you, but what she just went through was probably traumatic. I’m sure she has Raleigh and Dalton with her. They’ll contact you when she’s ready.”
Giving it up for two seconds, I sigh, “How are the kids?”
Something sorrowful crosses Hannah’s eyes before she answers, “They’re so confused.”
“So am I,” I mutter. Hanging my head, the whole thing continues replaying on its loop. When Mae shoved him and the trophy fell to the ground, I thought she was going to sock him in the face; I actually expected her to fight back. When she didn’t, when she ran, I could see just how much the moment broke her. Mae’s a lot of amazing things, but a victim? A victim, she is not.
My heart rate quickens again as my phone rings in Hannah’s hand. We both stare down at it. The caller ID readsRaleigh.
Hannah takes a shaky breath and hands it to me. “I’m going to take the kids and head home.” In passing, she puts a hand onmy chest. “I know you love her, but you still have a massive game tomorrow. Don’t let this distract you.”
I nod sadly. Knowing she’s right, I set my mind right before I answer.
“Wyatt?” Raleigh asks. She sounds incredibly stressed.
“I’m here.”
“This is Raleigh. To be honest, this call was way further down on my to-do list, but Mae’s been asking for you and I can’t deny her anything she wants right now. I can’t spare the phone very long, but she wants to see you.”
Not wasting any more time, the call is switched to FaceTime and Mae is in front of me. Her makeup has run down her puffy cheeks. Her eyes are red from crying, and she seems exhausted.
“Hey,” I begin with uncertainty.
“Hi,” she says with a shaky breath. “I didn’t want you to see me like this, but I just needed to hear your voice. I needed to see you.”
“I wish I was there for you,” I say simply. It’s the honest truth.
She spares me a small smile and says, “You can’t. You’ve got a big game, and I’ve got Raleigh and Dalton. I saw that you’d called a few times, and I didn’t want to leave you hanging without letting you know that I’m okay.”
“Mae, you can be honest with me.”
Her eyebrows crease. “I’m always honest with you.”
I sigh as I take her in. “Yes, you are.”
Taking another breath, she starts to ask the hard questions. “Did it look as bad on TV as it felt in person?”
I feel myself flinching; she’s caught it too. I scramble to right the wrong. “What? The fact that that piece of shit doesn’t deserve what he’s got in life? He looked like a low-life human being who couldn’t keep his hands to himself. He looked like a complete idiot.” She shivers, and I stop talking about Trenton; it’s not about him. “Your performance was stunning, Mae.”
She perks up slightly at this. “I don’t even remember it. I was so focused.” Her eyes drop again as she says, “None of that matters now. No one cares now.”
“I care. Little Carly cares.”
“Oh god, the kids were watching?” she says, wincing as her hand smacks her face in embarrassment.
“Hey, you have nothing to be embarrassed about. Not even a little bit. Anyone who makes you feel that way in the upcoming days is dead wrong.” An idea ignites in my brain as Raleigh asks for the phone back.
“I guess …” she sighs again, tears brimming her eyes in panic. “I guess I have to say goodbye for tonight. Lot’s of other fires to put out.”
