“Hmmm, I don’t think anyone’s been on the team for that long.” She leaned in to kiss my cheek, then trailed her lips overto nip at my ear. “But are you willing to ask around to confirm that?”
I raised an eyebrow at her and Kodi giggled, eyes sparkling as she dared me to argue with her.
I decided not to. I was done talking. It was time for breakfast in bed.
A New Rumor
Kodi
Despite Olli saying I could take the day off with the weak excuse that he didn’t have anything for me to do, I was in the stadium offices working on a calendar. Asking Olli to pose shirtless with a cute animal was a joke, but the more I thought about it, the more fun it sounded. Eleven individual shots, then a team one, maybe a featured charity for each month, something the players pick out. Profits go to the charities. And if we focus on local organizations, we might see an increase in local ticket sales, maybe even season passes.
It was cheesy, but it had potential to be a real game changer for the team.
But that sort of thing was something I’d have to pitch to an owner and as things stood, it wasn’t a good time to meet with them.
If I kept my head low until after the transition and then presented this along with more personal, player-first social plans, things might go well. It’d take a lot longer than I’d like, and I’m sure Olli will grump about it, but it was the smart play.
Having something of a solid plan made me feel better, but I was still jittery. The excitement of finding Olli again, of thereally good sex, and the possibility of a long-lasting relationship made me want to actnow.
Being a reasonable adult sucked.
“Ah, shit,” someone said from the door of the office and I dragged my head up to see Rosa with two cups of coffee in hand. “Did the weekend go bad? 'Cause Ispecificallydidn’t text you thinking you might be enjoying a stay at bone town.”
“Bone town?” I repeated, fighting a laugh. I got up to hug her and took the spare coffee. “Did you come to the stadium just to gossip with me?”
“Obviously. We’re in a lull betweenLove IslandandLove Is Blind. In any nation.” She shrugged and took a seat on my desk. “Plus, I’m excited for you. The start of a new relationship, the forbidden aspect, it’s hot.”
“Who said anything about starting a new relationship?” I asked, cocking my eyebrow at her before I sat back down. She leaned over and smacked me.
“Kodi, I swear to god, if nothing happened after you bid on him, I’m gonna beat you up.”
I bit my lip to keep from laughing too hard, then leaned over my desk to look out the hall. Not too many folks worked in the office portion of the stadium and even fewer people came in Monday mornings. But I was being a safe and responsible adult, so I had to be sure.
Rosa caught my vibes and got up to shut the door.
“Spill.”
“Okay, but you have to promise not to tell anyone? Not even Jimenez,” I said, pointing a finger at her. She smacked my hand away and rolled her eyes.
“You can’t make me promise not to tell my husband. Pretty sure that was in our vows, never hide juicy gossip. Besides, he’s rooting for y’all, too. The bastard hates getting me involved in any drama, so him asking me to get involved is a pretty big deal.”
“That’s actually really sweet. I didn’t realize the boys were all that close.”
“Hmm, you know, I didn’t either. I guess they only do the typical buddy-buddy shit when one of them needs help. But whatever, Carmen won’t spill to anybody else. I’ll chop off his balls if he does. We don’t want kids anyway, so they’re useless to me.”
“All right, all right. No domestic violence on my behalf, please.”
Rosa shrugged.
“Okay, so … fuck, this whole thing got a lot more complicated in one night.” I sighed and rubbed at my eyes, not sure where to start. “It turns out Olli is a childhood friend.”
“What?” Rosa shouted, slamming both hands onto the desk.
“Shhh!” I said, probably louder than she’d been.
“You can’t drop a reveal like that and expect me to be quiet.”
“Then maybe I’ll just keep the rest to myself,” I huffed and crossed my arms. Rosa glared at me, but settled down. “Good. So, he’s got a military family. Navy, I think? Or Marines? I’m not sure if those are different.”
