“Then, what is it you want?”
Direct, and yet, it had so many questions that followed. What did I want? What if I went over and threw her over my shoulder, claiming her for everyone to see, would she want that? She walked away easily enough. Maybe itwasjust a situationship and nothing more.
“She is amazing and she seems to be having a good time.”
“She does,” I conceded. Because I couldn’t take my eyes off her, I was watching firsthand their inside-bond. They way they laughed or both quirked their brows at something one of the suits said. And yet, every few minutes, she glanced at me. Each time my breath would still. Until the last time, when she gave a small smile and wave.
My chest instantly inflated, I felt lighter, only to see it wasn’t me she was waving at. It was Millie. Fuck.
Millie cleared her throat, making me turn my attention to her. She stepped next to me and narrowed her eyes. “Don’t be a dumbass anymore.” She lingered for an extra moment. “And also, don’t do or say anything you can’t take back.” She paused and leaned down so she could whisper. “Let me leave you with a question, I don’t want it answered right away.”
“Okay.” I hesitated.
“What is your endgame with her?” And with that, she stepped away and headed towards Jake, leaving me speechless. What had that even meant?
CHAPTER 37
APRIL
My blood boiled. What a pompous ass!Are you with Moose?I mocked his voice in my head. I should have yelled,yes!But I wasn’t a liar. I had RSVP’d months ago with the intention of bringing Nora, but she got the promotion she wanted and unfortunately the timing of it was terrible. She was sent out of town to interview an up-and-coming band. We had hoped she might be back before the start of it, but no such luck.
Moose and I were talking after practice the other day about the gala and he admitted he didn’t have a date. I did, too. He was rather surprised and told me he thought I might have been going with Josh, since he had seen us getting “chummy”, he smirked when he said it. It stung for a moment, because Ihadwanted to go with Josh, but that wasn’t in the cards and I refused to crumble. It would be ridiculous over afakerelationship. Even if every fiber of my being screamed there was nothing fake about it.
Instead, I took Nora’s advice and acted as if I was completely fine with it. Sure, during our situationship I maybe let the thoughts of coming with Josh play out, but I guess that was too far into the future, as usual. So, I asked Moose to be my date for the gala tonight. And to be honest,up until that stunt Josh pulled, I was having a great time. Friendly, but not flirty, and that suited me just fine.
We danced, had some champagne, and great conversations with everyone. This gala, the charity behind it, and the people who come to it, is one of the reasons I love this event. Now, it was tarnished, thanks to my inability to walk the hell away from Josh, because despite my anger and hurt, the second he touched me, I flushed. My stomach clenched and the little butterflies I kept ignoring were fluttering. I wished I knew how to turn it off, but I didn’t. Instead, I walked, no, stormed away and out into the crowd hoping to avoid him.
“April. Wait.” I heard the large, heavy steps of Moose jogging up behind me. “You okay? What happened?”
“It’s fine,” I lied.
His eyebrows knitted together, like he was deciding whether to call my bluff or not. He took me by the elbow, guided me over to the bar, and ordered us both water.
“I dunno what’s been going on with you and Josh lately, but I do know you’re both hiding something. And I’m not the only one.” He subtly nodded towards the coach, who was glaring at me before his wife tapped his shoulder to bring his attention back to the group he was standing in. I bit my lip, tucked my chin down, and took in two large, deep breaths to calm my nerves. I had to get a grip and not let him affect me.
“It’s fine. It will be fine.”I think.
“How about another drink?”
“God, yes!” I chuckled.
We headed over to the standard corner bar and took our places against the countertop, waiting for service. It was hard to not keep checking for Josh, despite how many times I had. I was surprised to see that he had come alone. Did a small part of me feel guilty I alluded Moose was my date? No. It was none of his business anymore. Our deal was over. He’d won the bet and I’d got my family off my back.
Last night, I called my mom and told her we were taking abreak when she asked if “we” would be coming for Thanksgiving dinner. She tried to hide the disappointment in her voice for my sake, which was shocking.
My traitorous eyes darted around one more time, landing on Josh scowling at his table. Damn it, why did he need to be so fucking handsome? His custom-fit suit jacket slung over the back of his chair, his white dress shirt was barely holding in his muscles as his elbows rested on the table. His glass was so tightly gripped in his hand, he could probably crack the glass if he wasn’t careful.
Just then, I felt Moose’s hand brush against my arm as he reached around and led me over to a group of donors that were apparently very excited to meet the team member who “kept the guys in check.” And that was exactly what tonight was about, pleasing the donors to help our charity causes. Tonight’s benefit was for our local children’s hospital, which no one would ever deny was one of the utmost important causes. Despite my surly attitude toward Josh, his constant gazes still made me feel as if he was debating between spanking me or tearing my clothes off. Both of which were appealing options.Stop it! This is not the right time or place for your messed up confliction.
I gave my head a small shake, as if to clear away the obvious brain fog I was struggling with. Like, seriously, get a grip!He brought up the breakup right after he won. That was exactly the plan.And that single thought had me snapping out of it. My heart felt heavy, but I refused to dwell on it any longer. It was time to let it all go and focus on the group of donors in front of me, to see if we could raise that number we were climbing to all night.
Despite my best attempts, my peripheral vision kept catching on Josh’s stolen glances. I was overly intrigued when I caught Millie sitting next to him. Her expression was slightly concerned as she glanced over at me. There was something in her gaze that had me pause and watch them,almost as if she was telling me she’d fix this. A glimmer of hope bloomed in my chest. For the first time in my life, I wished I was a fly on the wall. I watched her turn to him and whatever she was saying, had him sunk in his chair with his chin tucked down, as if he was a one of her kids being scolded.
Watching him squirm in his chair was slightly amusing. It was then he glanced up and caught me staring between them. Our eyes locked and for a split second, I wished he would just get up and come over here, that I’d talk to him and joke around like we used to. I think I missed that most. Somehow, over the past six weeks, in the midst of it all, we’d developed an unlikely friendship, and I was missing it, afraid that I might never get that back.
Moose nudged me gently after I zoned out mid conversation. My eyes darted away from Josh and Millie, and back to the tall gentleman with a suit that was perfectly tailored. He wore a five o’clock shadow well and his features were symmetrical to his face. He was handsome. He was also smiling at me. How long had he been smiling at me? What was it he said? Shit, I zoned out.
“She is the top physio for the team and amazing at her job. She’s my boss,” Moose declared, playfully elbowing me.
