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“Yeah, so?” The laughter was gone, and in its place was a robot—monotone, small words, and clipped responses.
“Just wondering if she is your rebound.”
Rebound?
“You need one,” he continued. “That last chick has been gone for two months now. Time to take that anger and bullshit out on someone else. Just not the same way you took it out on Garcia.”
“Ash isn't a rebound. She’s just a girl that Colin has me coaching.”
“No fucking way was that coaching, Rhys. If I hadn't been there you two would have beenmetiendo mano en la malla.”
I sighed as Cruz continued to laugh at himself. The very last thing I wanted was a rebound, but now that he had said it, I couldn’t stop wondering. What if my attraction to Ashwasa rebound? What if it wasn’t real? How did that not cross my mind?
What if she picked up on that?
“I had to bail on you two and go rub one out from all the damn tension I felt.”
“Ash is too young to be a rebound,” I argued, gripping the steering wheel and gritting my teeth. I was desperately trying not to let the picture of him stroking his dick to Ash’s image get to me.
“She’s not too young,” he countered. “And she is the complete opposite of the last one.”
Ash was definitely the opposite of Melanie. Cruz didn’t know enough about either of them to properly make that assessment, but he wasn’t wrong. Where Melanie had fair skin and blonde hair, Ash had a darker complexion and dark brown hair–almost black. Mel was a doctor, but she kept herself high on a pedestal of prim and proper. She wouldn't have been caught dead on a soccer field. Not to mention my reggaeton music was banned when she was around.
“Look,” I sighed as I pulled into the parking garage to my building. “Ash is fucking beautiful, definitely not Mel, and we have a lot more in common than I thought we would. But I’m not stupid enough to sleep with her. I may not mind messing with Colin about fake soccer practice, but that was just supposed to be fun. Fucking one of his players is crossing the line. Especially if I was just using her.”
Cruz continued to laugh as I started over explaining myself in an attempt to makemebelieve the bullshit I was spewing. “What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him. Besides, it's not his kid, and you're both adults.”
“Very funny.” I jerked my car into park and started strumming my fingers on my leg.
“Eventually you’re going to want to get that dick wet again and…”
I pressed END on my phone and hung up, not wanting to hear Cruz talk about my dick. A text popped up before I could even climb from my car with what looked like twenty laughing emojis from Cruz. Why did he like getting under my skin and pushing my buttons?
I made a mental note to return that favor one day. Eventually, he'll grow up and some poor girl will make his head spin.
Instead of heading up to my apartment, I took the stairs to the ground floor of the parking garage and out the door to Bayfront Park.
When I first moved to Miami, it wasn’t my intention to live downtown, but I already had the place and it made sense to stay there. It ended up being the best decision because the access to the park was one of the things I loved most about where I lived.
The park was full of life and it always grounded me. Mel hadn’t been a big fan of anything outdoors so I spent our entire relationship avoiding the fresh air, unless I was on the field. Now I soaked it in every chance I got.
Sitting down in the grass, I rested my forearms on my knees, holding my phone in one hand as I looked around. Friends were laughing, families were spending time together, and kids were running around.
It was my dream life, so simple and joyous.
“Fuck Mel,” I whispered to myself. “Why did you have to spook so easily?”
Even knowing how different we were, I’d trade the fresh air to have her back in my life. No matter how angry I was, she was the first woman I ever loved.
I had respected her wishes and never contacted her after that night, but talking to Cruz about Ash being a rebound made me wonder if I needed more closure with Mel. It also made me wonder if I had made a mistake not trying to get in touch with her. She may have needed me to reach out, explain, and fix whatever was broken that night.
Ash’s anger was a sign that I had been headed in the wrong direction. That it wasn’t time to close the book on Mel, yet.
Lifting my hand slightly, I thumbed through my phone and found Mel’s number in my contact list. My finger hovered over thecallbutton as I made a deal with myself. If she answered, then I would go from there, if she didn’t, then I would be able to at least say I tried.
ChapterFifteen
Ash
