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“Did I really agree to help you out that night? Did I come up with the grand plan to fill in for you on your date?”
“When I left here that next morning, I thanked you for agreeing to help me. But the only thing you agreed to do was bring me into the postseason camp. When I realized you didn’t remember, and after you met Tatum, I changed my mind and tried using her to keep you close. I regret it, but I’ve stood by and watched everyone get what they want in their life but me. No soccer, no head coaching job, no love.”
“Tatum loved you.”
“Yeah,” he winced. “But I knew, even before I left for League One, that I could never return that love the way she deserved.”
I started to say, “Well I can.” But I still wasn’t sure if that was true. There was no doubt that she was mine, and I had no intention of letting her go, but how much of my heart could I risk when I was still so unsure of my future?
Hunter took my silence to mean the conversation was over, and he jerked my door open and left. I took a minute to collect myself, then made my way to my bedroom, needing to check on Tatum.
She was dressed in one of my t-shirts, lying on my bed, and curled into a ball. The curtains were pulled closed, so it was almost pitch black despite being midafternoon. Only the light from the doorway helped me see her, and once I closed it behind me, we were wrapped in blackness.
Carefully making my way to the bed, I climbed up and wrapped my body around hers. “Are you okay?”
“Is it bad that…that…”
“That you wanted him to watch us? Or that you liked it?”
“Both.”
“No.” Leaving it at that. Fuck, I would do it again if she wanted me to. I’d tie that bastard to a chair and make him swallow my dick if I thought it would make her happy.
“I hate what he did to you,” she cried. “I hate him.”
“He fucked up.”
Turning around in my arms to face me, she reached up and ran her hand along my jaw. “How are you so calm?”
“Because I’m more worried about you than him, or me.”
She sighed and leaned in closer to kiss me, gently touching her lips to mine. My heart started getting erratic again, body shaking as I tried to keep the same restraint she had. Just a kiss, just a connection.
“Who took the pic?” She whispered.
“I don’t know. Could be a crazy fan.”
“That happened before we met, but then I ended up with sliced tires and weird notes.”
So they targeted me before I met Tatum and then brought her into it after we met. The only person who made sense or had anything to gain was Hunter, but from the look on his face when we told him, it didn’t feel like it was him.
“I need to go back to work,” Tatum said, then rolled to get out of bed. She walked into the living room and returned with all the clothes we had discarded earlier. Watching her get dressed, I started to worry about what else was in store. Because the fact of the matter was that it was easier to think our problems were with Hunter. Adding someone else to the mix and not knowing who or why made me want to hold her safely in my bed.
“What’s your plan?” I asked, seeing the look on her face.
“First thing I’m doing is getting you back on the team, so that you can go to work. Then I’m going to talk to someone that may stand to gain from your scandal.”
“Who?”
“My boss.”
* * *
Everything in me wanted to pull Tatum back to bed, but I knew I couldn’t tie her down. She had a job to do, whether it involved me or not, and I had to trust that she would take care of herself. Plus, I had my own things to deal with.
Picking up my phone, I called my mom first, hoping she was a voice of reason for me.
“Shouldn’t you be at practice,” she laughed, knowing my schedule as well as I did.
