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She slid me a sideways glance and her eyes flashed fiercely at me.
“So… we’re good?” I asked, a little nervously.
She laughed again, brittle. “Of course. Like I said, no biggie. You’re not that hot, you know. And just because you’re rich and successful – I’m not so shallow that I give a shit about that stuff.” She jabbed her plastic spoon hard into the fruit smoosh. “You don’t have to make it quite so clear you think I’m a money-grabbing gold digger who’s going to ensnare you into a relationship, you know. It was only one misguided act of passion on a kitchen counter. And it wasn’t even that good, so…” She filled the bottle and began shaking it vigorously – like anger therapy.
Ouch, that hurt. Especially what she said about it not being all that good for her. That was actually viscious. I hadn’t said… I hadn’t meant… I was the one who should be angry and offended! I felt completely tongue-tied again, and I could only watch her storm out past me, the bottle in one hand and the bowl of violently-pounded fruit smoosh in the other.
I made myself some coffee and sat heavily down in a kitchen chair, to brood on the horrible situation I’d found myself in. After a few minutes, though, I pulled myself together and grabbed my laptop, calculator and files from a nearby shelf. My study was going to be amazing – my desk would be the original cashiers’ counter from the store, but it had been sent away for restoration, so that room wasn’t finished yet. For now, the kitchen was my office too.
I shoveled granola into my face and got to work. There were contractors’ invoices to look over, suppliers’ lead times to check, a real estate agent to call back about valuations and leasing options for the other apartments in the building, a cello to lease from somewhere for Kayla and that was before I even got started on thinking about my actual job – getting ready on all levels to lead the Bills to victory in the upcoming season.
We had to make our amazing, loyal (and, yes, slightly crazy, some of them) fans proud. We had to pull out all the stops to rise to glory again. Those Bengals were going to have no idea what hit them when we got back out on the field with them this autumn. Our crushing defeat at the end of last season would only make us stronger. By the time we walked away from our next game with them, we’d be thanking them for giving us the determination that made us warriors, smashing the season and landing ourselves in the Super Bowl. Yeah, I had big plans, both for this place and for next season, and one young woman, however fucking hot, was not going to derail them.
I looked up from my papers as I heard some bashing about and Maddy screeching happily. I heard Mary-Beth swear loudly, and there was more bashing about. I hoped she wasn’t scuffing the antique wood paneling in the hallway with that damn stroller.
That’s when my teammate and buddy Bryce called. I answered the call. “Hey, what’s up, dawg?”
“Yo, dawg. You training today?”
“You know it. I gotta keep up the pace, man.”
“Yeah, you over the hill, grandpa.”
I laughed, but a little pain of insecurity jabbed me too. I’d been thinking that, wondering if the upcoming season would be my last. I was one of the oldest players in the NFL now, and the media had started the speculation about my retirement plans with what felt like a little too much relish. “So, what do you want, bro?”
More bashing about in the hallway. Jesus, what the hell was going on out there?
“That launch at The Latham next week, for their new gym. You gotta have a date, man. For PR or some shit. Coach said Darius is going to talk to you about it. You can’t keep turning up for PR calls alone, he says. Well, what he said exactly was ‘get yourself a hot woman for the photos, so people know you still got that fire that’s gonna give you the edge next season. Show the world you weren’t broken by Clarissa running out on you’.”
Anger and distress rose in me, and the insecurity spiked. “Is that what people are saying?” I demanded. “She didn’t run out on me. We just split up.”
“Yeah, but she’s got someone new.”
I braced. “How do you know that?”
“Darius told coach – it’s his business to know things that could affect your profile, or your game.”
“Who else knows?”
Bryce laughed easily, feeling me get riled. “Hey, listen, man, I’m not getting involved. Just get yourself a date for the gym launch. There’s a free three course meal in it – it’s all fancy shit. Women love that. It shouldn’t be too hard to find someone. You still got it, dawg!”
“Yeah, I still do!” I said, making myself sound upbeat. “Fine, I’ll find someone. Later, dude. See you at team training.”
“You know it!”
I went back to my paperwork, riled. I knew Clarissa hadn’t talked to Kayla yet about seeing Asshole – sorry, Andrew - not properly. Kayla just knew they’d had a few dates, and she’d told me her mom didn’t seem that into it. I only knew it was more than that because my buddy Sanjeev played squash with Andrew sometimes. He said he’d been talking about taking it further, making it official. Obviously, Clarissa hadn’t told me anything. We had no real platform for talking, and less for co-parenting.
And now I had to find some kind of fake date for the gym launch, because I sure as hell wasn’t planning to go on a real one. It was the last thing I needed, and the last thing Kayla needed too – the local press and social media all talking about whether I was dating again and speculating on my love life. I grabbed the calculator angrily, adding up a column of figures.
There was more banging in the hall and I heard Maddy running towards the kitchen then, shrieking. I winced as I lost concentration. I’d have to go back and add the whole column again. I was making some spreadsheets for this latest batch of materials orders and contractor bills, for sure, but I hadn’t had time (when did I ever have time?) so it was all still on paper. I heard Mary-Beth come down the hallway after Maddy and scoop her up, at which she set up an even louder wailing.
Holy shit, how was I supposed to think with all that going on? Then the front door slammed – hard.
“Thank God, some peace,” I grumbled, under my breath. I got up, poured some more coffee, and then buried myself in the work again.
5
MARY-BETH
