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I can't tell at first if she's serious. “You mean you haven't heard? Not a word? You work there in the arena, and nobody told you?” Well, now I feel like a real smacked ass. I figured she’d hear the news and understand why I’ve gone MIA.
The look of innocence she wears tells another story. “Told me what? Stop beating around the bush and get to the point, woman.”
If the pie weren’t molten hot, I would offer her a slice before we sit down. Instead, I jerk my thumb toward the coffee maker. “Do you want some coffee?”
“So it's that kind of story?”
“Well, I haven't been to work all week and I just baked an apple pie from scratch after I bookmarked a YouTube video two years ago, if that tells you anything. And it’s too early in the day for alcohol.” Though I’ve certainly considered it.
I head over to the pot and pour two cups, one of which I slide her way before adding milk and sugar to my own. “I've never lived anywhere this clean. My closet looks like something from a Pinterest board, and my cabinets?” I open one to show her my beautifully organized plates and glasses.
“So what's up? You took a week off to clean your house and make apple pie?”
“No. I stayed home this week because Coach Kozak confronted me after Ash’s first practice and told me he knows.”
It's a good thing she just swallowed her coffee, or else I get the feeling it would have ended up all over the island. “What?” she screeches. “How did you not tell me? Holy shit! What happened? Are you okay? What can I do?”
I love her for asking that, but it's not like she can change anything. “You can tell me there hasn't been any gossip around the arena.”
“Obviously not, or I would have heard something about this. Shit, I'm so sorry. So he fired you? Exactly what happened?”
I give her the Cliffs Notes version, leaving out the part where I seriously considered lying. I'm not exactly proud of that, even if I'm sure it was a natural reaction anybody would have had in my shoes.
By the time I'm finished, her jaw is practically on the floor. “I am so sorry. And here I was, pissed off that you ghosted me for a week. No wonder.”
“I really am sorry for not getting back to you.”
“It's okay. Really. I should have stopped by before now to check up on you, anyway.”
She looks around again, eyes narrowing. “And you did all this? All the cleaning and the baking and organizing? I would still be in bed under a pile of used tissues. I doubt I would have changed my pajamas all week.”
‘When you wake up every morning wondering if this is the day you're going to officially be fired and kicked out of your house,you need to channel your anxiety somehow. Hey, at least the house is spotless.”
“You think they would kick you out?”
“They arranged it for me.”
“But you're the one paying rent. They can't leave you homeless.” She winces, then bites her lip, and I have a feeling I know what's coming. “Are you sure he's going to fire you?”
That's the thing. I'm not sure of anything anymore. And the longer this goes on, the worse it gets.
8
HARLOW
“This is really bizarre.”
Corey looks up from her pie, and her frown gets my pulse racing erratically. “What? Did I do something wrong?” I haven't taken a bite yet. I was sort of waiting for her to give me a clue whether I screwed it up or not.
“I wasn't talking about this. This is freaking fantastic. You need to do more baking.” She spears a slice of apple which she drags through the melting vanilla bean ice cream before popping it in her mouth. “I was talking about how I haven't heard anything about this yet.”
“That does seem kind of strange.” Putting it mildly. “I was sure everybody would be talking about it.”
“Well, this is a good thing. I know if I were in your shoes, I would rather find out nobody knew.”
She makes a good point. “So long as nobody is, like, burning me in effigy down there.”
“What about the guys? You've talked to them, right?”
