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I know it's hard.
I know her parents taught her to be the "good daughter" too. And she's just trying to pass that down to me, thinking it's the best way to live.
And maybe I've been following that lead for so long that I forgot to question whether that's true or not.
I wipe away a stray tear as Talia reaches over and squeezes my hand. "We got you, girl. We get it. You're not alone." She glances over my shoulder at the stove. "But if you burn this beef stew, you might be on your own for dinner."
We all laugh again, the moment of seriousness broken as Talia stands from her seat at the kitchen table, grabs the spoon from the counter and starts stirring the stew.
Sitting down, I take another sip from my wine glass as Ayo looks at me.
"And now that we're speaking of meals," she smiles, chin pointing in my direction, "I'm assuming you're going to talk to that delicious boss of yours again?"
I roll my eyes, feeling my stomach bottom out. "Yes, I know I should. And I will."
Ayo raises an eyebrow. "You know you should? What's stopping you?"
I take a deep breath and set my glass on the table, staring down into it as if the answers will magically appear in the red liquid. "First...I think I might need another talk with the Great and Powerful Oz."
Chapter Twenty-Nine
AIDAN
It's been two weeks and five days without Lacey now. As we leave the Storm stadium, still riding the high from our win against Houston,
Marcus and Ryan are buzzing, already talking about the legendary afterparty at The Deck we're about to hit.
"Think tonight's crowd will beat last week's?" Ryan asks, slinging an arm over my shoulder, his grin as wide as the victory we just clinched.
"With how we played? I'd bet my left foot it will," Marcus, ever the optimist, chimes in.
Ryan laughs. "Lizzy's at Erika's, so I've got 'til midnight to live it up before dad duty calls."
"Same, but with Niyah and Elijah at my mom's, I'm free," Marcus adds.
Ryan waggles his eyebrows. "That mean you going to try to get you a little something-something tonight?"
Marcus playfully punches Ryan's arm. "Nope. It means I'm probably going to sleep in tomorrow and go back to missing my babies by 10 am."
"Aw hell, I guess I'll have to be the designated wingman tonight then," Ryan says with a joking sigh. He nudges me with his elbow, a silent message that I’m supposed to share in the excitement.
We hop into the limo parked outside the stadium, its windows so dark they could be hiding state secrets.
I usually love these moments - the victory, the brotherhood, the night brimming with possibilities.
The win tonight puts us ahead in our division, a high I should be riding, especially with the press about Lacey cooling off after the charity event announcement.
But as the city lights zip past, I can't shake a hollow feeling.
Natasha’s back home, taking care of Grace, and by all accounts, I should feel relieved. But Grace... my little firecracker, has lost her usual spark. It’s like watching a star dimming in slow motion, and it chips away at me.
And honestly? That same spark is missing from me too. There's an emptiness in the house that's gotten harder to ignore, a silence that's too loud.
And deep down, I already know it’s because Lacey’s not there.
"Earth to Aidan," Ryan snaps me out of it, waving a hand in my face. "You in for tonight, or are you going to mope about being single like Marcus?"
I force a smile, their joking feeling distant. "Just thinking about the game," I lie, my thoughts stuck on a different kind of game. A game where, without Lacey, winning feels like losing.
