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“There was a meeting?”
Lonnie steps back in. Alone. She nods her head to the girls. “Warm up. Go.”
The girls each sweep a hand over my arm and step out.
She closes the door behind them, watching me for a moment. “How pissed are you?” she asks.
I release a breath, taking a seat at one of the benches. “I’m not sure yet.” I’m not even sure I have the emotional capacity to be pissed at this point.
She crosses the room silently and sits next to me. “Conner hasn’t said a word yet.” She nudges to the papers I’m holding. “And as of thirty minutes ago…he’ll likely never even look at you again.”
Frowning, I start unfolding. “What are these?”
“The girls wanted you to have a copy of the statements they made against Conner. The ones they kept quiet because of his title, position, salary. And the sheer fact that Ice Girls are more replaceable than coaches.”
I skim over each one of them, not wanting to read word for word. I feel like this is somewhat private and personal for each of them.
“Chase called me last night and told me what’s been happening…things the girls apparently haven’t trusted me enough to tell me.”
I touch her shoulder.
“Then he told me what Conner said to you at the after party. Coach Riley showed him these a little while ago. If he targets you in any way, including but not limited to discussing your whereabouts, these will be handed over to the police and the league. A million dollars will do him no good in prison.”
“How can we be sure?”
She grins. “Because the minute you’re found, even by someone anonymous, these pages, might just ‘anonymously’ show up on the GM’s desk.”
“That’s…not fair.”
“Neither is treating my girls like his private entertainment. He made a mistake threatening you. Now it doesn’t matter who turns you in, he’ll pay the price.”
“You’re a tough cookie.”
She gives me a hard look. “I won’t have any of my girls threatened.”
Lonnie doesn’t seem like a hugger, but I do it anyway. “What happened to you?” I finally ask.
Her eyes fill with tears she tries to fight. I know that feeling. I can see how much they burn to shed. Lonnie sniffles. “No woman should ever be afraid to live her life because a monster is after her.”
I frown, pressing my hand to her back. “He's not a monster. He’s just a... perfectionist. I’m not in any kind of danger, Lon.”
“You don’t want to be with him. And he’s not taking no for an answer. Plain and simple.”
Lonnie stands. “Hell, I would have recognized you too. I hope that man of yours has got a plan.”
26
“What are these?” I ask Charlie when I visit her at the library the next day.
Chase dropped me off on his way to Levi's ranch, preparing for Jackson's birthday party. I’m still not sure what takes three grown men with pretty busy schedules and absolutely zero women involved to plan a kid’s birthday party, but I'm sure I'll find out on Saturday.
“Oh, those are handout books.”
“What's that?”
“Children's books from the library that are overused. Instead of throwing them out, they let me take the old ones and hand them out to kids in town.”
“How cool. How do you do that?”
