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The person on the line responds and Lucy lets out a sigh of relief, her entire demeanor changing. “Hi Dyl, you’re up early. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
Her brother.Thank fuck.A wave of tension leaves my body as I watch her relax. I’d heard Dylan had been traded to San Francisco after I left. It’s nice to know she has someone nearby who cares for her. It definitely puts my mind at ease.
They chat back and forth for a minute, and by the end, Lucy’s calm. I’m still reluctant to leave, but I feel a little bit better than I did before.
After hanging up the phone, Lucy turns my way. Her eyes flash with shock when she sees I’m still standing by the window. “Oh, Wes, I’m sorry. You probably wanted me for something, right? Is it one of the players?”
“No, well, yes…no.” Lucy frowns in confusion, understandably, but I hadn’t come up with an excuse for being here yet and now I don’t even care what it was.
“The players are fine. At least, they were when I left them yesterday. I’m still here because you looked a little spooked when I first came in.”
She starts shaking her head before I’ve even finished speaking and rushes to speak herself. “Like I said, I’m just a bit off after a late night. But thank you for the concern. You’ve got things to do, I’m sure. No need to worry. I’m good.”
I bite back a groan because she’s clearly lying, despite knowing how much I fucking hate it. And now, I’m going to spend my day fixated on figuring out who she’s trying to protect with her bullshit. Is it me? Is it her? Or is there someone else involved? Once again, I don’t move, causing Lucy to nervously giggle. Except I don’t think she realizes it comes across as nervous. “Wes, I’m fine. I promise. Go, do your thing. We can talk later if you need to.”
Does that mean she needs to?
I nod as I make my way to her door, and I’m about to turn back when Aaron arrives, moving around me to get in. “Good morning. Don’t tell me we have more injuries already?” he says with a look of concern.
“Nope, Wes was just checking in for an update,” Lucy says, smiling at him but not quite meeting his eyes.Fuck, is it him?I take a step toward him with my fist clenched by my side but freeze when Lucy gets my attention, ever so subtly shaking her head.It’s not him.I relax my hands and nod in return before walking away.
While it’s a relief to know that Aaron’s not the cause, my heart aches knowing that thereissomeoneout there that’s hurting her.
And I want to burn the world down to find out who.
Chapter Nineteen
Lucy
Weswalksoutthedoor and I almost double over. Since the moment I snapped out of my thoughts and realized he was in the room with me, I’ve been on edge. The tension is wound so tight, I’m on tenterhooks waiting for it to snap. I’m not stupid, I could see that he’d figured out something had happened, so when he took a step toward Aaron, fist ready for action, I had to stop him. I had to admit he was right, even though I desperately wanted him to believe everything was okay.
My nod seemed to work, and thankfully, Aaron is none the wiser as he picks up a book on my desk, no doubt waiting until he knows Wes is out of earshot before he speaks.
“I think you can guess why I’m here,” he says when the coast is clear.
I offer him one word, curious to see how much he knows. “Lola.”
“She’s worried as hell but won’t tell me why.”
Nothing then.That’s good.
“Tell her I’m fine. Actually you don’t need to. I’ll call and tell her myself. Honestly, I’m okay. It was silly. I’m fine.”
Aaron’s brows furrow and his lips pull into a line before he releases them and speaks. “I know I’m a guy and we’re not supposed to know these things, but Lola’s clued me in on the fact thatfinedoes not actually meanfine.”
I roll my eyes and laugh, though it’s fake. “I promise, I’m good. Notfine…good.”
I’m actually neither. I’m notfineat all and I’m definitely notgood. But I can’t think about that until Aaron walks away. He eyes me suspiciously for a moment and then shrugs. “Good enough for me. I did as asked. I checked in. If you want to talk about it, please call Lola.”
I exhale quietly and a sense of relief takes over. “Thank you. I will.”
Aaron departs, and I practically fall in a heap. It’s nice to have people checking up on me, and since Lola knows a little about my past with Greg, she’s probably one of the better people to talk to. But I spent a long time trying to move on from what happened. It took all that I had to bury my past. The last thing I want to do is talk about it. I’m secretly hoping it will all blow over, but as I think about last night, I’m not so sure that it will.
I should have known that Brighton would tell Greg about me. I should have prepared myself for that. But I didn’t. And seeing him there put me in a strange mood for the rest of the night. So instead of having fun at the dinner party, I wanted to curl up and disappear. I couldn’t shake the weakness I felt all over again, the pain radiating through my chest. From. One. Look. That’s all it took to send my world crashing down. I knew we couldn’t hide forever, and yet I did nothing to prepare for it. This is all my fault.
My day’s busier than yesterday, so when Dani stops by on her way in, I already have a player with me, giving me an excuse not to talk to her. I can guarantee she’s checking up on me too. As soon as I saw Katie secured in her car seat last night, I drove away, leaving Dani and Logan staring at the car. Then I refused to discuss it at the party. So of course she’s here now.
And she’s not the only one worried about me. Weshappensto wander past several times throughout the day but never once comes in. I start to expect it though, and every time I hear word that they’re taking a break on the field, I wait for him to appear.
