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All I wanted to do was storm back into Haley's house, snatch her up into my arms and drag her to the bedroom and show her what it meant to stay and love someone without running away every time things got hard.
Maybe I was out of line saying that to her, but it was true. As far as I could tell, she was resorting to her old habits. She claims to have made these enormous sacrifices for the people she loved, yet she wouldn't tell me what they were. I'm sure she believed it to be true, but it’s hard for me to believe, especially when I’ve been torturing myself with the memory of her walking away from me after that game all those years ago.
I climbed the stairs to my house and opened the door, not sure what I was going to do once I got in there other than pace the room worrying about Haley. But when I entered my living room,I found I had a visitor of my own. Thankfully, it wasn't Marcus, but my agent, Bo.
"Bo? What the hell are you doing in here?"
He grinned at me, "Well hello to you too, son. Your door was unlocked. Is that normal around here—do you think that's a good idea? I mean, you are a former NFL star. There are probably some eager, sticky fingers looking to lift some of your stuff, don't you think?"
I shook my head at him. "You didn't answer my question. What are you doing here?"
Bo rose from where he’d made himself comfortable on the couch. "Well, you kept dodging my calls and telling me it's complicated and you’re not ready to interview for this commentating gig, so I thought I'd come out here and talk it out—get to the bottom of what's worrying you about it."
I shook my head. "Bo, I appreciate you making the effort and coming all the way out here, but it's not a good time. I just had this huge fight with Haley and..."
Bo looked confused. "Haley? The same chick from back in the day when you were in college?"
I glared at him. "If you’re referring to the young woman I used to date, then yes."
Bo still looked confused, shook his head and muttered, "I thought I’d chased her away."
My head popped up sharply. "I'm sorry. What did you say?"
He laughed it off. "Nothing, just remembering something. No big deal. I didn’t realize you two had reconnected."
I leveled him with a determined stare. "Bo, my knee may be messed up, but my hearing is not. What the hell did you mean when you saidI thought I chased her away?"
Bo chuckled, "It was just a joke from a long time ago, poor timing as usual, you know me. I never know when to keep mybig, fat mouth shut," he said before trying to change the subject. "Now about this job..."
"No, I want to hear more about this joke."
Bo heaved out a sigh. "Cooper, it's no big deal. You know, as an agent, when you're dealing with young impressionable guys, you have to grease the wheels for them to ensure everything goes as smoothly as possible. I was just referring to a time where I had to do that for you and frankly, I've had to do it recently too because let me tell you, it took some work to get this job lined up."
"Enough about the job. I'm not talking about the job. You chased Haley away... what did you do?"
"Cooper..."
"Bo," I ground out, "I'm not talking to you about anything else until you tell me what happened."
Bo looked like he deeply regretted his choice to come out to Hanalei, and that made me even more on edge.
I just had a fight with the love of my life and after proclaiming my love again, I insulted her beyond comprehension. Now my agent of over ten years looked like he was about to throw up, which indicated to me I was not going to like what he had to say.
Bo put his hands up defensively. "Look, I want to remind you that this was a long time ago. I would never do anything I thought might hurt you."
"Get to the damn point," I ground out.
He let out a long sigh. "I might have told Haley that it would be better for you if she weren't around."
I felt my face redden with anger, and it was enough to make Bo turn pale. "You were on a streak, and I knew you were going to kick ass in the league. But you were so enthralled with her. I was worried she would be a distraction, and that was the last thing you needed. So I might've told her that if she loved you, she wouldn't allow herself to be a distraction."
Everything in me stilled. I didn't know how to react to this. The anger was so intense. It had me in a chokehold. "And she listened to you, just like that? Walked away without a look back?"
Bo shrugged. "Well, no, to be fair, I had to wear her down. She was adamantly against it when I first suggested it, and kept giving me that young, starry-eyed girl jazz about how we can do anything if we're together, you know the story. But listen, I've been in this game for a long time and I've seen this cause promising players to crash and burn time and time again. So I stayed persistent, and you've had a wonderful career... you're welcome, by the way."
"Are you fucking kidding me?" I bit out. "You have the nerve to say you're welcome when you destroyed my life?"
"Don't you think you're being a little dramatic? Destroyed your life? I gave you your career. You are a star, my boy, and still would be if it weren't for that blasted knee. But hey, shit happens. You got eight good years in the league and that's a lot more than most people could dream of. Listen to me, when you want something that big, that magical, sacrifices have to be made."
