Page 15 of The Sweet Spot

Tangi snorted, caught herself, and giggled. “Ethan pretty much eats the same thing every day. I don’t know how he does it. He will deviate a bit, but it’s pretty boring.”

“I’m not going to make it boring for Brandon. I have to earn my wage.”

“And what he offered you was great,” Tangi said.

“Especially if you land Ryan too,”Jill added.

Tangi poured herself what looked like lemonade and shot Jill a glare. “Why are you pushing so hard with Ryan? Do you know something? Because none of this is making sense. You’re obsessed with the poor guy.”

Jill had pale skin made paler with the lack of sun in Vancouver. At least over the summer in Minnesota, she managed to get a bit of color on her face, so when she flushed a bit, we both knew something wasn’t right.

“No,” she said quickly.

“What do you know?” I asked, sipping my wine.

“Nothing I should share.”

Tangi tilted her head. “You think we’re going to let you get away with that answer?”

“Really, I can’t,” Jill said, putting on her serious and stern face, not that Tangi and I were going to be discouraged by it.

“I think you can, and at this point, you better.”

Jill groaned as she pushed away her wine glass. “All right, but this is strictly between the three of us. Tang, you can’t tell Ethan, and Wolseley, you can’t tell Brandon. Got that?”

Something about the way she said that, about including me with Brandon, was kind of nice. Not that he and I would ever be a thing.

“Of course. Spill it,” Tangi said, knowing I would never breathe a word.

“Ryan has been having some issues. He’s getting help from the players’ assistance program. I found out by accident because we got some of the paperwork. I don’t know the specifics, but, of course, the gossip has started. If I had to guess, it’s alcohol or drugs.”

Jill was a little too flip about it, mostly because that was part of her façade. She maintained a wall of strength, wanting no one to see the real her, but she wasn’t fooling me. Deep down,she probably felt bad for Ryan. Despite that, her coldness was still off-putting.

“It could be a mental health issue,” I said. “It’s possible he’s dealing with things we don’t know about. We shouldn’t jump to conclusions.”

Jill glanced at me, her shoulders sagging a bit. I hadn’t meant to put her in her place, and she knew that based on her reaction. “You’re right, but whatever it is, he needs help. And that help could come from some healthy eating.”

Tangi and I had no idea what to say to that. Jill had simplified someone’s possible addiction with some healthy eating. But then again, Jill normally only saw things in black and white, and only on rare occasions did she manage to see some gray in the middle. In order to not have us arguing for the rest of the night, I chose to segue out of the conversation.

“That would help. But I want to know what Tangi is keeping from us. I have a sneaking suspicion she has some news.”

I knew Tangi well enough that she was silently thanking me for the change of subject. She smiled from ear to ear.

“I was going to wait a few more weeks to tell you guys, but how can I keep this from you? I’m pregnant!”

I sort of figured it out, but hearing it from Tangi’s mouth made it all the sweeter. I leapt up and gave her a huge hug. Jill did the same.

“When are you due?” I asked.

“May, so it’s early days. I was hoping not to get pregnant so soon, but no changing that now.”

“I’m so happy for you,” I said. “I get to be an auntie again! And Maddy will be a big sister.”

“I’m happy for you guys too,” Jill said. “I figured it was a matter of time before we gotthis news.”

“Hence no wine,” Tangi said. “So you two better drink up so this bottle doesn’t go to waste.”

Jill and I were on our second glass when Tangi ventured into dangerous territory and asked Jill about her future plans with Jeremy. Jill had a history of keeping mum about the men in her life, and she’d been more open about Jeremy, but she still seemed to hold back, so when Tangi pressed, I braced for Jill’s shutdown mode.

---