Page 103 of Saving the Halfback

Beth:But Hadley didn’t believe it.

Beth:Emma said they went to his house today, and he basically kicked them out.

Beth:Not only that, but he threatened her that if she messed with you, he would ruin her father financially. He would pull all support from his company. Does he have that power?

Chase said that? He’d been so upset I had lied, I thought I had ruined things with him all over again. Why would he do this? He seemed so hot and cold, and Ethan had said to give him some time.

Beth:Also, Emma is spilling all the tea on Hadley. They are having one epic friendship meltdown, though I don’t think Emma liked her much anyway.

I frowned. Emma had been there Friday night. I wondered, if she hadn’t interrupted that guy, how far he would’ve taken things.

Bailey:I don’t know what happened. I don’t know what kind of power he has, I’m not part of this.

Beth:Be ready for tomorrow. Hadley is making it about you.

Bailey:I’m assuming telling people otherwise isn’t going to work?

Beth:I’ll try to spread the word, can’t guarantee, though. Hadley is the queen of gossip.

I tossedmy phone on the seat and drove home. I desperately needed a shower and to catch up on homework. Ignorance was key here. If I didn’t know, then how could I possibly be dragged down this hole?

The next morning,I had picked Lachlan, Nolan, and Ethan up for practice. “I tried calling you,” Lachlan said to Nolan as soon as he got into the truck.

Nolan sighed. “Lost my phone for the week.” Nolan looked…sick. There were bags under his eyes, his skin was pale, and the moment he sat down, he leaned his head back, closing his eyes, as if falling asleep.

I pulled up to the mechanic shop to pick up Ethan, who, as usual, opened the driver’s door. Instead of sitting in the passenger seat, though, I sat in the back with Nolan and Lachlan, Nolan in between us.

“What happened?” I asked.

“With what?” He pulled his head up sleepily and looked around.

“You look like shit,” Lachlan said.

I shook my head and rolled my eyes at Lachlan’s bluntness.

Nolan groaned and leaned back again, only this time, he laid his head on my shoulder. “I’ve been running laps all freakin’ weekend. I swear, I heard a bear in the woods last night.”

I gasped. “What were you doing in the woods at night?”

“Your punishment…isn’t it? You were on the trail, weren’t you?” Lachlan said.

“Yeah.”

“It was likely a coyote, not a bear,” Ethan said. Yeah, ’cause that made a difference.

“How many kilometers did you run?” Lachlan nudged Nolan’s arm when he didn’t answer right away.

Nolan shrugged. “It was a timed run. Sixteen hours over two days. Plus, agility in between.” Everyone went silent, and I was pretty sure Nolan fell asleep.

When we got to the school, I didn’t want to get out. Coach would be pissed if we missed practice, though. Especially Nolan and me. He wanted to work on two plays this week to use in the game on Friday, and it involved both of us. Well, all the plays involved Nolan.

“Leave him in the truck,” Ethan said.

“Coach won’t allow it.”

“He might if he sees him looking like this.” Lachlan had a point, but I was afraid what the next punishment would be from his father if he missed practice.

“I hate this.” I turned my head and pressed my lips to Nolan’s forehead. “We’re here,” I said, moving my shoulder to wake him up.

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