Page 113 of I Blame the Club

“Give me your phone.”

Stella groans, “But Mo-

“Phone. Now.” I hold out my hand, waiting for her to pass it along, “If you have access to my phone, I get access to yours. It’s only fair.”

“Fine.” She pulls out a sparkling pink case and places it in my outstretched hand, “But the only thing you’re going to find are all the nudes I send to Ellsworth.”

Cody chokes on his drink and I swivel my head to look at him.

“Are you kidding me right now?”

Stella reaches over and pats my arm, “Don’t worry, this is an equal partnership. Cody sends me just as many.”

Jesus Christ.

Cody finally catches his breath and gives me a weak smile, “I don’t save them.”

I cross my arms, “Like that makes it any better.”

Stella gasps, looking at her boyfriend, “You don’t save them? I put a lot of effort into taking those pictures.”

Cody rubs his neck, looking anywhere but my darkening expression, “Let’s talk about this later, Stel.”

She shakes her head with a huff, “And to think I saved all of yours. What does a girl have to do around here to have a man keep her nudes?’

“Did someone say nudes? Count me in.”

Nico plops himself down in the chair next to me and despite the current topic of conversation, my lips pull into a smile. I’ve noticed this has become a tendency whenever Nico is around.

Smiling. Laughing. Feeling less on edge.

The strangest thing of all is I still feel like myself. All my core values have remained the same, most of my priorities have as well, the only difference is the face that looks back at me in the mirror each morning is no longer my father’s.

It’s my own.

Nico throws his backpack on the ground, steals my drink, and shifts closer to Stella. All without saying a single word to me.

“Whose nudes are we talking about?”

She sighs, “Mine. And Cody’s.”

“Ooh, I would love to see what the captain is packing under there.” Nico throws me a wink and I do my best to burn a hole through the side of his head, “See if it compares to my own lacrosse player.”

Cody pales beside me and I grimace, “Enough. Phones away and let’s have a normal conversation that doesn’t include nudity.”

Nico pouts, “Buzz kill.”

Stella nods in agreement, “That sums Mo up well.”

Throwing me a lifeline, Cody turns to me with a wry smile, “How’s the job hunting going?”

I shrug, “It’s going. I’ve applied to a few remote positions in Vancouver and reached out to a few connections, so there shouldn’t be a problem finding something that fits with my coaching schedule.”

Nico pipes up, “He heard back from three different companies but the salary they offered him was too low.”

Stella smiles, “He knows his worth.”

I smile back at her, understanding flowing between us. Jonathan may have fallen short in his role as a father, but when it comes to being successful in business, he certainly gave us the tools to standout.

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