Page 56 of Your Pucking Mom

I didn’t respond. “They have food too.”

“I’ll think about it,” I mumbled as I slung my bag over my shoulder. My stomach took that moment to rumble, but truthfully, this place was bougie enough that it may have room service, so I would wait and see what happened. I picked up the keys from the front desk and dodged the child and Auburn, who were arguing with Coach about where their rooms were. I didn’t bother giving them a second glance as I walked to the large elevator bank, hitting the up button repeatedly.

As the elevator doors opened and closed behind me, I leaned against the cool metal, feeling the weight of the evening’s events settle in.

Tomorrow’s game loomed heavy in my mind, but so did the unresolved tension between Auburn and I. I couldn’t shake the image of her hurt expression, wondering if she would ever forgive me and if we could truly salvage a friendship.

All I could think about was if she got to her room okay and whether she would eventually forgive me so we could be friends.

“Dammit,” I muttered as the elevator dinged, signaling my arrival. Juggling my suitcase and key card, I stepped out into the corridor, but my bag slipped as I stumbled out.

My room was at the other end of the hall, all the way in the corner. Just then, the elevator dinged and opened. I didn’t think twice about it because I was focused on grabbing my key card from the little welcome pouch it came in.

“Of course,” a familiar sweet-laced voice stated. There she was. Her hair pulled up in a big ponytail on the top of her head, and her eyes carried something heavier than earlier, but my…friendwas standing in front of me.

“Auburn,” I said, but she rolled her suitcase down the left side hallway…exactly where I was headed.

“Is Hart coming here too?” I asked, trailing her.

“I am Hart.” She huffed without so much as a glance backward.

This fucking fiery woman. “Austin.”

“No. That’s the problem. He’s on the floor beneath us, but I’m going to put my stuff away before I go down there.”

“But you must be so tired.” Fuck…I didn’t mean to imply that she looked tired, only that I knew that sometimes a panic attack could deplete you.

“That was nice,” she retorted.

“Please stop.” I jogged to catch her, but she increased her pace. “Auburn.”

“What?” she shouted, spewing her anger toward me as she whipped her head around.

“Can you just hold up for a moment?” I interjected hastily, hoping to catch her before she disappeared down the corridor.

“No,” she stated, forging ahead without a backward glance. “Stop following me.”

I couldn’t help but suppress a smirk. “No can do. My room’s down this way too. At the far end of the hall.”

“Of course it is,” she muttered, her frustration evident.

Deciding not to press the issue further, I fell into step behind her, secretly curious about where her room was located. As we continued down the hallway, I couldn’t help but admire the view: her figure moving gracefully ahead, the subtle sway of her hips accentuated by the snug fit of her leggings, and the stray curls cascading down the nape of her neck. Little did she know, I had the perfect vantage point to appreciate it all.

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auburn

Ledger was right—I was exhausted. The last thing I wanted was to go back to Austin’s room, tuck him in like a toddler, and convince him not to go out. I just wanted to go to bed.

Despite Ledger annoyingly trailing me, I sighed in relief when I finally saw my room—409. Part of me wondered if I should turn around and say something to him again, but all I could think about was what he’d said on the plane. His refusal to acknowledge the tension between us stole that moment from me, and it hurt.

Even though I knew deep down that he was right, I was too stubborn and hurt to admit it. Instead, I stewed in my own thoughts, grappling with the tangled mess of emotions swirling within me.

I decided it was best not to say anything to him and opened the door, then slammed it behind me, not bothering to see how much farther down the hall his room was from mine.

After dropping my bags, I went to the bathroom and turned on the shower, knowing I was running on borrowed time. Despite my exhaustion, I had to make sure Austin was okay. That was my sole reason for being here. I needed to prove to everyone else that I was still a good mother despite the trouble Austin had gotten into, and that meant making sure he stayed in his room. It would be harder since they put us on different floors, but there was no one else on the fourth floor, besides Ledger, for him to switch with. Coach told me it wasn’t worth bothering him about because it was part of his superstition. If the hotel had at least four floors, he was always on the fourth floor.

I stripped off my clothes and jumped into the shower, eager to wash away the plane germs. Closing my eyes briefly, I reminded myself not to linger—too long, and the inner demons would creep back in. Exhausted and alone, fighting them felt like an uphill battle.

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