Page 128 of Unmasking Love
“She’s at work. I biked over there and saw her car. I went in and tried to talk to her, because she wasn’t answering my calls.” I can see the heartbreak crack across his face. I had no idea when I asked Harper to get him a home that I’d be plugging in the string lights of a beautiful relationship.
Harper has helped Aiden soften up. And as a result he’s opened up to us too. The fact that we could have a Big Guns meeting last night with him was monumental. When he first walked into my locker room I knew he was a flight risk. Now I’m worried he’ll jump ship again, if things with Harper go south.
Time to work my relationship magic.
“Did you get to talk to her?” I ask.
“At first, no. She told the receptionist she didn’t want to talk to me. But then she looked over from her desk and I spotted her and I charged into the office.” Aiden says and then he runs his hand through his hair. The first time I’ve seen any sort of nervous tick out of this man. “She rushed towards me and ushered me outside. She was standing there without a coat and shivering but she wouldn’t take my coat or go back inside.”
“What did she say?” I ask to keep him from dwelling on seeing his woman in need.
“That she needed some space. That she’d call me.”
“And what did you say?”
“That I broke my phone.”
“When did you break your phone?” I ask because it was working perfectly when I dropped him off.
“When I threw it atthe wall when she wouldn’t pick up earlier.” He admits sheepishly.
Good.
My boy has the fight in him. His reaction tells me that he’s going to stay put and work to win her back.
“Okay. Go tell coach that you’ll need to miss the post game meeting to get a new phone. You’ll need one up and running before we leave tonight.” He nods. “And, then you’re going to go home, pack for the trip, and I’ll pick you up for the airport.”
“What about Harper?” He asks. His blue eyes searching for reassurance that he hasn’t lost the love of his life.
“You’re one of the Big Guns and we’ll win her back.”
Chapter 38
Harper
Object Permanence
I’veneverfeltsoalone.
The silence is a physical presence each morning when I wake up on Wes’s sofa.
I’m not proud of running away.
I’m not proud that it’s been two weeks.
I just can’t get myself past the hurt.
It was clear to me Aiden doesn’t really want me around. He has only shared his feelings in the heat of an argument. When I was feeling low about myself. Probably his misguided attempt to comfort me.
I can only assume he didn’t tell me about the assists record because he doesn’t want to share his life with me.
I remember blinking away the tears as I drove home. My mind reeling with how I thought this relationship was something it wasn’t. Berating myself for getting it wrong. Again. I tried to do what Wes had done before the game and give myself the “your inner thoughts are ridiculous” speech but I wasn’t super convincing.
And then he texted to say he wasn’t coming home. So I packed.
I wasn’t going to wait around to be dismissed by Aiden. Even now, two weeks later, my chest contracts at the thought of hearing him destroy what we were building. That would be unimaginably painful.
So, here I am, sitting at my desk feeling like I’m hollow inside. I’m not really reading the emails that sit unopened in front of me. I lift my phone and read the texts fromAiden again. They’ve played in six games over the last two weeks and Aiden has texted me multiple times a day. It hurts to read them. But it also soothes something inside me.
