Page 99 of Finding the Forward: Part Two
“That sounds fun,” I agreed. But Carlos and Hale werenotallowed to be friends. No, I didn’t need that catastrophe in my life. Also, I know I’d seen Carlos before, but I didn’t know where. Perhaps he’d done some fitness modeling with me–or he had a big sponsor and I’d seen his ads around.
“Great, so we’ll get this done, eat tacos, and go to the bar. My sort of afternoon,” Hale said as he tipped his chair back, unwrapping the sandwich.
As long as we got everything done. And my actual work, to fix all my research, was only just beginning.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Grif
“Iknew it. Who’s going to tell Ladybug that Marty is the zoo’s missing baby tiger?” Pauley looked up something on his phone in the locker room after practice. His blond surfer locks were up in a man-bun today.
The training center had been put back together, and we’d had practice to prepare for our game tomorrow against the Royals. Marty, the ‘cat’ we’d already met at Taco Hut, had come to practice, tucked into Ladybug’s hoodie.
“Tiger? It doesn’t have black stripes.” Clark frowned as he took off his skates, dark hair falling in his brown eyes. His black glasses were on a strap for practice, though he often wore contacts for games.
“It’s a mini golden tiger and part of a bunch of animals the Animal Welfare department found in a raid,” Pauley added, still scrolling on his phone. “Apparently those fancy genetically engineered mini tigers don’t make good pets.”
Yeah, that just sounded like a bad idea. Though sometimes I sort of wanted one of those tiny giraffes.
Clark raised his hand like he was in class. “Okay. I’ll tell her and take her to the zoo to return him.”
“I’ll go with you,” Dimitri replied. He’d made it back from the West Coast. We still weren’t sure why or how he’d ended up stuck there.
“She’ll be so sad,” Clark added, brow furrowing. “She’s had such a good time with Marty.”
Dimitri nodded. “And Lucky likes him.”
My phone buzzed as I put my gear in my locker.
Sissy
I love you. Our omega says she’s taking you to the omega spa next time you visit.
Me
I’m sure she will.
Last night I’d told my big sister everything. She’d helped me figure out which parents to call and what exactly to say. That had gone okay. Also, Dean’s mom told me she was proud of me when I’d called her.
Dean was off with the goalie coach and Jonas was meeting with one of the trainers. I went upstairs to find Coach. Nerves bumped around in my belly, but it was time.
“Coach, do you have a moment?” I knocked on his open door.
“Of course, come in.” Coach looked up from his laptop. His office was stuffed full of photos and memorabilia, both of the Knights and the teams he’d played for. There were even things for his mates, since his pack was majorly accomplished in winter sports.
I hesitated. It was one thing to tell my family; telling Coach was something I couldn’t come back from.
“Did you have a question about strategy from the meeting this morning?” he added, looking a little tired. Was there more gray in his hair?
Shaking my head, I closed the door and took a seat, heart thumping. “It’s something else.”
“Okay. I never congratulated you on your pack contract. I guess you bonded with Jonas. Good for you.” He looked at the picture on his desk of his pack and smiled. “Your Maimer girl is next? Such an exciting time, forming your pack.”
His small talk put me at ease, and I couldn’t help but grin. “AJ actually. And yeah, Verity’s next.”
“I heard about the lawsuit with your old agent. It’s making a few people in management nervous. Visit legal and let them know you’re not mad at us,” Coach added, toying with the photo.
“Oh. I didn’t even think about that. Of course, it’s not the Knights’ fault.” I’d gotten another bank account and given payroll my new info. Stu smoothed everything over with my sponsors.
