Page 26 of Wild Hit
“When?” I ask roughly. “When did he hurt you?”
“No, no.” Audrey jumps to her feet, hands extended out. “It wasn’t like that. He didn’t hurt me physically?—”
“Emotionally?” I tilt my face down and a strand of my hair falls over my eye. “Because that still counts.”
She expels a harsh breath. “I guess. He tried to hit on me at my brother’s funeral.”
Every muscle in my body locks as tight as granite.
I replay the words in my head because I couldn’t process them the first time. I didn’t know that Audrey had a brother and lost him, but for someone—anyone—to be inappropriate during a moment like that?
What the hell?
Then I say it aloud.
“I know.” She shakes her head, lifting her arms to cross them. “But trust me, I told him where he could shove it and I didn’t see him again for years. Until now.”
“Why now?” I can feel my lip twisting.
Audrey closes her eyes and tilts her head back like she’s running out of patience just thinking about it. “Apparently my dad and Henry want me to be the next Mrs. Vos.”
A beat goes by. Another. A third.
“What?” My jaw drops into the universal sign ofhuh?“Is this a telenovela?”
Deadpanned, she responds, “Yes, that is exactly what my life is. You see, I was trying to cut contact off with my dad when he decided to buy this team, that I was already working for. And it was fine—I was fine—as much as one can be near a father who traumatized the hell out of you, until he was about to fire Hope for dating Cade, and Rose for defending them on the team’s social media account. So I had to make a deal with him so he’dleave them alone, and I think this is finally how he’s planning to cash out.”
Her nostrils flare as she finishes, and after much gesturing around she stays frozen while pointing an angry finger at the floor. The whole speech takes less than a minute with how fast she speaks, but somehow I was able to catch every single word.
“Whoa.”
“Exactly.” She snarls, throwing her hands in the air in exasperation. “Who else has to put up with something like this? It’s ridiculous, it’s bizarre, it’s… it’s…”
Her chest rises and falls. She looks up at me, not hiding that her chin is trembling and her eyes are watering. I have to use a hell of a lot of willpower to not pull her into my arms for a hug. I know that she needs one, but she also just got harassed by some asshole. I won’t make any moves that she doesn’t expect.
And so I ask, “What do you want me to do?” Audrey blinks hard, and the first few tears start to roll down her cheeks, splotchy with angry red. “Do you want me to just listen? Or call them every name under the sun? Or punch them in the face? Or hug you?”
She sniffs. “Why would you do any of those things for me? We’re strangers.”
“Are we?” I tilt my head to the side. “Here I thought we were on our way to being friends.”
Lips still trembling, she says, “That’s true. You did forgive me for punching you in the eye.”
Meanwhile, I have to bite my lips not to smile. “See? That’s what friends do.”
A little snort escapes from her nose, but she doesn’t deny it. She wipes her face with the back of her hands and moves away, which confirms that she doesn’t want a hug. Instead, she takes a seat back on the bench and pats the empty spot beside her. I lower myself beside her, allowing enough space between usto feel comfortable, even if it means one of my butt cheeks is hanging in the air.
“Thanks for listening and also for getting upset on my behalf, that’s enough for me.”
Yeah, not for me. But I don’t have a right to press.
I clasp my hands over my lap. “So, what are you gonna do now?”
“I don’t know. I could get another job…” She drifts off, looking into the blue sky that’s only marred by a few white streaks of cirrus clouds. I learned that a couple of years ago when I was helping Marty with her homework.
“I sense a but,” I prod gently.
“I really like my friends.”
