Page 101 of Keeper
“So you met all the girls?” he asked.
“I did! They’re great. I can’t believe how nice everyone is. We’ve already made plans to hang out tomorrow and go to the game together.”
“That’s because they can tell you’re the real deal.”
“Ialsomet Aleksander,” I added.
Tanner’s knowing grin said it all. “You met Niko, eh? How’s your Russian?”
I giggled. “I don’t know any. Luckily, Katerina made him practice his English.”
“Oh, good,” Tanner said. “He’s a hell of a player, Ainz. The kid’s already amazing and he’s not even twenty years old yet. You’ll see it for yourself tomorrow.”
“So he and Katerina are brother and sister,” I said. “And she’s engaged to Reavo now?”
“Yup.” He leaned in closer and gave me a quick summary of how it happened: Aleksander moved in with Reavo earlier this year, his rookie year, so he could get accustomed to the life of a pro athlete. Katerina and Reavo met when she came to America to visit her brother for a week. But of course, Katerina and Reavo hit it off and accidentally fell in love over the course of her visit. “There was a pretty big fight when Niko found out about it, too. Niko almost got himself traded. But he’s a good kid and everything’s cool between them now, thank God. We need both those guys if we want to go far in the playoffs.”
“That’s so interesting,” I said. “I had no idea a pro sports team could have that much drama!”
“Oh, man. Trust me, Ainz, there’s been a lot of Devils drama over the years.” He put his arm around my shoulder and led me back to the kitchen, where his teammates stood around, bantering and wolfing down food. “Now c’mon, you gotta meet the rest of the boys.”
***
The lights of Dallas at night streaked by my window, the glowing golf ball tower looming larger as we neared our destination.After a night of making friends and gorging on good food, the party came to an end—the boys had to get home early and get a good night’s rest before tomorrow’s game, after all.
I sighed happily. “Thank you for a lovely day, Tanner.”
“All my pleasure,” he said.
“When will I see you again?”
He frowned at me. “I hate to say it, but gamedays are pretty set in stone for me. Also, I should probably tell you that after our morning skate, I go dark on game days.”
“What’s that mean?”
“It means I turn my phone off. To get into the right mindset, I have to. Too many distractions otherwise.”
“Oh, right. No worries,” I said. “I totally understand. You’ve got your routine and the last thing I want to do is mess you up.”
“Thanks for understanding,” he said, drawing circles on my knee with his fingers. “We could do dinner after the game, though?”
“I’d love that.”
“Great. I’ll call you afterward.” He paused. “Shit, I just remembered, I gotta give you my lawyer’s number,” he said, pulling out his cell phone. “I’ll call him tomorrow morning and let him know what’s up. Just give him a call tomorrow and set up an appointment.”
“Thanks,” I said. “I’ll do that.”
Tanner read his lawyer’s number aloud and I punched into my phone. But while my phone was out, one last text from Marta rolled in.
“You’ve got until five o’clock tomorrow to send me the photos. Or else.”
Or else?Pft.I rolled my eyes at her pathetic attempt to intimidate me. Did she really think she could hurt me? After meeting the Devils girls, it was even more obvious what a phony snake Marta was since the very beginning. With Tanner by my side and with the help and support of the friends I’d made tonight, I knew I could handle whatever Marta threw my way.
I put my phone away and tried not to let Marta’s text bother me, but Tanner noticed I’d grown silent.
“Hey, is everything okay?” he asked.
“Yeah …” I trailed off with a troubled sigh.
