Page 70 of Fair Play
She shrugs. “Maybe. It’s L.A. People are fickle. But my projections show nothing but growth, and believe me, I have a ton of data backing them up.”
“This is exciting,” I say, gathering my things. “But I have to get home. My feet are killing me and Bodi left on a road trip, so I might get a foot rub tonight.”
Nita sighs. “I need one of those.”
“I’ll let you know if he has any single friends!”
She laughs. “See you tomorrow. If you can still walk.”
“From your lips to God’s ears!” I wiggle my eyebrows.
I text Rome to let him know I’m on my way—he’s planning to order dinner—and spend the entire drive thinking about my conversation with Nita. It’s an exciting prospect but there are so many variables, the biggest being what’s going to happen with Rome.
Things feel like they’re moving at warp speed and that scares me. Rome doesn’t have any job security and I’m not in a position to pack up and move to some remote cabin in upstate New York. Nor do I want to. Rome has this whole post-hockey plan that doesn’t include me, and if we’re going to be together, that has to change. Or at least be put on the back burner for a while.
This is the first time our age difference has been a legitimate concern and it frustrates me because we spend so much time sneaking around, the moment we’re alone all we want to do is touch. Whisper. Be together. We should be spending quality time together, both with other couples from the team and alone, and using this honeymoon period of our relationship to really get to know each other.
And we can’t because of Bodi.
My brother irritates me so much.
I love and appreciate him. I know how much he had to sacrifice to finish raising me, and that’s just it—this ishistime to shine. He shouldn’t be worrying about me. I’m an adult, and despite needing a little help here and there, I’m ready to grab life by the balls. What I don’t understand is why he isn’t.
From the outside looking in, he’s doing well. But he’s not playing as well as he could be. I know my brother like no one else and he’s incredibly talented, but he’s also lazy. He’d rather sleep than put in an extra workout. Enjoy the off-season instead of using that time to get into better shape. The way Blake does. It’s almost like Bodi has convinced himself that he’ll never be anelite player so there’s no point in trying. Instead, he focuses on what I’m doing.
In a way, I think it’s become his crutch. He can’t be the player he wants to be because he’s still taking care of his little sister. There’s no doubt he took on a parental role he wasn’t prepared for. I was physically and emotionally traumatized, so he made sure I got all the help I needed.
Now I’m beginning to see it was at the expense of his own hopes, dreams, and maybe even his mental health. I just can’t seem to get him to wrap his head around that. And if either of us are ever going to be happy, I have to keep trying.
Chapter 26
Rome
The townhouse is setup for romance.
Bodi’s gone for five days, the acute pain in my groin has finally become more of a dull ache, and Billie has neither class nor work in the morning. Dinner just arrived, the wine is chilling, there are candles burning, and I even bought a bouquet of flowers. Part of me thinks it’s overkill, an old-fashioned kind of romance that a twenty-two-year-old might find corny.
But I don’t believe that.
Billie is a bit of an old soul. I believe losing her parents the way she did changed her—how could it not?—and forced her to grow up faster than she would have if they’d survived. She and Bodi both took on a lot, and it’s one of the reasons I’m cutting him slack in his overprotectiveness.
Eventually, whether it’s with me or some other guy, he’s going to have to let go. Let Billie live her life. No matter how hard it is for him.
But fuck, the idea of her with another guy sends an unfamiliar churning in my gut.
Jealousy.
What the fuck is that about? We’ve been together less than a month. And yet, I spend every moment I’m not thinking about hockey thinking about her. That’s never happened before. Ever. Not when I was a teenager getting laid for the first time. Not when I was married.
Never.
I hear her steps in the kitchen, and she comes in looking beautifully windblown but also tired.
“Hey, baby.” I take her backpack from her as I lean down to kiss her.
“Mmm. You taste good.” She smiles up at me.
“Shower first or dinner?” I ask.
