Page 36 of Learn the Play
Another long pause. “He cares about her, and honestly, he’s stressing out about training camp. He’s not going to be able to pursue her like he would like, and he’s worried about losing any momentum that he might be making,” Sloane says, reading me like a damn book. She listens again, then nods. “Sure, hold on.” She hands the phone to me. “She wants to talk to you.”
“Hello?” I ask, my hands suddenly sweaty as I grip the phone.
“What are your intentions with my best friend?” Amanda asks.
“Everything,” I answer.
“Explain that,” Amanda says, her voice calm.
“The night we met, she didn’t recognize me. She wasn’t sitting next to me to try to rise on the social ladder or to latch on to a meal ticket. She was just Bellamy, and I was just Reid, and getting that time with her was the greatest gift. I want more of her time. I want to hear her talk and see her smile. I want her. All of her, whatever that looks like.”
“You don’t just have a hill to climb, Reid Montgomery, you have a damn mountain. She’s got some deep-rooted anger at her father, and it’s not just him she blames. It’s football. It’s irrational, but we were young when her parents split, and she needed something and someone to blame.”
“I know.” I’ll scale the fucking mountain if that means when I get to the top, she’s mine. I wish I could explain it. I don’t have the right words. I can say she’s different or that she’s special and that we had a connection. All of that is true, but it’s more than that. It’s everything: the laughter, the conversation, the sex… It’s her. I know with everything inside me that she’s it for me. I can’t explain it, but I’ve always trusted my gut, and my gut tells me that no matter how many mountains she makes me climb or how long I have to wait to prove to her that we’d be different, it will all be worth it. She’s worth it.
“She’s not feeling well, but you already know that.”
“Yeah, I just talked to her.”
“She’s not sick, just ate something that didn’t agree with her.”
“I’d still like to check on her.”
“I’m going to text Sloane her address. I’m also going to call my best friend and confess my sins. Don’t make me regret this, Reid.”
“I won’t. I just want to take care of her.” I didn’t realize that was my intention until the words left my mouth. “She’s sick, and I want to show up. I need her to see that she’s important to me, and no matter what’s going on in my life, she’s a priority.”
“Good answer,” Amanda says, approval in her tone. “Be good to her, Reid. She deserves nothing but the best.”
“I promise.” My words are firm and a vow, if you will, to her best friend for tossing me this bone. “Thank you, Amanda.”
“You’re welcome. She might not open the door because I’m telling on myself. I can get you there, Reid, but you have to put in the work.”
“I’m not afraid of a little hard work.”
“I’m counting on that. I want to see her happy.”
“That’s what I want, too,” I tell her.
“All right. Get my number from Sloane, just in case.”
“Thank you. Thank you so much,” I tell her, ending the call and handing the phone back to Sloane. “You, Sloane Peterson, are a genius.” I pull her into a hug as she laughs at me.
“Just like that, our happy-go-lucky Reid is back,” she teases. Her phone beeps, and she raises it to show me the message from Amanda. “I’ll send this to you,” she says, her fingers flying across the screen.
“Can you send me Amanda’s number, too? Just in case. She told me I could get it from you.”
“Sure, but just because she said to give it to you in the message that she sent me.” My phone pings twice, and it makes my heart race. I stand and call out, “I’ll be back.”
“Where are you going?” Baker calls after me.
“Bellamy’s not feeling well. I’m going to check on her.”
“What can we do?” Corie asks, all attention now on me.
“Nothing. I’m just going to take her a few things and check on her. I’ll be back.” I wave over my shoulder and rush into thehouse. I grab my shirt, wallet, and keys before heading out the door.
Thirty minutes later, I’m pulling up outside her building. She lives in an apartment on the fifth floor. Reaching over, I grab the bags of essentials from the passenger seat and make my way inside.
