Page 121 of Wild Love
“Omelets. Want one?”
I shake my head as I pull out an envelope addressed to me from my high school. Looks like they finally found me. Not that I wasn’t getting the mail they were sending my dad, but I felt like I could pretend I wasn’t. I open it and read the letter inviting me to a Hall of Fame inductee ceremony at halftime of the homecoming football game in two months. “Anything else come?”
They exchange a look before Ginny says, “That’s it.”
Huh. The flowers and gifts from Johnny have stopped. Nothing new has come since Friday. Maybe he’s finally given up. I wish I felt better about that outcome. I’ve started to call him so many times, but part of me needs to give him space to see if he really wants me or if he just fell into this thing because I was his little piece of home.
“Oh!” my friend exclaims, breaking me from my thoughts. “We’re going to the movies tonight.”
“To see what?”
Neither answers right away.
Heath clears his throat. “There’s this new action movie.”
“Pass,” I say, and Ginny smacks her boyfriend on the arm.
“He meant a rom-com.” She turns and gives me a pouty lip. “Please? You have to come. We’re all going. It’ll be fun.”
“I’m not really in the mood for a big group date. Besides, I’m working at the Hall of Fame.”
“Tonight?”
“Yeah, there’s some sort of event for the basketball team. Anyway, thanks for the invite.”
I take the letter to my room and put it on my desk. Maybe it’s time to face the past and move on. That’s the thing about having your heart blasted to smithereens—all the other cracks and fissures you’ve been walking around with seem a lot less significant.
When I arrive at the Hall of Fame, I’m able to jump right to work and put everything else out of mind. The Valley basketball team is having a fancy party for a promotion on the coaching staff. There’s dinner and cocktails and lots of laughter.
I weave through the guests, making sure everyone is happy. I could have left already. I only needed to stay for setup, but my friends went to the movies tonight, and sitting home by myself sounds worse than working.
I smirk when I see the man of the hour hiding in a corner away from the people who came to celebrate him. I grab a beer from the bar and take it to Wes Reynolds, the new head coach of the men’s basketball team. He’s the youngest head coach in the history of the school.
“Thanks. Thought I was going to have to decide between abandoning my spot in the corner and grabbing a fresh drink.”
“No problem. Any particular reason you’re hiding? Is there something we can do?”
“No, this is great. I’ve never had a party dedicated to me. It’s a little overwhelming. I wanted a few minutes to take it all in without having to talk to anyone.” He stares out at the party. I can’t read his expression—excitement, nerves, amazement?
“Congratulations, Coach.”
My boss beckons me from across the room.
“Enjoy tonight,” I tell him. “Don’t hide out too long. A lot of people want to share this with you.”
“Thanks.” He doesn’t move. “Maybe just five more minutes.”
Laughing, I head over to my boss, Regina.
“I thought you’d already left,” she says with a smile. She hasn’t said a word about the extra hours I’ve been putting in or even asked why I’m back early.
“I decided to stick around. I timed out. Don’t worry.”
“No, I’m glad you’re here. We need to preview a new video for the hype room, and I’m all tied up.”
“Tonight?”
She hesitates. “We have an early tour in the morning, and I’m hoping to use it.”
