Page 88 of Well Played

Once I heard his footsteps fade, I turned the lock on the door. Can’t be too careful. I wouldn’t be surprised if he came back and opened without knocking next time. Then I went to the bathroom and gently opened the door.

“He’s gone.”

Presley nodded. Her hands were shaking.

“Did you hear?”

She nodded again. “I’m not sure what I feel worse about, the fact that I can’t keep away from you and we almost got caught making out, or that I made you lie to your brother.”

I dragged a hand through my hair. “It’s a fucked-up situation.”

She frowned. “It is. And I’m so sorry you’re in the middle of things between me and Tanner.”

“You didn’t put me here. It takes two, and I wanted it as much as you, if not more.”

She shook her head. “I should go before he looks for me again.”

Normally when she had doubts, I didn’t let her walk away without trying to convince her things would work out. But I didn’t have the energy at the moment. Or maybe this was the first time I’d started to think maybe they wouldn’t…

***

The next day, my brother appeared at the entrance to my bedroom as I was folding my laundry.

“Hey, dude. Does this tie look stupid with this shirt?” he asked.

Tanner wore a blue dress shirt, with a maroon tie hanging off his shoulder.

“No, it looks fine.” I gave him a once-over. “Where you going all dressed up?”

“I have an interview.”

“An interview? Where?”

“Pinehurst has an opening for a football coach. So I threw my hat into the ring, and they called me.”

Pinehurst was a small college two towns over. It hadn’t occurred to me that Tanner might be considering locating here permanently, even though I probably should have known with the way he’d been acting lately.

“Why would you want that job? I thought you were liking the agent gig.”

“I only have a few clients right now. I can easily swing both for a while. If it turns out I can’t, I’ll just focus on the coaching. I’m not crazy about travel. And if I want to get serious about settling down and being here for Alex, I need to find something more stable anyway.” He knotted his tie. “You don’t think it’s a good idea?”

I tried to think about the kind of advice someone would give his brother if thatsomeonedidn’thave an ulterior motive. The coaching position sounded like a dream job for someone in his situation. If I steered him away from it, that would be for my own selfish reasons—not wanting him near Presley. And that wasn’t fair to him or Alex.

“No. I think the coaching job would be a good thing for you, if you’re looking to settle in Beaufort,” I forced out.

“Yeah, me too. I really hope I get it. I’m also eager to get back on the playing field. Football is still in my blood, and this’ll be one way to get my feet wet again without having to play, which I obviously can’t do. It’s the perfect opportunity for me.”

I sucked in some air. “Well, I hope you get it, then.”

Tanner examined my face. “Are you okay?”

No, in fact. Not at all.Apparently, I must not have been doing that great of a job of pretending like I was happy for him. “Why do you ask?”

He leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. “I’ve been getting a strange vibe from you since the moment I arrived. And then the way you’ve been drinking… Well, I know a thing or two about addiction.”

Ihadbeen throwing back a few too many lately, but that was directly related to him being here and nothing more; I couldn’t exactly admit that.

“There’s nothing to the drinking. I’m…just going through my own shit, you know? You’re not the only one reassessing your life these days.”

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