Page 26 of Game Changer

“Oh. Um, it’s not in there.”

“What is this?” She lifts something from the jewelry box.

The quarter-carat diamond ring glints in the light.

She gasps. “Nova! You and Brad?! Who else knows?”

A lump rises in my throat.

I can’t tell her it’s the one thing of any value he didn’t take—and only because it was on my finger and that would’ve made it hard to escape without a trace.

But she’s so excited, and for once, I can’t find the words.

“We should call him!” she goes on when I don’t answer.

“No!”

Mari’s eyes widen.

I think she’s going to press the matter, but instead, understanding dawns on her face.

“Because it's my wedding and you don't want to pull focus.” She draws me into a hug. “I know I give you a hard time, but once in a while, you do something grown up like this.”

The truth is on the tip of my tongue, but I don’t want to disappoint my sister and make her think I can’t do anything right.

She leaves, and I drop onto the bed.

Harlan and Mari have been nothing but welcoming. Still, keeping this secret is a weight on my chest that’s growing each day. I feel claustrophobic in this huge house.

I need to do something wild.

To get out of here.

I set the ring back in the jewelry box.

There’s no one I can talk to about this. No one who understands the pressure I’m under and who wouldn’t judge me for what I’m doing.

Except one person.

Clayton Wade might be a superstar, but he also knows my damage.

And he never looked as if he judged me.

With a glance back at the empty doorway, I open my hand and stare at the ten-digit number on it.

I shouldn’t. I’m trying to sort out my life.

Fantasizing about the most famous athlete on my future BIL’s NBA team is not the way to do that.

I bite my cheek and reach for my phone.

My fingers punch in the digits from my palm, and I type out a message.

Delete.

Another one.

Delete.

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