“Get your feet off my couch.” Evan kicks Bennett, so he tumbles off.
My friends are aware of Mae. They understand me and can easily see when I’m off—every day over the past week. Yet, we haven’t discussed it openly, aside from a few check-ins to see if I’m okay. They recognise it’s a line not to cross right now.
According to Poppy, Renee has eased up on her daughter. She hasn’t made any efforts to reach out and bridge the cavern-sized gap between them, but she’s less offensive to her.
Perhaps I got through to her.
Good.
Because I won’t be able to sleep again knowing that Renee still treats her daughter like crap.
Even if we don’t see each other again.
I’ve purposely avoided sticking around before or after training because Mae needs time to think about everything right now. I’m the last person she needs to see, and truthfully, I’m still hurt she didn’t tell me about Florida. I understand her mind wasn’t made up. She was still weighing up her options.
I wouldn’t have tried to convince her to stay or go. That’s not my place. It’s her life, and she needs to live it. But it’s a conversation I would have loved to be a part of.
My father’s been calling me, trying to talk to me as if nothing happened despite my demands he tell me where he acquired the photos. He’s always working in South Dakota, so I know he couldn't have taken them.
I haven’t slept. I’ve spent most of my nights putting the pieces together. Trying to work out who would be pathetic enough to work for my father. The paparazzi came to mind, but there’s no way they would have been able to get into the restricted area of the stadium to get near the locker rooms.
There’s someone I’ve been meaning to speak to, though, and knowing he’s in the city after returning from a game in Texas, I snatch my phone from the coffee table. He answers after the first ring, and I can hear the smirk in his tone as he says, “Slater, I’ve been expecting your call. Ready for a chat?”
Riley’s voice is as off-putting as always.
My jaw ticks, and Evan and Bennett arch their eyebrows.
“Is that who I think it is?” Bennet wonders, pursing his lips. “Wait until I get my hands on whoever took those photos.” He cracks his knuckles, and Leo watches him with adoration, attempting to do the same but bending his little fingers too far back and hurting himself.
Evan shoots a glare at Bennett as I grumble into the phone, grabbing my car keys and nodding goodbye to my friends. “Fine. I’ll meet you there.”
“I hope you’re going to beat someone up!” Bennett yells after me.
I dip my chin in a nod. “Maybe.”
I meet Riley in a local gym, heading to the weights section where he’s pumping iron. Sweat is trickling down his forehead, and he grins at me. “Nice of you to reach out.”
I hum. There’s a reason Riley’s been hanging around Missarali, and in my head, I’m sure it’s because he’s been secretly spying on Mae and me. Now that he’s back, I can speak to him in person because this isn’t a conversation I wanted to have over the phone.
“Let me guess, you’re tired of the slander, and you’ve come to apologise?”
A scoff forms in my throat, but I keep it down. “No, actually.”
Riley seems genuinely surprised, and he pushes his damp, light brunette hair away from his face. “Alright, enlighten me, then.”
“Kevin Slater… the name ring a bell?”
He laughs—loud and obnoxious. “Well, obviously, he’s your daddy.”
“Please never use that word again.” I grimace. “Have you spoken to him before? Hung out with him?” My nostrils flare. “I think you know what I’m getting at.”
He pulls his eyebrows together and shakes his head. “Nathan, this is a first for me, but I genuinely have no idea what you’re talking about. No offence, but your father seems like a dick. Why would I want to hang out with him?”
It’s frustrating that Riley isn’t just admitting he collected the photos for my father. But he has too much pride to deny it. If he really went to all the effort, he sure as hell would want me to know he had one-upped me.
There’s no reason why he wouldn’t confess to it… unless he actually didn't do it.
“So you’ve been in Missarali doing what exactly?”
