“Wanna tell me what your problem is today, then?” I ask Renee as I waltz over to her in the middle of the field. No one else is around.
She scoffs. Even the fact that I’m talking to her doesn’t sit well with her. “Do I look like I have a problem?”
“Sounds like you do.”
A small smile of realisation appears on her face, and she nods, rolling her eyes. “How I speak to my cheerleaders is none of your business. I give all my girls constructive criticism. Why do you care?”
I sigh. I don’t know how to get my point across without giving away that I see Mae as more than a professional partner. I’m really trying to bite my tongue here.
“Sounds like it’s a little more than a constructive criticism. In fact, I’ve heard out of everyone on the team, you treat Mae the worst. Want to tell me why that is?”
Renee’s face contorts. “And you’re speaking to me like I’m a child because…?”
I arch an eyebrow at her. “You got something against your own daughter?”
She‘s silent.
“Cat got your tongue now?” I shake my head, reminding myself I need to be nice. “Listen, Renee, I’ve got to know Mae a little since we’ve been partners. She’s become good friends with my sister, and I don’t understand how you have it in you to treat her the way you do.”
“You don’t know anything about me, Nathan Slater.”
“And I don’t want to,” I respond. “But the way you treat my sister’s friend,” it pains me to refer to Mae as that, “is not fair. Do you know how lucky you are to have a daughter who tries with you after all you’ve done?”
“You don’t know the half of it.”
But I do. I know about Mae’s father. I know the effect his PTSD had on the family. I know Renee feels alone. I know she projects her inner turmoil onto other people.
“I don’t need to. You’re pushing her away, which will only hurt you more in the long run. She’s your flesh and blood. You probably don’t care, but I don’t have a mother. I wish I did, but I don’t. You don’t realise how lucky you are to have a child, or two for that matter, that stick by you. I’d do anything to be in their position, so stop taking family for granted because they’re all you've got.”
She’s stunned.
“That’s coming from someone who wishes their mother was still around. Things can change in the blink of an eye. Don’t waste the time you have with them by being… well,you.” I turn and walk away without another word.
I want to tell her I know it all. I know everything there is to about Mae, and I see the good things in her that her mother refuses to.
If she won’t support her daughter, then I will, and I’ll do it without complaint because caring for Mae Bexley is no skin off my back.
“There’s the star of the NFL!” Emmanuel hollers as I walk into the store. He rushes over to me, gripping my shoulders. “Your last game was incredible. I’m so proud.”
“Thanks, Emmanuel.” I nod a greeting to his son, who’s unloading boxes. “How are sales going?”
The man’s face drops as he sighs. I can tell he’s trying to be nonchalant about the situation in front of his son, but Emmanuel’s store isn’t doing well. “Not as good as I would like. We’ve sold one bottle today. One. Profit is barely over ten dollars.”
I’ve offered Emmanuel financial assistance countless times, yet his pride stops him from accepting. I get why. He created this business from the ground up and doesn’t want me rescuing him. Even when I’ve tried to boost his sales by buying wine, he refuses to sell it to me, knowing I don’t drink and won’t have any use for it.
The store was a booming business when it first opened.
One: because my mother was one of his top customers when we moved.
And two: because people were excited about something new.
But now that the store’s old and outdated, it blends in.
It’s no longer shiny and new.
People would prefer to purchase from a billion-dollar company rather than a man trying to make a better life for his family. If Emmanuel’s store doesn’t get the footfall soon, though, he’ll be forced to close it. And I can’t bear the thought of him losing everything he’s worked so hard for.
It’s why I come and help him. I know he can’t afford to hire staff to restock the shelves and clean the floors, so I will. For free. Because it’s the least I can do for him.
