That was two weeks ago, and I hadn’t heard a word since. I knew she was busy touring, but fuck, if my heart didn’t long for a single text from her.
I’ve been avoiding the headlines, the concert recaps, and even the damn livestreams of her performances I always tried to watch.
I sneaked a few glimpses here and there, but I instantly regretted it when my heart was suddenly a lead fucking weight.
After too many laps to count, Bronx finally bent at the waist, panting. “Are you trying to kill us? It’s been two weeks of thisfucking broody bullshit and you going ham in training. I’m dead.”
West slowed, shaking out his arms. “You’re a professional athlete. You’ll survive.”
“I’m defense,” Bronx said. “I stop people, not chase them.”
West let out a laugh and glanced over at me. “You good?”
“Super Bowl’s coming up. Gotta be game ready.”
“Nah, that’s not it.”
“Agreed. What’s going on?” Bronx asked.
We walked the curve of the track, and Bronx let out a breath.
“It’s Ellie, isn’t it?” West asked.
I didn’t respond.
“Okay, so it is. What happened?”
West gave me a look. “You two break up?”
“No. Maybe. I don’t know.” I let out a long exhale.
“You’re down so fucking bad for her,” Bronx said. “It’s written all over your face.”
“Fuck off,” I replied.
Bronx waited a beat, still breathing hard. “You love her, don’t you?”
I ran a hand through my hair. “Yeah. I do.”
West blinked. “Damn.”
“I really fucking do, but I don’t know where her head’s at. Fuck, I love her—I mean, I almost got arrested for her.”
Bronx looked up. “What the fuck?”
“Yeah, that house I bought had a journal hidden under the floorboards, and we started digging into an old case that happened there. Took it a little too far.”
“What does that mean?”
“Broke into a place. Nobody pressed charges, though. Kept it out of the press.”
West shook his head. “That’s not normal.”
“Nope, but fuck. She was all ‘Hey, let’s do this’, and I was like ‘Whatever you say, Ellie baby. Sure, why not?’”
We reached the straightaway, and I kicked a rock off the track.
Neither of them spoke. Bronx nodded once.
