“You say that now, Anna, but...”
“I mean it,” she said firmly. “I know words are worthless to you, but...they’re the only thing I can offer you. Give Melody a kiss for me, okay?”
And before he could stop her, before he could make it worse, she turned and hurried out the door.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Twenty-fourth encounter
“It feels like...the end, doesn’t it?” Anna murmured, nodding toward the window.
Lucas followed her gaze to the dark clouds that painted the sky black. “Endings and beginnings are usually the same. So, maybe it’s a beginning,” he replied calmly.
Lucas left.
He wasn’t in the mood to celebrate anymore. He didn’t want to see anyone but Melody.
Never in his life had he hated someone else being right so much. Never had he hated so much that he was wrong. He wanted Anna to lie. He wanted to hear that they could continue as before. For...forever? Yes, forever seemed like a reasonable amount of time. Forever might be close to enough.
I’ll get over the fact that you don’t love me.
He hated Anna for those words, for putting them in his mouth. But not as much as the honesty behindI love you. Youknow that. I know that. Because he believed her. His body spoke to her. And, in turn, her face spoke to him. He hadn’t known. He had only imagined being loved by a woman like Anna.
But in his mind, it hadn’t been so damn tragic and it hadn’t hurt so damn much. Fox called him. Temple called him. West called him. Fuck, even Leon called him.
He ignored them all. He ignored Hazel, who cheerfully congratulated him on his victory and told him what she and Melody had done that evening. He just thanked her and said he was tired. He went upstairs to Melody...who was asleep.
She was sleeping soundly, clutching the stuffed eagle to her chest. It had been easier for her to fall asleep for a few weeks now. Without him. That was good. But at the same time, he wished she were still awake, would wrap her thin arms around his neck and remind him why it was okay that he’d let Anna go. Why it had to be this way. Why he didn't have a choice.
Melody was worth it. She was worth everything.
But that didn’t mean he didn’t feel like someone had replaced his heart with a balloon filled with nails.
“Hey, I thought... I’d talk to you alone for a minute before we go in.” Lucy nervously pushed her hair back from her forehead and glanced at her watch. “You know... PR consultant to player. Dax’s girlfriend to...you.”
No one had ever uttered that word so accusingly, but Lucas had neither the nerve nor the energy to tell Lucy that. He had no desire to talk to her at all. He’d dropped Melody off at daycare only to return an hour later and be greeted by the red-haired, nervous wreck named Lucy. She was expelling one gasp after another as if she were running a marathon or dealing with a harrowing PR situation.
Fuck, it was a harrowing PR situation.
Lucas raised an eyebrow and silently crossed his arms. It was one of those situations that no amount of words could improve, so he let it go.
“Okay, listen. I’ll be honest: I was rather surprised when Dax barreled in and informed me that you were Anna’s secret boyfriend.” She puffed out her cheeks. “Of all the players, I know the least about you because you’re incredibly private. But I honestly always thought that you...” Frowning, she tilted her head. “...were just about the most loyal man the world has to offer.”
Perplexed, he opened his mouth.
“Yeah, that’s probably true," she continued. "It’s what Fox told me. That you hate drama. That you didn’t want to upset anyone. That it...just happened.”
Yeah. Maybe it had just happened, even though that sounded too simplistic for all the feelings churning in his chest, each gunning to win the gold in wrestling.
“Which leads me to believe that you...like Anna? That you only risked this shit-storm because you actually care about her?” Her gaze softened. “If that’s the case, it certainly wouldn’t be a problem if you wanted to be together. There aren’t strict rules regarding relationships between team doctors and players, and I can talk to Dax and Jack. We could also keep it under wraps for the playoffs so that…”
“It’s not an issue anymore,” he interrupted harshly. The conversation was ridiculously irrelevant — and he didn’t want to hear it. He had no use for what people thought, or even what he felt.
I’ll get over the fact that you don’t love me.
His jaw cracked.
“Oh.” Lucy’s eyes widened in surprise as Lucas narrowed his. He’d assumed Anna had told her. Her brothers, her friends...
