Me: No! Not at all. Everything’s good. I just want to wallow in my misery.
I sent him a photo of my feet propped up on the coffee table with a glass of wine in my hand.
Half an hour later, he sent me a response.
Rhett: Just talked to Cole on the phone. He’s real pissed about this for some reason. Got mad at me when I asked what you two were fighting over. Said something about people need to stay out of his business. Anyway, I think you ought to give him some space for a while. He’s got a lot on his mind, ya know? Hope you don’t take it personally.
Me: Nope, I won’t take it personally. Thanks for letting me know.
Rhett: Anytime, sexy trainer lady. That’s what my sister’s calling you. She’s not wrong, by the way.
Me: Tell her I said thanks :-)
Rhett’s text made me feel a little better, but then I started crying. My hormones felt all out of whack, and I didn’twanttogive Cole his space, and Rhett wanted me to meet his family, and oh by the way I was sleeping with Elias too. All of it overwhelmed me, and I laid back on the couch and let my emotions take over.
I wasn’t hungover the next morning, but I called in sick anyway. I didn’t feel like dealing with people, and Idefinitelydidn’t feel like smiling and pretending like everything with Cole was okay. I was terrified that if he looked at me the wrong way, I would burst into tears again. And I might die of embarrassment if the rest of the Reapers players saw me crying.
Rhett and Elias both texted to see if I was okay since I had called out, which was nice, but Cole didn’t reach out. That felt like a punctuation mark at the end of our fight.
After wallowing in my misery that day, I woke up the following day feeling a little better. Team practice wasn’t until three o’clock, but I was antsy, so I texted Elias.
Me: Hey! Want to meet early for your workouts like we’ve been doing?
Elias: No thank you. I will be there at 3:00. Coach knows I am doing extra training with you, so we do not need to hide it.
Me: How about we meet for lunch, then? I’m bored and am looking for something to do before practice. My treat.
Elias: Thank you. But I have plans.
Me: Okay no worries.
But I didn’t have no worries. I hadmanyworries. It felt like all the guys were giving me the cold shoulder suddenly. Even Rhett, although I knew he had a legitimate reason for not being able to hang out.
For someone juggling three relationships, I felt awfully lonely.
I decided to fall back on what had worked in the past: exercise. Endorphins would set me right. I packed a gym bag, then drove to the arena. One of the fringe benefits of working for the Reapers was that I had access to a state-of-the-art exercise room whenever I wanted.
There was extra security posted up at every arena entrance, and another guard patrolling the employee halls. Their presence was calming, a sign that the team was taking all the threats to Cole and Rhett seriously.
Normally, I could only tolerate the treadmill for thirty minutes, but the podcast I was listening to kept me interested for a full hour. Then I made a protein shake and hit the weights. A full-body routine would make me feel better. Squats, deadlifts, bench press, plus accessory work. When my podcast ended, I switched to Lady Gaga’sMayhemalbum and cranked it way up, leaning on the upbeat music to brighten my mood.
Between the music and the familiar repetition of the resistance training, it actually worked! I was feeling more like myself with every passing minute.
Until I heard a noise out in the locker room.
I sat up on the bench and paused my music. There was only silence. I leaned to the side, peering through the windows into the trainer’s office. I could see a tiny sliver of the locker room beyond.
Ten seconds passed. Then twenty.
I was about to go back to my workout when there was a flash of movement. Someone was in the locker room.
“Hello?” I called out.
Heavy footsteps, and then another flash of movement. I got up and went into my office, grabbing the pepper spray from my bag on the way. The locker room was empty, so I went to the door and peered out into the hallway.
Someone was walking away at a brisk pace.
“Hey!” I shouted. “Can I help you?”
