She sighed. "Yes. I can take care of myself."
It wasn’t a question, and of course, she could. What worried me wasn’t her—it was the rest of the city. But I knew a losing battle when I saw one. With a small, admittedly dorky wave, I climbed into Rowan’s car.
"We driving Coach home?" he asked.
"She insists on riding."
We exchanged a look, but Rowan just nodded and asked, "How are you feeling?"
"Like I was run over by a truck, but not bad enough to let someone ride a bike alone through the city at night."
Rowan was about ten years younger than me, still new to the league, still hoping for a bigger career. But with women, he was just as protective as I was.
"For the record," I said, watching Frankie’s bike as she pedaled ahead, "I’d do this for Griff too."
"Noted." Rowan pulled out onto the quiet street behind the arena, keeping a safe distance from Frankie as we followed her down the side street.
"Is this creepy?" he asked after a minute. "I feel like a creep."
"You think I’m the authority on right and wrong?" But even I had to admit, I felt uneasy about it too.
I pulled my phone from my pocket, dialed Sydney’s number, and winced as the ringing echoed through my pounding head. Spots swam in front of my eyes, but I blinked them away, keeping my focus on Coach’s quickly moving figure.
Sydney picked up on the third ring. "This better be good," she said, laughing. "Ryder just got here, and we’re?—"
"Stop!" I couldn’t deal with hearing it. The two of them couldn’t stay apart, even when I was in the room. It was disgusting.
"Cooking," she laughed. "Mind out of the gutter, big brother."
I set the phone in the holder on Rowan’s dashboard and switched it to speaker. This car was so old there wasn’t even CarPlay. "Rowan and I need your help, Syd."
"Should I be scared? Oh, and how are you feeling? Ryder said you have a concussion?"
"Screw the concussion. It doesn’t matter. Rowan and I are currently driving slowly through the dark, following Coach Frankie home."
She went quiet for a long moment. "Umm… guys…"
I cut her off. "She’s riding her bike back from the arena alone, and we didn’t want any creeps going after her."
"Creeps like the two of you?"
"We’re protecting her!"
Sydney sighed, and I could practically hear the eye roll. "Teddy, women aren’t stupid. Don’t you think she knows sheneeds to keep her head on a swivel when she’s out alone? We can barely walk out the door at night without feeling unsafe. And if you think she hasn’t noticed the car trailing her, then… well, you’re a dude."
"I feel like I should be insulted."
"No, let her know it’s you two idiots, and not even worse creeps."
Sydney was right. We ended the call, and I rolled down the window to shout her way, but before I could, she turned into a walkway in front of a beautiful old house, ivy creeping up its stone walls. She pushed open a rusted, ornate iron gate, carried her bike up the steps, and disappeared around the side.
“She’s home,” I said, relaxing back into my seat.
Rowan nodded, his hands still tightly gripping the wheel. "Now, I’m taking you home to rest. We’ve got to pick up Guardian from the neighbor, and you’ve got a knee to ice."
"Yes, Mother."
"Fuck off."
