“This is awesome.It will be a lot easier to find time to see you if you don’t live on the other side of the city.”
Internally rolling my eyes, I keep my mouth shut.I won't be coming to his house to hang out because I know what he’s really expecting and I don’t want that.I want a man who actually loves me, not just someone who wants my body.
I tell him to turn right and then left.When I point to which driveway to pull into, his eyes narrow.
“This is Schmidt’s house.Why are you living with Schmidt?”
“Because I work for him?”
“What the heck, Winnie?Why didn’t you tell me?I was nervous you’d be working for some perv who would try to touch my girl.”
“I'm not your girl, Wheeler.We’ve dated in the past, but we’re not dating now.I don’t belong to you.”
“You’ll always belong to me, Win.If you’d go out with me, we could solve the dating issue.You act like I don’t want to date you, but you’re the one who constantly turns me down.”
“Oh, please.You don’t want to date me.”I wave him off.
“Wait… You’re a nanny.Who are you nannying?Schmidt doesn’t have kids… I swear if he’s into some weird crap where he’s going to dress up like a baby and wants you to take care of him, I’ll beat the crap out of him.Man, I’ll pay you to live in my house and walk around in skimpy clothes.”He winks at me, thinking he’s being cute.
“Shut up, you idiot.Jamie isn't dressing up like a baby and calling me mommy.”
“I’ll call you mommy.”Wheeler smirks as he pulls up in front of Jamie’s house.“Seriously, Win.What are you doing working for him?”
Before I can answer, Jamie walks out the door with Tali in his arms.I watch Wheeler carefully.His jaw goes slack and his eyes widen.He opens and closes his mouth several times, but nothing comes out.
“Meet Tali, Jamie’s daughter.”
I climb out of Wheeler’s truck before he can respond and go straight to Jamie.I say hi to Tali and give Jamie a gentle smile.
“How’d he respond?”He asks quietly.
“He’s confused.If he says something stupid today, let it go.It’s Wheeler.He’s an idiot and needs time to process.On the bright side, if he says something stupid, you’ll get some incredible gift baskets until you forgive him.”I lean in closer and lower my voice.“Make him sweat it, his gift basket game is on point and the longer you make him suffer, the more amazing they get.”
“Since when do you have a daughter, man?”Wheeler approaches us with a box in his hands.
“Since a little over two years ago?”Jamie runs a rough hand through his hair.I’ve noticed he does that whenever he’s uncomfortable and doesn’t know what else to do.
“Why didn’t you tell us?That was before you even joined the team.”Wheeler’s voice comes out with a hint of hurt and sadness.He cares about his teammates, especially the guys on the starting lineup.
“Yeah, I know… It was a painful time for me and I didn’t want to talk about it.Then it felt weird to let people know.”
“Were you going to hide this adorable angel forever?”Wheeler coos at Tali, making her face light up in a bright smile.
Jamie blinks at his teammate, more than shocked with his reaction to Tali.I knew Wheeler was great with kids and would quickly be won over by Tali.Even if he’s hurt about Jamie not sharing this part of his life with him, he’ll understand when he gives himself some time to process.
“Yeah, kinda.Then Winnie made me realize how ridiculous that was.I'm not ashamed of her, so there’s no reason to hide her.”
“Holy crap, Schmidt has a kid?”Liliana appears next to Wheeler with Smithy right behind her.
“We’re not reporting this to the world, Lils.Tali stays out of the media.”I point a finger in my best friend’s face.
“Obviously.”She rolls her eyes.“No one needs to be in our personal lives… But how did we not know?”
“I just told Wheeler.It was a painful time in my life when I joined the Pit Bulls.My wife died giving birth to Tali and I was traded only a few months later.I didn’t want to talk about her or how we lost her.I didn’t want people to pity me or ask questions.I just wanted to play the game.”
“Leave your personal life off the field.”Smithy nods his head.“We can all understand that.You know we’re here for you though.”
“That’s why you don’t come out with us and when you do, you don’t stay long,” Wheeler says softly.
