“Okay, then. Sleep tight, Quinn Maxwell. I need to dash.”
“Bye, Cooke.” I’m about to press End as I cross the street. Looking up, I’m barely aware of the car turning the corner toward me. I don’t think he sees me. I attempt to pick up my pace, but I’m forced to take corrective action, launching myself forward until I feel hard concrete against my palms and knees. As I fall to the ground, my phone skitters across pavement.
The passenger in the car leans out of the open window and yells, “Pay attention where you’re going, dumb bitch!”
I roll over onto my butt and assess the damage. My jeggings are ripped onbothknees now, and blood is oozing out of the scrapes beneath. My hands feel like they’re burning. When I peer down at them, I wince. They’re really messed up, and rocks and dirt are embedded in my palms. “Shit.” I suck in a sharp breath as I try to wipe them on my legs.
“Quinn? Love?”
What the hell?I look to my left, searching for my phone. I spot it in the grass. Gingerly, I roll in that direction and pick it up. “Cooke?”
“What happened?”
“Oh. Erm….”
“Quinn.”
“I fell.” I’m not about to tell him I was an idiot and almost got hit by a car. “I guess I had too much to drink.” Which is not a lie.
“I thought you said you were home. There’s a shop behind you.”
I slowly turn my head and see the bright lights of a convenience store.Damn.“Well, I… you sounded like you were busy. I—”
“Darling.” It sounds like “Dahling.” So cute.
“I’m fine. Just a klutz. Go. Get on with your day. I’m almost home, I promise.”
“I’ll walk with you.” He chuckles. “If you’re tipsy, I want to make sure you’re safe, love.”
“Fine.” I push up to standing and stare down at myself. I’ll live. “So, you don’t play college rugby.”
Cooke starts to laugh, and it reminds me of our last call. It’s contagious, and I laugh too.
“No, I guess you could call me a professional footballer.”
“Like the Minnesota Vikings?”
“I suppose it’s similar. I’m paid to play the sport. Not as much as your famous American footballers, but enough.”
“Ah, I see.”
“Just click on the link I’m going to send you and watch it. It’ll explain everything.”
“Man of mystery, huh?”
Cooke laughs again. “Indeed. I’m extremely mysterious.”
It’s my turn to laugh. He seems very open to me. Nothing secretive about this man. But what do I know? We’ve only spoken three times. Well, more if you count the times I’ve hung up on him.
I look up and see my house. “Now I’m really home.”
“Oh? Prove it.”
Turning the phone around, I point it at the white house with the red door. “That’s my house.”
“You live with the girls from the pub?”
“There are six of us.”
