“You okay, baby?”
“Yeah,” he murmurs, “I’m just not used to everyone knowing about us and talking so openly about, well, us getting busy around the house.”
Everyone else is preoccupied and not paying us any attention, so I pull him into me and cup his face while I kiss him.
“It’s just player banter, it’s their way of showing they accept you, that they accept us, they’re joking with me how they would anyone else on the team. But if anyone ever says anything that makes you uncomfortable, you let me know.”
“Okay,” he says, smiling and kissing me back.
“Now, how about that tour?”
He nods and I take his hand, leading him out of the press room. I show him the gym and a few of the therapy rooms, before we head towards our wide receiver meeting room, which is where I spend most of my time if I’m not in the gym or at practice.
Before we reach the door, it opens and Joel walks out, followed by a member of our legal team, who I vaguely recognize from other meetings I’ve been a part of.
“Shit,” he murmurs. “Are we going to have a problem here?”
“Not from me,” I say, looking at Joel.
“Me neither,” he says.
“Okay, don’t make me regret leaving you both to it,” the guy from legal says as he walks off down the corridor.
I shield Donovan with my body, not wanting Joel to even look at him.
“I take it you’re off the team then,” I say, and he just nods, all traces of his cocky arrogance gone, he seems deflated, even defeated. “Why did you do it, Joel? I know I shouldn’t even bother asking, I should just say good riddance and never seeyou again, but I can’t get my head around why? What did I ever do to you?”
“It wasn’t just you,” he murmurs, looking everywhere except at me. “I was sick of getting overlooked, and I was always getting benched. Then you came along, and even though you weren’t even training with us full time, I could see it all happening again. My dreams were slipping further away from me, so when that gossip column reached out…” His words trail off, and he sighs.
“What? You thought telling them that I’m gay would somehow get you on the starting team?”
“I didn’t tell them anything.” He faces me, his eyes full of tears, but I have no sympathy for him. “I just confirmed that the stuff they were saying was true. They asked me if you’d ever been to a club called Prism, and I said I heard you talking about it one time on the phone and that… well… that you went there.”
“I went there? That isn’t what you heard, and you know it, so you lied to them. And you shouldn’t have been talking about me anyway; you should have ignored them like everyone else on the team did.”
“You think I don’t know that? I made a mistake, okay? Now the rest of the team hates me for what I did, and I’ve lost my job, everything.”
“It’s called facing the consequences, Joel. Yes you made a mistake, but they were still your actions, it was your choice to do what you did. You let your jealousy and entitlement eat you up inside until it exploded, and now you have to deal with that.”
He slumps against the wall, head hung low, not even bothering to wipe away his tears. Fuck.
“Look, you’re not a bad player,” I say, “your attitude fucking sucks, and that makes you a dick to be around. Butmaybe this is the wake-up call you needed to work on that, and when you get signed to a new team, you can start fresh.”
“Please,” he scoffs, “what are the chances of me getting signed again?”
“Well they’re low with that attitude, but that’s exactly what I’m talking about. You know what, fuck it, I’ve been civil, I’ve even tried to help you, and you’re still being an asshole. You need to grow up and figure out your shit. I’ve got my life to live, and I’m not letting you get in the way of that anymore.” I turn to Donovan and reach for his hand. “Come on, baby, let’s go home.”
Donovan smiles and lets me lead him away, not saying anything, just gently squeezing my hand as we walk.
“Stephen,” Joel calls out, and I slow down. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”
I nod, but don’t look back as we continue to make our way out of the stadium. I’m not sure if his apology is genuine or not, but regardless, I don’t need it. I’ve got Donovan back, I’m living my dream playing in the NFL, and I’m surrounded by people who care about me. I’ve got everything I need, and right now, that’s all I want to focus on.
Chapter 28
Diablo
There’snothinglikebeingon a ride with the rest of the guys; Slim, Tank, and Pretty Boy are all joining me on this trip we’re taking. Donovan doesn’t know about it, but I couldn’t keep this from Elizabeth. I promised her there would be no more secrets, and I meant it. The only thing that would make this better is if she was with me, on the back of my bike where she belongs. I hated leaving her behind; but she doesn’t need to be here for what’s about to go down.
