I thought after the talk we had last night, he’d leave my family out of this. My mother is dying, for Christ’s sake. Exposing my dad’s illegal gambling ring is the last thing my family needs right now as we all gear up to fight for her life—to fight against losing her too soon.
It just makes me realize that I need to hold even more tightly to my family’s secrets…and if push comes to shove, I need to hold more tightly to my family, too.
CHAPTER 28: Maverick Jennings
Burning Too Hard, Too Fast, Too Soon
What I said about her last name was out of line. There’s no denying that.
She rushed out of here and slammed the door behind her, and that’s fine. Everything inevitably ends anyway. It’s just a fact of life. I’m saving myself worse pain later by letting this come to a screeching halt now.
I could’ve kept my mouth shut, but like I told her, I was just being honest. It didn’tfeelout of line in the moment. I was simply sharing my experience.
I get why she’s mad, though. She’s not wrong. She’ll have a mess to clean up. She’ll have to issue a statement about it. She’ll have to talk to my sponsors and talk them down to keep my paychecks coming. But that’s her job. Well, hers and Ellie’s, I guess. If it weren’t for idiots like me, they wouldn’t continue to be gainfully employed. Right?
Probably wrong, but I can spin just about anything into a justification if I try hard enough.
I manage to avoid her all day at practice, during which she spends the majority of the day on the phone—presumably fixing the mistakes I made earlier.
I decide to head out for an early evening run outside after I get home. The weather is starting to cool, and even though I pushed hard at practice, my legs feel the need to move.
When I walk out of my condo, she’s heading toward the elevator, too—but with a stroller holding a kid.
“Who’s that?” I ask.
She glares at me. “Jack. My nephew.”
Oh, right. Dex’s kid. I press my lips together and nod.
We’re both quiet on the elevator, and I think of how many times we’ve ridden this same elevator together and the varying amounts of tension we experience together on it. Sometimes sexual tension. Other times it’s hatred. This time, she’s angry. And rightfully so.
“I’m sorry.” My voice is quiet.
She looks surprised as she turns in my direction, but the surprise shifts into a bit of annoyance as she presses her lips together. “You should be. I spent all damn day cleaning up your mess, and I still have more work to do.”
“But your nephew interrupted it?” I guess.
“Ainsley had to run some errands and asked if I’d watch Jack for a few hours, so I’m taking a break to get some fresh air with him.” She purses her lips at the end.
“Mind if I join you?” I ask. It’s a huge step for me. I don’t ask people for things—most especially their company. But something tells me that I need to right this ship with Everleigh. She can help me or hurt me, and I would much rather stay in her good graces than continue to offend her.
I blow out a breath. Goddammit. None of this was ever supposed to be in the cards. I was supposed to come toVegas, quietly play my ass off, win some games, and eventually get them to pay me what I’m worth.
Instead, I’m all fucked up over some chick.
She glares at me again, but eventually she relents. “Fine.”
“Where are you heading?” I ask.
“There’s a park a few blocks away. I figured I’d take Jack there, maybe push him in the baby swing or let him crawl around in the grass. Come to think of it, it wouldn’t hurt you to touch grass once in a while.”
I shoot her a smirk, and she shoots one right back.
We step off the elevator, and she waves to Milton as we exit the building. She immediately takes off. Like sprinting takes off. I wasn’t expecting it, and I find myself chasing after her.
I’ve never chased a woman in my entire existence. Ever.
Even Christina chased me before we finally got together.
