“Yeah, I can be there in twenty.”
“Okay. Drive safe.”
I sift through my drawers and pull out a pair of shorts and a fresh T-shirt.
Annalise comes out of the bathroom, drying her hair on a towel. “Everything okay?”
“It’s one of my teammates, Chandler. He got in a car accident. I’m gonna go to the hospital to see him after I drop you off.”
“Oh my God!” she says, her hand flying to her mouth. “Is he okay?”
“I don’t know his condition… but I pray that he is.”
I pull up to Elijah’s luxury apartment building and shoot him a text to let him know I’m here. He lives in a penthouse suite in the heart of downtown—the perfect bachelor pad.
I lived in something similar when I was in Houston. But when I signed with San Francisco, I purchased a home in the suburbs with the intention of retiring in the city where I grew up—and in hopes that I would start a family one day. Maybe years from now Annalise and I will have miniature versions of ourselves running around that home.
A knock on my window pulls me out of my daydream. Elijah waves at me and I unlock the door to let him in.
“Thanks for picking me up,” he says as he slides into the passenger seat. “I know I live close but I just got back from visiting my cousins in Sacramento, so I didn’t feel like driving.”
“Are you sure it’s not an excuse to spend more time with me?” I ask, raising my brows.
He chuckles softly. “Yeah, you got me. I’m secretly in love with you.”
“Sorry—my heart only belongs to Annalise.” A wide grin spreads on my face as I think about the amazing weekend we’ve had together.
“Aw, look at you cheesing,” he teases. “How was the talk y’all had?”
“It went really well. I finally told her how I feel, and she’s willing to give us another chance. We—” I’m about to tell Elijah about our date, but then I remember she wanted to keep it between us.
He’s my best friend and I know he wouldn’t blab to anyone. But I’m not going to tell anyone until she’s ready.
“I’m happy for you, man. But I’m also sad to lose my wingman.”He sighs, his mouth dipping into a frown. “Andrés is married and Santiago prefers to be celibate. I have no one.”
“Lucas will be a good replacement.”
Elijah starts laughing so hard he snorts. His phone slips from his hand, clattering to the floor. “Please, he has no game. He’ll end up scaring all the women away.”
“Poor guy is gonna be in a relationship with his hand for the rest of his life.”
“That’s for sure.” He reaches down and picks up his phone from the floor. “Who do these belong to?” A smirk dances on his face as he holds up a shiny gold hoop earring. One of the same earrings Annalise wore for our date.
I shrug and try to play it off, hoping he won’t catch on. “Not sure. Probably Asami’s.”
“I’ve never seen her wear hoop earrings before. And I pay attention.”
I scrunch my face up. “Why the hell are you so observant when it comes to my sister? Save that energy for the court.”
“They’re Annalise’s, aren’t they?” he says, smiling knowingly.
Unable to come up with anything, I roll down the window and wave over the valet driver.
A security guard escorts us to the VIP floor where Chandler is staying. The lobby is filled with most of our teammates. Coach is in the corner talking to Andrés.
“Donotmention the earring to Andrés,” I whisper, shooting him a warning glare.
“I knew it was Annalise’s!” he says, a little too loudly. “I wanna know every detail later.”
