“Hey,” I say to her. “How are you?”
“I was going to ask you that,” she says with a laugh.
“I’m fine,” I say quickly. “Tell me about you.”
“I’ve been telling you about me every time we talk, and then you say you have to go before we get to you. So, I’m going to go fast today—I’m great. Simon’s great. New Orleans is great. But what about you?”
I stare out the window of my high-rise apartment building. All I can see in the distance are more high-rises. When I look down, the cars zipping by look like ants from this distance.
“I’m fine,” I say again. “Work is good. The musical is everything I thought it would be.”
“So why do you sound so miserable?” she asks me.
I knew she’d see right through me. That’s why I’ve kept our phone calls so brief whenever she’s called.
“I don’t know,” I say finally. “I guess because I miss Hunter.”
“Speaking of, you two haven’t talked at all?”
“No. We can’t do long distance. It’s Hunter and me—I don’t know, I guess whatever it was we had when I was home was never meant to last.”
“Or maybe it was,” she says confidently.
“Charly. Ash said the same thing when she called last night. You two are delusional. Hunter Storm is not a relationship guy. He told me so himself.”
“Hunter Storm never had you in his bed night after night,” Charly says. “I bet he misses you. And you know what I heard? He lives alone.”
“What? Hunter can’t live alone. He doesn’t play well when he does.” I don’t mention where his issue stems from, although Charly could probably guess.
“Well, he is. Cathy takes care of Theo when the boys go on road trips. She isn’t thrilled about it, but Hunter hasn’t found someone else he trusts yet. And the crazy thing? He’s still playing at an MVP level. Living alone isn’t screwing up his game anymore.”
“That’s so good to hear.” I smile wider than I have since I left New Orleans. “I’m thrilled for him. I’ve tried to catch a few of his games, but my rehearsals are really intense right now, and they’re always running late into the night. I know his stats are still off the charts, though.”
“Win?”
“Yeah?”
“What’s really going on?”
I sigh. “I’m not enjoying this, Charly. Being back. Being the lead for what I thought was my dream role. I feel so ungrateful.”
“Maybe you’d rather be happy than a star,” she says.
“But this was the plan,” I say. “This was always the plan.”
“Maybe your plans have changed. Maybe you’ve changed.”
Maybe I have.
And just like that, I know what I have to do.
* * *
Hunter
Liamand I drive home from the airport in his truck. We just crushed Dallas and clinched the division in the process. I had one of the best games of the season with three goals and an assist.
All this good shit going on, and I’m in a crappy mood.
