She lets out a dry chuckle, the corner of her mouth lifting slightly. “Well, I don’t have the best track record when it comesto choosing people I can trust. But I have to admit, when it comes to you, I don’t have many worries.”
“Good.” I lean back, letting out a breath. “Because I’m serious when I say you can trust me. I brought you here simply to keep you safe. I don’t expect anything in return. I just want you to be happy and feel comfortable while we figure out the next steps. Okay?”
“Okay,” she says softly, her attention returning to Beatrice.
The silence that follows is almost comfortable—until the sound of my elevator opening echoes from the back of the condo.
Tessa startles, her entire body going rigid. Beatrice leaps from her lap and disappears down the hall.
“Don’t worry,” I say quickly, holding up a hand. “They’re friends.”
She nods once, her jaw tight, but keeps her gaze trained on the entryway like she’s expecting danger to walk through.
Instead, Penny, Iris, Anna, and Miranda step into the living room. The tension in Tessa’s shoulders doesn’t ease immediately, but Iris moves first, crossing the space with an open, gentle smile.
“Hi, I’m Iris,” she says warmly, extending her hand. “You must be Tessa. It’s so good to meet you.”
Tessa stands slowly, smoothing her hands down her jeans before taking Iris’s hand. “It’s good to meet you too.”
The other women introduce themselves one by one. A spark of recognition flashes in Tessa’s eyes when she sees Anna—anyone who’s watched a movie in the past couple of years would recognize her as one of the biggest stars of this decade. But to Anna’s credit, she doesn’t acknowledge it. She just smiles and offers a warm, “Hey, I’m Anna.”
I’m so grateful to these women for showing up. I never doubted that they would, but seeing them here fills me with relief.
“Yeah, so if you’re wondering how we’re all connected,” I say to Tessa, gesturing around the room at the women, “Penny and Iris both work for the Crane organization in PR. Penny is married to our goalie, Gunnar, and Iris is married to Cade, our forward, and her brother is Beckett, who’s also one of our forwards. Anna is engaged to Jaden, one of our defenders, and Miranda is dating Miles.”
Tessa blinks, clearly trying to process the tangled web of relationships. “That’s... a lot of connections.”
Iris grins with affection. “Yeah, once you’re part of the Crane organization, it kind of becomes your whole identity.”
The girls laugh, the sound warm and genuine.
“We’re like a family,” Anna says.
“But like agoodfamily,” Iris adds pointedly, raising her eyebrows. “The kind that actually shows up for each other.”
“Exactly,” Miranda says, nodding.
Penny catches my eye and gives me a small, knowing smile before turning back to Tessa. “What they’re trying to say is—you’re part of this now too, if you want to be. Logan brought you into this family, and that means you’ve got all of us in your corner.”
Tessa looks around at all of them, her eyes glassy. “Okay.”
“Just know that you’re not alone anymore,” Anna says gently.
We all settle into the living room. Miranda curls up in the armchair by the window. Anna tucks her legs beneath her on the other end of the sectional. Penny claims the chair closest to Tessa, and Iris perches on the arm of the couch beside me.
The conversation starts light. Meaningless. Safe. They ask Tessa questions about the coffee shop, tease her a little about me, and poke fun at my new coffee obsession.
“Well,” Penny says, leaning forward with a knowing smile, “now I see why Sean here has been so obsessed with coffee lately.I just want to make it clear that I am the original coffee addict on this team.”
She grins, and Tessa’s lips twitch into a small smile.
“That’s true,” Iris cuts in with a laugh. “Penny drinks more coffee than is probably safe—especially in the fall. She’s literally addicted to pumpkin spice lattes.”
Tessa’s smile widens. “Well, I can’t blame her there. They are pretty delicious.” Then she pauses, her brow furrowing. “But… Sean?”
Penny’s eyes widen. “Oh—I’m sorry. I meant Logan. His nickname is Sean, and that’s all my husband ever calls him, so it’s just a habit.”
“His nickname is Sean?” Tessa glances at me, clearly confused.
