Even worse, he made me wonder if playing ball was worth it. My stats had been dropping like the stock market as it crashed, and at least once, I’d heard my name mentioned in trade rumors. I told myself they were just that, but typically, once the rumors started, it was only a matter of time before the teams made an official announcement.
If I had any hope of staying in the Midwest, I had to bust my ass to get back on the field and pay attention to my performance. I also had to think about whether I’d reached the point where I could walk away from the game, and if so, what came next in my life.
The announcement blared over the public address system that my flight was boarding and I grabbed my bags. I settled into my seat in business class, struggling to get comfortable when my knees felt like they were up around my shoulders.
I texted Sean while the flight attendants made their safety announcements. I didn’t need them to tell me what to do in case of emergency, because I’d heard the spiel more times than I could count over the past seven years. As we taxied the runway, I closed my eyes to catch a quick nap. The last thing I wanted to do tonight was fall asleep early.
* * *
As I hurriedthrough the terminal, I tried calling Sean to make sure he was here. I pulled the cap lower on my head and turned the opposite direction when I saw a couple of photographers at the other end of the concourse. It was unlikely they were here for me, but I wasn’t about to take the chance.
My phone started ringing as the automatic doors opened, welcoming me home with a blast of hot, humid air. The heat wasn’t an issue, since I’d spent a few days in Arizona, but I’d always hated the humidity. If it was already this bad in late June, I didn’t even want to think about how bad it’d be later in the summer.
“Hey, where are you?” I asked, not wanting to waste any time.
“Just pulling up now. As soon as the car stops, get in.” I looked toward the oncoming traffic when I heard the roar of his bright red Camaro.
“Couldn’t find a flashier car to borrow for the occasion?” I teased. “You’re going to have to pop the trunk.”
“No time. Toss into the backseat, but pay attention so you don’t hit me.”
The car jerked to a stop in front of me. “Hey, babe–”Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, shit!Staring back at me were the same blue eyes I’m addicted to, but everything else about the face was all wrong. “Oh, hi Abi.”
“Get in, it’s getting cramped back here,” Sean hissed from the back seat. Now the comment about looking where I threw my bag made sense. I carefully set the bag behind his legs.
Abi slammed the car in gear and took off with a jolt as I closed the door.
“Easy, would ya?” Sean scolded. “Iaskedyou to drive, you don’t have to act like you stole it.”
“Oh, come on! When am I ever going to get a chance like this again?” She slammed on the gas as we exited airport property. If she wasn’t careful, she was going to get a ticket and have to borrow money from her brother to pay it.
I loved listening to the two of them bicker back and forth. It was such a mundane thing, but it reminded me that we were all normal people, even if two of us were professional athletes and one of us was folded like a pretzel in the back seat to keep anyone from catching a private moment and selling it.
“Abigail, remember what I told you,” he said tersely. She snorted and rolled her eyes while she waited for the light to turn green. As soon as it did, she pressed on the gas pedal harder than necessary and started shifting through the gears. “Abi, you arenottaking this car on the expressway.”
“Too late,” I said, hopefully deflecting some of the attention from her. She was obviously having a blast and I figured a happy Abi was a quiet Abi. She obviously knew something about our relationship, but until I could talk to Sean in private, I didn’t want to give away anything else.
“I’m assuming we’re going to your place for the night since we have the kid along?”
“I’m not a kid, Atley,” she seethed. I patted her knee as if to tell her she was cute as a button because I knew it would piss her off. “And in case you’ve forgotten,I’m the onewho’s helping keep your secret right now, so you might want to think about that.”
The teasing lilt in her voice kept me from freaking the fuck out.
I looked back at Sean, and he apologized quickly. I’d spent more time than I cared to admit thinking about what it’d be like when I saw Sean again, and not once in that time did I consider the fact that his sister would be with us. I knew she was staying at his place over the summer, but it would have been nice to have some warning that we weren’t going to have any time to ourselves.
“Abi, if you pull over so I can drive, I promise I’ll let you borrow my car for an entire weekend,” he bartered. That did the trick and Abi took the next exit, pulling into a gas station parking lot. “Thank you.”
I stayed in the car while the two of them switched places. While Sean went into the store, I turned in my seat to talk to Abi. I’d told myself I wanted to talk to Sean a bit, but I couldn’t wait. “You’re cool with this?”
“What? The fact that my brother’s gay or the fact that he’s dating you?” she asked, never looking up from the phone in her hands.
“Both, I guess.” I had no clue what I was asking, but I knew the idea of us being together was going to be a lot for most people to process and accept.
“Yeah, I’m happy for him,” she assured me. “Between us, it didn’t surprise me when he came out. I know the rest of our family sucks and would rather bury their heads in the sand than think any of us are capable of making ourselves happy, but not me. He’s never had a girlfriend, and there were times I wondered, but couldn’t ask him.”
“So, you really don’t have a problem with him and me?” I pressed. It was one thing for my parents to accept us without question, but it would kill him if Abi wound up turning her back on him. It’d killusbecause I would never ask him to choose me over his family.
“No problems here,” she answered as Sean opened the door and handed in the drinks and snacks before getting into the driver’s seat.
