I’d totally lost track of time during my morning activities with Kayla, and now it was verging on afternoon.
And underneath that, later than expected, at 11:12, sat a veritable wall of missed call notifications and text messages from my manager/agent, Gerald.
“Hey Mick-o,where are you? Why aren’t you answering your phone? The car the club sent for you is waiting downstairs.”
The first fewmessages Gerald sent a bit after 9 am started out polite. But the ones he sent through after 10 am were screaming in all caps.
“WHY DIDYOU TELL THE FRONT DESK NOT TO LET ANY CALLS THROUGH???!! THE CAR’S BEEN WAITING FOR HOURS!!! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU??? ARE YOU TRYING TO RUIN EVERYTHING WE PLANNED???!!!
Bloody hell.I rubbed a hand over my face.
Gerald was cheesed off—and I could only imagine how the team we wanted to make me an eight-figure leverage offer must be feeling right now.
But I couldn't head downstairs to meet the car until I sorted things out with Kayla. I owed her at least that much.
I was typing Gerald back that I was gonna be at least fifteen more minutes when Kayla came out of the bedroom, pulling her big suitcase behind her.
“Give me a tick,” I said, lifting a finger her way.
“No need. I’ll just see myself out.”
Instead of stopping in front of me and sweetly waiting for me to finish up my text to Gerald, Kayla kept walking right on past me. Toward the suite’s front door!
“Whoa, hang on a minute!”
I chucked down the phone without finishing the text and swiftly moved in front of her, blocking her path. “Where do ya think you’re goin’? We're meant to have a chat!”
She pulled up short, looking truly puzzled. As if she was genuinely surprised by me trying to stop her from leaving. “No, we totally don’t have to have a chat. I get it, Mick.”
She raised her eyes to the ceiling and shook her head. “I said too much. And I confused you. And I totally creeped you out. You don’t have to tell me all of that. I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry for acting like such a psycho. This is why I can’t have nice things. So, I’m just going to leave—no conversation required.”
“Hold on, you think you’re the one actin’ like a nutter in this scenario?”
It took all of my self-control not to laugh in her face. She truly didn’t have a clue, did she?
“No, that would be me,” I assured her. “Here’s the thing, Kayla….”
I opened my mouth to tell her the truth I’d been holding back since we met on the plane.
But nothing came out.
Nothing but a voice in my head practically shouting,No! You can’t tell her. It’ll ruin everything. She’ll never speak to you again!
I tamped down the loud voice and tried again. “Here’s what I need to tell you….”
No, don’t do it!the voice roared before I could finish. Even louder than before.She’s already halfway out the door with her suitcase packed. What the bloody hell do you think she’ll do when you tell her you’re a football star? Fuck, are you mental?
“Yes, I am mental! Obviously!”
I didn’t realize I’d answered the voice out loud until Kayla shook her head and wearily insisted, “No, you’re not, Mick. And I appreciate you trying to be so nice about me oversharing. Truly, I appreciate everything you did for me yesterday and this morning. But I really should go and let you get on with your own life now.”
With that, she swerved to the left and went around me to resume her march toward the exit.
And I almost let her go.
The thing was, I’d never been a coward. I’d told some of the biggest football players in the world exactly what was on my mind before knocking them in their teeth. But this much smaller American was proving more than I could handle.
It occurred to me that allowing her to walk out that door might be the best solution for everyone involved.
