Slumping back in my chair, I sigh. “All right, fine. I’ll do it, but I don’t know that I deserve it.”
“Are you kidding me?” Jensen replies. “I wouldn’t have nominated you if you didn’t. You’re not as much of a playboy as Jayce or Wilder, and like I said in the locker room, you don’t get the spotlight as much as you deserve. Hell, you should hire Grace to increase your public profile. She’s got a staff of five people working for her, she’s blown up so much. Better to get in with her now before you can’t afford her anymore.”
I laugh. “I don’t want a fan club or followers. I’d rather have what you three have.” I nod my chin toward Jensen, Owen, and Carson. “Someone for myself. A real relationship.”
Carson reaches over and grabs my shoulder, giving it a squeeze.
“Don’t worry, man,” he says. “Believe me, it’ll happen when you least expect it, but it’ll happen. Especially for such a great guy like you.”
Their praise means a lot to me, but I also feel super awkward being on the receiving end of it. I’m not the type of guy who usually seeks to be the center of attention. I prefer being in the background, doing my job, and enjoying a bit of anonymity. The guys are so excited for me to have this, though, that I can’t turn it down.
“If only this magazine thing was happening at a better time,” I say with a chuckle, shifting the focus of the conversation slightly. “I just found out I have to leave my place for at least the next two weeks and relocate to a hotel or something.”
“Huh?” Wilder frowns. “The hell is that about?”
“I got an email from my landlord saying that all the apartments are getting mandatory bathroom renovations because of a piping issue,” I explain, gazing down at my beer.“The water will be turned off for a few weeks. We can come and go if we need to get stuff, but we’re not supposed to stay or it’s a violation of our lease for safety reasons or whatever.”
“Ah, dude,” Carson groans after swallowing another mouthful of fries. “That blows.”
“Yeah, totally sucks,” I agree. “They’re at least willing to reimburse us for having to stay somewhere else, though. The email had instructions for submitting invoices for different places like Extended Stay, so at least it’s not all coming out of pocket.”
“Screw that,” Carson says. “Why don’t you just stay at Grace’s old place?”
I frown at him, my heart thumping with cautious hope. “You still have it?”
He nods. “Yeah, I rented it for her, after all. Then Grace had Skyler sublet it, but now I’m ready to let it go. The lease still has a few months on it, though. If I break the lease early, it’s a huge fine. No one is staying there so you can totally crash there if you want.”
“Shit man, that’d be great!” I exclaim, slapping the table. “I’d much rather do that than live in a hotel for two weeks. I’ll take you up on your offer! Can I move in on Monday?”
“Sure thing,” Carson nods with a grin. “I’ll get you the key tomorrow.”
“You’re a lifesaver, man,” I tell him.
He buffs his knuckles on his shirt and puts on an animated, haughty face. “Oh, I know. Just call me Saint Carson.”
“Hey, Saint Carson,” Jensen chuckles. “Why don’t you show off your generous spirit and buy us another round?”
Carson rolls his eyes but gets up from the table, mumbling under his breath as he walks away, leaving the rest of us laughing as we watch him go.
Later that evening, as I’m riding an Uber from the bar to my place, I feel restless. There’s so much on my mind right now - needing to move, being chosen as ‘Bachelor of the Year’ by my team, and feeling that soul-deep longing for something more - that I can’t bring myself to relax. Grabbing my phone from my pocket, I dial up my Mom. Hearing her voice always helps me calm down when my nerves are a little on edge.
She answers after two rings. “Zander? What’s going on, sweetheart?”
“Hey, Mom,” I tell her with a grin. “I wanted to call you and tell you some good news.”
“Oh?” There’s a note of excitement in her voice. “What is it? Hold on a moment. Paige is here. Let me put you on speaker.”
I’m not at all surprised that my sister is with my mom. The two are thick as thieves, along with my oldest sister Lauren, who also lives in Nashville. My third oldest sister, Rosie, would be just as close if she didn’t live in Kentucky.
“Hey baby bro,” Paige says a moment later.
“Hey, Paige,” I reply.
“So, what’s the good news?” Mom asks.
“So, a magazine is coming in to do two features on the Night Hawks - one about the team, and one for their Bachelor of the Year. And, well, the guys chose me for the individual feature.”
“That’s wonderful!” Mom exclaims. “How exciting!”
