He blows her a kiss and returns to his call as he heads toward his office.
I take Seraphina into the nursery and get her settled in with Miss Sandy.
“I have to go to work now, sweetie, but I’ll see you later today. Okay?”
“Bye, Mommy!” She waves her little hand goodbye when I leave.
I walk through the main corridor to the other wing, heading to my office, and just as I enter the hallway, I hear the door to the building click open. I see Liam coming in, wearing gym clothes, with one of our other players, Brody Vaughn. Liam and I make eye contact, and I turn my head quickly and practically run into the wall. I look back over my shoulder to see that Liam is still watching me, so I turn and move faster.
How is it possible that he is so fucking hot? Seriously, he’s just getting better-looking. It’s not fair that men age like fine wine. I know I’m in good shape. I work out regularly and eat pretty healthily, but my body has definitely changed since having Seraphina. I wonder if he still sees me the same or if he can see the differences. I know I’m being silly. I’m sure he’s barely looked at me, let alone notice differences from when I saw him two years ago.
When I get to my office, I pull my phone out of my bag and set it on my desk, then hang it in the closet next to the bathroom.
This morning, when I woke up, I saw a text message from Aaron, but I haven’t responded to him yet because of the chaos of getting ready this morning. So, I pull up our message thread and read his note again.
Aaron: Alie. What’s going on?
Alie: Aaron. Not much. What’s going on with you?
The way he’s worded this message is odd to me. I’m not sure what exactly he’s asking me, but within minutes, he replies.
Aaron: What’s going on with me? You know what’s going on with me. I’ll be traveling back and forth between Canada and Florida for the foreseeable future because these teams won’t fucking beat each other within the first four games of the series. But that’s not what I’m asking, and you know it.
Alie: No, I actually have no idea what you’re talking about.
Okay, maybe I do, but I don’t want to show my hand if that’s not what he’s asking.
Aaron: When did you guys decide to bring Pitz on board? I know you don’t discuss business with me, but this is different, and you know it.
Alie: Well, there’s nothing that’s different because he’s one of our new players, and that’s it.
Aaron: That’s it?
Alie: Yes, Aaron, that’s it.
Aaron: I don’t like this, Alie. We need to talk about this. Can you call me now?
Alie: No, Aaron, I’m at the office. I can’t talk to you about this right now. I’ll have to talk to you later.
Aaron: Call me tonight if you can.
Alie: I will try.
Aaron: All right, talk soon.
I don’t bother to reply and set my phone down, then power up my computer. I just need to get lost in some numbers for a while. We have seven new players we acquired in the draft, and we have one more trade that we need to iron out, so that should keep me distracted from thinking about Liam for at least the next couple of hours. Hopefully.
After I have lunch with Seraphina, my curiosity gets the best of me, and I wander down toward the gym. I’ve tried my best not to think about him, but it’s really hard, knowing he’s in the building. I mean, I won’t be mad if I get a glimpse of him. For all I know, he’s already gone anyway. Most of the guys come in for a couple of hours, maybe eat, and then they take off. For my sake, it would be best if he was gone, but also, I do want to see him, even though I don’t want to admit it to myself.
I casually walk by the windows to the gym, as if I’m going to my sister’s office—so me being down in that area doesn’t look suspicious. I don’t even know why I’m worried about this right now. It’s not unusual for me to be down here. I’m just being paranoid. When I look into the windows, as I slowly walk by, I don’t see him, but I do see a couple of the other guys from the team. They see me, too, and wave, and I wave back, then continue walking to my sister’s office.
When I get there, she’s speaking with one of our trainers and reviewing a few nutrition plans.
“Hey, are you almost done, or are you gonna be a while?” I ask her.
“We’re just wrapping up. Give me a few more minutes. You can stay.” She gestures to her couch. “Take a seat.”
So, I move from the doorway to sit on the small couch and wait as they finish.
