“I’ll keep that in mind.” I turn my back on him.
I glance back at my phone for any new notifications. My mother hasn’t returned my call. Typical. She ignores me, and John leaves a message. If only he would ignore me.
He acts as if I want to live in his pretentious Park Avenue apartment. I refused but my mom pressured me so she could redecorate it and know I’m safe. Everything with them comes with strings attached. My mother redecorated it to suit her taste, never consulting me, and John lords it over me as if I can’t afford to live on my own. I would rather live in the slums than take their fake concern. I should but fucktwat will keep my mother from contacting me.
After I finish my shower, the team is obnoxiously loud.
“C’mon, King.” Brant whips his wet towel at King’s smooth dark skin. “You show me all your favorite places and I’ll show you mine.” He raises his eyebrows suggestively.
I fight the urge to wrap his towel around his neck toshut him up.
“Seriously, bro. Come out with us. O’Keefe already refused, and we need to represent the younger guys,” Mav says.
King’s eyes warily cut to me. “I’ll meet you after I have dinner with my parents.”
“Bring my future in-laws. It’ll be great,” Brant practically begs. He’s so desperate for attention it’s sickening.
“Fine.” King laughs, and his face transforms, as if a weight has been lifted.
He’s trying to avoid me, only accepting after he knew I wouldn’t be there.
I dress quickly to get the fuck outta here.
Most of the guys leave, but when Grayson enters the room, Ace steps in front of me. “If you change your mind, we’ll be at the Roof Top Lounge. Or you can share a cab with us.” He nods at Grayson.
“I changed my mind. I can’t wait to celebrate.” More like I can’t wait to see King’s face when I show up. It’s my goal to force King to admit everything he did to me, which will happen sooner rather than later if I press. I deserve an apology, but I’ll settle for an admission of guilt.
Once we’re in the cab, I have the impulse to apologize for last week when I ruined their engagement announcement. My mouth got ahead of me, trying to be funny. But I don’t say anything since they’ve probably forgotten about it already. I don’t need to beat myself up about it. Anyway, they wasted several opportunities to tell the team sooner. I’m sure everyone had guessed by then.
“How’s New York so far?” Grayson asks.
“Same as any big city.” I shrug. It would sound offensive to say the city smells like asphalt and exhaust. I’ll never admit I tried to use the subway and got lost. I hired a car service to schedule my rides. There’s no easy way to get to practice so I’m thinking of asking Sarah to drive my car out here. My unreliable mother would never do it.
As if reading my mind, Ace asks, “Finding your way around alright? The trains can get confusing.” New Yorkers refer to the subway as trains like it makes the underground hellholes sound better.
“I wouldn’t know. Got a driver.” I watch the storefronts as we zoom past.
“We have a Liska junior here.” Grayson nudges Ace in the front seat. I’m unclear if it’s an insult or not.
“The man loves his driver. He’s practically family,” Ace agrees.
I snort. The concept of the help being family would scandalize my mother. They wait for me to explain my reaction, but I don’t.
Our car arrives at our destination, and we take the elevator up a million floors to find the team. Boston doesn’t have nearly as many skyscrapers as New York, and most of them aren’t as tall. Boston’s historic and values the past.
Ace holds the elevator door for Grayson and me to exit. I’m relieved he takes the lead since I don’t know where I’m going. The windows provide an excellent view of the river and the shoreline.
As soon as we find the party room with our team, I catch King’s eye. I swear he pales at seeing me, and I smile with satisfaction. I’m not expecting his mom to wave me over and hug me.
“Theo, it’s nice to finally meet you in person. Jamal has told me so much about you.” She keeps a warm hand on my arm, and I’m struck speechless imagining all the terrible things he’s said.
“Don’t believe the lies he tells you,” I spit out. If she wanted to meet me, she could’ve ended her son’s reign of terror.
She squeezes my arm, and I notice the absence of talons on the ends of her fingers. “Don’t be silly, he says you’re a great player and the team will do much better with you and Rhys Brant.”
My arm twitches out of her grasp.
“That’s nice of him.” I shoot King a glare, not believing this bullshit for a second. Behind him, the servers set up a buffet. The steam rises, giving off a salty buttery smell.
