“Hey, Mom.”
“Trinity. You haven’t called.” Her tone wasn’t hard, but I could hear the underlying strain.
“Sorry. It’s been a busy week. Class and practices officially started, so it’s been hectic.”
“It’s okay. I’ve been trying to work on revamping your old room.”
That didn’t take long.
“This color you chose doesn’t really suit me.”
“Well, have at it. It’s your house,” I retorted as I picked up my plate to carry it to the table.
I sat down, bringing the fork up to my mouth. I was starving.
“So when should I come visit?”
I nearly choked on the first bite of chicken.
“Visit?”
“Yes. Visit.” She huffed. “Youaremy child.”
“Well, my schedule is pretty packed. With classes and practice and now my job at the grill.”
“Job? Why do you need a job, Trinity? Your moneybags father is down the street.”
I took a sip of my tea before I answered with poise. “I have bills to pay. I’ve never needed him to pay for them before.”
“You act like it’s thousands.”
Fury crawled over me. “You’re right. Thousands would be like what you spent on my credit card without my knowledge.”
My hand throbbed as I clenched my fingers around the dining utensil, the metal cold and hard.
“I thought we were past that. We agreed I would pay it back.”
“And have you?” I asked. “That follows me around forever, Mom. You ruined my credit. You know how long it will take me to build that back up?”
“You are overreacting,” she chided. “I’m working on it. I’ve asked Marcelo to help me.”
“So you’re going to rob Peter to pay Paul?”
“I can’t talk to you when you’re like this. Call me when you’ve calmed down.”
The click was deafening. I just stared at the screen before I sighed. I needed some stress relief and there was only one thing that would deliver.
A hot shower.
13
Preston
I usually passed out after a workout. But with tomorrow being our first home game, I was restless. From nerves. From adrenaline, and from thoughts about my infuriatingly gorgeous new neighbor. The clock showed just after midnight, and even though I had to be at the field at the ass crack of dawn, I was walking into my kitchen, in search of anything to put me to sleep. My eyes veered over to my window. Not a smart move for remedying my problem, but I did it anyway.
And my body froze.
I squinted, taking a step toward the window on my bare feet. The tile was cold, but not like the way a coldness swept over my skin as I watched a dark shadow creep along the side of Trinity’s house.
