I look up into his kind hazel eyes. “I’m okay. How are you?”
“I’m good.” He glances at the other reporters walking behind us, chatting amongst themselves, and lowers his voice. “I just want you to know that you’re the best PR person we’ve dealt with here, no matter what your last name is.”
Great. Even the media knows I’m Jude’s sister. And some of them must be doubting how I got the job and my integrity now, because Tom wouldn’t have made that statement of support if he hadn’t heard something derogatory. I’m trying to figure out how to respond when Jude comes tearing out of the locker room like his ass is on fire. He’s wearing his equipment, no jersey and his Under Armour underwear, with the flip-flops he wears in the shower. Nothing else. I start to smirk, ready to make some kind of smartass comment, but then I look into his eyes. They’re swimming with fear and panic.
“She’s having the baby,” he tells me, oblivious to the reporters, who are listening intently. “It’s eight and a half weeks early. Is it too early? It seems too early. I don’t know.”
Holy shit. Something heavy and cold instantly forms in my stomach and drops to my feet. “Go find out!”
“Come with me!” he demands.
Levi comes running out of the locker room, barely dressed. He’s still damp with sweat, but he’s thrown his suit on, and I mean thrown. His shirt is misbuttoned and untucked, he’s wearing his dress shoes with no socks, and he’s only got one arm in his jacket. He’s also got an armload of Jude’s clothes. “Tessa is already in the car waiting by the door. Let’s go. We’ll take you, and you can get dressed on the way.”
Jude grabs me in a quick hug before charging down the hall with Levi.
The reporters start excitedly throwing questions at me about Zoey and the baby. “We don’t answer personal questions about players,” I remind them and stop at the locker room door. “Obviously it’s just Brian and Eli now for questions. Someone will be by to walk you out in ten minutes.”
They all head straight for Eli, and I turn and start to run down the hall, pulling my cell phone from my pocket to text Ann and tell her I have to leave. I can’t believe Zoey is in labor. Oh my God, Jude is going to be a father. I’m about to be an aunt. I realize how surreal the whole pregnancy has felt now that the reality is here. I feel tears well up in my eyes.
I turn the corner, still running, and almost crash into Nadine, who is standing by the elevator with Trish. They both look up, startled, as I manage to slide to a halt without tumbling into them. “Zoey is having the baby.”
“Who?” Trish asks.
Nadine isn’t so dense. “Oh my God! Jude’s Zoey?”
I nod. “He left a few minutes ago. Levi is driving him.”
“Does the press know?” Trish asks. “Because it’s going to get out, and you know how they love when we do an official announcement with a baby picture and everything.”
“We can do that.” I nod. “I can go to the hospital now and—”
“Right!” Nadine smacks her forehead. “He’s your brother. I swear you hid it so well for so long even I forgot.”
I can see Trish’s face twist into a very unflattering scowl. “So you’re just going to take off? Even though we still have tons of work to do?”
I stare at her like I’m looking at an alien life form. Because only some kind of alien with no heart or a black one would think I shouldn’t leave right now. “My brother is about to be a dad.”
She continues to stare blankly at me. “It’s not like you’re the one about to give birth. Besides, labor can last hours, even days. She could just be having those fake contractions.”
“I should go find out,” I reply tersely and turn to Nadine so I don’t accidentally throat-punch Trish. “Have you seen Ann?”
“She asked me to meet her upstairs. I’m headed there now.”
We all get into the elevator, but I hesitate and turn to Trish and regret what I’m about to ask before it even leaves my mouth, but I have no choice. “Can you finish up with the press for me so I can go see Ann?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s not my job,” she barks back. “Unlike everyone else, I’m not going to give you special treatment just because you share a last name with the team superstar.”
I’m so furious I’m shaking. “Trish, this isn’t some kind of favoritism. I would do this for you if you had a family emergency.”
She crosses her arms, and I swear she’s trying to shoot fire from her eyes. “I have my own things to do. I had to draw the winner of that stupid contest you created. We said we’d announce it after this game, so now I have to call the winner and then set up the prizes and post it.”
“If you help her out now, I will stay late and help you,” Nadine offers, and I want to hug her.
Trish searches for a reason to say no to that. I can see the struggle on her face. I can’t imagine how much work it takes to be this big of a bitch. I have to bite my bottom lip to keep from saying that out loud. The elevator starts to buzz because we’ve been holding the door open so long. “Fine,” she huffs.
