Being teammates was sacred. Or so he’d always thought. Bitterness slid through him, cutting him like a knife. He had worked so hard to stuff those dark memories down. Betrayal was a hard thing to forget… or forgive. His had been on a massive scale, and it had involved his teammate and the love of his life. Xavier had believed he was finally working his way through the situation until this very moment when it all came back to him again.
Could a person ever get over such a devastating betrayal? Would he ever move past losing his career, his financial stability, and the woman who had promised him forever? Unlike what he had just told Jaylen, sometimes a person couldn’t just work things out. Of course, his situation was much more intense than the squabble between Tai and Jaylen, but he still felt like a hypocrite.
At the end of practice, he spotted True as she waited with the parents to pick up their kids. He waved at her from adistance and watched as Jaylen ran over to her side. True seemed to be waiting for Xavier to head over, but he stopped himself. As the coach he needed to keep a discreet distance from True so the other kids didn’t think he was biased toward Jaylen. He was also in his head about the past, and he needed time to shake it off.
He stayed in the gym until every kid was accompanied by a parent or guardian. On the drive back to Hattie’s place, he put the radio on blast and allowed himself to decompress. He pushed the past down into the black hole where it belonged. Coming home to Moose Falls had been the first step in a new chapter in his life, one he was determined to make into a success. Although meeting True had been serendipity, he couldn’t allow himself to forget that being here was a means to an end. He’d never envisioned settling down here, no matter how much he was enjoying his time in Alaska.
He still had things he needed to accomplish in Arizona. He wanted to show the haters that he still had potential. If he focused really hard, there was still a chance he could get his old life back.
Xavier Stone wasn’t a washed-up football player. Not by a long shot!
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
True couldn’t shake the feeling that Xavier had been avoiding her after Jaylen’s practice. He had waved at her from a distance, which was nice, but she had expected him to come over to her. They had grown much closer over the past week, confiding in each other about their romantic disappointments and their families. She had been so wrong about the man, it was ridiculous. He had been through heartaches and trauma just like her. It taught her a huge lesson about judging people simply by what you thought you knew about them.
Maybe Xavier was playing it cool. He could potentially raise eyebrows among the parent set if he paid her too much attention. That wouldn’t be fair to Jaylen or the rest of the kids. She let out a sigh. Now, all of a sudden, she was wondering if his coaching Jaylen’s team had been a good idea. She didn’t want to have to hide their relationship from everyone.
Who was she kidding? In a town this size, she was sure most folks had caught wind of their dating situation.
Her phone pinged. A smile twitched at her lips when she saw it was from Xavier.
I’m baking cupcakes for Hattie’s birthday. Wanna come over?
She waited a few minutes before responding.
What flavor?
Chocolate.
And the frosting?
White cream frosting and sprinkles.
Score. I’ll be there as soon as my shift ends.
Yay. A simple text and an invitation from Xavier made her want to happy-dance, serving as further proof that she was falling in love with him. All thoughts of Garrett were fading away to the point where it felt like he’d been a part of another life. Had she really been in love with him? Sobbed over him? It truly was a thing of the past.
Life was showing her the things that truly mattered the most. Sometimes it seemed as if she was seeing everything with heightened clarity and not through a filmy haze.
True loved being at Northern Exposure. She loved the sights and the sounds and the chatter. She loved the smell of down-home Alaskan cooking emanating from the kitchen. She loved her co-workers and the customers. Honestly, there wasn’t a single aspect of being a tavern manager that she didn’t like. But now, at this very moment, all she wanted to do was head over to Hattie’s house so she could bake cupcakes with Xavier.
Within the hour she was at Hattie’s door after leaving Northern Exposure and making a quick stop to pick upGodiva chocolates as a birthday gift for Hattie. When True rang the doorbell, Jacques let her in the house. He helped her with her coat, then stood by as she took off her boots and placed them on the mat. “Xavier is waiting for you in the kitchen,” he announced with a smile.
“Where’s the birthday girl?” she asked, looking around the foyer for a sighting of Hattie.
“Paul took her to the ceramic shop so she could paint a pot for her birthday.”
She frowned. “Paul?”
“Sorry, Red,” Jacques said with a shake of his head. “I seem to be the only one who still calls him by his birth name.”
“You’ve known him a long time,” True surmised. Jacques and Hattie had been besties for decades, and according to town gossip, they were now more than friends.
“Since the day he was born. I’m hoping he and his sons can reconcile. Honestly, that’s what Hattie desires more than anything else.”
She could hear the sincerity ringing out in Jacques’s voice. “That would be such a blessing for the whole family,” True said.
“I truly believe it can happen,” he said, beaming. “Now wouldn’t that be something?”
