“Excuse my mom for not acknowledging you. She never acknowledges anyone when her favorite child is home.” She extends her hand to mine, flashing me a huge smile complete with two dimples. “I’m Anna, Adrian’s younger and much better looking sister.” She casts her gaze towards her mom and Adrian, who are still locked in an embrace. “I’m also the least favorite child.”
Adrian’s smirk widens, and when he releases his mother, she rolls her eyes at her daughter, and then envelopes me in an equally warm embrace.
“I’m Rita, Adrian’s mom, and you must be Mia.” I nod. “Don’t let Anna fool you.” She says, pulling back and studying me intently. “I don’t have a favorite, and out of the two of them, Anna is far more spoiled.”
“Bet.” Anna mutters, giving her brother a hug.
I instantly like Adrian’s mom. She’s warm and welcoming, so it doesn’t creep me out when she reaches up and takes a lock of my hair into her hands, running her fingers down the strand.
“Your hair is so beautiful.” She lets go of me, and then takes a step back, studying me closely. “Red heads are always the most gorgeous women, I think.”
“I totally agree with you on that. I’ve always been fond of red hair myself, but I can’t take too much credit for the color. One of my stylists did it for me a few months ago when I needed a change. I’m actually a natural blond.”
“Huh.” She nods, and then smiles again. “I would have never known. With your green eyes and freckles, it just looks natural on you.”
“Naturally beautiful.” Adrian’s attention is now on me, along with the two women in the room. In fact, they are all staring at me, as though I’m a display at the museum. It’s a little nerve wracking, to say the least. I shift on my feet, feeling uncomfortable even more when Adrian wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me into him.
“Well aren’t you two just the cutest.” Anna beams. “I’ll admit, I was a little bit worried when Adrian said he was bringing a girl home. I half expected it to be some plastic barbie doll looking thing with half a brain. I can see that your taste has improved, big brother.”
The uncomfortable feeling grows. I hate the idea of Adrian having ever brought one of his floozies here, and now, I can’t help but wonder just how many of them there were before me.
Not that it should matter. I mean, it doesn’t matter at all. But I guess deep down, I was a little bit proud over the fact that he wanted to bring me home. Knowing that I’m just another notch in a long line of notches doesn’t feel very great at all.
“Well, I’ll let you two get settled.” Adrian’s mom takes a step back. “You’ve got a few hours before we need to be at the field, anyways.”
The air is cold, and it feels like rain is upon us as we make our way up to the high school football stadium. Adrian has since left my side, leaving me alone with his sister Anna. She leads me from the car, and then down a trail, ending us right smack dab in the middle of high school football mania. I figured that Adrian would have a busy schedule, coming back home and visiting his family, but I guess I didn’t realize just how big of a deal him coming home actually is. The stadium is packed, and it’s standing room only. Almost everyone here has some kind of Saints gear on, which is a little bit odd, since we’re at a high school football game and all. But this place is packed of one reason, and one reason only.
They are all here to see Adrian.
“It’s always a big deal when he comes home.” Anna pretends to look annoyed, but I can read right through her. Deep down, she’s really proud of her brother. “You’d think he was God himself, but I guess that’s just how it is in small towns. The only thing that can hold a candle to church on Sundays is Friday night football. And when one of your own becomes a football legend, everyone and their brother wants a piece of him.”
Her eyes land on mine, and she studies me for a second.
“How does that make you feel?”
I wrap my arms tighter around myself, trying to block the shiver running down my spine that has nothing to do with the cold.
“Truthfully, pretty uncomfortable.”
Anna raises an eyebrow.
“I’m not a big fan of crowds.” I tell her honestly. “And I’m not a big fan of being bombarded with people. His life is filled with crowds and people trying to get a piece of him. I don’t think that I could handle it. He does it with grace. It just makes me want to run and hide.”
“And yet, you’re still dating him.”
You see, the thing is, I like Anna. I think that if I met her in a situation far away from Adrian, I’d have a fucking blast with her. She’s sarcastic, funny, and brutally honest. She’s everything that I look for in a friend. But she’s also Adrian’s sister, and while I really hate lying to her, still. This is Adrian’s sister, and it’s still showtime.
I can’t just blurt out that really, we are nothing more than a hoax. So instead I just shrug and fake my best small smile.
“Yeah.”
We settle into our seats, which are in a reserved section for family. It’s not as high class as the reserved seats at the Saints stadium, in fact, it’s just a few regular rows of bleachers with a string up as a rope. Anna spreads a blanket out for us to sit on, and then hands me another to wrap around myself. I thank her and then take it, wrapping myself inside of it and then studying the field.
Smack dab in the center, is a small podium with a makeshift stage. The high school band is set up on the field, and as the person that I am assuming to be the high school principal steps onto the podium and begins to speak, the entire crowd falls silent.
“Welcome to tonight’s homecoming game, folks. In keeping with our homecoming tradition, we have our very own high school sports legend, Adrian Malone here, to give a little speech to the kids before we kick this game off.”
The crowd goes wild. The principal waits until the cheering stops, and then again begins to speak.
“In the time that Adrian Malone spent here at LMHS, he was the exact definition of a student athlete. I say student first, because academics are always our first priority. But while he excelled in the classroom, he excelled even more on the field. Adrian has shown us, all of us, that if you work hard enough towards your goals, you can succeed. If you take nothing from him tonight, take the knowledge that at one time, he was here, just like you, a student at LMHS, working hard in his classes, working hard on the field, and working his way towards becoming everything that he set his mind to. He is truly an example, of how to achieve greatness. Without any further ado, please give our fellow Cardinal a round of applause, and welcome him home!”
The crowd around us roars. People are on their feet, giving Adrian a standing ovation as he makes his way towards the podium, wearing a jersey over a hoodie that matches the one on me. At first, I hadn’t really wanted to wear the fire engine red jersey, but when I saw that both Anna and Adrian’s mom were sporting them, I figured that I had better just do it. But now, I feel a sense of pride as I admire him in his old high school jersey, and I’m happy that I too am sporting his name and old number on my back.
“Thank you, thank you.” Even from this distance, I can see the huge smile on his face. “You all are too kind.” The crowd continues to cheer, and Adrian just continues to beam. He truly looks happy, at least, from this distance he does.
“Coming back here always fills me with a mix of emotions.” He motions towards the sidelines. “I remember being on this field as a freshman, standing just behind that line wearing my jersey and all of my gear, hoping like crazy that coach would finally decide to put me in the game.”
A few laughs break out in the crowd.
“My break finally came about halfway through the season, when both our starting quarterback and our second string quarterback got hurt.” He sighs into the microphone, and then places it back into the stand, stopping in front of it and shoving his hands in his pockets.
“I’d love to tell you that I went out there and scored the game winning touchdown.” I’m hang
ing on his every word, unable to look away. “But I didn’t. Truth be told, I went out there, and I choked.”
“I’d love to tell you that I worked my butt off the entire off season and earned a starting spot on the team the next year, but that didn’t happen either.”
He’s no longer addressing the crowd. He now has his attention turned directly at the LMHS football team standing in front of him.
“But that’s not the case. You see, I didn’t just step out onto the field, and become one of the greats. There was even a time that I thought about giving up on football, because it seemed that no matter how hard I worked for it, I just couldn’t get to where I wanted to be.”
The crowd is silent, hanging on his every word, much like I am.
“But then, my life changed. Things that had been distracting me from putting my whole head into the game were taken from me. I suffered a loss that at the time, seemed like I would never get past. It was at that point, that I gave up, and gave it all to God. I worked harder that year than I ever had before. Football became my outlet, my sanctuary. And events that gutted me gave me a new purpose, which in turn, gave my life new meaning. If you guys take nothing else away from tonight, take this. Life isn’t fair. It’s going to deal you some cards that you never expected. Cards that you just don’t want. It’s going to happen, in one way or another. But you have to keep moving forward. You have to keep pushing yourself towards your goals. It’s cliché, and I know it, but you have to turn those lemons into something else. Lemonade. Lemon cookies. Lemon pie. Anything good- because there will be bad. But if you want it badly enough, whatever it is for you, you have to put in the work. And if you’re a believer like me, you have to give it to God. He’ll guide you and get you on the path meant for you. Don’t give up on your dreams. Work hard, and don’t ever settle. That’s how you achieve your greatness.”
The crowd erupts, and the football players cheer loudly. I lean into Anna, keeping my voice low as I ask her the question floating around in my mind.
“What was taken from him.” I start, immediately noticing the uncomfortable look in her eyes. “Is he talking about your guys’ dad?”
She stills. “Ah, no. Our dad died when we were little.”
I pause, ready to dig a little deeper, but she turns back towards the field, signaling to me that she is not open for any further questions. My curiosity cup runs over.
But then, my attention shifts back to Adrian, who grabs the microphone back into his hand, and flashes his boyish smile to the crowd. They go absolutely insane.
“Enough of the mushy stuff.” Dear God, how I love his smile. “Get out there tonight, boys, and kick some ass! LMHS Cardinals, get it done, baby!”
Everyone is standing and cheering, hooting and hollering as Adrian makes his way off of the stage. The principal takes the mic back over for just a minute, giving a few details about the homecoming parade tomorrow and then something about the dance, before stepping off of the stage. A few men scurry out and carry the podium off of the field, but I’m hardly paying attention to any of it. My eyes are firmly fixed on Adrian, watching as he moves off of the field with the ease of a man who is totally sure of himself.
I, on the other hand, have never been more confused. His speech was amazing. Magic, even. He complimented God; he spoke his truth.
Except, the trauma that he speaks of has my head spinning. Mostly, because, he’s never uttered a word to me about it.
But then again, why would he?
We aren’t close like that, I guess. We’re fuck buddies. We’re faking it.
He’s not going to let me into his real world. I’m only a part of the pretend one. And it hurts more than it should.
17
Adrian
As much as I enjoyed being here tonight and seeing my hometown team win their own homecoming game, still. Being on this field brings back a lot of feelings that for the most part, I’ve been able to push to the side.
But it’s the smell of this place. The sound of it. The sound of the cheerleaders, chanting those same familiar cheers that she used to, that always makes it hard. Yeah, I mean, I’ve been back here lots of times, and done this same old thing more than once. It just never gets any easier. That familiar feeling of dread and loss fills me, threatening to swallow me whole.
At least until, I see her face, moving towards me, with a huge smile spreading across those thick lips that I love to taste. That’s when the feelings leave me, and in their place, I’m filled with happiness, peace, and…something else that I’d rather not recognize right now.
“Hey.” My eyes land on my jersey covering her sweet little body, and without any care at all as to who is watching, I pull her into me, pressing my lips against hers.
Anna grumbles something under her breath about us getting a room, but I ignore her, mostly, and just flip her off behind Mia’s head. By the time I pull back from her, cameras are flashing, but honestly, I don’t mind one bit. I’m used to having my picture taken, and it feels good to finally have someone capture an image of us that wasn’t staged.
“Oh, baby.” I take her hands into mine, and then bring them up to my mouth, blowing into them. “Your hands are like ice cubes.”
“I’m a bit cold.” She leans into me, her entire body shivering against mine.
“Just a bit?” I wrap my body around hers, letting her sweet scent wash over me, calming the storm that was about to erupt, and then turning towards the parking lot. I smile and wave at the people who do the same to me, stopping every so often to shake a hand and greet someone from my past. I’ve almost made it to the gate, when all of a sudden, I’m stopped in my tracks, as a set of eyes land on mine, and then, travel to Mia.
The eyes belong to Kam, Kat’s older sister. And she does not look happy to see me.
“Leave it to you to draw a big crowd.” Her words are like ice, so cold, that Mia’s head darts up from where it was buried into my chest. She glances between the two of us, sensing the tension, and then tries to move away from me to give me some space. I just tighten my grip.
“Kam. It’s nice to see you. I hope that all is well with you and your family.”
“My family?” She snorts. “Don’t even try to act like you give a fuck about me, or my family. You never gave a fuck about any of us back then. If you had, then my sister would still be here, wouldn’t she? If you had found it in you to care about anyone besides yourself, my baby sister wouldn’t be dead.”
I reel back as if slapped. Honestly, a slap would have hurt a lot less than her words. But Kam isn’t done. She turns her eyes to Mia, her arms flying furiously around her, as she spits her words out into the night air.
“Do you have any idea that you’re with a monster? A selfish, heartless monster?” Her eyes are wild as they dart between us. “He killed my sister. He is the reason that my baby sister is dead. So, watch yourself, because if he killed her, he’ll do the same to you. History has a way of repeating itself, especially since you look exactly like her.”
With that, Kam spins on one heel and storms out of the stadium. I’m left standing in complete shock, as everyone around us stares at me in awe. Mia has now pulled away from me, and is staring up at me with wide, shocked eyes.
But it’s not the shock that guts me. It’s the fear that I see in them, that brings me to my damn knees.
Not a word has been spoken between us by the time that we pull into the driveway of my childhood home. Mia has kept her attention focused at the window, but now there is nothing left to distract her from looking at me.
“We need to talk.”
“Yeah.” Her voice is hardly above a whisper. I reach over to her, holding her chin in my hand and turning her to face me. Watching her flinch at my touch breaks my fucking heart.
“Mia.” My eyes close as I try to push the pain away, but it’s no use. It’s not going anywhere, anytime soon. “I need you to know that I would never hurt you.”
She won’t even look at me, dammit. Her eyes are cast down
at the console in the car, her hands woven so tightly together that they’re now close to pure white. Anger at Kam floods me, even though, it’s not the first time that she’s treated me like an animal. This time, it was just the most vocal, and I’m sure it’s because I brought a woman with me tonight. As Kat’s big sister, she feels it’s her duty to protect me from hurting another person again. And fuck. It’s my duty to not ever let me harm another woman the way that I did Kat, and yet, somehow, I let Mia break all of my fucking rules.
“You don’t owe me an explanation, Adrian. I mean, I want one, but you don’t owe it to me. Please don’t feel obligated…”
“I don’t.” I interrupt her. “But you’re still going to get it. It’s just…there’s a lot for me to tell you, but instead of telling you, I would rather just show you. Do you trust me enough to let me show you?”
The pause fucking kills me, but finally, Mia nods.
“I promise you, you’re safe with me. Give me tonight to wrap my mind around this, alright?” I swallow. “This is some really hard shit for me to talk about.”
She finally agrees to let me sleep on it, but even after she agrees, I can’t shake the uneasy feeling flooding me. The look of fear that I saw on Mia’s face was the last thing that I ever wanted. I don’t want her to fear me, but yet, I don’t ever want to bring her down to my level. The level of pure hell that I’ve been living in since the day Kat died.
I should have known better than to bring Mia here. To give her a glimpse into the life that I was so eager to leave behind.
But that’s the most fucked up part about having a past. It has a funny way of sneaking up on you and ruining your present.
18
Mia
I’m trying not to act differently, but I just can’t help myself. I feel it. In my fucking core.
The woman from last night was angry. Furious. And the words that she spit at Adrian were those that I never expected. At first, I thought that maybe she was one of the many women scorned by hot shot Adrian Malone. What actually left her mouth was nothing short of a blow.
Rule Play (Saints of Love Book 1) Page 14
