Hard and Fast

by Kathy Lyons

  “Tell me what to say.”

  She looked at Coach, who had joined us in the lobby and was now conferring with Doc—a whole procession of people lined up to tell me that my knee was crap.

  “Tell them it’s minor,” Coach finally said. “He’s DL for this week’s series, but will be back soon.”

  “I’ll get them a press release,” Gia added.

  “You tell them that,” I grumbled. “I’m going with, ‘it sucks but I’ll be back.’”

  “Good choice,” she said. Then she looked around. “We could try going out the other side—”

  “They’ll just sit outside my apartment building. Let’s get it over with now.” Then I looked at Cassie. “If you want to escape—”

  She shook her head, her jaw determined. “If you’re going that way, I am, too. Besides, I’m cuter than you. Let them take pictures of me.”

  “Hell yes, you are,” I said. Though, privately, I thought that if the reporters were looking for the most photogenic one here, they’d all focus on Gia.

  So with a grim grip on my crutches, I tried to look athletic as I one-footed it out of the hospital. Even though I was ready for the camera flashes, I still winced at the onslaught. And then came all the questions, too many at once for my addled brain to process. I just wanted to get home.

  “It’s not too bad,” I said, pitching my voice loud enough to be heard. “Hopefully—”

  “Oh my God! Connor!”

  Oh fuck. Sophia.

  She came running to me, her arms outstretched. I barely had time to hold up a hand to keep her from bowling me over. She skittered to a stop on her stiletto heels, then she took my arm while she aimed her tear-streaked face toward the cameras.

  “My God, what happened?”

  “It’s just a sprain. A bad one, but—”

  “Oh no! They told me it happened when you saved a child from certain death. You stopped him from running out into traffic, but at what cost? You risked the pennant, maybe even the World Series, to save a boy. Oh, Connor, that’s so you.”

  I gaped at her, completely dumbfounded. “Where did you hear that?”

  “Everyone’s talking about it. The boy’s family is mortified, of course, but so grateful.”

  “That’s not true—” Gia protested, but Sophia was on a roll.

  “Of course they’re grateful. Don’t be such an idiot.”

  I was pretty sure that wasn’t what Gia meant, but this was not the place to have a truth spat. Sophia was too good at twisting a situation. I didn’t want to risk that in front of the cameras. So I waved at the reporters. “Can you back up, guys? I just want to get home and start healing.”

  They didn’t back up, but they did turn their attention to the coach who was exiting behind me, asking questions about who would replace me on the roster and what Coach thought about our chances, etc. I was grateful for the reprieve, but as I started hobbling forward, Sophia rushed in and fouled my footing, blocking one of the crutches enough that I stumbled.

  Gia was too far back to catch me. She’d given me enough room to maneuver myself, but Sophia was there, planting a hard shoulder into my ribs as she wrapped an arm around me.

  “Sophia!” Cassie snapped. “You’re making it worse.”

  “You’re so clumsy,” Sophia hissed in a loud whisper that every microphone picked up. “You tripped him. Let the grown-ups handle this.”

  That was when I’d had enough, the cameras be damned. “Back away, Sophia,” I growled. “Now.”

  She must have heard the anger in my voice. She stared at me with her tear-stained face, mascara running artfully down her cheeks. “I-I’m just trying to help.”

  And the hell of it was that in her mind, she was helping. She’d just guaranteed that I’d get airtime on the local news station and in the papers with the headline, Bobcat Catcher Risks All to Rescue Boy. It didn’t matter that none of it was true. There was enough that a good spin doctor could make me look as heroic as Jake had been a couple months ago, when he’d actually rescued Ellie from a burning building.

  It set my teeth on edge, but it was also Sophia’s way of doing her job.

  “Get back,” I repeated.

  Sophia stood back silently while all the reporters waited for more drama. Thankfully, Gia spoke up then. “We’ll get a press release out to you in the next hour,” she said.

  “I’ll do it!” Sophia snapped loudly. “You all have my card.”

  Of course, they did. Because Sophia would have been out here making sure the press showed up and handing out her card when they arrived. I couldn’t fight her now, so I turned to Gia.

  “Which way is the car?”

  “It’ll be here in a second. I gave the keys to Cassie.”

  Really? I hadn’t noticed when she’d left, but I was grateful. I didn’t want her running afoul of Sophia. That one stupid nickname—Little Snit—had haunted Cassie for years. I knew she second-guessed herself regularly because of it. Was she throwing a snit? Was she taking things too seriously? I feared that hearing that insulting name would push my sister into another depression.

  “She’s driving?” Sophia gasped. “But she’s distraught. What if she hurts someone?”

  I shot an annoyed glance at my sister. “She’s been driving for years just fine.”

  Sophia sniffed. “I wouldn’t know. Thanks to you, I haven’t spoken with her.”

  A lie? I couldn’t tell. Maybe she really did miss her sister, or maybe she just missed having such an easy target. My knee hurt too much to figure it out. And thankfully, the reporters started disbanding as Gia’s car pulled up.

  I made my way forward, Sophia on one side, Gia on the other. Coach hung back, drawing the reporters off me with some comments about how the team would manage the coming series against the Rangers without me. It was a kindness, though I hated the idea that he already knew who would replace me on the roster.

  Gia helped me get settled then squeezed my arm. “Go home. Get some rest. I’ll…um…I’ll call you later.”

  I gripped her hand. “You’re coming with me, aren’t you?”

  She hesitated. “I need to stay with the reporters, craft a statement and stuff.” She shot a look over her shoulder. “Do you really want me to let Sophia handle all of that?”

  God, no. But I didn’t want to be without Gia, either. Not with my leg crapped out and my career in shambles. Sure, I was being dramatic, but my head was beating those words with every throb of my aching knee. Meanwhile, Cassie spoke from behind the wheel.

  “But it’s your car! And there might be reporters at his apartment.”

  Gia smiled. “Rob and Jake are waiting there to help. They’ll keep the reporters away and help get him upstairs.”

  She’d thought ahead and arranged for help. Of course, she had. Gia was always three steps ahead.

  “But this is your car,” Cassie repeated.

  “I’ll pick it up later.”

  I leaped on her words as if they were a throw to home plate. “You have to come get it. Tonight. I don’t care how late.”

  She looked at me, and I could see the understanding in her face. I wanted her with me tonight. I might be hopped up on painkillers by the time she arrived, but I wanted her there.

  “Please,” I begged.

  She smiled. “Of course. I’ll get there as soon as I can. But you need to go now. Coach is running out of interesting bullshit.”

  I snorted. “He ran out of that years ago.”

  “But the press doesn’t know that.” Then she gave Cassie a thumbs-up and shut the car door. A moment later, we were pulling away from the hospital. That was good, I thought, as I eased back in the seat. Except that it hurt even more to leave Gia behind.

  We made it to my apartment building without incident. And sure enough, there were reporters there, too, though Rob and Jake were keeping them back, probably regaling them with baseball bullshit. Every player had a store of great plays or glorious screw-ups that entertained the fans. We talked endless
ly about them when we wanted to kill time with the press. But as I pulled up, Rob waved the reporters back and Jake helped me get out. Their eyes were filled with worry as they teased me loud enough for the press to hear.

  “Did you get a boo-boo? Did a pretty nurse kiss it all better?”

  “That’s your move, Jake,” I grumbled as I grabbed my crutches. Then I gestured to my cousin Ellie, who had somehow stepped out of the shadows to hover nearby. She understood better than most how fragile Cassie could be. “Could you go with her while she parks the car and make sure she’s okay?”

  Ellie nodded and quickly slid into the passenger seat. A moment later, the car pulled away from the curb, and the guys were waving goodbye to the press as we went inside. I waited until we were in the elevator to give them the news.

  “No pennant for me, but maybe the World Series. If I do everything I’m supposed to—”

  “You always do,” snorted Jake.

  “Yeah, you’re boring like that,” Rob continued.

  “Or just old,” Jake continued.

  I was four years older than Rob, but I swear, I felt every minute like it was a month. How could I be this crippled at twenty-seven?

  “No problem,” Rob added. “I’m sure Gia will help you convalesce in style.”

  My head jerked up. No one knew about my relationship with Gia. Not even us, really, given that we couldn’t decide if we were together or not. The guys absolutely could not know—

  “Look at his face,” Jake hooted.

  “He thinks we’re all clueless,” Rob laughed. “We’ve known since before the All-Star Game. That’s when it started…right?”

  “Fishing?” I asked with a glare.

  He shrugged.

  “That’s his day in the pool,” Jake responded. “I think it was more like the Thursday after the All-Star Game. You know, when she went all goo-goo eyed during batting practice.”

  “Grow up,” I growled as the elevator doors opened.

  “Never!” they both answered at once.

  Then we were at my apartment door. Rob’s fiancée Heidi opened it—apparently, building security let her in—and she’d gotten everything set up in my bedroom—ice packs, water for taking pills, and a pyramid-shaped pillow to keep my knee elevated and bent at the right angle for optimal healing. She offered to make some food, but I waved her away. I just wanted to be alone. With Gia.

  But I wasn’t about to get my wish yet. Ellie and Cassie came upstairs, and I studied my sister’s face to see if she was okay. Had seeing Sophia upset her? Of course, it had. But how much? And how much of her distress right now was because she was worried about me?

  All of those damn fears scrambled around my brain. But at least they were crowding out the my-career-is-over chant ringing through my head. Well, some of the time.

  Eventually, they all said good-bye. Cassie and Ellie went last, since Ellie was going to drop my sister off on campus. I kissed them both and was incredibly grateful when Ellie whispered into my ear.

  “Cassie’s fine. I’ll check in on her tomorrow, but honestly, she’s doing really well.”

  Those reassuring words made me feel enormously better, for a few minutes at least. Long enough for them to leave and for me to make sure the door was unlocked so Gia could come in, no matter what time it was.

  And then I lay back in bed and waited.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Gia

  I tried to be quiet as I entered Connor’s apartment. I’d spent the last three hours creating the Bobcats’ press release and fielding calls from the press. Somehow Sophia had turned Connor’s knee injury into a feel-good piece about a player risking his career to save a child. It matched the frenzy of interest there’d been when Jake had rescued Ellie and a young boy from a burning building, except for one horrible difference. It was a lie.

  And that put me in a terrible position. Sophia was obviously working overtime to create media buzz out of thin air. As the Bobcat representative, my job was to encourage all the good press I could, but this was a disaster in the making. I walked a fine line, trying to support Connor’s image without agreeing with anything Sophia said.

  It was impossible, and in the end, I did something I never do. I turned off my phone. I abdicated my responsibility and caught an Uber to Connor’s apartment. He’d texted me that my keys were on his kitchen counter and that I should just walk in. No problem, except that once I got inside his apartment, I couldn’t resist checking in on him.

  And he, naturally, woke up the second I came near.

  “Gia?”

  “Yeah. Just getting my keys. How do you feel?”

  “Like I’m on the good drugs.”

  I smiled. He did sound a little out of it. “Enjoy. I’ll just get—”

  “Stay with me.”

  Those three words stopped me in my tracks. Why? Because I’d been waiting for him to say them. Part of me had lingered, hoping for the invite. But the other part—the rational part—was getting really pissed. How could he think I was anything like his witch of a sister? Sure, we both played the publicity game, but she was a liar, plain and simple. I might focus attention where I wanted it, but I never outright lied. And I sure as hell never manufactured stories like she had tonight.

  “It’s not a good idea, Connor. I don’t think I’m in the right frame of mind.”

  He flicked on his bedside lamp, and I got to see him stretched out, naked on his bed. The sheet covered him from the waist down, including his raised knee, but his chest was golden in the soft light, his body on beautiful display. His face was relaxed and open, his gaze fuzzy, and his mouth curved into a smile.

  “Stay with me, please. Just for a bit. We can talk about why you’re angry.”

  I blinked. “How do you know I’m angry?”

  He sighed. “You were dealing with Sophia’s fallout. You have to be angry.”

  For a guy who’d maxed out on painkillers, he was damned sharp. I hesitated a moment. He needed his rest. But when would I have a better opportunity to hash this out with him?

  I settled down on the bed beside him, facing all that glorious expanse of beautiful man, and wondered if I was about to destroy any chance of ever having a real relationship with him. But I couldn’t keep silent any longer. “How can you put the two of us in the same category?”

  He frowned. “I don’t.” He picked up his phone from where it had been lying beside him on the bed. “I’ve been watching the feeds. She’s making me look—”

  “Like a hero.”

  He nodded. “And you’ve been trying to downplay it. Not exactly calling her a liar, but trying to keep things real.” He took my hand. “Thank you.”

  “Why do you allow it? Why do you let her do this to you?” I leaned forward, determined to ask something that had been bothering me for a while. “How did she get those calendar pictures of you?”

  “Stalking and Photoshop. She caught me on vacation for some. I didn’t even know she was there. Then later, she hid in my closet.” He arched a brow at me. “Do you honestly think I’d lie naked on a bed for her?”

  “No.” But I’d been up close and personal with his body and knew that the photos weren’t far off. He absolutely looked that good.

  “Do you really think she’s helping your career?”

  He shrugged. “Hard to say. Do you?”

  I didn’t want to answer, but the truth was pretty clear. “Yes, assuming this latest stunt doesn’t backfire. You were hurt by a kid at a birthday party for foster kids.”

  “I didn’t save his life.”

  I nodded. And the boy was nowhere near traffic. But nobody looked deeply into sports stories. “If she gets away with it, then yeah. She’s helping your career.”

  “But it’s not how I want to be helped,” he said, his voice flat and cold.

  “So why do you let her?”

  “You know about Cassie.”

  “Yeah, but Cassie isn’t the same vulnerable girl she was a few years ago. The woman I saw today
was strong. Capable.”

  “Really?” Hope rang clear in his voice.

  “Yeah, really.” Though Cassie had been visibly shaken, she’d stood up to Sophia like a true champion. I was about to tell him that, to let him know how grown-up she’d been. But then he started talking about Sophia.

  “Did I ever tell you about going to Disney World when I was a kid?”

  “No. What happened?”

  “It was close to the end with Mom. Dad had started drinking. Sophia did everything at home. Cooking, cleaning, everything. And in the middle of all of this, Cassie started talking about Disney World. One of her friends had gone, and she’d come back telling everyone it had been the most magical trip in the world. Cassie hung on to those words—the most magical place in the world.” He chuckled. “She was young enough then to believe in magic. It was as if she thought Mickey Mouse could make Mom well or something.”

  “Oh God, that must have been awful.”

  “It could have been, especially since Cassie was like a dog with a bone. She thought Disney World was the answer to all our prayers.”

  “Could your family afford it?”

  He snorted. “Not really. And even if we could have found the money, Dad could barely get himself to work and back. No way could he manage us on a vacation.”

  “What happened?”

  His lips curved into a smile. “Sophia got my coach to take us.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  “And not just us, but the whole baseball team. It was all Sophia’s doing. She talked to the parents, got a travel agent to do the work, and even managed fundraising. Everything.”

  “Sophia got out and did car washes and things?” I couldn’t imagine it. She was too prissy to get her hands dirty.

  “She washed cars, badgered people into giving bake sales. She made baseball cards for all of us and sold them to my teammates’ grandmothers and fond aunts for a crazy amount of money.” He pointed to his mirror where a baseball card with his eleven-year-old face on it was pressed into the frame. “That’s been with me since I was a kid. It made me believe I would have a real one someday. I looked at it all through college and the minors. It kept me going when I didn’t think I could.”