by Emma Tharp
Turning around, Bri’s mouth is wide open, clearly in awe of Lydia, too.
Rick introduces us to his fiancée, Rose. Her hair is brown, cut into a sleek bob and she has piercing green eyes. She’s sitting across the table and gives Bri and me a wave.
We sit down and order drinks and appetizers. I have Derek on one side of me and Bri on the other. The conversation flows and I’m oddly at ease with this group. Maybe it’s the drinks I had at the bar with Bri, or it could be that this is just a great group of people.
“Aren’t Rick and Rose cute together?” Bri whispers in my ear.
“Adorable.” They finish each other’s sentences and they’re always sharing a look or a touch.
The waitress delivers oysters, huge shrimp cocktail, bruschetta bread, and escargot to the table. “Can I take your meal order now?” she asks.
“Sure,” Rose says, clasping the menu in her hand. “He will have the large filet with béarnaise sauce, cooked medium rare, with a side of sweet potato puree. And I will have the sea bass.”
“Are you kidding me?” Teddy chuckles. “Rose orders your food for you?”
“You want to start taking digs at each other? Because I can go there if you want to.” Rick has a menacing smirk on his face.
Teddy holds his hands up. “Nope. I’m good.”
Everyone at the table laughs. From the short amount of time I’ve spent around the guys, Teddy seems to get himself into funny situations that make him the brunt of most of their jokes.
We all place our orders and Derek kisses my cheek. He leans in close to my ear and his clean masculine scent warms me from the inside. Kissing the sensitive skin next to my ear heats me up even more. “I enjoyed myself at your house. I can’t wait to do it again. Can you come to my place after dinner?”
What I wouldn’t give to go to his place and get intimate with him again. I turn toward him, his proximity throwing me off. We’re breathing the same air and it makes me want to leave here now. “Sadly, I don’t have anyone to check in on Mom tonight. I don’t like to leave her overnight without someone nearby. I wish I could though.”
“It isn’t safe for her to stay alone, is it?” Concern creases his dark brows.
“No. I worry that she’ll get up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom or need me.” I get a sick feeling in my gut at the memory of my mother falling out of bed a few months ago. She was frightened but didn’t want to wake me, so she lay on the floor all night. I scolded her for not getting me up to help her.
Derek’s hand grasps my thigh. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“No, I can take care of her.”
“I know you can, but she might be more comfortable in an assisted living home or with a full-time nurse. My uncle sits on the board at Riverview. I could make a call.”
Riverview is an expensive assisted living home that has a waiting list a mile long to get a room. One of Mom’s doctors told us that that was where she’d want to be when the time came. Of course, neither she nor I are ready for that yet. “I can’t do that. She wants to be at home.” There’s an edge to my tone.
He gives my thigh a comforting squeeze. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. Your mother is a sweet woman. I only wanted to help out.”
Taking a few calming breaths, I relax myself. Derek is well-intended even if his idea is ridiculous because it’s so unaffordable. “I know. I’m sorry. And about your invite, can I get a rain check?”
“Of course,” Derek says and smiles before popping a shrimp into his mouth.
The meal proceeds and I watch everyone at the table. There’s friendship and laughter, but there’s also prestige and money, two things I don’t have. Even now Bri has her dream job and here I sit, still a stripper. I don’t think the women I met tonight have any idea where I work or that I met the guys stripping at Rick’s bachelor party, but deep down I feel like I don’t fit in.
“I need to use the restroom. I’ll be right back,” I tell Derek as I get up from the table.
Rose is washing her hands when I get in the bathroom. “Cora, I’m glad you’re here.” She shuts off the water and grabs a paper towel. “I know we don’t know each other well yet, but I’m pretty good at reading people.”
“Oh,” I say because I can’t think of anything better to say. My curiosity is piqued.
“Yes. I like you. And Rick told me that Derek is smitten with you, and boy can I see it.” Her smile widens. “He’s been miserable and hard to deal with since Carrie broke his heart, according to the guys. Now he seems better.”
My jaw hangs open. “We just started dating, if that’s what we’re even calling it.”
“What’s your hesitation?” She leans her hip against the vanity.
“I don’t want to get hurt.” My voice comes out pathetic and small.
Rose gets closer and grasps my arms. “Oh, honey, isn’t that life? There are no guarantees, but when Derek settles down, you won’t have anything to worry about. I saw the way he looks at you. There’s something there. I see it between you.”
I’m caught off guard. When Derek and I are together, I feel the chemistry, but to have someone else tell me that they see it, that’s entirely something else. “Thank you.”
“Of course. The guys on the team are like family, and Rick and Derek are close. They like to see each other happy. Do you have your phone with you?”
“Yes.” I pull it out of my purse.
“Here’s my number, text me yours. We can get together soon.”
“I’d like that,” I say and give her a genuine smile. It warms my heart that this woman who barely knows me seems to be welcoming me to the group.
Back at the table, everyone is talking about one of the other players named Marcus.
“He keeps bragging in the locker room about screwing a nineteen-year-old. Like we’d be impressed that he’s cheating on Alex,” Teddy says, his face twisted in disgust.
“We should tell Alex. I’d want to know if I were her,” Rose chimes in. I like her more by the minute.
Teddy takes a piece of bruschetta off the platter and sets it on the plate, licking the tomato juice off his fingers. “It’s not a good idea. We barely know Alex. What if they have an open relationship?”
Lydia pipes up, “I doubt that.”
“The problem is that you never know if Marcus is lying or not. He’s an asshole. Until we have proof, I don’t think any of us should get in the middle of it,” Rick points out.
Rose rolls her eyes and shakes her head. “He’s such a dick. I’m glad you guys don’t hang out with him.” She takes a sip of her martini and sets it in front of her. “How did he end up with Alex anyway? She’s a doctor, so we know she’s smart, and she seemed sweet when we talked at the last after party. I can’t understand why she’s with him.”
“He’s a smooth talker. Chicks dig that,” Rick says, refilling his wine glass.
“Not me,” I say.
Derek squeezes my thigh and heat moves up my leg. He whispers in my ear, his warm breath heating the lobe. “Don’t worry, I’m not an asshole like Marcus.”
Deep inside, I know he’s telling me the truth.
Oh, how I wish I could go home with him tonight.
ELEVEN
Derek
I CRACK OPEN a beer after unpacking and sink into my couch. It’s been a long four days away. Three games in as many cities. It’s good to be home.
I’ve missed Cora. She’s slowly starting to become an addiction. When she’s not around, I crave her. It’d be nice to see her tonight, but she has to work and I need to relax.
Cora’s been nervous about us, but I’ve been doing my damnedest to show her she can trust me. In the process, I think I could be falling for her. Fuck if it doesn’t scare me, but it feels so good.
In the last month, I’ve taken her out and wined her and dined her. When I’m out of town, we talk and text a few times a day. She’s spent the night at my place twice now. It’s not enough, but I take what
ever she gives me.
I’m breaking through her barriers. She seems to be loosening up more every day, opening up more and more, and in turn so am I. It’s unreal how easy it is to be around her. She feels like home to me, more than Carrie ever did.
There’s only one problem. As the days go by, I’m feeling more and more possessive of her. But I know if I push her too hard to quit her job or take my offer to help her out with her mother, she’ll push back. Cora is nothing if not stubborn. It’s okay though. For now. I can give her time. She’s worth it.
There’s a knock at my door. I’m not expecting anyone tonight. It has to be Cora surprising me. A huge smile spreads across my face.
Getting up, I walk to the door and swing it open.
You’ve got to be kidding me.
“Hey, handsome.” Carrie leans against the doorframe, one leg crossed over the other, as casual as ever. Her silky blonde hair is pin-straight; she has it all swept over one shoulder.
Old, unresolved feelings come flooding back. The attraction is still there, but now there’s an undercurrent of hurt, bitterness, and resentment. “What are you doing here?”
Carrie has her arms around me and for a minute, smelling her jasmine perfume, I’m taken back to the good times and the love.
But I’m not stupid.
I pull away. “What do you need, Carrie?”
“I miss you and wanted to see you.” She’s wearing the sexy smile that used to get to me all the time. Fuck, is she trying to seduce me?
“What does that mean?” I huff out.
“Can I come in?” she asks.
I close the door behind her and we go to the living room. Neither of us sits down. She stands too close to me.
She lays her hands on my chest. I wonder if she can feel the way my heart beats around her. It used to go crazy, thundering against my chest when she walked in the room. Now it sits there, crushed after the shit she put me through. “It’s been a long time,” she says.
With a sigh, I look down at her hands and remove them. “Right, but I saw online that you’ve been keeping yourself very busy.” I try unsuccessfully to keep the edge out of my tone.
“Oh, you’re talking about the pictures of me and Eddie. That’s nothing.” She rolls her eyes and waves her hand in the air.
“Looked like something to me,” I say.
“What about you? Who’s the girl you’ve been photographed with? I didn’t like seeing you with someone else.” She crosses her arms in front of her chest and pouts.
Irritation prickles the back of my neck. Where does she get off asking me anything? She lost that right when she filed the divorce papers. “You think I liked it? Seeing you with someone else? I didn’t.”
She sits down on the couch and pats the spot next to her. “Why don’t we try again? I want you back.”
I stay standing, needing to keep my distance and my wits about me. Here she is offering me everything I’ve wanted for so long. Of course I’m tempted. I loved her so much. But this isn’t real. “It’s because you’re jealous. Nothing else has changed. I’m still going to have to travel.”
Carrie stands in front of me again, studying me. “I’ve changed, Derek. I know what I want and it’s you.” Her hand comes up and rubs against my dick.
I don’t get hard.
Before that’s all it took, a glance, a graze, her breath on my skin. Not today.
“Tell me you don’t miss me.” She tries unzipping my jeans.
Grasping her hand in mine, I push it away. “Stop,” I growl.
Her lip quivers. “It’s her, isn’t it? The woman in the pictures. You care for her. Do you love her?”
Do I? I’m not sure if what I’m feeling is love or not. I care for Cora. And it’s been impossible not to think about her every day when I wake up and go to sleep. Christ, she’s even made very vivid appearances in my dreams. It’s intense, but am I in love? “You know this is none of your business now. You left me, remember?”
She starts crying, big ugly tears. Does it make me a cold heartless bastard if I don’t care? Walking into the bathroom, I get the box of tissues and bring them out to her. “Carrie, I’m sorry that you’re hurting, but I think you should go.”
She wipes her cheeks, smearing black mascara all over. “Please don’t push me away. I want to try again.”
How many times had I said those exact same words while she pushed me away? Again and again. Ironic since I’m finally over her. Today solidified it. “You should go now.” I walk toward the door and open it for her.
Anger flashes across her face, the same look she used to get before she’d haul off and slap me across the face. She reapplies her heartless mask, sets her shoulders back, and flips me off before she walks out the door.
I made the right decision.
IT’S GAME DAY. I slept like a baby last night after Carrie left. Now that I know I’m completely over her, it’s like a giant burden has been lifted.
Warm-ups are finishing up now. I hammer one last shot at the net and skate off to the bench.
Looking up into the stands, I see Cora made it. She notices me and her lips curve into a bright smile. Happiness washes over me.
Slick nudges me in my side. “No shit. You invited Carrie.”
My head snaps to his. “What?”
Pointing up, he says, “Over there.”
Damn it. She’s sitting a few seats over from Cora. “What the hell is she doing here?”
“You didn’t tell her to come?” Slick says, hurling himself over the boards and onto the bench.
“No. I didn’t.” She better not be here to talk to Cora. I grip my stick harder than necessary and take the ice.
This might be my worst game this season. I’m distracted the entire game. Cora left a few minutes after the third period started and she looked like she was in a hurry. Thinking that Carrie told Cora something, I couldn’t stay focused. I missed shots I should’ve made and had three penalties.
No thanks to me, we win the game. Teddy had some great saves tonight.
Back in the locker room, I get my cell phone out and call Cora.
I almost throw the phone across the room when she doesn’t answer but think better of it.
Now I’m worried.
TWELVE
Cora
“DRIVE FASTER!” I scream at the Uber driver. My heart races and tears fall down my cheeks.
Why did I come to the game tonight? I knew Mom wasn’t feeling well, but my neighbor, Linda, said she’d check in on her. If I didn’t want to see Derek so badly, I would’ve stayed home, but I couldn’t wait any longer. Thank God, Linda helped me out. Finding Mom panicking must’ve scared the pants off her.
I punch the seat beside me and give the car we passed the finger.
However, I wish she hadn’t waited until the third period to call me.
“Get out of the way, loser!” I yell at the car in front of us. This won’t help my Uber rating, but I don’t care. I just need to get to Mom.
The entire ten-minute drive, my thoughts are stuck on the what-ifs. What if I had been there, maybe I could’ve helped her and she wouldn’t need to be in the hospital. What if she doesn’t recover from whatever this is? These thoughts aren’t productive.
I complete the payment for the driver before pulling up at the entrance to the ER. Running out of the car, I make my way to the admissions desk and cut in front of three people waiting to be seen.
“Excuse me,” I say to the receptionist, breathless.
The woman with short, spiky brown hair, huge purple plastic glasses, and multiple facial piercings looks up at me and says, “Hold on a sec, hon. I’ll be right back.” She stands up to walk away.
“No! Please wait.”
She turns around, her brows pinched together seemingly into a dark caterpillar-like unibrow. “You’re going to have to give me a minute. Nature calls.”
Slamming my fist down on the desk, I say, “My mother was brought here in an ambulance. Could you please tel
l me where she is before I come back there and look on your computer myself?” I’m seconds from crying and she must hear it in my voice or see it in my eyes.
The receptionist pushes her glasses higher up on her nose and walks back to the computer. “What’s your mother’s name, hon?”
I tell her and she points me in the direction of the intensive care unit.
Cold sweat breaks out over my body before I knock on the door to her room. A tall, thin, gray-haired man comes to the door. He’s wearing a white coat and a name badge. “Hello, are you Adeline’s family?”
“Yes…I’m…her daughter,” I say.
My mom is lying on the bed, sleeping. She’s paler than normal and the dark circles under her eyes seem a deeper shade of blue. She’s wearing an oxygen mask, and her chest rises and falls in sync with the beeping of a machine. There’s an IV in her arm delivering clear fluid into her body.
He reaches for my hand and we shake. “My name is Dr. Brown and I’ve been taking care of your mother. Your neighbor filled me in on what happened. She just left before you got here.”
The strong smell of antiseptic hits me and my head starts to feel light and my knees weaken. “Can I sit down?” I don’t wait for his answer and sit in the blue chair next to Mom’s bed. “Is she going to be okay?”
“How are you feeling? Your face just went white.” Dr. Brown gets closer to me, squatting down to look into my eyes.
“No, I’ll be fine. What about her?” My tone is clipped.
He stands back up to his full height. “She’s stable, but she did have a stroke. She’s unable to talk and it’s affected her right side.”
“She’s going to get it back though, right?”
He shakes his head and reaches for her chart at the end of her bed. Leafing through the papers, he stops and reads through a page. “Unfortunately, it’s unlikely that she will, especially with her MS.”
There’s a sharp sting behind my eyes before the tears start falling. “What do we do now?”
Dr. Brown’s eyes are kind and sympathetic. He gets a tissue out of the box on the side table and hands it to me. “Your mother was confused when she came in. We gave her some medicine to help her rest. It’ll be good for her brain if she doesn’t get upset tonight. Why don’t you go home and get some rest? Come back first thing tomorrow. I’ll be going over her case first thing with my colleagues and have more information for you.”
