Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
RILEY
The question came out of nowhere and, by the smile on my neighbor’s face, there’s some kind of ulterior motive.
Though I’m at a total loss as to what that motive is.
“If you’re interested, I’d love to set you up with someone. He’s handsome, rich and kind. And really into female mechanics.”
Cordelia could set me up with that man who went viral for being a living Adonis and I’d compare everything about him to Nat. It doesn’t help that Nat is in Lucky Falls and he seems determined to be around.
Which means that I will be constantly killing my crush on him and putting it back in its place. How am I supposed to fit another guy into that complicated mess? I could never do that to a person.
I open my mouth to tell Cordelia I’m not interested, but nothing comes out. I can’t bring myself to reject the offer.
At least not in front of Nat.
While he hasn’t mentioned my journal yet, I know that he read it. One day, he’ll make the connection between those awkward declarations of love and me.
I don’t want him to remember my embarrassing crush on him while I’m single.
Wouldn’t it be better if I had a doting boyfriend to prove that I’ve completely moved on?
Then Nat and I could laugh about the girl I used to be…
rather than him being grossed out and me wishing for the ground to open and swallow me whole.
Besides, who’s to say Nat will always be my standard? I only know the eighteen-year-old version of him. There are so many other guys out there. Maybe Cordelia is about to set me up with the love of my life.
Maybe I should at least think about it.
Suddenly, I hear the drag of chair legs scraping the ground.
Nat barrels to his feet. “Would you look at the time? I forgot I need to call my agent.”
“Right now?” I ask, stunned.
“Yeah. Actually, I’m late.”
“Oh…”
He takes my hand. “I’ll drive you home.”
I blink in confusion as Nat tugs me up and grabs my purse.
I guess we’re leaving now.
Sending a rushed wave to Cordelia, I promise her, “We’ll talk later.”
“Think about it, Riley. I have a good feeling about you two!”
I notice a tick in Nat’s jaw as he responds, “See you guys later.”
And then we’re off.
Nat places his hand on the small of my back and steers me to the car. His touch is polite and not romantic in the least, but my pulse thumps faster anyway.
On the drive, his eyes focus on the road in a thoughtful squint.
Silence swirls around us.
“Nat?”
“Mm?”
“Don’t you have to call your agent?”
He grunts. “My agent? What for?”
“Isn’t that why we left?”
“Oh, yeah, yeah.” He clears his throat. “It’s fine. I’ll call when I get home.”
“But you said it was urgent,” I point out.
Nat blinks and I can practically see the wheels turning in his head. How far is he going to go to protect his fib?
Finally, he taps a button on the car’s dashboard. He looks jittery. I would be too if I lied like that.
Did he make up that ridiculous story because Cordelia offered to set me up on a date? My heart beats faster at the thought.
Is it possible that Nat was… jealous?
Before I can process that, the line connects and a feminine voice purrs from the car’s speakers, “Nat, I was just about to call you.”
My eyes fasten on the car’s dashboard. I didn’t know Nat’s agent was a woman.
“Hey, Renea.”
“I heard you made it on this week’s roster. Congratulations.”
“Thanks. But you don’t have to call every time I make it through the rounds.”
I bristle. This woman is calling every week? For what? Do agents need to be in touch that often?
“How can I not celebrate? You worked so hard to get this shot with the Lucky Strikers.”
“It’s not guaranteed yet,” Nat says, glancing at me.
I scowl at him in return.
His eyes widen and he jerks his gaze back to the road.
Renea coos, “When you get a break in training, you should fly back. Tierney texted me to ask how you’re doing. I think your old teammates miss you.”
Don’t use his teammates as a shield. You’re the one who misses him, Renea.
“Tierney has my number. He didn’t have to go through you,” Nat says.
“He means well. They all do. They’re just busy. You know how it is.”
“Yeah, I do,” Nat grumbles.
“Don’t worry about Tierney or anyone else. You just focus on getting the Lucky Strikers to the league.”
“You mean I have to focus on getting in.”
“Foregone conclusion.”
Nat chuckles.
Why is that so funny?
“I appreciate the vote of confidence.”
“Remember, Nat, I’m your biggest cheerleader.”
Something dark and bitter swirls through my chest. This conversation does not sound professional at all.
Nat clears his throat. “Just keep being a cheerleader in the figurative sense. The last time you brought pom poms to one of my games, you got roasted on the Jumbotron.”
She brought actual pom-poms to his games? What on earth?
Renea chuckles. “I’m a much better agent than I am a cheerleader. That’s for sure.”
I despise this woman.
Renea the Agent is now public enemy number one.
You don’t even know her, Riley. Maybe she’s just friendly.
Yeah, right. At twelve years old, my obsession with Nathan Campbell was professional enough that I could’ve earned a degree in it. I know a pining, one-sided love affair when I hear one. And this woman, even through the phone, is down bad.
My eyes jerk to Nat.
There he goes again, collecting hearts like they’re hat tricks.
I feel Nat glancing at me as he says, “Hey, Renea, thanks for checking in, but I’m kind of in the middle of something so…”
“Before you go, I had one more thing to tell you.” Renea hesitates. “It’s of a more… personal nature.”
Mouth firming into a thin line, I twist in my seat and glare out the window. If this woman confesses that she’s in love with Nat, I’m going to jump out of this moving car. I swear.
“I’m listening.”
“Layla called me a few days ago. She wants to sit down with Chance McLanely and his girlfriend for her relationship podcast. She asked me to introduce her.” Renea scoffs. “As if I have Chance McLanely’s number on speed dial.”
Nat chokes. “Well, Layla is… resourceful.”
“I thought I should warn you. Just in case she gets in contact and tries to weasel some information out of you.”
“I appreciate the heads-up.”
The call ends.
Nat blows out a breath.
I face him tentatively. “Was she talking about… that Layla?”
“My ex-girlfriend? Yeah.”
I wince on his behalf. Nat had been dating a social media influencer and model for two years. They were often photographed together and he was a frequent guest on her vlogs.
Not that I watched.
Okay I watched a handful of times, but only on really bad days when I had zero self-control.
“Do you know what happened?” Nat asks, rubbing his chin.
“What happened…”
“Between me and Layla?”
“I only know you broke up,” I assure him. “I never asked Chris about the details and he didn’t share.”
Nat bobs his head.
I wait.
Then I wait some more.
Then I start fiddling with my purse because it’s none of my business, but I want to ask so badly.
He glances at me and smirks. “You’re dying to know, aren’t you?”
“We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
“It’s fine.”
“Was it a bad break up?”
“I’d say it wasn’t the breakup, it was the context.”
“What do you mean?”
“She broke it off right after my accident. Said that her entire podcast was based on being a ‘girlfriend of an athlete’ so...”
My jaw drops. “Are you serious?”
“We were drifting apart long before that,” Nat admits. “But I was comfortable and didn’t want to have a hard conversation. And she…”
“She liked being a hockey player’s girlfriend, so it didn’t matter.”
How infuriating.
I generally don’t wish ill on people, but I hope all of Layla’s podcast equipment short-circuits and then catches on fire.
“I’ve come to peace with the way it shook out. Recovery was brutal,” Nat admits. “Between all the surgeries and the physical therapy, I wouldn’t have wanted to drag a loved one through all that darkness. It was a really low time for me.”
“That’s when the people who love you should show up the most,” I grind out. “Through the low times. That’s how you know who’s standing by your side and who’s not.” I scoff in disgust. “You are a saint, Nat. I would have blasted her online and dragged her through the mud.”
“I was no saint, Riles. Trust me. I’m talking like this in hindsight, but in the moment I was really angry. Though I will say, I used that anger as fuel to get better.”
“Did you want to get better… so you could get her back?”
He shakes his head. “Looking back, we weren’t compatible and we both knew it. Now, I can honestly say I wish her the best.”
My nostrils flare.
I stare straight ahead.
Nat might have made peace with that awful woman, but I do not feel the same.
If Nat’s ex-girlfriend ever crosses my path, she’s going to regret it.