Chapter 27 – Brianna #3
The way his eyes light up for just a second nearly undoes me.
He wants to believe I've been meaning to stop by.
That I wanted to see him. We both know I'm lying, and we both know why.
He gave me this job. He knows exactly where I've been, and he hasn't come to find me either.
We've been circling each other for a year, waiting for the other one to move first.
“No problem. I would’ve liked to see you.” His gaze softens, his next words quieter. “How are you settling in with the job?”
My throat tightens. He wanted to see me.
Don’t do this, Bri. Don’t romanticize this.
I silently pray that Seth keeps his big, gorgeous ass still and doesn’t make a sound.
“Things are going well.” I close the door shut behind me. My dad steps back, giving me the space I need to maneuver the cart. I push it next door toward the training room, throwing a silent prayer to the heavens that my dad will follow and not open the supply room door. Thankfully, he does.
“The staff is great, and the players have all been respectful.”
He nods. “I’m happy to hear that.”
I open the treatment room door to find Penn sprawled out on the table, his eyes glued to his phone.
There are very loud moans coming from his phone that fill the awkward silence.
Oh, shit. Penn jolts upright like he’s been electrocuted, fumbling with the phone as the unmistakable sounds of porn continue to play at full volume.
If I’m not mistaken, that actually might be Mr. and Mrs. Wellington—
“Fuck! It’s not—” He stumbles, trying to come up with an excuse but then he notices Caleb standing behind me. My dad steps around me, glaring at him.
“Penn.”
His voice is eerily calm.
Penn’s eyes go wide as saucers, and he scrambles to pause the video, his entire face turning bright red. “Uh…hello, Caleb, sir.”
I stifle a laugh, biting down on the inside of my cheek as I watch Penn sit up straighter, suddenly looking like a guilty kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
Dad’s expression is pure business now professional and unreadable, but I know better.
This might be bad now, but it’s about to get a hell of a lot worse if I don’t step in and try to diffuse the situation.
I gently place a hand on my dad’s arm, a move that feels foreign yet familiar.
My mom was big on physical touch to de-escalate situations and it’s something I’ve picked up from being raised by her.
I’ve always felt it helps ground people in the moment.
Bring them back inside their bodies when they feel like they’re losing control.
“Dad.” The word feels strange on my tongue, but it slips out anyway.
I’m not trying to weaponize it against him, but right now, I can tell he needs his daughter and less an employee.
“I need to do some dry needling on Penn now but,” I pause, channeling every ounce of my mom’s tenderness, the warmth she always exuded no matter how hard life got or how much someone wronged her.
“How about we grab lunch tomorrow? During my break? If you’re free. ”
There’s no mistaking the flicker of hope in his eyes. “I’d love that, Brianna.”
“We can have it in your office if you’d like,” I add softly.
And just like that… Relief floods his face.
Like he’s been holding his breath this entire time, unsure of how to even begin this conversation with me.
The way he says my name softly makes my chest ache.
I can see it now. The hesitation. The uncertainty.
He doesn’t know whether to hug me or leave me alone before I can change my mind.
He’s trying to figure out how to navigate this.
Maybe…I’m still mad at him. No. Not maybe.
I am still mad. For how he left. For all the ways he let me and my mom down.
And I won’t be the one to work the hardest to fix this fractured relationship.
He deserves to struggle for that. To grovel a bit and put in the effort.
But this, throwing him a chance when he initiated the conversation by showing up outside the supply room, I can do.
Because at my core, I’m a kind person. And everyone deserves a little kindness.
Even him.
“We’ll do it in my office. I’ll order some food for us.”
“Sure. See you then.”
After a few seconds pause, he smiles then turns to leave, and without another word he’s gone.
I let out a long, shaky breath, my hand going to my hair, smoothing down my red layers as I turn back to Penn. I’m going to have lunch with my dad. I’m going to talk to the man for the first time since my mother’s funeral. I have no idea how this is going to go.
“Well…” Penn drawls, a shit-eating grin spreading across his face as he leans back on the table. “That was awkward as hell.”
I snort. “Yeah. First conversation with him since I started working here and the opening was you watching porn. Thanks for that.”
Penn flashes me a lopsided grin, his gaze dropping briefly to my new hair. “The red looks good on you. I like it. Sexy.”
I laugh and shake my head while setting up my supplies. “Thanks. Let’s work on your leg.”
And in the back of my mind, two thoughts linger: I hope Seth got out of the supply closet without being spotted. And Seth likes it too.