Chapter 31Annie
Chapter 31
Annie
DECEMBER | Balance: $48,268
Another late night at the office. Ever since the Monday after Thanksgiving, work had been hectic. There was the rush to secure high school and college recruits before their winter breaks. Travel seemed never-ending. When I wasn't on the road, I was glued to my desk until my eyes ached, often needing eye drops before I could even drive home.
Nick and I had exchanged encouraging texts. The Princes were on a particularly rotten road stand with a long string of losses. Koretzov, the team’s backup goalie, being in the net was almost a guaranteed loss. Nick had gotten knocked into by one of Montreal’s players, causing him to strain his arm and Mikey to start a raucous fight. Nick was back in the net that night, but the team had only picked up one point on this road trip.
I checked the score whenever I switched tasks, and it seemed like they were playing as quickly as possible. I didn’t get another chance to check it before my phone rang at 10 p.m., Nick’s name on the screen.
I answered. “Hey, bub. How’d it go?”
He blew out a breath. “Bad. You still at work?”
I groaned. “Yeah. About to go home. I’ve got to drive to Bakersfield tomorrow. Need to get some rest before that.”
“Aw, that’s far, angel.”
“Just a couple hours, and I get to leave around noon. I’m trying not to go into the office in the morning, though.”
His voice perked up. “So you have the morning off?”
“Not off, but I’ll work from home, get to sleep in a little. Why?”
“I know it’ll be late when I get in, but . . . can I come over? No lessons. I just want to see you.”
My heart melted. “I’ll just be asleep.”
“I know. But,” voices got more distant in the background, “I’ve missed you. I just want to be next to you. Relax with you.”
“What about Greg?”
“I’ll pay the dog walker for the extra morning. It’ll be worth it. Please?” He sounded more insecure. “I mean, if you don’t want me to, it’s fine. I get it.”
“No, let’s do it. I’ll leave you a key under the mat and you can come in when you get there.”
There was a pause. “You have no idea how happy you’ve made me, angel. Can’t wait to see you.”
Warmth oozed from my scalp to the tips of my toes. “Even if I’m drooling and snoring?”
He chuckled. “Especially if you’re drooling and snoring. I gotta go get on the bus to the airport. I’ll see you tonight.”
* * *
The front door creaked and shut. “It’s me,” came a quiet call into the dark. “Don’t want to scare you.”
I flicked on the lamp and sat up, waiting to see whether I was about to be murdered or whether it was just Nick. It was the latter. Nick entered my bedroom, tossing his bag just inside the doorframe before reaching out for me. I welcomed him with open arms, and we leaned in, resting our heads on each other's shoulders.
“I really missed you,” he said, muffled by my skin.
“I missed you too, bub.”
He sighed, lingering longer than I expected, taking what he needed from my touch. I pulled back and held his cheeks. “You okay?”
He shrugged. “Okay enough. It was just a shit time.”
I gave him a quick kiss, knowing my breath was probably atrocious since I’d just been asleep. “Go get ready for bed and get in here, little dove.”
His lazy smile accompanied an exhausted laugh. “Yes, miss.”
I was starting to doze back off when he slipped into bed behind me, wrapping his arm around my waist and aligning his front with my back. He let out a deep sigh, kissing my spine and nestling his forehead between my shoulder blades. “It’s good to be home.”
He fell asleep quickly, but his statement left me wondering if my house, my bed, my body being home to him fell in the category of friends or benefits.
* * *
“My last payment was only a day late,” I said, trying to keep my voice down. I tucked the phone into my ear as I put smoothie ingredients in the blender. “There shouldn’t be a late fee.”
“Ma’am, if you’re a day late every month, we have to assess a fee.”
“You’re already charging me ten-and-a-half percent in interest. What more do you people want?”
“You to pay on time,” the woman deadpanned.
“I’m not paying the late fee, and you’re taking it off my bill. My payments are within the threshold of on time. Is there any other reason you called me today?” I hissed.
A beat of silence passed. “No, ma’am.”
“Great. Have a wonderful day,” I bit out. I hung up and rubbed my temples. The bill collectors were calling earlier and earlier every day, getting more and more aggressive. It didn’t help that most of them were based on the east coast, so they’d already had their coffee and then some by the time business hours opened for California.
I was down to $48,000 of my mom’s medical debt, plus my student loans, which wouldn’t be budging anytime soon. If I didn’t go home for Christmas, that was another $1,000 I could apply to the balance.
It would be simpler if there was only one lender, but there were three. That meant dealing with three companies and three due dates every month, all ready to pounce if you were even an hour late with payment. Once I managed to get out from under the burden, I made a vow to dedicate my spare time and money to reforming the flawed system that landed me in this mess. How was it that when someone got sick, instead of focusing on getting better, you had to fret about the impending medical bills? Then, if the worst outcome happened, you still had to pay for the attempts to save their life.
“What year is it?” Nick grumbled from the doorway, rubbing sleep out of his eyes. Just wearing underwear, he looked like a damn model leaning against the doorframe. He really didn’t know just how hot he was, all that lean muscle and his messed-up morning hair and the way I knew just what that morning skin smelled like from across the room. Pure Nick.
But I couldn’t fully enjoy the spectacle in front of me, because he might have just overheard all about my money issues.
I jumped when he spoke, my hand going to my heart. “You scared me.”
“Sorry. You okay? Who was that on the phone? You sounded pissed.” Nick crossed the room and tugged me into a loose hug.
“Just a work thing,” I lied, trying to be covert about how I was sniffing him while we hugged. “You sleep okay?”
“Like a rock next to you,” he said. “You been up a while?”
“Yeah, about to start working. I’m making a smoothie, you want one?”
He gave a drowsy smile. “Sure. I was planning to get up early and take you out to breakfast. I clearly failed at that.”
I snorted, doubling the ingredients in the blender. “It’s fine. You got in so late, you deserved to snooze.”
He booped my nose. “And you deserve a breakfast date.”
I booped him back. “Breakfast is probably the worst time for us to be seen out together, bub.”
His face fell. “Right. Yeah. I keep forgetting.”
He was quiet after I ran the blender, sliding into a chair at my kitchen table. “I guess I should go after this.”
I puffed out my bottom lip, looking at him over my laptop screen. “I’ll be working, but you can stay as long as you want. I’m not rushing you out. It’s nice to see you, even if I can’t pay attention to you.”
He forced a smile, but I’d brought up the facts and not the fantasy. The fantasy was us being able to be each other’s comfort, being a friend and then some. The facts were that we couldn’t be a public item, forever bound to sneak off together, to show up late at night and leave before we’re too involved.
I was on a call when Nick finished his smoothie, scrolling his phone to pass the time. By the time I got off a half hour later, he had his bag packed and in hand.
“You leaving?”
“I should get back to Greg,” he said, rubbing his lips together. “Thanks for letting me come over, though.”
“Of course. I want to be here for you when I can, just like you’ve been here for me.”
“An even trade,” he said, flicking his eyebrows up. He chewed his bottom lip, looking at the floor.
I stood, crossing to hold his hand that wasn’t on his suitcase handle. “I’m not keeping count, Nick. It’s part of the friends thing. I care about you. I hope you understand that.”
“Yeah, of course,” he said. “You’re really good at what you do, you know. Dev was good too, but I love hearing how you talk to people. It’s, um, nice to see you work, I guess?”
I couldn’t fight my smile, genuinely touched. “Thanks. I like seeing you work too. You’re also good at it.”
“Well, obviously,” he laughed, pretending to toss hair over his shoulder. “That mean you’ll come see me on Saturday?”
“Saturday night, I’ve got a college game to go to. But Sunday I can come.”
He pulled me into him. “I’ll accept Sunday. You’ll wear my jersey?”
I planted him with a look. “We’ll see.”