Chapter 10
10
Home for the holidays, and Nando found himself more restless than he’d been before. He loved being home for Christmas. He loved his mother’s cooking and the way she liked taking care of him. Having been in San Diego for the last two years and only being able to spend a few days at home, it was a nice change to sit here and spend time with his family and not have to worry about anything.
Terry kept an eye on his place. He thought about asking Lila, but they’d only been going out for a little while. He didn’t want her to get the wrong idea. She was great and all, and he liked spending time with her… hell, she rocked his world, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to get her hopes up about a relationship between them. After all, it had only been a few months; that wasn’t long enough.
Was it?
A few months of playing video games almost every evening, late night pizza and movies, and before he left, sessions of mind-blowing sex. And she never asked him for anything but his time. He wasn’t used to it. The other shoe had to drop soon.
He ended up not calling or even texting her much while he was at home. This time was family time, his mother insisted, and he didn’t want to disappoint her. Lila texted him a few times and sent him the usual ‘Merry Christmas’ and ‘Happy New Year’ greetings, but other than the texts he sent her was when he landed at the airport saying he was safe, his replies were usually only one or two words. He did send one that his mom was taking up his time, but he said they could catch up when he was back in San Diego. Lila still sent him a few good morning texts, good night ones asking about his day, but when he didn’t respond with anything than ‘Thanks’ and ‘Fine,’ the messages slowed then stopped altogether.
Did he feel guilty about that? A little bit, but this was family time. He’d be back in town for fan-fest and would make it up to her then. If she didn’t understand, that was on her. At least that’s what he kept telling himself. After all, they’d only been seeing each other for a bit. He shouldn’t be expected to message her every day.
His family kept him busy enough between shuttling his sisters around during the day and playing wingman to his brother every evening. Being around his sisters’ friends was bad enough, with 17- and 18-year-old girls flirting with him almost every moment. But with his brother, he kept getting women throwing their numbers his direction, hanging all over him, wanting to take him home. And as entertaining as he found them, it didn’t feel right taking them up on the offers. They were all beautiful and very willing, but it was apparent they didn’t actually want him . They wanted to be seen with him. None of them talked about video games or movies, and only a few talked baseball, but not with any real interest in the game. He was a piece of meat, a trophy. And he didn’t like it.
Not after the last few months.
Amador wanted to go clubbing with him, and Nando always obliged. On the nights his parents or grandparents weren’t keeping him home with them, he was making sure his brother was getting back home in one piece.
When was he heading back to San Diego? He still had to either extend the lease on his apartment or find a new, more permanent place to live. Thanks to his talent, his luck, and his agent, he had plenty of money to splurge on a house, one his family could stay in when they visited. He’d probably have to hire someone to decorate it, since his idea of home décor was a workable kitchen and a comfortable bed.
Maybe Lila would help him decorate. After all, women liked shopping and shit; he could ask her to help him. But then she might think there was something more between them. And there wasn’t.
Was there?
Grabbing his phone, he started scrolling through his messages. Some were from Terry, some from the team management, some from his friends and teammates. The one he was looking for was farther down the page.
Lila the Vampire.
Nando: Hey Angel, Happy New Year
Lila:Thanks
Nando: How is your day going?
Lila:Fine
Confused by her short remarks, he checked his watch, wondering if she was still at work. It was after 5; maybe she was driving home. That had to be it. He’d wait until after six and call her.
Dinner was at six sharp every night, so the call waited until just before seven. His brother was antsy, wanting to hit the clubs early, before all the beautiful ladies were taken. Nando called from the car and got her voicemail:
“Hey angel, it’s me. I wanted to apologize… I know I’ve been kinda scarce, but uh… I just wanted to say hi and see if you wanted to get together when I got back into town…” he paused another moment, at a bit of a loss. “Anyway, give me a call or shoot me a text when you can. See you soon.”
He slid his phone into his pocket as he got out of the car. They were on the VIP list, of course, and headed into the club. Between the heavy bass of the music, and the lovely ladies that competed for his attention, his phone was the last thing on his mind.