Chapter 2 #2
“Hooker. And this is our scrum-half, Silas Webster, AKA Webby.”
Sutton shakes Webby’s hand. “I’m Sutton Brady, the Knights’ new Athletic trainer and Dr. Kipp’s sort of assistant. I assume we’ll be very well acquainted given your position, Mr. Fowler.”
“Call me Kendall, please. I have no doubt we’ll be seeing a lot of each other.
In fact, I may get injured just to spend more time together.
” Kendall winks at her, and I expect her to blush or melt under his flirtations like most women tend to do, but all she does is chuckle. Melanie isn’t as amused.
“Mr. Fowler, do we need to have yet another conversation about appropriate workplace interactions? Or go over the rules about employee fraternization?”
“Nah, Mel. I promise I can be a good boy. Want me to prove it?”
“That’s Ms. Cross to you.” She sighs, and rolls her eyes. “Now, if you’ll excuse us, I’m going to show Miss. Brady to the conference room. We don’t want to be late.”
“I’ll see you in there?” Sutton asks me as she starts to follow Melanie away.
I nod rapidly, still reeling from the revelation that Sutton is here.
She glances back once before they turn down the hallway and disappear, and a sense of… rightness settles in my chest.
When I accepted this position, it came with a tiny pinprick of dread.
As excited as I was to be part of a new Major League Rugby team, I was still moving across the country, to an unfamiliar place, without knowing a single person except Kendall.
Even though we technically live together since he pays half the rent, he only utilizes his room to hook up when he doesn’t want to drive back to his actual apartment above his brother’s flower shop.
It’s been pretty lonely because even though we’re friendly during practice, I’m not super close with any of the guys on the team.
When I first moved, I turned to dating apps to try and make a connection.
I had a lot of matches and potential partners at first, but found a lot of women were disappointed that rugby players didn’t make the kind of money or have the same status as an NHL or NBA player.
They weren’t really interested in me, and I ultimately made the decision to put dating on the backburner so I could focus on my career.
The Knights’ first season has to be great if we want the team to continue to be in the league. My mind needs to be clear and focused on winning, not worrying about trying to form a love connection.
I know technically Sutton’s job is what brought her here, but I can’t help but think maybe her showing up is a sign that I didn’t make a mistake taking this position.
We were friends once, and we can be friends again, right?
We may not pick right back up from where things ended when she left, but she seemed excited to see me.
That has to be a good sign.
As Kendall, Webby, and I make our way to the conference room, my best friend slaps me on the shoulder. “Dude. What are the chances your brother’s ex works for the team? And she’s a total smokeshow? Do you think she lives in the team complex? Maybe I need to spend more time there.”
“You’re not sleeping with Sutton. You heard Melanie. There’s a rule about employee fraternization."
“Rules are meant to be broken, Z.”
“Not this one. Not with Sutton.” The thought of Kendall and Sutton near each other, in any way outside of their professional boundaries, makes my stomach turn.
“Is it because you think you get to call dibs since you knew her first?”
“What? No. I’m not calling dibs, you dipshit. I’m trying to keep you from making a career ending mistake.”
“Whatever you say,” He sing-songs as we take our seats on the opposite side of the long conference table from where Sutton is talking to Dr. Kipp.
I glare at Kendall, but don’t get to respond because Coach James claps to get our attention. The quiet chatter of the room quiets down as he stands, leveling us with his intense stare.
“Alright gentlemen, we’ll make this quick because we’ve got drills to run, but we wanted to introduce a few new members of our staff. Up first, we have our new team analyst, Grant Foster.”
A man with blonde swoopy hair and glasses stands, giving the team a beaming smile. He looks like he models in his spare time. “Hey guys, I’m excited to be here.”
“Grant’s a former player, and knows the game like the back of his hand. We’re lucky to have his expertise moving forward with our first season,” Coach continues. “Now, I’ll turn the time over to Dr. Kipp to introduce his new assistant.”
Dr. Kipp stands, chuckling to himself. “Thanks, Coach. I’d like to introduce our new Athletic Trainer, Sutton Brady. Sutton, why don’t you tell us a little about yourself?”
Sutton’s eyes widen, clearly taken back by Dr. Kipp’s request. She stands at his insistence, looking around the table.
When her eyes clash with mine, I can see the slight panic in them.
She always hated being put on the spot and having everyone’s attention on her, and clearly that hasn’t changed.
I give her an encouraging smile, which seems to help ease her nerves.
“Um, hi. As Dr. Kipp said, my name’s Sutton and I’m your new AT. I got my Masters in Athletic Training from Utah Tech, I love the color green, and I’m also very excited to be here.”
Kendall’s hand shoots up, pulling an exacerbated sigh from Coach. “This isn’t elementary school, Fowler. What do you want to ask?”
“Are you from Utah originally?”
I knock my knee against his and he gives me his best ‘what did I do?’ look.
“Um, no? I’m from Albany, New York.”
“Wow, what a coincidence. So is Ezra!”
Murmurs echo around the room and Sutton’s cheeks flush a pale petal pink.
“Oh, do you two know each other?” Dr. Kipp asks, his bushy gray eyebrows furrowing.
“Yes. We… went to the same high school.” Sutton says, her eyes meeting mine again.
“Ah, well, isn’t it a small world? Glad to know you have a friendly face here.
We better let these gentlemen get to practice.
I’ll be giving Ms. Brady a rundown of your medical histories today so she can be up to speed by the end of the week, and we’ll be splitting the team in half to run pre-game checkups.
Don’t try to pull a fast one on her just because she’s new. ”
We all mutter some type of agreement before Coach directs us to file out of the room.
For once, I don’t want to practice. I want to stay and talk to Sutton. I want to hear every detail about her life over the last decade, and ask her a million questions.
I’ve been feeling untethered and out of my depth since I moved here, but hearing Sutton’s praise earlier makes me think this is right where I need to be.