Chapter 4
Ember was more excited than she’d been in a very long time. Not about competing in the Olympics tomorrow…but because she was going to see Craig soon. She couldn’t call him Doc; that was a bit too weird for her.
Her day had been long. She should be meditating or visualizing her fencing techniques for the round-robin competition in seventeen hours or so. Instead, she couldn’t think about anything other than hanging out with Craig again.
Seeing if the spark she’d felt around him last night was still there.
Maybe she was attracted to him because she hadn’t been on a date in…
she couldn’t remember when. Maybe it was hearing how he’d been raised by a Black family that had intrigued her enough to want to know more.
Or maybe it was just because when she spoke, all of his attention was focused on her.
Not on who else might be watching them. Not her boobs.
He looked into her eyes, as if what she was saying was the most important thing he’d ever heard.
She instinctively knew he didn’t want anything from her. Didn’t want her to sell something for him. Didn’t want to be featured on her IG account. In fact, she suspected he’d be horrified if his picture was posted there. With Craig, she could be herself. Just Ember.
Maybe that was the wrong reason to be infatuated with someone, but Ember wanted more of it. Wanted to soak in every second of time with him. Wrap up how he made her feel, as if she was a normal woman, so she could bring it out and bask in the memory of his comforting presence in the future.
Her practice today had gone well. She felt good.
Really good. Leila had been happy to see her, and they’d laughed and chatted with a kind of nervous energy.
They would be competing against each other, but they were both representing the United States and wanted to do the best they could.
Nick and Aiden had been in good moods today as well.
They’d all joked together as they posed for pictures for the press.
The modern pentathlon wasn’t exactly the most anticipated sport in the Olympics, but Ember being on the team had upped their popularity tenfold.
Even dealing with her parents today hadn’t brought her down.
Samer had taken a ton of pictures for her account and had talked happily about what he was planning to post in the near future.
He’d picked some comments for her to read out loud, and though Ember had felt silly doing so, she didn’t make a fuss.
It felt as if the entire country had their eyes on her, and Ember was determined to do the absolute best she could.
This may not have been her dream, but the closer she got to actually competing, the more excited she became.
Maybe it was because for the first time in her life, she could see the finish line.
Ember knew her parents wouldn’t be happy with her decision to retire from the sport, but she’d decided she was done. Ready to move on with her life.
Talking with Craig had helped solidify her decision.
She was twenty-five. Not fourteen. She needed to move out of her parents’ house and make her own way in the world.
On one hand, she’d always be grateful to her mom and dad for pushing her, for putting enough money in her bank account so she could literally do anything…
or nothing. But on the other hand, she’d started resenting them more than she was thankful for their pushiness.
She needed to get out from under their control before their relationship was irreparable.
She was also ready to give up being Ember Maxwell, social media darling, and start using her platform for something worthwhile.
An idea had formed in her mind last night, after she’d gone back to her room.
She’d thought about what the hell she wanted to do with the rest of her life.
She didn’t have a college education, but it wasn’t too late to get her degree.
And she’d thought about Craig and what had happened to him.
How he’d lost his parents in a fire when he’d been so young.
He had to have been confused and scared, though he’d been lucky that Mama Luisa and her husband had taken him in.
It couldn’t have been easy for any of them; interracial relationships of any kind weren’t easy in this country.
It made her want to hug the child he’d been.
Made her think about the other children who might be going through similar tough times.
Sports had given her a sense of belonging when she’d been in grade school…
Maybe she could work with children. Kids who would never dream of participating in an expensive sport like fencing.
Or horse jumping. She could put together a mini-pentathlon kind of gym.
Where the kids got to fence, swim, ride horses, run, and shoot.
It would be more about fun and companionship than competition.
Her mind practically raced with the possibilities, and the more she thought about it, the more it appealed.
She had the money, and she could use her name to hopefully recruit employees and even participants. She envisioned it being free for those who were underprivileged, and having only a nominal fee for other children.
For the first time in her life, she was excited about her future—and Ember knew she had Craig to thank.
Hearing him talk about how much he hated the limelight made her realize that many men were probably the same way. And the ones who weren’t, she didn’t want to be with. If she ever wanted to have her own family, she needed to stand up to her parents, and do what she wanted to do for once.
The photo ops they’d arranged that afternoon had gone as expected. She’d smiled and posed as directed. Her parents seemed happy with the attention she’d gotten, and Ember knew the photos were probably already up on her social media accounts. For the first time in a long time, it didn’t bother her.
Big changes were going to happen after the Olympics, and Ember couldn’t wait.
Her excitement about the future seemed to reenergize her. Made her more excited to compete and hopefully kick some major butt. End her career on the highest note possible. She was actually looking forward to competing. To doing the best she could and maybe even taking home a medal.
And that same excitement extended to Craig. Being around him made her feel like a different person. Someone she actually liked.
A knock sounded, and Ember sprang up from the edge of the mattress and practically skipped over to the door to open it.
“Hi!” she said happily.
Craig blinked at her. Then he smiled—and Ember just about melted where she stood.
“Hey. You’re very chipper this afternoon.”
“I am. I had a good day, and I’m ready to get this competition started.”
Craig tilted his head and studied her for a moment. “Something’s different with you,” he stated.
Ember beamed. She was ridiculously pleased he’d noticed. “Yeah. Our talk last night made me think about a lot of stuff.”
“Hopefully that’s a good thing.”
“It is.”
“You hungry?”
“Starving,” she told him.
“Me too. Today was long.”
It was Ember’s turn to study the man in front of her. She’d been so caught up in her thoughts and excitement about the future, she hadn’t noticed at first…but now she could see he looked a little harried. There were lines in his forehead, as if he’d been frowning all day. “Is everything all right?”
“Yeah. I’m just stressed.”
“Anything I can do?”
“Yes. You can be extremely careful. Be aware of your surroundings at all times and don’t go anywhere by yourself. If you can get Nick and Aiden to accompany you and Leila, that would be great.”
Ember stared up at Craig. “What’s going on?”
He ran a hand through his hair, looking down the hall, then took a step toward her, forcing Ember to back up. He shut her door behind him, but didn’t move closer. Ember wasn’t afraid of Craig, though he was looking very intense at the moment.
“You know I’m here to help with security.”
Ember nodded.
“I’m Army Special Forces. Delta Force. My team and I had a tour of the venues today, then a long meeting about the security protocols in place, and honestly, we think they could be more strict. The Olympics are a perfect opportunity for any of the many terrorist groups around the world to strike.”
“You really think someone is planning something?” Ember asked.
“Terrorist groups are always planning something,” Craig said with a shrug.
“Like what?”
He sounded almost bored as he answered, “Car bombs. Pipe bombs. Coordinated attacks on athletes.”
Ember’s head was spinning. “Seriously?”
“Yeah.”
“Are we in danger?”
Her question seemed to pierce through Craig’s internal musings, because he took a step toward her and put a hand on her shoulder.
“I hope not. Just stay alert when you aren’t competing.
Keep your eyes on those around you. If anyone looks out of place or is acting suspicious, get the hell away from them as fast as you can. ”
“Okay,” Ember agreed immediately.
Craig squeezed her shoulder comfortingly, then dropped his hand. “I’m sorry I scared you. That wasn’t my intention.”
“It’s okay. Everyone in my life talks around me. They make plans without telling me. They schedule appointments, photo shoots, and basically run my life without asking for my input. You not hiding that something could happen…it actually means a lot. Thank you.”
“Just be aware of what’s going on around you, Em,” Craig said.
Ember blinked. Had anyone ever given her a nickname? A nice one? She couldn’t remember it if they had. Her parents had always called her Ember, saying they’d picked it specifically because they liked the way it sounded, and shortening it was uncouth. “I will.”
“Good. But for the record, my team and I have you covered when you’re with us. You shouldn’t have to worry about anything else on top of competing.”
“So your friends…they’re all special forces too?”
Craig nodded.
Ember smiled.
“What?” Craig asked.