8. Cole
Cole
“Cole?” Bridget’s raspy voice roused me from sleep, and I cracked one eyelid open to find her standing above me from the open doorway to the guest room. “What are you doing out here?”
“Hey.” I pushed upright, having curled up on the floor at some point during the night. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I was hit by a truck.” She pressed a palm to her lower back and winced.
With a grunt, I stood up. “When was the last time you took anything for the pain?”
“Last night, before I went to bed.”
That wouldn’t do, but she definitely needed something in her stomach so that the meds didn’t make her nauseous.
“I could go for a cup of coffee. How about you?”
“Of course, I’ll get a pot started right away.” Bridget started for the stairs. “I can make some eggs, too, if you’re hungry.”
“Wait.” Forcing my stiff body to move quickly took effort, but I managed to catch up with her. “I didn’t say that with the expectation that you’d cook for me.”
She spun around. “It’s really no trouble.”
“I get that, but you’re my guest.”
“Cole.” My name came out on a sigh as her eyes dropped to the floor. “You’ve done so much for me. The least I can do is make you breakfast.”
If she thought that my taking her in last night was a hardship, she was sorely mistaken.
“Can I suggest a compromise?”
Her gaze snapped up to meet mine. “What kind of compromise?”
“You take care of the coffee, and I’ll man the stove.”
“Are you sure? I really don’t mind—”
“Positive,” I cut her off.
If I had it my way, she’d never lift a damn finger for the rest of her life.
“Mmm. This is good.” I lowered the mug from my lips after taking a fortifying sip.
Bridget huffed out a laugh. “I can’t take too much credit. All I did was pop a pod into the machine.”
I turned back to the stove, where bacon sizzled in a cast-iron pan, biting back a smile. “Tell that to Crew. He manages to burn the coffee every time he comes over.”
“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.”
The Astor twins and Russell siblings had grown up together, our moms becoming fast friends after meeting in the hospital nursery on the day Crew, Bennett, and I were born.
So Bridget knew my brother almost as well as I did, even if she hadn’t seen him in nearly a decade.
As I’d told her last night, he hadn’t done much growing up in all that time.
Tossing veggies into the omelet I was making for us to share, I remarked, “It’s a good thing he has pre-packaged meals delivered every week, or he’d be beating down my door three times a day begging to be fed.”
Almost as if on cue, the doorbell sounded.
Shaking my head, I muttered, “Speak of the devil, and he shall appear.”
When I peeked over my shoulder at Bridget, she’d gone pale as a sheet, her eyes wide with fear. “H-he found me,” she choked out.
I abandoned the food cooking on the stove, moving to her side slowly so as not to frighten her further.
“It’s just Crew,” I reassured her.
Her breaths came out in shallow pants. “Y-you don’t know that.”
Keeping my voice calm, I replied, “I do. He always stops by if we don’t have practice the morning after a game so that we can watch film together.”
A relieved sob bubbled up from Bridget’s chest as her knees buckled and she collapsed to the floor before I could catch her.
Uttering a curse low under my breath, I dropped down beside her, visually checking for new injuries as a result of that fall.
Not finding any, I whispered, “I’m going to keep you safe. I promise.”
She blinked up at me, tears clinging to her lashes. “I wish it were as simple as you make it sound.”
It was that simple. Because he’d have to get through me first and I wouldn’t go down without a fight.
“I have to get the door. Can you keep an eye on the bacon?”
A stuttered exhale fell past her lips, and she nodded.
“That’s my girl,” I praised, pulling back enough that I could help her to her feet. “I’ll be right back.”
Trudging to the front door, I wrenched it open, the explanation of my unexpected house guest already falling from my lips.
“Listen, there’s something you should—”
“Morning, Uncle Cole!” chirped a voice that was definitely not my twin’s.
Instead of Crew, Maisie and Levi stood on my front porch.
“Uh.” I blinked at them in confusion. “What are you guys doing here?”
Levi’s head cocked to the side. “We talked about this last night.”
“Last night,” I repeated. Honestly, everything that had happened before Bridget showed up was a blur.
Maisie held up a large stack of eight-by-ten pictures of me in uniform. “Dad said since you have the day off, you’d sign these for the digital silent auction we’re running for Thorne Tough.”
That was enough to jog my memory, and I nodded. “Right.”
Everyone within the Surf organization was banding together to support Maisie’s adaptive sports camp for kids with physical disabilities. The thirteen-year-old was determined to offer the week-long event free of charge, which meant she was working overtime on fundraising.
“I was hoping that you wouldn’t mind me going live on social media while you put your autograph on these.
Maybe have you talk about your plans for the winner of the Day with the Surf.
” That was another silent auction item she’d cooked up where one lucky fan got to spend an entire day with the team, then attend a home game in a luxury box with twenty of their closest friends.
While it was a great idea that would drum up more interest in the largest prize offered in that particular fundraiser, there was Bridget to consider. With her ex on the hunt, we couldn’t afford for any clues of her whereabouts to find their way onto the internet.
“I don’t think—”
Before I could finish, a soft meow from behind me drew Maisie’s attention, and she squealed, “Hey, Cinder!”
The teen didn’t wait for an invitation, squeezing past me into the house to get to my cat, who’d darted in the direction of the kitchen.
Panic clawed at my chest as I chased after them. “Maisie, wait!”
There was a shrill scream from Bridget, and I hastened my steps, coming to an abrupt halt when I reached the room containing both girls.
The woman I loved was backed against the fridge, a knife in her white-knuckled grip.
Levi stepped up beside me, and when his eyes tracked the sharp weapon Bridget held, he pushed Maisie behind him. “What’s going on, Cole?”
Instead of answering him, I slowly made my way toward Bridget. “It’s okay. These are my friends. They’re not here to hurt you.”
Her green eyes darted over my shoulder, and as if she had suddenly realized her overreaction, her fingers loosened on the knife’s handle. The sound of metal meeting tile was jarringly loud in the tense silence.
“I-I’m sorry,” she stammered. “I-I thought—”
“I know.” I rubbed her arms, hating how cold her skin felt to the touch.
“Who are you?” The question was issued with youthful curiosity from Maisie.
Spinning around, I explained, “This is Bridget. An old friend of mine who needed a place to stay for a little while.”
“Hi.” The woman at my side offered a shy wave, her cheeks having turned a dark shade of pink.
Maisie’s fingertips ghosted over her throat. “How did you get those bruises?”
Bridget’s lips folded inward. “The truth? A combination of bad luck and even worse decisions.”
Levi shifted uncomfortably, placing a hand on his daughter’s shoulder. “Maybe now’s not a good time, honey. We can come back another day.”
“Your dad’s right,” I agreed. “Can I take a raincheck?”
The girl nodded. “Yeah, okay.” To Bridget, she said, “It was nice meeting you. I hope you feel better soon.”
“I’ll see you out,” I declared, leading them from the kitchen.
When we reached the door, Levi handed his keys to Maisie. “I’ll meet you in the car.”
Once she was out of earshot, he turned to me. “You need me to help you bury a body?”
I raked a hand through my hair. “Can’t keep her safe if I’m behind bars.”
Levi hummed, jogging down the concrete steps toward the driveway. He paused with a hand on the driver’s side door handle, looking to where I stood on the open threshold. His lips parted as if he was going to say something, before they slammed shut again and he shook his head, getting into his car.
Clearly my teammate had more questions about my current situation, but I was grateful he had the good sense not to ask. Honestly, it was so complicated that I didn’t know how to untangle it so that Bridget and I could move forward from here.
But even if it took the rest of my life, I was going to figure it out.
She was worth it.
Hell, she was worth everything.