CHAPTER 24 Millie Monroe
The Inside Scoop
When you’re fucking a pro baseball player who’s a brother to four NFL stars and your life’s work is being on social media…yeah, you totally look them up.
I saw Ford walk into the restaurant when I was waiting for my table because, in a twist that’s shocking to no one at all, I forgot to call ahead to reserve a table.
Ford had posted photos of his wedding to his Instagram, so I knew that was his wife.
And I remembered Archer telling me that his brother married his ex, so, well, the sleuth that I am, I put two and two together and ran in after him when I saw him approach the hostess stand and immediately get taken back to a table.
I had to run interference. I don’t care if he’s mad at me for going back to work when I got back to my room. I care about him, and he was in need. So I stepped up.
I hope he’ll accept it as an apology.
I also can’t help but hope that he’ll play along with me for the duration of his brother’s stay, and he’ll manage to fall for me in that time. Or, you know…not hate me like it seems he does.
The last six days without him have been…
well, boring. I’ve been confused about how he could just walk away so easily after the intimacy we shared.
I’m here alone, and he was entertainment.
He was someone to do these excursions with, even if we didn’t exactly get started on the right foot when he found out what I do for a living.
I’m back to walking, and even the bruising on my ankle is mostly healed now, with that gross, sickly yellowish tint all that’s remaining.
It still hurts if I do too much walking, but I was able to get up to his floor a few times when I got lucky enough to ride the elevator with someone who happened to have a key that could access the twenty-sixth floor.
He either wasn’t in his room, or he didn’t bother to answer the door when he saw it was me.
That didn’t stop me from intervening on his behalf when I saw him facing off with his brother and his ex.
Of all the resorts in the world they could’ve gone to, why’d they pick this one?
I guess it tracks. Archer probably picked this one because they’d discussed coming here together at some point.
He’s sitting close to me, and his knee is resting against mine.
It’s exactly what I wanted, only he’s playing pretend. I don’t really care about that. I’m just happy he’s talking to me again.
“What are you going to get?” he asks.
“I haven’t tried the salmon yet, so maybe that. You?”
“I was also thinking the salmon.” His eyes meet mine, and I think I spot a hint of gratitude in them.
He tears his gaze away first, and as much as I want to ask him what he’s been doing the last week, I don’t. Instead, I make plans for the future that he can’t reject since he wants to play along with my little game.
“I was thinking we should do that sunset cruise we talked about tomorrow. You want me to book it?” I ask.
He looks somewhere between surprised and dazed at my suggestion, but he goes along with it. “Yeah, let’s do that tomorrow.”
“And sunrise yoga again. I think Anya is the instructor, so it should be the partner one again.” I offer a sugary sweet smile, and I think I can see steam coming out of his ears, but he’s not going to give up the act now.
“Perfect.” He clears his throat, and when our server comes over, he orders a double whiskey.
I giggle as I order an Aperol Spritz, and it’s like we’re back to the first night we met.
Except for the whole, you know, his brother and ex sitting right next to us.
“Give us the insider scoop on this place,” Ford says, clearly trying to diminish some of the tension between our two tables.
“Oh, we’ve been too busy to check much of it out,” I say, and then my eyes widen and I cover my mouth.
Archer chuckles wryly. “We’ve spent most of our time in the suite.”
Tatum presses her lips together but doesn’t say anything.
“Are you in this tower?” I ask.
Tatum nods as Ford answers in the affirmative. “Yes. It’s our first night here, so we’re just wondering if you have any tips.”
“Check out the aquarium,” Archer says without looking at them.
“And the spa.” I nudge his foot with mine, but he doesn’t respond to me, either. It’s like he’s shutting down even more, if that were possible. I thought the spa comment would rile up some emotion from him, but if it does, he’s sure good at hiding it.
“We did the Queen’s Staircase, too, if you’re looking for an excursion. Nice views,” Archer says absently. “Not much about pirates, though.”
Ford focuses on me. “How’d you two meet?”
I glance up at Archer, not sure how deep we’re faking this.
“We ran into each other at a restaurant a while ago,” he says. “She didn’t make a reservation and couldn’t get a table, so she plopped down at mine, and the rest is history.” Oh, right. The truth. Sort of. He made it sound like we’ve been together longer than we have.
“What a story. So are you from Vegas, too?” he asks me.
I shake my head. “No, Chicago suburbs.” It slips out before I realize my mistake.
“But I’ve been to Vegas a few times. Got lucky when I met this one, even if the slots treat me like trash.
” I giggle at the end. All truths, too, and it’s up to them if they draw the wrong conclusion about what location I’m referring to.
See? This isn’t so hard.
“We’re from Chicago, too,” Ford says, nodding at Tatum. “Originally. We’re in Tampa now.”
I glance at Archer to see whether he’s affected by the we. It’s the elephant in the room, but he doesn’t even flinch.
I feel like we need to have a conversation.
Like he hasn’t really had anybody to talk to about this whole situation—breaking up with his long-term girlfriend only for her to marry his brother five minutes later.
It must feel like a huge betrayal from both of them, and even though it’s been months at this point, I can’t imagine he isn’t affected by it.
We manage to make it through the meal. The alcohol helps, and Ford and Tatum are done with their meal before we finish ours.
“See you around,” Archer says. Is that like this dude’s catchphrase or something? Tatum gives him a long look like she’s studying him before they leave—hand-in-hand.
I watch as Archer’s eyes dart to their hands.
“Was that hard?” I ask softly.
He drains what’s left in his glass. “Not here.”
I press my lips together and nod, assuming not here means maybe somewhere later.
“Why have you been avoiding me?” I ask, changing tracks completely.
“Also not here,” he mutters.
“Then what the fuck do you want to talk about?” I demand.
My sharp tone catches his attention. His head swivels toward me, and then he blows out a breath. He orders one more round, charges the meal to his room, and once our drinks are delivered, he gets up from his chair.
He holds a hand out to me. “Come on.”
I grab his hand and scramble out of my chair.
It’s not that I’m desperate for him, or whatever, and I hate that it probably makes me look weak to take the crumb he’s dropping for me, but the truth is…
I really like him, and seeing his ex has to be a blow.
I want to be here for him even though he’s been avoiding me.
He has his reasons, and if I go with him now, maybe he’ll reveal those reasons to me.
It just might take a little creative digging.
He takes me up to his room and settles onto the couch.
I pick the chair that’s adjacent to the couch so as not to disturb him—and so as not to get too close, because we both know that when we get too close, we’re combustible.
And right now, I need him to talk. To unload some of the hurt he’s carrying.
“Talk to me,” I say softly, and I repeat my question from earlier. “Was that hard?”
He presses his lips together. “It wasn’t easy. Why’d you tell them you’re my girlfriend?”
“Why didn’t you deny it?” I counter.
He blows out a breath. “Did I tell you I tried to stop their wedding?”
I shake my head.
“It was the last time I saw either of them. I was too late.” He shrugs.
“Tatum was off planning weddings, probably waiting that whole time for one of them to be ours. But I never proposed. We were together a long time, and I don’t really have a good reason why I never proposed other than the fact that we were comfortable.
I was scared of changing our dynamic. We were both busy building our own careers and doing our own thing until that became the only thing. ”
“Why did she marry your brother?”
He blows out a breath. “It’s complicated.”
“So uncomplicate it.”
He shrugs. “She always ran to him. She ended things with me a few times over the years, and she would always get her head back on straight at Ford’s. They were close friends. But this time, it was me ending it. I assumed it would be temporary like it always was.”
I nod as I wait for him to go on.
“She had this big idea to create a luxury destination wedding brand, and she wanted to invest in properties. She and my brother each went in half on a property in Tampa, and the woman they bought from put in some clause that they’d get the money for the property back if theirs was the first wedding to take place there. ”
My brows dip. “What?”
“They had a few weeks to pull together a wedding when they got this clause, and they went ahead with it. She said something to me about how she was finally with someone who believed in her and supported her vision, and it’s not that I didn’t.
I just didn’t want her getting tangled up with my family.
I know how that can ruin a person better than anybody.
And now she owns multiple properties with my brother, and she’s using my oldest brother to help her renovate them since he's the CEO of our family’s real estate development firm. ”
“Something she asked you to facilitate, but you said no?” I guess.
He nods. “Yeah. I’m here at this resort because my manager told me to lay low.
I have another few weeks of suspension once I get back home.
And it’s all because of my family. My father, specifically.
That’s the heart of why I didn’t want her getting involved with them.
I didn’t want her to get hurt by them. I didn’t want her business to fold because of some stupid paper my father got her to sign.
It’s not that I don’t trust my siblings.
I do, and I think Madden will do right by her.
But we’re all cut from his cloth, and I don’t want to be a part of it. ”
“Do you talk to anyone in your family?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “They try. They all walk around spouting shit about how close they are. But I’m the only one who tells it like it is.
We’re all adults now, and it’s harder to be close when we all lead very separate lives.
Madden’s in San Diego with his fiancée. Dex is married with a kid and he’s in Vegas with Everleigh, who is getting married.
I’m in Vegas, too, but I never see either of them because we’re on different schedules.
I play for nine months out of the year. Football plays for six or seven, tops, and they have one game a week to my six, sometimes seven.
Ford’s in Tampa now, and he had a thing for Tatum since high school.
And my younger siblings, Liam and Ivy, are both still in Chicago, though Liam plays for Pittsburgh.
Distance mixed with my career makes it hard to be close to them. ”
“But you were close to Tatum for all those years,” I point out.
I nod. “Yeah, until we grew apart.”
“Because of your career?” I guess.
He shrugs. “Maybe. Hers, too. She got busier, and we drifted and clung to our own things. She told me that for her, it was over a long time ago. Maybe she’s right. Maybe it was, and I was blinded by the ease we had with each other.”
“Other baseball players make it work, don’t they?”
“Sure.” He nods. “Cooper Noah, he’s our third baseman. He’s married with a kid. But his wife travels with the team. And then there’s Danny Brewer and his wife, Alexis Bodega.”
I gasp. “The singer?” I try to hold it together, but Alexis Bodega is my all-time favorite singer. And he knows her. He plays baseball with her husband.
He nods. “Yeah. They somehow make room for each other despite incredibly busy careers. And Rush Ross, he’s married now, too. So, yeah, there are examples to learn from, I guess.”
“Doesn’t that just kind of show you how maybe you were never meant to marry Tatum, then? Like if it was supposed to happen, it would have?” I ask.
“I don’t know. After all the years we spent together, it’s hard to imagine there’s a better fit for her than me.”
“That’s spoken like a man who isn’t over his ex,” I point out.
He lifts a shoulder. “And I may never fully get over losing her, Millie.” His voice is soft and a little broken. “Especially not when she moved on so easily. But that doesn’t mean I can’t try.”
“Are you ready to?” I ask softly.
When he glances up, his eyes are filled with a deep pain. “I want to be.”
“Then do it.” With me. I wish I had the nerve to add on that last part.
He sighs. “Why’d you come to my rescue?”
“Why’d you ignore me for the last week?” I counter.
He shoots me a wry look. “I didn’t ignore you. I was just…busy. The resort set up a batting cage, and I was neglecting my workouts, so I got back into it.”
“All day every day?” I ask.
“Most of the day, yeah. And then I holed myself up in here and got some work done.”
“What kind of work does a baseball player do during a suspension?” I wonder aloud.
“Foundation work. Things I never got to in the offseason.” He shrugs. “Things Tatum would help me with before.”
“You need some help?” I ask.
“You offering?” he counters.
“Happy to take a look.”
“Not tonight, but I appreciate the offer.” He glances down my leg. “How’s the ankle?”
“Much better. Do you want to take a walk around the resort or something?”
He nods. “Can I be honest about something?”
“I insist.”
He chuckles. “I’ve spent way too much time in this room trying to avoid you.”
I make a face. “Why?”
“Because I’m not sure I’ve ever met a woman who incites such a wide range of emotions in me, and to be honest, it’s scary as fuck.”
I laugh. “Back at you, Bradley.”
He laughs, and then he stands, holds out a hand, and we head downstairs to take a walk.