Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
STALKER
NASH
It’s the end of the day and I’m beat. After an intense morning practice, we spent the afternoon in the weight room. I’ve never been so thankful for the team of PT and massage therapists who take care of our sore muscles.
This is the most intense training I’ve experienced so far in my career. My previous coach’s training program was a walk in the park compared to Coach Harrison’s grueling schedule.
It’s comparable to how I know a lot of NHL teams train, and a huge contributing factor to the superiority the Cove Knights have shown since Coach Harrison took over as head coach.
“Hey Nash,” Vaughn stops me on my way out of the locker room. “A few of us are going to Joe’s for dinner. They have free fried pickles with every burger and unlimited fries for six ninety-nine.”
“I appreciate the invitation, man,” I say, clapping his back. “But I’ll have to take a rain check. There’s some stuff I need to do and I can’t put it off.”
Vaughn wiggles his eyebrows to entice me. “Are you sure? Unlimited fries end before the weekend.”
“Positive. Besides, don’t let Coach hear you. He’s going to blow a gasket if he hears that you’re going to stuff your faces with your body weight in fries.”
“He’s just jealous because he isn’t twenty anymore and he has to watch his diet if he wants to stay in shape.” He chuckles.
That might be true, but our coach is still in a more than enviable shape; probably not far off from his NHL days.
“I’m just saying that if he hears about it, he’ll crank up the cardio for everyone. But enjoy it. I’ll join next time.”
I smile as I exit the main training building. Coming to Star Cove was the right decision. The climate in the locker room is awesome, and my teammates have made me feel welcome from day one.
Tucker was actually the first Cove Knight I met when I arrived on campus.
The day we met in Coach Harrison’s office was just a few weeks ago.
It’s crazy how close I’ve gotten with him and Colsen.
I guess falling for the same woman worked as the glue between us.
But despite not sharing Taryn with him, Mack has become one of my best friends, too.
I walk to our building and take the elevator up to the top floor.
Jodie’s voice reaches me when I knock on the door of Taryn’s apartment. “Are you already back? Oh, Nash.” She stiffens when she sees me. “I thought it might be Taryn. But if you’re looking for her, she’s out.”
“I know. She’s gone into town with Tucker to get a new phone. I was actually looking for you.”
Her brow knit together. “She told me her phone had an accident, but we’ve had a really busy day. I’ll have to ask her what happened when she gets back. Anyway, I doubt I can help you with anything.”
I’m not surprised. Jodie has made no mystery of her dislike for me. Now I know that it’s because she thinks I might be Taryn’s stalker. But there might be another reason why she’s not gonna join the Nash fan club any time soon. I hope I’m wrong about that.
“Fine.” She rolls her eyes but steps aside to let me into the apartment. “Come on in. I hope no one saw you come up here. I don’t want to get in trouble with Carole and Lexi because of you.”
“Don’t worry. There was no one around to see me. It’s the cheerleaders’ dinner shift. All your teammates will be at the dining hall, and most of my teammates are going to Joe’s for free fried pickles and unlimited fries.”
Jodie sighs. “Lucky them. I’m so close to making this team. If I do sign the contract, I’ll have to keep watching my weight. That’s why I’m avoiding the dining hall and cooking my own meals whenever possible.”
The smell of baked chicken invades the open space kitchen and living room; and I spot a cutting board with several veggies Jodie is cutting up for a salad.
“That looks good. But the dining hall has a choice of healthy meals. They cater to athletes after all.”
“I know. But there are too many temptations there. All those carbs I have to stay away from if I don’t want to be cut from the team. Here it’s chicken or fish and veggies without any extra fats, and I don’t have to look at other people eating pasta and potatoes.”
Jodie looks really stressed. I bite my tongue about how a balanced diet needs healthy carbs.
With our intense workouts, we use thousands of calories, and I don’t think a small serving of carbs can ruin her figure.
I watch what I eat during the season for the most part, but I don’t think I could live depriving myself of everything on a daily basis.
Somehow I have the feeling that Jodie couldn’t care less about my opinion. The hostility in the room is almost palpable, and my hunch is confirmed by the glare she shoots my way.
“So? What do you want, Nash? I don’t want to burn my dinner, so let’s make it quick.”
I’m here to talk to Jodie about protecting Taryn, but before I do that, there’s something I need to make sure of.
It’s just a hunch and I might be wrong, so I didn’t want to say anything to the guys or Taryn.
But there’s a niggling thought in my head since last night and I’m not gonna be able to move on until I prove to myself that I’m being paranoid.
For once in my life, I hope my spidey sense is wrong, and there’s only one way to find out. I need to see Jodie’s phone.
I’ve been looking around the room since Jodie let me in, but I can’t see the device anywhere. It must be in her room, but even if I could find a way to go in there without giving away my intentions, I’m pretty sure that her phone must be passcode protected. So I need to have Jodie unlock it for me.
Here goes the lamest excuse in history. “Huh, Taryn and Tucker were gonna buy something for me while they’re out. I just changed my mind about what I want and I need to let them know. My phone just died. Can I borrow your phone to call Tucker?”
“Then charge your phone.” Jodie’s eyes are narrowed as the intensity of her glare goes up several notches.
My hand goes to the back of my neck as Jodie crosses her arms over her chest. “I can’t find any of my chargers. My teammates keep borrowing them and never give them back.”
She rolls her eyes. “What kind of phone do you have? If it’s the type, I think it might be, I can lend you a charger.”
Fuck. “Yeah, but the battery is totally dead. It’ll take a while for me to even be able to turn it on. And it’s urgent. If they get the wrong thing, it’s gonna be a pain in the ass to go and exchange it. And it’s something I need right now.” I sound whiny even to my own ears.
“What could be so urgent?” She looks unimpressed.
“It’s a ball rash cream. I get really irritated when I manscape and I run out.
But I forgot to tell them that I need the type for sensitive skin, or it’ll make things worse.
I’m really suffering.” I couldn’t come up with anything better on the fly.
But I hope that if it’s something gross, she won’t question it and help me out to get rid of it.
The horrified look on her face tells me that I was right. “That’s disgusting.” She scrunches her nose. “Couldn’t you ask for one of your teammates’ phones? I don’t have Tucker’s number, by the way, so I doubt borrowing my phone will help you that much.”
“Tuck’s one of my best friends on the team, and he’s also my emergency contact here in California. I know his number by heart.”
She gets even more suspicious. “Really? That’s a fast friendship. You just got here.”
Can she be any more suspicious? “What can I say? Tucker took me under his wing since I’m the new guy here and we hit it off. Can I borrow that phone now?”
Jodie rolls her eyes again, clearly fed up. “Fine. Wait here. If the oven timer goes off, turn it off, please.”
She’s back a few moments later. “Here.” She unlocks the screen. “Make it snappy.”
The second I have Jodie’s phone in my hands, I go to her general settings.
My stomach drops when I see the icon of the same spy app that was in Taryn’s phone.
I then go to her message app, but there is nothing suspicious there.
I come out and slide my fingers over the main screen to see all the apps that are there.
I immediately spot an app that’s widely used by people to send free text messages to all its registered users. I have it too, so I don’t have to pay to text people with a different provider. I know for a fact that this app lets you send anonymous messages.
“So?” Jodie taps her foot on the floor, impatient. “Are you gonna make a phone call, or not?”
“Yeah, sorry. I typed it wrong twice. I have fat fingers.”
She extends her hand, palm up. “Give me that. I’ll dial it for you.”
“No, no. I’ve got it. Sorry.”
When I flick the app open, it’s all there in black and white. But that’s more a figure of speech, since the app is in color.
Rather than giving the device back to Jodie, I pocket it.
“Nash, what the fuck? If you aren’t gonna call Tucker, give me my phone back. And while you’re at it, fuck off. You’re acting weird and I need you to go. If you don’t leave right now, I’ll call the campground security.”
I take a step toward her. “Or,” I bite out, furious as I’ve never been before. “I’ll call the cops, and you’ll explain to them why you’ve been spying on your best friend and terrorizing her with these nasty texts.”
She rears back, stopping only when she hits the kitchen island. Her eyes are wide with shock. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I advance on her, brandishing her phone in front of me like a weapon.
Rather than being intimidated, Jodie twists around to grab the knife she was using to chop vegetables for her salad. “Stay away from me, Nash. I told Taryn to stay away from you from the start. I wish she had listened to me.”
“Why? You knew I was the only one who could figure out that you were her stalker?”