Chapter 26
brYCE
M r. Osterman calls me into his office, and I already know what’s going to happen, but I’m surprised to see Ronnie Michaels on his couch.
“Please come in, Bryce.” Mr. Osterman waves me in.
I shut the door behind me. I’m embarrassed enough to be here, let alone have someone else overhear this conversation.
“Sit.” He gestures to the couch with Ronnie on it.
“Mr. Michaels.” I put my hand out to Ronnie and he shakes it.
Sitting next to Ronnie, I notice he’s slipped off his shoes and has one sock that looks like a pencil and another sock that looks like a piece of paper. He wiggles his toes as though he knows I’m looking.
Mr. Osterman walks over and sits in the chair closer to Ronnie. Probably so they remain a united front. “I’m glad you were able to come in and talk to us.”
What choice do I have?
“Of course.” I cross my ankles and link my hands together on my lap, conveying my best schoolgirl pose.
“You’ve heard about Shelly going to the gossip magazine and doing an exposé on The Den? ”
“I have.”
It’s everywhere. All over the news, the internet, and people are believing it, saying Miles Cavanaugh fooled us all as the good guy in the league. It’s disgusting how fast they turned on him.
“And as to your involvement in it… my first question is whether you entered into a relationship with Miles Cavanaugh since being employed with Sportsverse ?”
After I swallow, I nod. “I did.”
“And did you feel forced into this relationship?” Ronnie asks. “Did Miles come on to you and did you feel too uncomfortable to say no?”
My face screws up. “What?”
Ronnie’s face has no expression.
“No. Not at all,” I say.
“When did this relationship start?” Mr. Osterman asks.
“Um… one night at the hotel…” I’m giving way too many specifics. “A little more than a month ago.”
“And prior to being employed at Sportsverse , were you in a relationship?”
“No.” They don’t need to know about two years ago.
“And did your involvement with one of the Grizzly players change the way you would have written an article for us?” Mr. Osterman crosses his legs. He’s not writing anything down, but I feel as though maybe there’s a tape recorder in the room somewhere. Or maybe I’m just paranoid after Shelly.
“No. As you’re both aware, Miles is having a great season as safety with the Grizzlies. I understand that I’ve been hard on him before, but this year, he’s given me no reason to write anything but positive things.”
“Let’s see how he fares now that he’s strong safety. Hopefully he can keep up,” Ronnie says to Mr. Osterman.
“Excuse me?” My head tilts.
“He didn’t tell you? Pavin is out for a few weeks, so Cavanaugh’s stepping in as strong safety and we’re putting Tre Brummer on free safety.”
“But…” They both glare at me, and I shut my mouth. It’s a stupid decision. Taking Miles out of free safety after he’s saved his team so many opposing points is straight-up stupidity. “When did he find out?”
“Yesterday morning. Right before all this broke.” Ronnie whirls his finger in the air.
My heart sinks into my stomach. He’d just been given that horrible news, then I came to the stadium and accused him of cheating on me.
“Bryce, let’s stay on point here. You knew the rules. You’re not to become involved with any of the players on the teams you report on.”
“And I told you I had a similar rule for my players,” Ronnie adds. “Miles knew that as well.”
“It’s over. We’re not even together anymore. Penalize me, but not him.” I grab my bag, not wanting to sit here any longer.
“I’m glad you think that because from today forward, you’re suspended from your reporting duties on the Chicago Grizzlies,” Ronnie says. “Grant Thorn is taking over. Please leave him any of your notes that you feel are valuable.”
Grant Thorn. Of course that jackass got it.
“Anything else?” I ask, keeping my chin up and scraping together what little pride I still have left.
“That’s all,” Ronnie says.
“I’ll be in touch as far as Sportsverse is concerned. I need to speak with human resources,” Mr. Osterman says, dismissing me and not standing to see me out.
Ronnie puts out his hand. “I’m sorry, Bryce, I really enjoyed having you report for us. I wish things could’ve worked out, but I’m sure you can see the conflict of interest?”
I nod, shaking his hand before putting my bag crossways over my shoulders. “Thank you. Good luck with the rest of the season.”
I walk toward the door, my mind swimming with a million thoughts. Opening the door, I head over to my cubicle and find Grant Thorn already there, opening the drawers of my desk.
“Excuse me, what are you doing?”
He backs up and hits the corner of my cubicle with his back. “I thought you were suspended.”
I step forward and he practically slides out of my way. “Just came to leave my notes here for you. What is your problem?”
“Nothing,” he says.
I pull my notes from my bag and toss them on the desk. I have nothing personal here because I rarely worked in the office. When I turn, he’s still there. “I left my notes there. Have at it.”
I start to leave, but he clears his throat. “Anything about the planetarium in here?”
I circle back around, and he holds up the papers with a cocky smirk. I stomp over, grab the papers, and rip them in half, then in half again.
“What are you doing?”
I toss them in the trash can. “You seem to think you’re the man. Figure it all out for yourself. I assume you’re the one who outed me?”
He laughs. “You guys were so deer in headlights, it was obvious. Shelly baited you yesterday, and she said you were so pale she thought you’d pass out when she showed you the picture. That confirmed it.”
My mouth drops open. “You set me up?”
He shakes his head. “I didn’t do anything. It was Shelly. You just played into her hands. If she came out, then she’s a woman scorned, but having you in a relationship with one of them changed the game. ”
I don’t know what he means by the woman scorned thing, though I intend to find out. But I have more pressing things on my mind at the moment. “So, the girl in Miles’s bed…”
He laughs. “Don’t ask me, but Shelly’s cutthroat. I’ll tell you that much.”
I step forward. “Are you sure you’re a reporter?”
“Why would you ask that?” He seems affronted. Good.
“Most reporters can keep secrets, and you seem to be telling everyone’s. First Miles and me, and now all of Shelly’s.”
“I just wanted you to know.” He shrugs. “You came in here thinking you were the best and we should be bowing at your feet. And look what happened. You made a rookie mistake and slept with the subject. I mean, you did pick a good one. Shelly did not, however, which is why she’s so bitter and broken.
But I wanted to see your face when I told you how it all came about. ”
I stare long and hard at him. “You’re an asshole.”
He puts his hand over his heart. “Tell me something I might actually give a shit about.”
I inhale a deep breath and compose myself before walking away and pressing the elevator button, but then I think about my suspension and how handcuffed I felt here, expected to write what they wanted me to.
As the elevator doors open, I turn in the opposite direction and walk down to Mr. Osterman’s office.
His secretary yells at me as I barge into his office without knocking.
They’re still seated where I left them, and they both look at me.
“Thank you for this opportunity, Mr. Osterman, but I quit.” I don’t wait for him to respond, walking right back out the door.
I take the elevator down to ground level, hop on a train to my apartment, and pack a bag. Before I run to Miles to try to make things right, I need to handle my own shit so I can be ready for our future.
I order an Uber, and he drives me to the airport. Amazingly, I find a flight leaving in an hour, make it through security, and I’m on the plane before I even have time to think about changing my mind. I land in Idaho and rent a car, then I drive to my mom’s house.
I have no idea what I’m going to say, but this has been a long time coming.
Miles hasn’t tried to call me since our fight yesterday, but he’s probably dealing with a lot of fallout too.
I just hope by the time I make peace with this, he’ll have forgiven me and will take me back. My biggest fear is that I’m too late.
I pull onto the street of the small three-bedroom house I grew up in, situated in the neighborhood that made me who I am.
It’s been too long since I’ve come back.
After I step out of the car, I pop the trunk, grab my bag, and wheel my suitcase up the driveway to the walkway.
The front door opens before I can ring the bell and my mom stands there.
“Bryce?” She says my name as though I’m a mirage.
She looks so healthy I beat myself up for not coming sooner. This is the mom I dreamed would return to my life after all her treatments and I’ve been avoiding her.
“Mom.” Tears stream down my face. I drop my suitcase and walk right into her arms. “I messed up.”