6. Rosemary
Rosemary
Iwake up in a cocoon of softness, with the scent of coffee drawing me out of the deepest, most restful sleep I’ve had in a long time. My whole body aches in the most delicious way, and I stretch out in the enormous bed, trying to find my bearings.
There’s so much light in here. A pathetic excuse for a curtain. No decorations to speak of. Everything’s sparse. Utilitarian. Gray and white.
And then the memory hits. The purrs, the pets, the athletic workout he put me through even as he played with me. Plowed into me. No condom or barrier between us, just pure, unadulterated heat fuelled by a frenzied mutual need.
And, boy, hadn’t he met it? He fed my need and met my hunger, matched it to his own. He’d caressed my body and petted my back, purred in my ear what a good little kitten I was for him all while driving deep and sending me soaring into another dimension?
Heat rises in me as I roll over and find the bed empty, the apartment quiet. But on the nightstand, there’s a glass of water, a handwritten note, and a spare key.
Hey, kitten. You looked too peaceful to disturb. Make yourself at home, or if you want me to catch you later, I’ll pick you up after practice and the dealership, as planned. But whatever you do, make sure to help yourself to breakfast and coffee before you go. See you soon.
P.S. Don’t bother packing any underwear or pajamas. But don’t forget your cat ears.
Oh, sweet God.
I guzzle water down and fight to make sense of my rioting emotions. He not only didn’t find what we did shameful or upsetting… he’s willing to do it again. Willing to indulge me again.
The thrill of that has me kicking my feet in the sheets, giddy and glowing.
I race around his space, picking up my mess and downing the jar of overnight oats he’d slapped a sticky note on for me.
After I help myself to a cup of coffee and clean up the pot, I’m out the door and home in a matter of minutes.
But as I trudge up the steps, my sister Sage sits on the porch of her house next door.
“Well, well, well. Aren’t you the cat that ate the canary?”
I remind myself that my tastes in the bedroom are not something Sage and I openly discuss, so I give her an embarrassed wave as I walk up the steps in my rumpled sleepwear and slippered feet.
“Well, it wasn’t exactly a canary…”
She laughs as the front door opens and my future brother-in-law Griffin strolls out, two cups of coffee in hand. He hands one to her, and she thanks him with a quick kiss.
“Good morning, Rosemary.” The older man looks me over, takes a sip of coffee and watches the silence stretch out between us. After a moment, he raises his mug in my direction. “Bit early for you to be out and about, isn’t it?”
“I’m off today, Griff. Heading out of town for the weekend.”
“Do tell,” Sage says, grinning over at me. “Something to do with that man I’ve seen you bring home the last few nights? I can’t say that I’ve seen him in town.”
“He’s new to the area,” I quip. “A bit like me. Well… maybe a lot like me.”
Her eyebrows shoot up, and I stare back. Communicating silently the way sisters can sometimes do, which Griffin takes as his cue to find something else to do.
“Well, it seems you and Sage have some things you’d like to say. Guess I’ll, uh, head down to the workshop. Make sure I didn’t forget any orders that need delivering. See you later, Rosemary.”
“Bye, Griff.”
The second he’s out of earshot, Sage spits it out. “Tell me you haven’t been paying a professional gigolo to get your groove back, sis.”
“Oh my god, that little rat. Dev told you?” I clap a hand over my mouth. “I’ll kill him.”
“Dev told me he passed on a number, but that you haven’t returned any of his calls since.
He got worried. Called up his old friend only to find the number’s disconnected.
After he asked around, he got word that whoever he was has now gone and quit that kind of paid work because he’s gone and got hitched.
” Sage leans forward in her chair and lowers her voice.
“You’re a grown woman, Rosemary. I’m not going to judge you for your choices, but if you’re paying this man, I hope you did your research.
And if this… this professional is helping you reconnect with yourself, then I’m happy for you. ”
“He’s not a professional.”
She freezes.
“I mean, he’s not even… a paid companion.”
Her mouth flattens. “Please tell me you didn’t pick up some stranger off one of those hookup apps. Even if he is pretty.”
“I’m not stupid. He’s a hockey player, and he’s helping me out. A lot.” I raise my chin. “He’s coming to the tournament this weekend to pose as my boyfriend and root for me, so Psy—I mean, Parker, doesn’t think I’m still hung up on him.”
“You have a tournament this weekend? Why didn’t you say? Griffin and I will come root for you.”
I smile at her. “I’d love that. Then you can meet Nick.”
Her head tilts to one side as she lifts her cup. “Oh, meeting the family, are we? Guess you must like him more than you’re letting on. Considering the walk of shame, and all.”
“That’s bait,” I say, pointing at her. “And, sorry, sis, but I’m not taking it today.”
Then, I dance into the house to get ready.
Whatever this weekend brings, it’ll close one chapter… but as my eyes fall to an array of cat ear headbands, all lined up and ready for selection, I wonder if maybe I might start another one.
We’re flying high as we enter the Soltero Beach Convention Center, hand in hand, greeted by oversized statues of orcs and warriors, space militia soldiers wielding fake laser guns, and a small army of people donning wigs in every color of the rainbow.
Given that my face is splashed on a huge flag as an appearing guest and we’re assigned VIP access tags, I trade my signature cat ears for a set of shades and save my costuming for the big close-out bash slated for when the event and tournament end.
“Damn. Look at you, banners and all. You’re such a badass.” Nick whistles as we walk beneath them, squeezing my hand in encouragement. “Soak it up, kitten. You don’t know when you’ll have this again. Hell, I’m trying to earn this again. On a whole other side of the world.”
“You had banners of your face up in Toronto?” I ask.
“I did, once upon a time. Hockey is like religion there, so I’d be noticed everywhere even if I wasn’t one of the superstars.
I earned my keep. Played hard. Knew my role and stayed in my lane, for the most part.
But when the coaching staff changed, the team changes around me, too.
And I couldn’t make that jump, so when my performance wasn’t up to par… ”
“You got cut.” I spin to face him.
“Yeah, they didn’t renew my contract and the only team that wanted me was here. So now I’m a Scorpion.” He casts his eyes around the enormous hall and leads us both to the check-in.
I think back to the information I’d read about him when I’d looked him up. The teams he played for, his listed hometown, his own favorite team growing up. There’s a common thread among them all that has me pulling up short.
When we met, he’d said he was going to play for the Scorpions this season. Singular. Not plural.
“Do you plan to go back? East, I mean, where your family is.”
He looks at me, a small, sad smile on his lips. “One day. But not anytime soon. Come on, Shnookems, you’ve got preliminaries to prepare for. Let’s go check out the competition.”
He leads me through the con, straight to the Illysia Classic eSports Arena. All the while my brain whirrs with the thought that after this weekend, Nick has no reason to stay in my life.
He can play out his year and leave Soltero Beach—and me—behind.
The idea strikes me like a stun, and I mentally reel at the thought.
Somehow, even though we’ve only shared a week in each other’s spaces and one single night in each other's arms, everything has come naturally. It’s been easy to snuggle up to him every evening.
It’s felt natural to accept his affection and his offers to make me food.
Our fake dates felt like real ones, and I never even realized that my heart had been open to him all along.
That I’ve wanted him all along.
But after I win, all he’s asked me for is some merch, an autograph, and a voice note for his sister. She’s been a fan forever, he’d said, and I’d promised to do it because it was an easy ask.
It cost me nothing.
Except for my own beating heart.
“Nick—” I turn to him, desperate to express that whatever it is I feel for him right this minute—it’s not fake. It’s all been entirely real, but there’s no time because the second we set foot in the eSports Arena, I’m pulled into an interview.
The broadcasters welcome me to the Illysia Classic, ask what I think of the stage, and what it feels like to be back, setting my sights on a third championship title.
I try to answer honestly, but I bumble through the questions until the man with the mic asks whether this tournament is my last. I remember my plan to retire from competitive gaming, but not to announce it until I’ve proven myself.
Not to any of them, but to my self.
Flashing a sweet, secretive smile, I merely say, “We’ll see, Sean. I’m not sure I’m ready to give up my crown just yet.”
He asks a few more questions and I’m re-engaged and charming. I make the panel laugh and I tease the crowd saying I’m looking forward to a possible clash of champions, even if it means taking on my former partner, Psykl0ne.
“The good thing about having to play against someone you played with for so long that you know their strengths. You know their weaknesses,” I look right into the red light of the recording camera and lean into the mic. “And you know exactly how to beat them.”
I wrap up and slide away from the broadcasting booth and the bright, shining lights that were trained on me. And right into Parker’s disgruntled form.
“Blowing more smoke up everyone’s ass, huh, Morrigan? Think you’re still hot shit even though you’ve got no team, no sponsors, and not much of a following left. How’s it feel to lose everyone who’s ever believed in you?”
“Well, not that’s not exactly true,” Nick says, cutting in beside me and slinging his arm around my shoulders. “I believe in her. Think a few more of these folks do, too.”
He gestures to the side, where a group has gathered.
I don’t recognize a lot of the six-foot-plus men standing shoulder to shoulder with a few women dotted between them, but I do recognize Sage and Griffin standing front and center with a teenaged girl dressed up in Team Morrigan merch.
She’s sat in a wheelchair, but she lifts up a pair of thunder sticks so I can see the black Sharpie scrawled over each of them, bearing my gaming name.
Tears spring into my eyes as Devlin, dressed in his finest Miss Dottie Tees attire, calls out, “All hail the queen!”
And the whole group claps their sticks in a triple beat before laying a fist over their hearts.
Parker rears back in disgust. “Fucking freaks, all of you.”
“Didn’t anybody ever tell you? Freaks have more fun.” Nick grins, cold and cruel, as he leans in. “And if I ever hear you talking shit about my girlfriend again, you should know I’ve never shied away from a fight. And neither have any of my teammates.”
He steps back, spits something into his hand and nods at his team. Then, one by one, they smile at Parker, showing off a series of gaps in their teeth.
Parker goes ashen, but puffs up his chest and steps forward. “Are you threatening me right now, bro? Who the fuck even are you?”
I push between them, and lay a hand on Nick’s chest to ease him back while holding my palm out to Parker in an effort to hold him back. But we’re close enough now, nearly nose to nose, so I say the one thing I know will work it’s way into his head and keep him stewing all night.
“He’s my new Daddy. And he knows how to treat my kitty right. Better than you ever did.” Then I lean into Nick, and flick my gaze dismissively over the man who had nearly ruined my life. “Skill issue, I guess.”
His face goes red and his cheeks puff out, but he doesn’t have a comeback for me as he grabs hold of his new blonde babe and storms out.
Then, I’m swarmed by the crowd and the tears I’d nearly shed have to get stuffed way down deep.