He doesn’t respond, so I double text because fuck it, I want to talk to him.
How much did it hurt to buy something that wasn’t black or white?
Almost killed me.
Is this your love language? Gift-giving?
Nothing about this situation has to do with love, Blue. You needed a bed. Don’t think too much into it.
Mm-hmm. Watch out, Ryan. You keep doing nice things for me like cooking me breakfast and buying me bedding and I’m going to think you want me to stay or something.
Gotta get to practice.
Nice avoidance, big guy.
Clean your room, it’s a safety hazard.
My cheeks hurt from the splitting grin on my face.
Ryan Shay doesn’t totally hate having me here.
6
RYAN
“Plane leaves at ten. Be there by nine thirty at the latest.” Phil, our team coordinator, keeps his pointed gaze at Dom.
“Why are you looking at me?” he innocently asks from his spot on the gym floor, sweaty from an early-morning practice.
“If you’re late again, I’m fining your ass.”
“Phil. Philip. My guy. You love me and you know it.”
“You’re the biggest pain in my ass and the reason I’m balding. My wife is pissed at you for pulling me out of bed last night.”
“Suzanne loves me too. And hey, at least I didn’t drink and drive. I was responsible and called you for a ride.”
Phil turns my way. “Get him to the airport on time, will you, Shay?”
“On it.”
Phil shakes his head as he walks away.
“Love that guy,” Dom sighs.
“Where’d y’all go last night?”
“Sway,” Ethan answers for him.
“You went too?”
“No way. Annie would’ve served me divorce papers if I went out partying the night before a road trip, but Dom was persistent in trying.”
“Oh.”
“Did you want to go?” Dom questions. “You almost never go out with us, so I didn’t think to ask. Sorry, man.”
I shake my head. “Nah, it’s cool. I wanted to be home.”
Ethan and I are the two homebodies on the team. Ethan because he has a wife and three children and me because leaving my house and risking negative headlines is almost never worth it. The last time was almost a disaster. I punched an old teammate for treating Stevie poorly, and thankfully, my sister’s boyfriend took the blame to keep the heat off me. But I didn’t realize I had declined my teammates so much already I was no longer getting invited.
Dom could’ve called me for a ride at least. Sure, he didn’t realize that I was wide awake most of the night wondering why my new roommate wasn’t home yet, but I was.
I have ten more minutes to ice my shoulder before I can hit the showers and head to the airport, so I stand around shooting the shit with a handful of my teammates. Dom recounts the hookup he had in the back of the club last night, and Ethan fills us in on how his oldest daughter’s dance recital went.
The two spectrums of our team. Sleezy hookups in a club and dance recitals with children. I don’t know where I fall between these guys. It’s hard to relate to anyone when the only thing I care about is getting this team to the playoffs.
“Ethan,” our GM projects from across the gym. “Caroline is looking forward to dinner on Monday.”
Ron Morgan wears the happiest motherfucking grin as he looks at the previous team captain at my side.
“Annie is stoked too,” Ethan replies. “Can we bring anything this time?”
“We’ve got it! Caroline is making that rhubarb pie you love so much.”
“Oh man!” Ethan’s head falls back. “I can’t wait.” He smiles, holding his hand up in a quick wave.
“What the hell was that?” I ask.
“What was what?”
“That. Caroline is looking forward to dinner on Monday.”
“It’s exactly what it sounds like. His wife is looking forward to having dinner on Monday.”
“How did you get so chummy with him? He hates me.” Looking back, I find Ron speaking to the head coach. His creased forehead and disappointed features are back, quickly replacing the relaxed smile he wore while he spoke with Ethan.
“Exactly that. Caroline. The man goes completely soft when it comes to his wife, and she loves Annie. We’ve been doing date nights together for years now. You get in with Caroline, you’ve got Ron too.”
I nod my head. “Caroline is great. That should be easy.”
He laughs condescendingly. “Not a chance, man. She doesn’t give a shit about basketball. The topic never comes up at the dinner table and you don’t know how to talk about anything else. She’s big on family, they both are, and the only reason Ron invited us out the first time is because Caroline wanted to get to know Annie. She was and still is the only consistent woman around the team, so I should really be thanking my wife that Ron likes me as much as he does.”
“Holy mama,” Dom says loudly enough to pull my attention, his eyes glued behind me. The rest of the team follows suit, turning back towards the practice gym’s entrance.
“Hot damn.”
“Good God,” they echo.
Turning around, I’m not so pleasantly surprised to find Indy strutting into the building like she owns the place, wearing a soft purple sundress on this unseasonably warm October day. Her high-top white Converse are embroidered with colorful shapes, and her hair and makeup are re-done, looking like a completely different woman than I left at the apartment a few hours ago.
“Shay, you are the luckiest man alive. Please tell me you’re hitting that.”
My head whips around to my teammate. “Watch your fucking mouth.”
“Well, if you don’t try, I will.”
“Dom,” Ethan warns, trying to hold back his laughter. “Ryan is about to combust, so I’d tone it back there, buddy.”
Shifting my attention back to Indy, her eyes wander the practice facility. Even though she’s clearly out of her element, nothing about her stance seems nervous. And her being comfortable in a place where she has no business being is something else I’ve quickly learned about her. I don’t think the girl knows how to be embarrassed.
Multiple pairs of eyes stick to the blonde beauty as Ethan watches me with amusement.
“Stop looking at her,” I warn. “Go hit the showers or get to the airport or just about anything other than look at her. She’s not available.”
“So, you are hitting that.” Dom nods in approval.
“No, I’m not hitting that. And neither are any of you. Stop looking at her or she’ll be the last thing you ever fucking see.”
“Ooooh. Protective Shay is here, and his sister is nowhere to be found. Someone write this date down. History is being made, people. Ryan Shay gives a fuck about someone other than Stevie and something other than basketball.”
“Dom, you’re about to get your ass kicked. If not by Ryan then by me.” Ethan shakes his head at our big man.
I ignore the retort Dom comes up with as I quickly make my way to Indy while she wanders into our practice space.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I ask, taking her arm to pull her into the corner of the gym.
“Well, hello to you too.”