“Fucking hell,” Fletch mutters.
Fletch is right, though; we should go. Sutton would love that.
“We should surprise her,” Linc adds before pulling his cell out. “When’s her next game?”
My heart swells to the point it hurts. They’re right. She would love it if they turned up to support her.
Sliding my own cell from my pocket, I pull up her game schedule and make a plan with the guys. It’s not fucking easy. With our own games and training, we don’t have a lot of time to play with.
“That’s perfect,” Fletch says as we finally agree on a Sunday game later in the season. “I’ll see if any of the others want to come. We can take her out to celebrate her win after.”
“I like your confidence,” Linc teases.
“Hell yeah, she’s a Rivers,” I agree.
“Are we inviting any of her friends to join us? Maybe those with single moms.”
Laughter erupts at our table, earning a few curious glances from the others around us.
Vipers staff litter the arena restaurant, but Casey isn’t here. I can’t decide if I’m disappointed or relieved that I don’t have to try to act normal while she sits only a few feet away.
We might work for the same franchise, but thankfully, our paths hardly ever cross. I’m more likely to see her when she comes down to visit her dad. If I’m up in the offices, it means I’m doing PR, and I try to avoid that as much as possible. The less I’m in the spotlight, the more chance Sutton has at a normal life. It’s wishful thinking, but I try my best.
Thankfully the conversation soon turns to our upcoming games. I want to say it’s enough to distract me, but it’s not.
My cell burns a hole in my pocket, just like it has done from the moment I left her.
I wanted to message her. I was fucking desperate to. But I stopped myself.
What the hell would I even say?
I can’t apologize again.
I already said more than I should have. I told her way too many truths that I can’t take back.
“Oh shit,” Handsy teases as Coach walks in with a stern expression on his face. “Someone is in for a kicking.”
My heart jumps into my throat as I watch James Watson march through the restaurant like a man on a mission.
I swear, I don’t breathe, convinced he’s about to come over here and announce to the entire restaurant that my time as a Viper is over.
But he doesn’t, and I have to fight not to let the relief show on my face. Instead, he turns toward a table of medical staff and begins talking animatedly with our team doctor.
“Ohhh, someone is getting benched,” Linc sings like an asshole.
Fletch immediately begins chastising him, but my attention is dragged away from them when a familiar body appears at the entrance, her eyes scanning the room for someone.
I wait frozen, my heart racing, to see if her eyes will find mine.
But they don’t. Instead, they lock on someone else, and she races excitedly through the room to get to him.
I sink in my chair, disappointment pulling at my muscles.
I want her to run to me like that.
Coach notices her a beat before Casey bounces up to the table. She says something, and his face instantly lights up. His arms open, and she falls into the embrace.
“Oh shit. Looks like someone got some good news,” Handsy says, watching the same scene play out.
