“Baise-moi.I doubt it,” he grumbled.
Patting his shoulder, she finished up. “Make sure you ice it, and stretch out a little this afternoon.” She waved at me and walked out.
Titus groaned. “Honest to God, I don’t know which is worse. A deep tissue massage from Phyllis or an ice bath.”
I smirked. He wasn’t the first player to complain. “Well, at least her massages don’t leave you with cold, tiny balls.”
He grunted out a laugh and slowly sat up. “I heard Coach Bailey is giving you shit about Connor.”
“Bailey’s giving me the silent treatment now, but when that article with the photos came out, he told me in front of my supervisor he plans to complain to the University.” My stomach clenched just thinking about it.
“What a fucking prick. What did Connor say?”
“Nothing.” I turned and started typing on my laptop.
“Did you tell him about Bailey’s threat?”
“Mmm. Hey, do you still need help with your custody case?”
“Yes. And you’re a shitty liar.”
I shrugged, giving up any pretense. “He wasn’t talking to me when it happened. And then I wasn’t talking to him. It hasn’t come up yet.”
“You need to tell him.”
“Yeah, I’ll be sure and get right on that.”
Titus winced. “You two give me heartburn. I have shit to do this afternoon, Let’s meet for lunch tomorrow.”
We met at Booze Hound for lunch on Wednesday. It was close to the pediatric clinic, offered some good lunch specials, and had that great retro Palm Springs vibe.
I sighed when I slid into the booth across from him. “I like kids. I swear I do. But if I have to listen to another parent tell me how wonderful and exceptional their child is, I’m going to lose my mind.”
Titus smirked. “You don’t think Elodie’s an exceptional child?”
“I don’tthinkshe’s exceptional. I know she is.”
Titus laughed. “Yeah, I think Max is too.”
“Okay, point taken. Now tell me how I can help.”
He set his elbows on the table. “Max’s mother finally agreed to joint custody.”
“Oh my God. Titus, that’s wonderful. When is he coming?”
Titus rubbed the back of his neck. “I have to go to Vancouver first, and take my girlfriend with me so the judge and Max’s mother can meet her. That’s how I’ll convince Max’s mom and the judge that I have an appropriate family setting.”
The server came and took our order. When she left, I stared at Titus. “I’m not sure I heard you right.”
“You heard me right.”
I blinked slowly. “You don’t have a girlfriend. And you lied to your family law judge.”
“Yep.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to find a ‘girlfriend’ in the next two weeks. And you’re going to help me.”