Page 103 of Falling Offsides

“Yeah, but she’s alsoher. This fucking beautiful woman that snorts when she laughs too hard and?—”

“Fuck, okay.” The grumble in his tone says it’s not okay, but he’s humoring me. “How are you going to win her over?”

I close my eyes, feeling the weight of his question. The way it sits in my gut.

“I don’t know, Étty. She called me a selfish liar. How do I come back from that?”

There’s a pause. Then he tells me, “Prove her wrong, Auguste. Show her that’s not who you are.”

“What if it is?”

“You didn’t tell her where you lived, it’s not the end of the world. It’s not like you’ve done some unforgivable, terrible thing.”

I stop mid pace, in front of the windows overlooking the ocean with the twinkling city scattered along it. “What if I have?”

The weight in my chest bears lower, pulling everything in it into my gut.

“What else did you do?” The caution in his voice says he’s going to lose it. But I need to figure all of this out before I make my next move. There’s no one in this world I trust more than Étienne to have my back even when I fuck up.

“After I hit her with the puck, I was freaking out. A few of the guys were saying shit about how some dude was fine and then he was in ICU…”

“Okay…”

“Matheo said he left his doggie cams at his old place and I was only going to check on her once.”

“Tell me you have not been spying on her. Dis-moi que tu n'as pas été aussi stupide...reckless.”

“I can’t do that,” I admit.

“Fuck…fuck… does anyone else know? Cause this is a fucking crime. There are actual laws against that shit. You could go to fucking prison…Jesus!”

“No one knows, but now I don’t know what to do.”

“You fucking stop. The fact that you’ve done that makes me question your fucking character, man. What would you do if some asshole was spying on Sabine like that? Do you know how fucked up that is?”

“I needed to be close to her. To exist in her world.”

“It stops now. You don’t breathe a fucking word of it to anyone. Especially not the girl, because if she finds out, you’re fucking dead. You’re little Romeo ass will be fucking buried by Bobby Nilsson, and I’ll fucking help.” After a deep breath, he states, “Éloigne-toi d'elle, Auguste.”

“I can’t walk away from her, Étienne.”

“Is she worth risking everything you have worked your whole life for?”

It’s a simple question and the answer is as staggeringly easy as it was when I gave it to Jayden earlier. “Yes.”

The silence that stretches is out of the ordinary for him.

“What do I do to fix this? I need Courtney in my life, Étty. I need her in my world.” My heart is pounding somewhere between my chest and my gut. Hammering so hard I’m vibrating to it. “She told me to leave her alone and stay away, but I can’t.”

“Then own your shit. Take her anger. Suffer the consequences like a man. Show her you’re not just some asshole thatdidtake advantage of her.” The words are a sucker punch to my chest. Still, they’re true. “Get to know her on her terms. Put in the time and the work to get to the best parts of her. That’s love, Auggie.”

I don’t know how to answer.

But one thing’s clear—I’ve been doing this all wrong.

Now, it’s time to fix it.

TWENTY

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