Page 37 of Brandishing Betrayals
Istretchedinbedasmy alarm blared obnoxiously on my phone from the nightstand. I reached out blindly, grabbing the cell and snoozing the alarm. I needed a few more minutes. It wasn’t like me to go out on a Monday night, let alone drink.
I remembered passing out on the couch while waiting for Luke, then nothing else. “Luke!” I called out in a panic, remembering.
Luke stumbled into my room. “What, mom?”
“What time did you get home?”
“Late. Dad tucked me in. He carried you to bed and was tucking you in when I woke up. I brushed my teeth and he tucked me back in.” Luke climbed under the covers next to me and curled up.
I smiled and pulled him into my arms, cuddling my baby. “He carried me to bed?”
“Yep.”
I didn’t know what to think of it. Marcos was acting different since Jason’s assault. I hadn’t seen Jason either in the weeks since that fateful dinner. It was all confusing and made my head hurt to think about.
I tried not to think about them. I tried not to think about a lot these days: Marcos and the guys, Dax and his threats, and the money I would need to come up with for my father’s continued treatment. It was all too much and I was beginning to feel like I was sinking.
I just needed to get through the rest of this week, then come Friday I would be headed north to Chicago for a weekend with my sister. I needed that very much right now.
“Start getting ready for camp, alright? Today’s the first day of football, so make sure your bag is ready to go: water bottle, snack, all of that.” I hugged him tighter to me, before I let him go and climbed out of bed.
“Yeah, mom.”
My head swam as I stood up, alluding the hangover I was clearly sporting.
It was going to be a long day.
I was exhausted by the time I pulled into the parking lot later that day. I’d gone home after work and changed my clothes. I helped my mother cook dinner and ate a small salad before I left to go pick up Luke from practice at six. I would wait to eat dinner with him.
The football field that the Panthers organization used was owned by Mourningside Park District. It was located about ten minutes from the house in one of those outdoor multi-sport complexes with multiple baseball, soccer, and football fields. There was also a skate park, playground, tennis courts, and badminton courts on site. It made finding the right field to be at confusing.
I had given Marcos a detailed site plan of the park that I’d found online, and labeled the football field by number, I even highlighted the closest parking to the fields—anything to make it easier for him to drop off Luke to practice on time.
By the time I parked in the lot closest to the field Luke was currently playing on, I had five minutes to spare. I got out of the car and walked over the field, searching for not only Luke, but also to see if Marcos was still there.
Dread curled in my stomached when I found Stone leaning against the side of the bleachers, one booted foot crossed over the other. His arms were crossed as he took in the kids practicing, the gray T-shirt he wore under his black leather cut stretched across his muscular biceps. A black baseball cap adorned his head, and mirrored aviators covered his eyes from the blazing summer sun.
He looked fucking hot as hell, and butterflies fluttered in my belly as I slowly walked toward the field.
Exhausted and nursing a hangover still, the last thing I wanted was to deal with Jason and his bullshit. I looked around, frowning when I didn’t find Marcos anywhere. Ignoring Jason,I walked right on past him without sparing him a glance, on my way to the front of the bleachers.
“Maya.” Stone’s low voice sent a shiver down my spine as it always did.
I didn’t stop, though. I scanned the bleachers of the all the waiting parents and found a large empty space halfway up. I took a seat looking out at the field, as the boys ran around.
Heavy footsteps sounded from behind me, as someone walked down the bleachers from the top. My bench sagged as someone took a seat next to me. I looked up, just as Dagger’s heavy, ring covered hand landed on my thigh.
I arched an eyebrow at him, ignoring his hand, and waited.
He leaned over and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Hi, Little Dreamer. It’s been a while.”
I rolled my eyes and turned back to the field, brushing him off. I didn’t know what kind of games him and Stone had planned, or what he had roped Nico into, but I wasn’t interested.
Thankfully the coach seemed to be wrapping things up on field. All the boys were huddled up around him, each down on a knee, listening.
“I get you not talking to him, but why me?” Nico asked.
I sighed and shrugged a shoulder. “I’m tired, Nic. What are you doing here?”
