Page 121 of Goal Line
I’m wondering who I might need to kill before remembering Charlie’s words that night at Wellington Manor:We both know Eva can stand up for herself—and maybe you need to let her do so more frequently.
Eva’s eyes flick to Morgan, who asks, “Do you want me to give you two some privacy?”
“I think you might need to be here for this story,” Eva tells her, bringing both hands to her face to wipe her remainingtears away, as if steeling herself for the upcoming conversation. “There might be...PR implications.”
That causes a chill to move up my spine, because anything that threatens the story we created—about our marriage and our baby—threatens our family. Because the truth is, it’s no longer just a story. It’s who we are and how we plan to live our lives forever.
I drag a chair from the opposite wall and invite Morgan to sit down while I settle on the end of the bed and take one of Eva’s feet in my hands. Earlier, she’d sent me a picture of her all dressed up for tonight, so I know she’d been wearing heels, which means her feet and back are definitely aching right now, in addition to everything else she’s been through.
I stroke my thumbs along the tight ligaments on the bottom of one foot before pressing into the ball and gently splaying her toes. She gives a sigh of relief before explaining how she came face to face with the biological father of our child.
Our child.
Eva winces, her face contorting as she hisses a sound of pain, and it’s only then that I realize I’m channeling my frustration into this foot massage. I set that foot down and take the other in my hand, reminding myself to be gentle.
Morgan and I share a glance, which Eva doesn’t miss. “Why aren’t either of you saying anything?” she asks us.
“It may not be as bad as you think,” Morgan says. “It sounds like he’s worried that you’re up to something and might try to use this baby to extort or blackmail him. If we can just reassure him that you want nothing from him?—”
“Except to stay the fuck out of our lives,” I growl the words between clenched teeth.
“—he’ll probably climb back into whatever hole he came from.”
“What if he doesn’t?” Eva’s voice is small, and it makes my chest ache. “What if he wants to be involved? Or what if he tries to blackmailusby threatening to expose this story?”
“Not. An. Option.” The words are out before I can even think, and it’s at that moment I realize I will doanythingto protect Eva and the family we’re building together.
“How do we prevent it?” she asks, and I glance over at Morgan to find her watching me closely.
“Since you’re going to be here for the foreseeable future, and since this is exactly the kind of stress you’re supposed to be avoiding, how about if I take care of this? Is that okay with you?” I ask.
Eva sighs and leans back against the bed, closing her eyes while her lips turn up at the corners. “Would you mind? Because I’d really like to never see or think about him again. AndI’mobviously not able to meet with him tomorrow morning.”
“I’ll go,” I tell her, right as the nurse wheels in a stand with a computer and a bin.
“I need to attach these to your IV,” she says, showing two packets of clear liquid to Eva. “That means, I need your two visitors to give us a bit of space around the bed.”
Morgan stands and pats Eva on her shoulder. “How about if I go back to your place and get some of your things? You guys can text me a list of what you want, and I’ll drop it by in the morning.”
“That would be great, thank you,” Eva says, before turning her attention back to the nurse. I don’t think she seesMorgan gesturing toward the hallway, so I follow her out there.
I shut the door behind us, and Morgan looks up at me.
“Undernocircumstances are you to do anything illegal, or lose your cool with this guy,” she says, her normally sweet voice sounding a lot like AJ when she’s taking a player to task. I didn’t know she had this level of bossiness in her. “The last thing we need is for you to blow the narrative because you make a big scene or get caught doing something you shouldn’t. And believe me, you donotwant your agent finding out about this.”
“Your dad is my agent,” I say dryly.
She folds her arms across her chest, a steely look in her eyes. “Exactly.”
“Trust me, Morgan. I’m a Hartmann. If there’s one thing we know how to do, it’s bury our shit discreetly.”
She lets out a laugh as she shakes her head. “That being said, I see how protective you are of her. I know how easily you getoverprotectivewhen you’re worried about her. Just remember...this guy doesn’t want to ruin Eva’s life; he wants to make sure she doesn’t ruinhis. Let that be your guide.”
Oh, I’m about to ruin his life, all right.The way he put his hands on her and threatened her? That asshole doesn’t know what he just started.
I give her a nod. “Thanks for being here with Eva for the past few days, and for getting to her so quickly tonight. Thanks for keeping our secrets and helping us out.”
“I’m here for you guys,” she says, reaching out to give my upper arm a pat. “But don’t make my life harder than it has to be, because if you fuck up, I’m going to have to fix it. Ifyou want to run anything by me before you meet with this guy tomorrow, you know how to reach me. Otherwise, I’ll come back tomorrow with your and Eva’s stuff, and keep her company while you’re gone.”
