Page 36 of Fever Dream
“I reckon sports players would think anyone who fixed them was a miracle worker,” Harrison protests. “I assure you I’m nothing special.”
“Nothing special,” Xavier scoffs. I kind of wish I’d scoffed first. “I can’t wait until your year is up and you’re back home with us at the Hot Spurs. We’re definitely going to miss you. Me especially.”
“Maybe he’ll love it here so much he won’t want to go back,” I return, forcing a smile on my face. It hadn’t even occurred to me that Harrison is only a short-term stint at the Fever. A bolt of panic slices through me at the thought.
“We’ll fight you for him,” Xavier retorts.
“Game on,” I return.
Harrison watches our discourse like a spectator before he lets out a nervous chuckle. “Do professional athletes get white line fever over everything? Seems you can turn anything into a competition.”
“That’s us,” Sonny chuckles, kneeing me in the thigh under the table. “We’ll compete over just about anything.”
Xavier eyes me over the table as he takes a sip of his drink, tightening his arm around Harrison’s shoulders unnecessarily. But Sonny’s prompt has quietened me down and I sit silently as other players arrive at our booth and Harrison starts fanboying over them too. I mean, possibly slightly less enthusiastically than he was fanboying over Xavier but still, it’s fun to watch him get so excited about athletes when he works in a profession that means he’s surrounded by them.
Harrison knows a few of the other players and some of the support staff so he’s quickly subsumed in the crowd, Xavier Howard always at his side. I’m gritting my teeth when Sonny starts mentioning it’s time for them to leave. We have an early morning Captain’s run tomorrow and we’ve already stayed out later than we should have.
I hug Sonny and Izak goodbye and then hover near the bar where Harrison is talking, eyes lit up. He’s at home here, amongst his people and the sport he truly loves. I feel like an outsider looking in and something fractures just ever so slightly inside.
I pick my way through the crowd towards him. He stops midsentence as I arrive at his side, dimple out in force as he smiles at me.
“Hey, I’m going to get going,” I tell him.
“Oh,” Harrison says, looking back at the guy he’s talking with.
“You can stay,” I add in a rush. “But I have training early in the morning and stuff so …”
I can see Harrison’s torn, face unsure as he looks between me and the other guy. I make his mind up for him.
“I’ll see you later at the club tomorrow? After training?”
“Yeah, okay. As long as you don’t mind,” he replies, face still hesitant.
“Course, you stay and have fun.”
“Yeah, alright then. Seeya tomorrow, Case.”
And with that I turn and leave the room, ignoring Xavier Howard’s slightly smug grin as I leave Harrison behind.
This night feels like it didn’t turn out quite how I expected it to, and I can’t quite work out why.
CHAPTER 15
harrison
It takes me a while to realise that Casey’s not his usual, talkative self when I have him laid out on the treatment bed on Friday afternoon. And I think that’s because my head is not the most reliable place to be after that very late night out on the town with Xavi and some of the England team. At least they get to sleep it off in the luxury of their first-class flight back home to England. Unlike us peasants where it’s straight back to work.
Casey hasn’t said a whole lot but it’s his lack of overly sexual moans and whimpers that make me realise something’s missing.
“You okay?” I ask, poking his thigh.
He glances up at me, surprise on his face. “Yeah, course. Why wouldn’t it be?”
“You’re unusually quiet this afternoon,” I prod.
“Oh,” he says, eyes shuttering slightly. “Probably just tired after last night.”
“Did you enjoy it?” I ask tentatively, not sure why.
