Page 30 of Cheap Shot
My head swivels slightly to the right, catching sight of the locker room door a few steps away from me. I should get up and move, but I find myself rooted in place. The last thing I need is for Dad to come out of the locker room and find me huddled on the floor, coming down from a panic attack. Not only will he never let me forget it, but it will be another reason he’ll use to explain why I shouldn’t work here.
“Who did it? I know people who can take care of it for you. Just give me a name and location,” Kyle growls into the phone, and the sound of rustling clothes filters through the phone.
“Kyle, you’re from Redwood Falls, Oregon. The city has one traffic light. You do not have any connections to anything besides getting us free donuts when we order Chinese.”
“It’s a skill that I don’t take for granted, my friend.”
A loud, boisterous laugh bubbles up my throat, the sound echoing off the walls in the hallway.
“Ah, there she is. I was getting worried that I was really going to need to get on a plane back to Oregon.”
“Back?” All the humor drains from my voice as I process what he just said. Kyle was in Oregon. Practically in the same city as both of his best friends, and he didn’t say a word to either of us. “You were here and didn’t tell us?”
I’m sure there’s a reasonable explanation for why my best friend of the last three years was visiting the area and didn’t say anything to me, but right now, I can’t think of one. I know his family lives about an hour outside the city; maybe something happened.
“Is your mom okay? Your brothers?” I ask, the panic building in my chest a second time. I can feel myself spiraling again, but the sound of Kyle’s voice snaps me out of it a second time.
“Stop. Everything and everyone is fine. It was a quick trip. I didn’t tell anyone because I was only there for a few hours and came right back here.”
“But why?”
“Stop trying to change the subject, Michele Denise Mercer. Tell me what happened.” All humor has drained from Kyle’s voice, signalling that he’s done discussing this. Normally, I’d keep pushing, wanting to know what my friend is hiding, but I decide against it. Kyle will tell me what’s going on when he’s ready. I just need to try and be patient.
“Oh, damn. I got three-named. You are really serious.”
“Michele,” Kyle groans.
“Okay, fine.” I huff, inhaling deeply before telling Kyle the easiest part of my dilemma. “Remember the hottie that was flirting with me at work a few weeks ago that I was determined to believe didn’t really like me and ruined everything?”
“Of course. The daily updates about whether he came in to ask you out again have been giving me life recently.” Kyle is silent for a few moments before exclaiming loudly, “Wait, does he work for the team? Is he your new supervisor? Did you trip and fall into his arms as you were coming out of the elevator?”
I shake my head, giggling at Kyle and his antics. “You really need to stop reading all those romance novels, Playboy.”
“Not on your life, Mish. How the hell else am I going to snag the ladies in the off-season?”
“I don’t know. Smile?”
Kyle is drop-dead gorgeous. I might not see him as anything other than a brother, but I’m not blind. His dirty-blonde hair always has the just-got-out-of-bed look to it, with a pair of piercing hazel eyes that would make any woman swoon and a panty-dropping smile. I’m beyond thankful that he uses his powers for good and not evil.
“Touché, but you still didn’t answer the question.”
I could ease into the situation, but I decide to just rip off the Band-Aid and get to the heart of the matter. “I’m his new physiotherapist.”
There is a long pause before Kyle starts rapid-firing questions at me through the phone. “How is that possible? Isn’t this your last week at the hospital? That doesn’t seem like the best business practice to assign a new therapist for only a few days.”
I love Kyle, but man, can this boy be obtuse. I sigh loudly before attempting to explain things in simpler terms. “Not at the hospital. Here, with the Timberwolves. He's a recent trade for this season.” I pause for a few minutes, making sure he doesn’t have another million questions to ask me before dropping the most important piece of information. “And he is your older brother.”
“Umm…huh?” Kyle questions, causing me to giggle softly.
“I don’t know how I can make it clearer. My would-be crush is your older brother.”
“That’s not possible!” Kyle chuckles. “Someone is feeding you more than just a line.”
I physically recoil at his words, pulling the phone away from my ear before speaking again. “What the hell is that supposed to mean, Kyle?”
I know that I can be naïve at times, but is it really that out of the question for one of his older brothers to want to go on a date with me? Talk about a bruise to the ego. If my best friend thinks that Cole is out of my league, then maybe it’s better that I took the cautious approach and didn't take him up on his offer of a date.
“I didn’t mean it like that, Shell, and you know it,” he huffs. I can picture him running his hand through his hair as he tries to explain.
