Only This

by Hadley Quinn

  She only nodded, staring straight down at her legs. He couldn’t read her mind, but she wasn’t resisting. That was a good sign.

  “Okay,” Tyse said, lifting the left leg up under her calf. He raised it five inches from the table and said, “Try holding it there.”

  She tried. He could tell. He slowly lowered her leg while she tried to keep it up, but she just couldn’t do it. When her leg was on the table again, she took in a deep breath of air and blew it out. Tyse could recognize the frustration instantly.

  “It’s not supposed to happen the first time,” he told her. “Or the second or third time. Or many times after that.”

  “Thanks for making me feel like a failure.”

  “It’s to show you your progress for when you’re fully back to shape,” he smiled. “It’ll take a few weeks, but you need to trust me. Over to the yoga balls,” he instructed her, and he headed that direction before she could argue. He was thinking that was the best method for her; move along without a choice.

  They each sat on a ball and Tyse faced her. “Sit straight, feet on the floor in front about a foot apart.”

  She mirrored his position.

  “Okay, your butt isn’t going to leave the ball,” he continued. “But I just want you to pretend like you’re going to stand.”

  He showed her what he meant and she copied, only he could tell how painful it was.

  “That’s good,” he nodded. “Just put some pressure and…barely lift up a little. Try to do eight more.”

  Anna complied without a word, and when they moved on to the next few exercises, she still never said a word. She didn’t look too happy—with the pain she had to be in, he didn’t expect her to be—but she did everything he asked of her.

  Tyse was pleased. He considered it a very successful therapy appointment.

  “Well done,” he told her sincerely. “That was a tough workout but you aced it.”

  She barely looked his way as she gathered her things to leave.

  “I’ll see you Friday, it looks like,” he added as he glanced at her chart. It seemed her appointments had already been scheduled for the month.

  Anna was headed for the door, walking gingerly on a sore knee. She paused and then looked at him. “Probably not,” she answered quietly.

  And then she left.

  Chapter Eight

  “Yeah, she’s really amazing,” Teague said of Anna Evans. “I mean she’s only like…twenty or something and just totally blows the competition away. That’s a cool chance you’ve got, man. You know, to be her therapist and get her back out there again. She’s got a lot of good years ahead of her still.”

  Tyse was silent as he sat on the back deck at Teague and Camryn’s after finishing a family dinner. Jay was out in the yard kicking a soccer ball around with Chase, Teague’s two-and-a-half-year-old nephew; Kellie, Camryn, and Melanie were inside with baby Cade.

  Teague looked at Tyse and asked, “Why do you not look so happy about it? Is there more?” Teague laughed and added, “Is she too hot for you to be professional around?”

  “Ha, no,” Tyse smiled. “I mean she’s pretty, but…”

  “But what? You know I would never say anything, man. I’m sorry I figured out who you were talking about.”

  Tyse had only given Teague a brief overview of a female surfer that had come in for rehab. He had no idea the guy would guess it was Anna Evans. Teague not only worked as a stuntman on movie sets, but he was also an avid surfer. He’d heard a while back that Anna had a minor injury and put two-and-two together.

  “I know you’ll keep it quiet,” Tyse answered honestly. “It’s just…” He sighed as he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. “I get the feeling that she doesn’t want to get back into the sport.” He looked at Teague and added, “She never said it, but I don’t think she wants to be a competitive athlete anymore.”

  Teague raised his eyebrows, took a deep breath, and released it. “You figured that after one session with her? Wow, that’s… Yeah, that might be a problem.”

  “I think her dad is dead set on her success. I think it’s him that’s pushing her into it. I mean I was only around him for a couple minutes and Anna for an hour, but I just have this weird feeling, like I can see the big picture. Apparently she’s a pain in the ass when it comes to rehab, but I only had a little problem at the beginning. After that, she did everything I asked.”

  “Eye candy is always motivation. If I didn’t know you were such a good therapist, I would say Dr. Michaels set it up that way.”

  “Yeah, well maybe it was both,” Tyse had to admit. “But I’m not sure what’s up her sleeve right now. She did the workout… Maybe she wants to get better but I’m not so sure she wants to do it to compete.”

  “That’s kind of a major assumption.”

  “I know, but like I said, I just have this feeling. I’ve seen it before. Athletes get injured, and sometimes the experience is so devastating, they mentally cannot see themselves going back because they fear it happening again.”

  Teague slowly bobbed his head. “Yeah, I see what you mean. I’ve been in the same boat. When I first dislocated my shoulder years ago… Holy shit, I never wanted to go through that again. But I eventually kept playing hard, did it a couple more times, and then that day on the beach before I moved north… I did it again. When it pops out it hurts like a mother bitch, but I just pop it back in and deal with it.”

  “You really should get it fixed.”

  “Yeah, I know. Life is just too busy, you know?”

  “Take a couple months off when the baby is born. Have the surgery and then you can have time home with your family while you recover.”

  Teague seemed to consider it but said, “I don’t want anything to slow me down from holding my son.”

  “You’ll still have one arm, man,” Tyse chuckled. “And a chest, and a lap, and—”

  “Okay, okay, I hear ya.”

  “Well you’re gonna be finishing up a movie in a month? Get it fixed before the baby is born. Then you’ll have some time before he comes for it to heal a bit. I’ll even come here and do the therapy with you.”

  Teague slowly nodded. “Yeah, I’ll think about it.”

  “You’ve got a very physical job, Teague. How long are you going to be doing the tough stuff?”

  With a shrug he answered, “Don’t know. Until I don’t enjoy it anymore or it doesn’t work for my family. I’ve been talking to J.D. Bowman about becoming a stunt coordinator one of these days. You know, when I get too damn old to do that kind of crazy shit.”

  With a laugh and a nod Tyse replied, “Yeah, you’d definitely have the hands-on experience to be good at it. There are always options.”

  “For sure.”

  “Or you could just stick to the stunt surfing.”

  “Yeah, that too. I kinda miss those jobs. Those were the easy days. Since then it’s gotten way tougher, way more physical—”

  “Way more dangerous,” a female voice said from behind them.

  Camryn joined them on the deck and she sat on Teague’s lap. He wrapped his arms around her and placed his hands on her pregnant stomach. The two of them were a beautiful couple, and Tyse couldn’t help but love being around them.

  “I laugh in the face of danger,” Teague said to her. “Ha ha ha.”

  She gently nudged him with her elbow. “I know you do, daredevil.”

  He kissed the back of her shoulder. “But I love you more. Just say the word and I’ll turn into a househusband for you.”

  Camryn smiled wide. “Really? Wait, does that mean instead of me being home, or you’d be home with me.”

  “Well somebody has to work. Pop that baby out for me. I’ll give you a few weeks for maternity leave and then you go to work.”

  “Ha,” she smiled big. “I’d need a little longer than that if I get back to choreographing dance.”

  “What for? Don’t you just tell them what to do? For those who can dance, dance. For those who can�
�t…”

  He left the sentence hanging, and Camryn added, “Teach gym?”

  Tyse and Teague laughed at the movie reference.

  “They choreograph dance,” Teague answered. He winced, waiting for some type of repercussion, but all Camryn did was roll her eyes.

  “You really think I just stand there and bark out dance moves?” she asked. Teague paused, pretending to consider it. Camryn reached back and playfully smacked his shoulder. “Give me six months, buddy, and I’ll meet you in the boxing ring.”

  Teague raised his eyebrows. “Naked?”

  “Oh my gosh,” she chuckled, but she looked at Tyse and asked, “Can you please change the subject and tell me about this Sarah girl?”

  Tyse was a bit caught off guard but slowly shrugged. “There’s nothing really to tell. She’s a florist. She works down the street from the music studio. But she wasn’t exactly that receptive to my interest in her.”

  “Was it seriously because of your last name?” she asked with disappointment. Then she added, “I’m sorry if I’m not supposed to know this, but I overheard Teague and Jay talking about it.”

  “Nah, it’s okay,” Tyse assured her. “I’ve been warned about the McCallan curse. It’s so weird that I never had a problem with it in Arizona, though. Once in a while someone would ask if I was related to the Hollywood McCallans, but since I ‘wasn’t’, nothing came of it. Now coming here to the Los Angeles area…”

  “Once the media catches wind of a story, it’s everywhere,” Teague said. “But on the brighter side…”

  “Ha, took some of the spotlight off you guys, huh,” Tyse chuckled.

  “Yes,” Teague smiled. “But also my brother, which is hilarious. Max just might do something drastic if the spotlight doesn’t get back on him sometime soon.”

  “Things have been dying down a little,” Tyse shrugged. “I mean occasionally I get a tabloid reporter come up to me, but not like how it was before. Max just might have a chance to be number one again.”

  “The rest of us couldn’t give a damn,” Teague chuckled. “But Max thrives on the attention.”

  “Well, he’s a movie star. He’s used to being adored and your dad loves it too. Speaking of your dad… He actually came by the studio the other night.”

  Teague shifted in his seat. “Really,” he deadpanned. “For what? To sink his claws into another piece of McCallan notoriety? If you want me to talk to him—”

  “No, no, he didn’t bring anything up like that,” Tyse assured him. “I gave him a tour of the building and he seemed to like it, but mainly he talked to me about my dad.”

  Camryn stood from Teague’s lap and kissed him on the cheek. “I think Chase might’ve wet his pants,” she said quietly, nodding toward the little guy on the grass.

  Jay was knelt down talking to him, obviously aware of the same thing, but Camryn stepped in and convinced Chase to go inside with her to change his clothes. It allowed for Jay to pull up a chair to join Tyse and Teague, and obviously he’d heard the last part of their conversation.

  “What about my dad?” Jay asked. It was no secret that Clint McCallan had never been much of a father to Kellie and Jay, and he’d made it perfectly clear that he wasn’t interested in Tyse, either. “I hope to God he stays far away because—”

  “No, it was nothing like that,” Tyse shook his head. “Craig was basically only talking to me about the history of my family. Just about how my mom and Clint met and how their relationship was up and down—things she had already told me. And how the media kept posting so many crazy things until my mom couldn’t stand it anymore.”

  “Things that were true, or untrue?” Teague asked.

  “Both,” Tyse shrugged. “I mean there was always a story about our dads with one woman or another, or some kind of infidelity and all that shit, right?”

  “Yeah, pretty much,” Teague answered. “It sold magazines for sure. And there was truth to most of those stories, but the tabloids just kind of get carried away with overdramatizing them or going a little too far with the actual situation.”

  “Or bringing in issues that have absolutely no relevance whatsoever,” Jay scoffed.

  “That too,” Teague smiled. “Like us kids.”

  “Ha, exactly,” Jay agreed. “Back then I didn’t really care what was written about me. And when it came to our family, I really had no idea what was actually truth.”

  “Exactly,” Teague nodded. He looked at Tyse and said, “You know, I’m really kinda sad you didn’t get to grow up with us, but maybe it was for the better. I mean Jay and I can look back at all the shit the McCallans went through and piece it all together, but when we were younger and right in the middle of it—”

  “And all that the adults did was tell us lies or that the family was being unfairly attacked for this or that,” Jay cut in.

  “Yeah, exactly,” Teague agreed. “As kids we didn’t know what the hell our parents were doing or not doing. You go to school one day—fucking private school, for that matter—and have some preppy rich dick socialite ask if your dad really did take three prostitutes home.”

  Jay laughed out loud. “And then they add that your dad is in rehab again. I remember hearing that as a second-grader for the first time and thinking ‘what is rehab?’” Jay shook his head. “You ask your parents about it and all you get is the same answer: that people like to tell lies to get attention; that the media writes elaborate stories to make money.”

  “Yeah, we really knew nothing about our parents as kids,” Teague said. “And as for my dad visiting with you, Tyse… I hope he didn’t stir up any trouble.”

  Tyse shook his head. “No, he just talked to me about my mom and her relationship with Clint, and how everything back then was right smack in the middle of the McCallans growing in popularity and stuff. He was pretty blunt with me, really. Told me that my dad was already in a relationship with someone when he started one with my mom. And then of course he cheated on her during and after I was born.”

  “With my mom,” Jay added dryly. “What a fucking cycle, you know?”

  The three sat in silence for several seconds until Teague sighed and said, “Well, we found our way out of that for the most part. I mean we’re still dragged into it anyway, and I think as long as Grandpa and my dad and Max are still right in the middle of the media, we’re going to continue to be victims to it, too. It’ll still trickle down to us.”

  “We stick together, though,” Jay stated, mainly to Tyse. “No matter what, we’re honest with each other and have each other’s backs. You live by those standards with us, you can survive this family for sure.”

  Tyse leaned forward onto his knees. “I have no problem with that. I didn’t come this way looking for any drama, or any of the McCallan money or fame. I needed to get out of Arizona and I wanted to…connect with someone, I guess. I’ve always had friends and an okay relationship with my mom, but when you find out you have siblings… I just wanted to see if I’d been missing anything.”

  Jay slowly smiled. “Well you missed quite a lot, bro. But I wouldn’t say it was anything good. Like Teague said, it was probably better that you didn’t grow up in this family. You didn’t get the shit storm of lies and media attention like we did.”

  “Nope, so you get it now as a grown ass man,” Teague laughed.

  “Keep that fucking battle armor close by,” Jay added.

  Tyse smiled but shook his head. “I really can’t believe how many varying stories can be written about one subject. It blows my mind.”

  “What, you mean about you being the long lost McCallan?” Jay chuckled. “Another bastard McCallan hidden away? How the McCallans fucked over another unsuspecting victim? Were you kidnapped and sold as a baby?”

  “Doesn’t it ever get old?” Tyse scoffed with a laugh. “I had to change my damn phone number because so many of my old friends and acquaintances kept calling me up, asking me if this was true or that. Some of the so-called facts that they’d read just blew me away.�
�

  “Yeah, it never ends,” Teague stated. “The less you read, the better. You just can’t let it get to you.”

  “It doesn’t,” Tyse replied. “I mean at least…it hasn’t yet. But I guess I’m still shocked by what people are willing to believe. And the media has been questioning my friends and family back in Arizona. I guess everyone in Hollywood now knows how this bastard McCallan grew up. You know, the important facts like I got a D in English in ninth grade and got in a fender bender the week after I got my driver’s license.”

  Teague and Jay laughed. “Yeah occasionally real stuff will be revealed,” Jay said. “It usually will get so distorted from the truth, though. Especially be prepared for the tough, personal stuff to be announced to the world,” he added with somewhat of a warning.

  Tyse studied his brother carefully. “You’re talking about Nicole.”

  “Yep. If it hasn’t come out already somewhere, I’m sure it will at some point. Just expect it, okay? That’s all I’m saying.”

  “I’m not worried about it,” Tyse shrugged. “That part of my life doesn’t affect me. And I’ve pretty much been told to expect anything and everything. Trust me, I’m not fazed by much.”

  It was easy enough to say, and Tyse believed it to be true, but even Teague and Jay looked like they wanted to say more on the subject. Tyse had heard plenty from both of them over the past few months, and he’d already gotten through dozens of media stories about him finally being “reunited” with the McCallan family, but he’d been warned several times that just because a story isn’t true, it can still wreak havoc on your life.

  Maybe it was still the calm before the shit storm.

  Chapter Nine

  Tyse left the clinic around four Friday afternoon and headed straight for the recording studio, grabbing a very late lunch on his way there. He was stuffing his face as he came through the back entry and Melanie greeted him in the hallway.

  “Hey,” she smiled. “So the guys are already here—I put them in the Blue Room since there are just three of them—and they’ve got some beverages and snacks—”