The Game (Carolina Connections Book 4)

by Sylvie Stewart

I couldn’t help the scoff that came from me. She smiled in understanding.

  “I suppose I was a novelty.” She shrugged. “And you know me. I catch a glimpse of someone’s free spirit trying to get out and I grab on and pull. It turned out his wasn’t going to budge, no matter what I did. And by the time I realized it, we were already married with our precious Emmy on the way.” She smiled.

  “So, he wasn’t always so rigid? So unforgiving?” I asked quietly.

  She looked at me with concern then. I’d said too much.

  I sighed. “Sorry. He and I got into a fight.”

  She looked shocked.

  “I know. The first one ever, and it was a doozy, let me tell you.” I tried to laugh it off but she wasn’t buying it. “I disappointed him.”

  “How is that even possible?” She set her wine glass on the coffee table and looked at me with bewilderment.

  “Believe me, it’s definitely possible.”

  “Emmy.” she shook her head, her brow creased. “Please don’t let yourself internalize his criticism. He has his own set of rules and standards and it’s not your job to meet them. You only need to worry about your own standards, which I know are already sky high.”

  “But I didn’t.”

  “You didn’t what?” She looked puzzled again.

  “I didn’t meet my own standards. I made a mistake.” I picked at a loose thread on the pillow in my lap.

  “Well, heaven forbid you be human.” She put a hand to her chest in an overly dramatic fashion. I rolled my eyes, as she’d intended me to. “Everyone makes mistakes. Even your father. You need to forgive yourself and move on. Just don’t let other people decide what constitutes a failure on your behalf. One person’s idea of a shortcoming can be another’s greatest gift.”

  In that moment, I wished more than anything that I were more like my mom. But maybe I was, and I needed to accept the real me who was more complex than I’d realized—just like she’d always told me.

  Chapter Thirty

  Team Gavin

  GAVIN

  “I think you broke him,” Laney said.

  “No way, little man. This is nothing,” I told Rocco in a barely intelligible voice as I kept my head tilted back and a wad of tissues pressed to my nose.

  “Sorry, Uncle Gavin.”

  “Nothing to be sorry about. I was the one who wasn’t paying attention to the ball.” I pulled the tissues away to see if the bleeding had stopped and gave Rocco a smile so he’d know I was okay. “What are you feeding this kid, Laney? His muscles are getting huge!”

  That comment had the desired effect as I saw a smile creep over Rocco’s face.

  “Just the usual—other small children plus some chicken nuggets now and then.” She pulled Rocco to her and covered his head in kisses. “You want a bag of frozen peas?” she asked me.

  “No. I’m good.”

  I’d come over on my break between the job site and training on Thursday evening to catch up with the kid and to distract myself from thoughts of Emmy. Turns out that plan sucked and only ended up with a baseball to my face. The kid was getting better, that was for sure, if the throbbing pain in my nose was anything to go by. I may have earned myself a couple black eyes with this one. Nothing I hadn’t dealt with a dozen times before, though.

  “Hey, buddy,” Laney said as she released Rocco. “Why don’t you give your uncle a few minutes to recover and go feed Pickles?”

  Pickles was his gecko he’d conned his Aunt Bailey into buying him last year. I had to hand it to him, the kid was good. Or Bailey was a sucker. Both were likely equally true. Rocco headed to his room to feed the beast.

  “Round two starts in ten minutes, dude!” I yelled after him.

  Laney just shook her head at me. “You’re a glutton for punishment.”

  “What? I need to redeem myself.”

  “Well, if you can refrain from breaking his nose, I’d be grateful,” she added, putting a fresh box of tissues on her kitchen table.

  I scowled at her and then winced at the pain that caused. “Please. He didn’t break my nose. I’m made of steel.” I swiped my nose with the tissues again and took a seat at the table.

  “Soooo,” she began as she took a seat as well. That should have been my sign to get up and leave. “What is going on with Emerson? Fiona filled me in and it sounds like high drama.”

  “Yeah, that asshole she worked with screwed her right out of her job—and a future partnership.”

  “And right out of a boyfriend too, it sounds like,” Laney said, sounding bummed.

  “So, you heard that, huh?”

  “You’re not going to take it lying down, though, are you?” She picked at a rough spot on the surface of the tabletop.

  That put my hackles up a bit. I may have let Emmy go for the time being, but I had no intention of bowing out entirely. She just had to figure her work shit out and then I was getting back in there. We’d figure out a way for her to be comfortable with balancing a job and a relationship.

  “You think I’m just going to give up?” I was feeling defensive.

  “No way! You’re not that guy anymore.” Her gaze shot to mine and she looked almost offended.

  Oh. Well, that was much better. It seems she’d let go of my past transgressions a little more than I’d assumed. Maybe it was my own paranoia that made me assume everybody was just waiting for me to fail again.

  I looked at her and noted her fierce expression. She had my back. That felt pretty fucking great. “Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I told her with complete sincerity.

  “So, what’s the plan?” Crap, I’d walked right into that one, hadn’t I? She looked way too interested for my liking.

  “Well, the details of her asshole colleague’s illegal behavior have been anonymously sent to her boss—her former boss—but it doesn’t directly implicate him, unfortunately. I think it should be enough to get her job back, though, if she wants it.”

  “Thank God for that,” Laney said.

  “Yeah, but I’m kind of pissed at her now.”

  She reared her head back. “What the hell kind of support is that?”

  “No, I mean, she let them fire her for a mistake she didn’t even make in the first place. This Craig guy orchestrated the whole thing. Emmy just thought she made a mistake and let them get away with firing her.”

  “I’m sure it’s more complicated than that,” my sister said, propping her chin up on her hand, her elbow resting on the table.

  “Yeah, I guess. I mean, I’m blown away by her single-mindedness in terms of fighting for a new job, but now I feel like she should have fought harder for her old job.”

  “Well, I’m sure it’s a different view from the outside looking in,” Laney offered.

  I sighed and swiped at my nose again. “Yeah. Maybe I’m just projecting. Either way, I want her to get the redemption she deserves. She’s worked hard for everything she’s got.”

  “That kind of makes you guys a great couple, doesn’t it?” My sister raised her eyebrows and grinned.

  My chest tightened a bit at that. Eighteen months ago, Laney never would have even inadvertently hinted that I’d worked hard for anything. She’d had a front-row seat to my two-year pity party. It meant more than I could say that she was now my champion.

  To hell with it. I may as well go all in.

  “So, I’m taking online classes to finish my Sports Science degree.”

  Laney gasped. “Shut. Up! You’re kidding me?!”

  “Would I lie to you?” I couldn’t help the upward curve of my lips.

  “Absolutely.” She didn’t even hesitate.

  “Well, I’m not lying about this.”

  She got up and hugged me while I stayed seated. I pretended to reluctantly tolerate her hug while she rolled her eyes at my reaction. Pretty much par for the course.

  “I am so freaking proud of you,” she said.

  “Don’t go busting an ovary over it.”

  She smacked the side of
my head.

  “Ow! Broken face here!”

  “Whatever.”

  She sat back down and just smiled at me. For God’s sake.

  “Soooo,” I threw her own opener back at her. “What’s going on with you?”

  She stuck her tongue out at me and then looked down at the table. Uh oh. I had no idea what that meant.

  “Um, Nate and I are trying to have a baby.”

  A spectacularly stupid smile overtook my face. I couldn’t help it. “No fucking way!”

  “Yes fucking way.” She looked up and her face was the picture of happiness. I loved that for her.

  “Well, let’s just hope this new one has better aim.”

  She threw her head back and laughed.

  I hadn’t spoken to Emmy in two days, and it sucked. Our phone call from Tuesday had ended with her having the impression I wasn’t going to fight her on our break-up. It was time to begin re-inserting myself into her life. I just needed to remind her why she needed me, even if it was just for inserting a little levity into her stressful situation.

  Gavin: So, did you know that over 10,000 trees are planted each year by forgetful squirrels?

  I knew she probably wouldn’t answer, but at least she’d think of me. And hopefully smile. I was surprised to hear the notification as a text came in. I was momentarily disappointed at the name until I read the message.

  Ari: Nice one. First smile I’ve seen all week ;-)

  I supposed it wasn’t surprising that Ari was with Emmy. Those two were a package deal.

  Ari: Oh, and btw - you’re listed as “Don’t Cave” on her phone. I’m thinking she’ll last maybe a week.

  Don’t Cave? Well, it could be worse.

  Gavin: Thanks, Ari. How’s she doing?

  Ari: I think she’s sent her resumé to every law firm in the state, and now she’s slowly going insane waiting.

  Gavin: Has Wheeler called yet?

  I would have expected him to make contact with her by now. He had the evidence in his hands, so what was he waiting for?

  Ari: No! I don’t get it. Maybe he’s having a hard time convincing the asshole partners.

  That sounded like a distinct possibility. Damn.

  I wanted to ask if Emmy had talked about me, but last I checked, I hadn’t grown a vagina.

  Ari: Anyway, her mom’s coming to visit tomorrow so hopefully it will take her mind off things.

  Gavin: I’ll be at Jay’s playoff game on Sunday. I’m assuming you guys are going?

  Ari: Yeah. How are you holding up? You’re not going to start writing shitty poetry, are you?

  Gavin: Who’s side are you on?

  Ari: No comment.

  Ari: Hey, on another note, what do you know about Fiona’s boss?

  Gavin: Jax? Great guy. Why?

  I would venture to guess many a woman has asked about Jax over time. He definitely had the whole southern charm thing down pat.

  Gavin: I thought you had a boyfriend.

  Ari: Maybe. Anyway, Ollie said Jax wants me to design a new website for his business. I’m sure Ollie could do it blindfolded, but Jax asked for me for some reason.

  I could guess that reason in two words: cup size.

  Gavin: He’s solid. Just watch out if you don’t want to be charmed out of your…well, you can guess.

  Ari: That’s to be determined. I kind of hate Elliot right now. Anyway, Emerson is getting suspicious. Gotta run. See you Sunday!

  Gavin: Later.

  Shit. If Jax had Ari in his sights, he was in for a surprise. I was pretty sure she had a tattoo that said, “Hard to Handle,” and if not, she certainly should.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  There’s Never a Priest Around When You Need One

  EMERSON

  Since I’d used most of the groceries in my house over the course of my cooking and baking marathon, Saturday morning called for a trip to the grocery store to restock.

  I also wanted to keep busy because I knew the championship softball game was today and neither Gavin nor I would be playing. My former colleagues, however, would be taking on my father’s team. I almost had to laugh at that, as the universe once again proved it had a God-awful sense of humor.

  Mom and Aldo had stayed behind with Jay, no doubt making up for lost time by smothering him. Which left me wandering the aisles of Harris Teeter with a shopping list that ran the gamut from chia seeds to pizza rolls. I was in the produce section choosing some Honeycrisp apples when I caught sight of Mandy out of the corner of my eye. I froze, as if a lack of motion would somehow make me invisible to her. Before I could decide what to do next, she spotted me, doing a double take before looking for her own escape route.

  This was ridiculous. I sighed and accepted the inevitable, steering my cart around the banana display and approaching her.

  “Hi, Mandy. How are you?” My eyes travelled to her cart, which held a half-gallon of ice cream, a tube of pre-made cookie dough, and a bottle of Moscato. She had clearly exchanged carts with a pre-menstrual college student who’d just had a fight with her boyfriend. Mandy didn’t “do” sugar. Or carbs. Or anything that tasted good. My eyes shot to her face and found her wearing a broken expression. Her make-up was half gone and she had smudges of mascara under her red and swollen eyes.

  Well, shoot.

  My dad had finally reached his marriage threshold and asked for a divorce.

  I didn’t have it in me to be smug about it, but I was also leery to put my guard down. Mandy tended to strike when wounded. I finally settled on, “Are you okay?”

  She sniffed and then pulled a tissue out of her Gucci purse. She wiped her nose and sighed in defeat. “No.” Then a tear ran down her cheek and she swiped it away with the tissue. “I’m most definitely not okay.”

  I looked around hoping for one of her girlfriends or perhaps a priest to appear. But it was just me. I cleared my throat. “You know,” I began and then paused, searching for the right words. “It’s not you. It’s him. This is what he does.” Although, really, when you marry someone who’s already divorced two carbon copies of you, can you really be that surprised? At any rate, she was obviously hurting, so I put on my compassion hat and squeezed her arm with a sad smile.

  But then I noticed her looking at me with a baffled expression. “What does that mean?” She wiped her nose again.

  “My father,” I prompted.

  “What about Robert?” she asked, beginning to sound impatient.

  Huh?

  It occurred to me I might have been way off base. “Wait. Why are you crying and buying junk food?” I gestured to her cart.

  Her cheeks colored at the mention of the food. She sniffled again. “I’m supposed to go to my book club and I can’t.”

  Good lord. “What?” That was all I had. I should have guessed this would be about something ridiculous.

  “I just finished reading the book I told you about and I can’t stop crying. It was so sad. I mean, I just…I’ve never read anything so sad in my whole life.” Tears sprang anew and spilled over her cheeks. “They killed that woman and then…” She couldn’t continue.

  I opened my mouth but nothing came out.

  Finally, she continued in a high-pitched voice as sobs threatened. “I can’t go to my book club like this. Emerson, I didn’t know things were like that. I mean, I know the book isn’t real, but they said it was based on things that really happen. Every day. How is that possible?”

  Oh my. It looked like the rose-colored glasses had been callously ripped from Barbie’s eyes.

  “It’s just so…sad.” Another sniff.

  I nodded and patted her arm. “Yes, it’s very sad. The world is a very unfair place for most of humanity.”

  Her eyes widened and I quickly amended my statement. “For some of humanity.”

  She grabbed another tissue. “Well, I knew that already, I guess. I just never thought about other people in such a personal way, you know?”

  This did not surprise me in any way. “Y
eah. Hey, maybe you should join a different book club. There are lots of really uplifting books out there,” I suggested.

  She blew out a breath. “The whole point was to read things that would broaden my horizons. You know, give me more things to talk to Robert about.”

  Oh. I held in my wince at that one.

  “It’s probably a lost cause anyway.” Mandy sighed and looked into her cart.

  “What do you mean?” I was pretty sure I knew but I felt compelled to ask, regardless.

  She rolled her puffy eyes. “Please. Like you don’t know. You practically gave me the break-up pity line a few minutes ago.”

  “Oh.”

  “He hasn’t said anything yet, but I know it’s coming. I’m sure you’re thrilled.” Here came the claws.

  “I wouldn’t go that far.” What? I couldn’t feign that much disappointment.

  “Well, I’ll never be Saint Emerson, that’s for sure. I really don’t know why he didn’t just marry someone like you in the first place.”

  The eternal mystery. Who knew why my dad only went for women with half his years and half his brains?

  “Believe me, I’m not in great standing with him right now, either,” I told her.

  “Maybe for the next five minutes, but you’ll be back on that pedestal soon enough. It’s not fair, you know. You get three parents and a brother who worship you, you get this fancy career and all this respect, and on top of that, you get a hot guy who’s freaking in love with you.”

  That set my head back and my eyebrows arching.

  She practically curled her lip. “I met him when he came to the house. Geez. I don’t understand how you got a guy like that to fall for you when you’re so…plain.”

  I ignored the dig, too distracted by what she’d just said. “Who in the world are you talking about?”

  “Like you don’t know. That Gavin guy” she practically spat.

  “Wait. Gavin came to my dad’s house?” I was ignoring the part about the l-word for now. One shock at a time was all I could handle.

  “Yes, he came to our house. Poor perfect Emerson was in a bind and her hot boyfriend came to defend her honor.”