Team Hate

by Hart, Rebel

  Sebastian’s secretary showed me into his office, and he didn’t even greet me as I entered. It wasn’t until the door was shut that he even looked up from his desk. “John. Thank you for coming on such short notice.”

  “Of course, sir.”

  He sat back in his chair, looking like a corrupt king on a throne made of his subjects’ bones. “Quite unfortunate what happened with Dax.”

  Just the sound of that asshole’s name made me want to put my fist through a wall. “You mean the part where he tried to rape Jane a second time? That is unfortunate.”

  His wrinkled, gray eyes bore into me with an ulterior motive I could suss out. “Oh, John. Are you still going with that useless story? With Dax’s final breaths, he told me what happened. That you were also interested in Jane, but she wanted him and him alone. They were sharing a moment of passion that couldn’t wait until they were in more private quarters, and when you happened upon them, your rage overcame you.”

  Rage focused itself in my feet and slowly rolled its way up my body. “You can ask any man on the team and they’ll tell you that is far from true. Dax had been harassing her since the day she started. He refused to take no for an answer. She’s traumatized. Send her to a professional and let them tell you.”

  “We aren’t just working with a regular fight gone wrong here, John. You killed a man.” Half of me was relieved. Either Dax didn’t realize who had hit him with that pipe, or Sebastian was just making up a story that satiated the narrative he wanted to tell. Either way, whether he knew the truth or not, he didn’t appear to be planning to saddle Jane with Dax’s death. “Or so you would have me to believe.”

  My heart dropped. “What?”

  An evil smirk cloaked Sebastian’s face. “Suppose I happened to have a recorded confession that conflicted with the story I’ve just manufactured for all of our benefit? Suppose I had to turn it over to the police and explain to them that you lied and Jane murdered a man. Both of your credibility would go out the window, as opposed to me, an upstanding and high tax-paying member of society. Well, there’s just no good outcome there.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying, let’s make a decision that benefits us all, eh?” Sebastian pulled out a piece of paper and handed it over to me. “Did you know that L.A. is getting rid of their head coach? They’re looking for recommendations of someone with experience that they could hire, and I happen to be very good friends with their owner. I could put in a good word for Jane. Explain that having a female coach in our midst has done wonders for our team. It would look fantastic on her resume, she’d have a team of her own, it’s her dream.”

  “Why would you do that for her? Are you that disgusted by having a woman around that you’d go through all of this just to get rid of her? We’re doing better since she got here, the team loves her, as an owner you should be happy.”

  “This isn’t about the sport, John. If people just wanted to sit around watching guys play football, they’d all gather at their local park every Sunday. A vast majority of our money comes from investors and people who pay thousands of dollars to sit in booths less comfortable than their homes and watch the game on a television anyway, simply because they feel closer to the players. Dax was the kind of guy that brought in money, and when his death hits the media, it can either go well for us or go badly for us, and you could fall victim to it if it goes wrong. If my team gets painted with this ‘me too’ bullshit, people are going to pull their funding left and right.”

  “This is about money for you?”

  “Oh don’t sound so civilian. It’s always about money. I didn’t give a shit about Dax, but his views and behavior reflected those of a vast majority of our fanbase, so he was a good asset. I have a PR team on standby to make this situation rosy for everyone. An unfortunate misunderstanding left you, Dax, and Jane in a situation entirely outside of you three’s control. You come off looking like the hero, a defender of women, Jane moves on to California as the first female head coach in the NFL, and Dax can rest in peace as a man who simply loved a woman during risky times. Win-win-win.”

  “Dax doesn’t deserve to win, and I’m not going to let you retraumatize Jane by asking her to pretend like her rapist was her lover.”

  “Well of course not. Me asking her to do that would be just barbaric.” He pointed at me. “You will pose the plan to Jane.”

  I let out a loud, forced laugh. “You have lost your goddamn mind.”

  “I know that the two of you are an item. I have more than one picture of you all locked in moments of passion.” Sebastian flipped open a folder on his desk and pulled out a picture of us dancing at the concert over the weekend. “You make a cute pair.”

  He looked up at me. “Here’s the alternative. I tell the media an account of the story that lands both you and Jane in prison. A coach who was having her cake and eating it too with more than one player. When one caught her locked in a fit of passion with the other, he murdered him in cold blood, and then the coach cried rape to hide her transgressions.”

  I sat forward in my chair. “You can’t do that.”

  “A version of the story has already been written. You have two choices. Convince Jane to go to California and speak not of this little misunderstanding, or stick to your story and you will both lose your jobs and probably end up in prison.” He shrugged. “Your choice. I’ll give you time to think about it.” He pressed a button on his phone. “Mrs. Hammerly, you may come and show John out now.”

  I was lost, scared, and heartbroken. If I convinced Jane to go to California, not only would she probably be hurt, but we’d have to break up as well. I wanted to argue, to shout, to do anything to hurt Sebastian the way he was hurting me, but he had all the cards in his hand, and I had none. The secretary arrived to show me out, and quietly, I simply stood up from my chair and let her show me the door. If Sebastian was so hellbent on making Jane’s life hell, maybe it was better for her to go to California, but how could I honestly bring myself to convince the woman I thought I was falling in love with, to leave?

  26

  John

  The second I laid eyes on Jane, I felt like crying. We’d spent so much time together and been through so much in the past few weeks, that I was actually starting to feel like I might be falling for her. She was perfect in every way, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get my heart to stop searching for her. It had been that way even when I thought I hated her. I realized that my heart discovered much sooner what my brain took a while to figure out. The reason I argued with her constantly, the reason she felt like such a threat to me, was because she was a challenge where none had been before. She was a battle that I hadn’t yet realized I wanted to fight, she was the sun shining when I couldn’t see that I was stuck in eternal night.

  I’d called her and asked her to meet me at K.O. Such a frustrating circumstance called for the best food I could imagine in all of Charlotte.

  “Hey!” She skipped over and kissed me. “You know me so well already. It’s crazy. I’m beginning to think you’ve been stalking me this whole time.”

  I furrowed my brow. “What are you talking about?”

  “This bar. It’s my favorite place to eat in all of Charlotte. I always get the Juicy Lucy with onion strings.”

  My jaw dropped. “That’s a lie.”

  She shook her head. “It doesn’t seem very me, right? But I swear, you can ask Jim. We come here all the time.”

  “That’s what I always get.”

  Jane’s eyes widened and her smile grew. “Are you serious?”

  “I swear.”

  She did a little adorable dance in place. “It’s really something else that we didn’t realize sooner how much we have in common.”

  “Yeah.”

  We ordered our food and drinks and then she looked at me with worry. “Are you okay? You’ve been really quiet. What did Sebastian say?”

  That his ability to afford his summer home means more to him than your
assault. That he’s actually an incredibly horrible person with no concern for anyone, dead or alive. That he’s blackmailing me into being his new lap dog now that Dax is dead.

  If the situation was any different and if Jane wasn’t at risk at all, this decision would be a no-brainer. I would tell Sebastian to kiss the roundest, worst smelling part of my ass, take Jane in my arms, and we’d live happily ever after, but life had a way of not being so kind.

  “He told me about this really great opportunity.” I took the paper he’d given me regarding the L.A. position and unfolded it. I handed it over to her, feeling like I was handing her a shredded version of my happiness. “They’re looking for a head coach and he said that he wants to refer you.”

  Jane blinked a few times in disbelief. "He's trying to get rid of me." Her eyes shot up to me. "You told him no, right? This is obviously a ploy."

  Jane was smart. I had to know she wouldn't just go for it. "I mean, it might be. But still, that's a great opportunity."

  Jane was scanning my face carefully. "Are you joking?"

  "No. Is he up to something? Probably, but I don't know, that seems like a pretty great deal for you. You get to get away from him and this place where Dax hurt you so badly and you get to be a head coach."

  "What about the fact that my brother and mom are here? What about my friends and the guys? What about us?"

  "All things have a solution. Maybe they're not easy, but if it's what's best for you." I sighed thinking about Sebastian's threats. "I just think that's as good as it's gonna get. Dax can't be convicted, he's gone, and Sebastian is never going to cede control. You deserve a shred of something good for everything you've been through."

  Jane looked down sadly. "I thought I had something good." Six-gauge shot through the chest. I promised that I wouldn't let anything hurt Jane again, and here I was being part of it. She peered up at me. "You think I should take the payoff?" Jane looked as if I'd slapped her right in the face.

  I hadn't thought of it that way. Without telling her about what Sebastian was planning, it probably did look like a payoff to keep her quiet. It was no wonder why he called her out of the blue and told her to go back to work. He was trying to work both sides, me with blackmail, and Jane with a payoff and probably an NDA.

  "John." I looked up at her and she had tears in the corners of her eyes. "You think I should take it?"

  I didn't think that. I wanted to shove Sebastian into any garbage receptacle that would hold him and roll him off a cliff. I thought of that and then I thought of how much power Sebastian had. I thought of the evidence he had and the slanted story he was planning. I thought of Jane being arrested or being punished for killing Dax when what he'd done to her deserved nothing less. Even if it was at my expense, even if it cost me the most amazing woman I'd ever met, even if it caused her to hate me for real and for good, it was worth it for her to be safe.

  "I do. This is as good as it's gonna get."

  From the fluttering of her eyes to the uncomfortable way she shifted, I watched Jane's heartbreak. It killed me.

  "So, I guess we're only in it together until an easier option comes along."

  Emotions immediately welled up in my throat. "No, that's not—"

  Jane picked up her bag, stood up from the table and rushed out of the bar. I felt like fermented shit. I pulled out a $50 and slammed it on the table and hopped up. It wasn't supposed to be support until it got hard. I promised to take care of her, and that's what I wanted to do.

  I pushed through the door of the bar, and saw Jane standing with a man in the bar parking lot. He was holding a clipboard and a pen. He was dressed in a clean suit and had an official 'Knights' pin on his lapel.

  Jane turned and looked at me. Tears were streaming down her face in a continuous flow. "How could you do this to me?"

  I slowly walked over to them. "What?"

  The man turned and looked at me. "I'm sorry Mr. Sceptre, I thought you'd already explained the cover story to her as well."

  "I wanted it?" Her voice was coming out in a labored whisper. "We were lovers? You’re the poor, unexpecting hero?"

  I shook my head. "No, Jane. I know that's not true."

  "Did you know about this story? Is that why you want me to leave so that I wouldn’t blow up your big superhero debut?” I reached out for her, but she snatched her hand away. ”Don’t touch me. Answer me!"

  “I knew, but I didn’t have anything to do with it, I swear.” Despite my pleading, Jane took the pen the guy had held out to her. “No, don’t.”

  She scribbled her name across the bottom of the paper and then threw the pen on the ground. “Clearly, I should have listened to my first impression. Enjoy the rest of your life.”

  Jane stormed off and I looked over at Sebastian’s smarmy lech, but he had already put the paper Jane signed away, and had his phone to his ear. “Yes, sir. I got it.”

  He hung up the phone, took one look at me, corrected his glasses with a smirk, and walked off.

  What did I just do? Sebastian set the perfect trap and I walked right into it.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven: Jane

  If a sinkhole opened up in the earth’s surface, I would probably drive right into it. Was I dumb to think that John legitimately cared about me? To think that I was actually starting to feel like I might be falling for him.

  I texted Jim, still devastated from what happened, and wanting to meet up with him, and he told me he was still at the training facility, so I decided to go back and meet him. I wanted him to know what had happened and that I would not be accepting Sebastian’s ‘offer’ to ship me off to California. I wasn’t sure what I would do. I still wanted to be in football, but I was still recovering from college football, and obviously pro-ball in Charlotte was out, so I didn’t really know what other options there were.

  Walking through the training facility felt like a walk of shame now. I should have known it would never last with me. I just wanted it too badly. I may have only been there for a short period of time, but it felt much longer. I was going to miss discussing plays with Shawn in the common area, or running drills with Alvin and Isaac out on the field. I’d miss Jack’s smiling face, always there to greet me when I walked in, and even shouting with John from one end of the facility to the other.

  John.

  He’d been a whirlwind since the day I met him. So much of my experience had been just trying to earn his respect, and then when I let him in, I let him so much further in than I probably should have. Even back when we were just a pair of arrogant idiots squabbling at the first sign of trouble, he got me more excited and more passionate than I’d ever been about anything. I’d be lying if I said, I wasn’t sort of looking forward to ending several arguments using rock, paper, scissors with him. Too bad it was all just a joke.

  I walked up to Jim’s office and the door was open. At first, I assumed he’d done so in anticipation of my arrival, but when I got to the doorway, I noticed Sebastian standing inside.

  “So, John’s job will be protected as he and I discussed, and between the reference letters from you and I, Jane will be certain to get the job in California. It’s unfortunate when things like this happen on a team, but I always try to resolve it in a way that works best for everyone.”

  Jim nodded. “Well, I think you’re right sir, it’s what’s for the best.”

  My heart sank. First John and now my brother too? I thought these people cared about me. I walked into the room, the clacking of my boots against the tiled floor calling Sebastian and Jim to my attention.

  Sebastian clapped. “Ah, here she is. Watch out for this one, Jim. She could lead California to the Super Bowl next season.”

  I glared at him. “I won’t be doing anything. I don’t need your version of hush money. You can shove it up your ass.”

  Sebastian’s expression turned sour. “Your name is already on the dotted line my dear.”

  “Oh, I’m not gonna ruin this fairy tale you’ve concocted. I get it. You, and you,” I loo
ked at Jim, “and John, and everyone in this stupid, dick-driven sport can kiss my ass. You win. I’ll go.”

  Sebastian shrugged. “I am willing to help you.”

  “Thanks, but for your kind of help, I’ll just step into oncoming traffic.” I glared over at Jim and he shook his head at me.

  Sebastian picked up his briefcase. “Suit yourself. As long as you don’t violate that little agreement you signed, you and I will have no problems at all.” He nodded at Jim. “Coach.”

  Jim nodded back. “Sir.”

  Sebastian took one final, nose-in-the-air look up and down my form and slunk his way out of the office.

  I looked over at Jim and opened my mouth to shout at him, but he held his hand up. “I’m quitting.”

  All my anger fettered out. “What?”

  “Don’t insult me, Jane. Why would I ever, ever agree to stay here? That,” He cracked his neck, biting back whatever he truly wanted to say, “individual. He put you in a situation where you were working with a man who was trying to rape you. And now he wants to paint him as some innocent victim of a lover’s spat gone wrong? I can’t. I can’t continue to work under a man who would allow something like that.” He looked up at me sadly. “Did you really sign the NDA?”

  I slid down against the wall until I was sitting on the floor. “Yeah.”

  Jim came down and sat across from me. “Why? Why would you sign it?”

  I pulled my knees up to my chest and set my head atop them. “I don’t know. I was so angry. I had just found out John was a part of it and…” My past few days with John took a jackhammer and started chiseling into my heart. Tears dripped from my eyes remembering that it was all over now. “I just want this all to be over.”