"Hey." I smiled at him as I entered the room. I had every x-ray and blood test booked for him today. We hadn't spoken since we'd landed in JFK and left the air-port like strangers. I'd sent him a text telling him about today and he replied back saying, he would be here. And he came. Just like he had said he would. I should have been happy, glad that he kept his promise. But I felt completely lost, because I didn't know how to behave now and by his shyness, avoiding eye contact as I walked through the door, I had a feeling that he felt the same. "I thought that you would be here when I got here," he whispered as I drew closer to him as he lay on the examination bed. "I just came in to make sure that everything's set up for you. I just organized the tests, and besides, Wen-dy's capable of doing them herself. I don't need to be here." I was rambling and looking down at the floor. Pathetic!"Besides Wendy explained everything, right?"He corrected me. "You mean Shery
"Hey little bro, how you feeling?" Sophia smiled as she walked into the room. That was the thing about my big sis; she always had a smile on her face. No matter how I was feeling, she had a way of making me feel bet-ter. "So-so." I tried to wave my hand, but between the blood tests, radiography and everything else that Emma had organized for them to do today, I was exhausted. "That good, huh?"I nodded. "Where's Emma? I've been looking for her every-where.""Dunno.""Oh," she said sadly. "So, did you guys talk?" I shook my head. "Well, I think that you guys should talk."She was the fixer, the one that tried to solve every-one's problems. I used to wonder as a kid if she had some magic wand that hid how she was really feeling inside. She must have felt sad occasionally. No one could be happy all the time. Or maybe I took all the miserable genes and she had only the happy genes. Sheryl stepped in and my heart skipped a beat. Part of me had hoped that it was
"So, what do you think about Emma then?" Sophia said from the back of the car. She hadn't even come to the examination room. It was as if she was hiding or something. "Is it because she's older or something? I just don't get it. We really connected in Vegas..." I was staring at the window and thinking about the fact that two days ago I was on top of the world in that room and then after Emma just did a disappearing act on me. I felt as if I had flatlined."You see, the problem is she's scared about losing her job," Sophia said and I felt as if I was listening to a broken record. Emma had already made that clear. Maybe this was some schoolboy crush. Shit, I had wanted her for so damn long, hadn't got her of my mind as a kid and maybe as an adult those thoughts had just transformed into lust.But if that was the case and it was really true, then how come I couldn't get her out of my mind?I felt as if I had used superglue on my heart and it just couldn't come off unless I did
I couldn't believe it. Dad had just phoned to say that all his problems were over and thanked me a thou-sand times. Thanked me for what? That was what was on my mind. I was exhausted, having been through every one of Sebastian's injuries and procedures over the years. I didn't want to miss anything. I wanted to make sure that the conclusion was right, and that he could play next season. Sure, I had gone a bit overboard and the conse-quences had I found something had run through my mind. There was nothing worse than finding out that an-other doctor had done a procedure incorrectly and being forced to flag it. It would have hurt not only their reputa-tion, but mine too. I could be seen as an underdog and the sports-medicine business was already so damn politi-cal. I did find a couple of red herrings, but after dig-ging deeper. I found nothing to be wrong with his treat-ment and his after-treatment, which was just as im-portant. He had gone to the right number of physiothera-pist s
"Hey," he must have said about twice. I had the reports in my hand. Ready to show them to him and give him a piece of my mind about him calling my dad and sorting out the debt. Now, I felt a different type of emo-tion, one that didn't sit well with me. I started to just let it rip until he said addressed the pretty blonde that was standing by his side: "Okay Zoe, if your mom needs anything then let me know." She nodded and smiled; she did the same with me too as she left the house. "Emma, are you okay?" he asked, and I felt stupid. Like a little kid I said, "Oh you got a new one al-ready?" I hovered around the door. Not wanting to go in, but just to give him a piece of my mind. But I couldn't. I didn't say a word as I stood there with one hand on my hip ready to give it to him. He'd used me. I thought that he cared. Shit, I even thought about my career and giving it up for him and in the space of one week he had found a replacement.I really was a fool. He looked b
She was scared-it was clear to me now. Zoe had come over to get her brother's ball. I suspected that ei-ther he had kicked it over or she had, just to get my at-tention. One hour later we were still in my garden later just trying to figure out which bush it was hiding in, and Emma showed up at the door. She had fire in her eyes when she saw Zoe. I should have told her then that it wasn't what it seemed, but some part of me thought that she deserved it. I had been calling her every day for over a week.Not one phone call back. The funny thing is that she actually thought that I was with Zoe. She didn't have a clue what she did to me. I wanted Emma, no one else. I hadn't wanted any-one else since I first saw her in the dorm. No other girl had made me want to commit. I didn't sleep around, but as soon as I heard the words, "Are we dating?" that was when I dropped them like a ton of bricks. But Emma was different.I couldn't get her out of my mind. Her dad had already calle
We spent the whole night in each other's arms. This time things were different and I hated to admit that I felt so comfortable with him. I didn't want to get up in the morning and just leave, like I had done so many times with other guys. I didn't even want the night to end, for fear that the next day, he would be the one to end it. I felt so stu-pid when he told me that the girl who had been at the house earlier on was his neighbor. The whole idea of him being with someone else really made me go crazy. Yet I was the one that was avoiding his calls. Pretending that he didn't exist. "I suppose you came round here to give the money back from your dad?" he asked as he stroked my hair. Oh, shoot. I forgot why I came round here in the first place. "Nope," I laughed as I flung my head back. We were lying in his bed, facing each other. I didn't even know what time it was, then again I didn't care. It was a weekend and I had nothing planned. Which was nothing new. "I came to say
I stood in the pharmacy thinking about what to do. I felt self-conscious standing looking at the counter with the displays of pregnancy tests. I didn't want to pick one, until a trio of girls that looked as if they were in col-lege, picked them up as if they were going for a pick and mix at the candy store. This whole thing felt nuts. They were talking about the different types of pregnancy tests and the ones which claimed 100 percent accuracy. "Amber, you need to go for this one. It tells you how many weeks pregnant you are!""Shut up!" The dark haired one said as she picked it up "Shit, this thing's good." She picked up the packet and started reading and laughing about it. I did what any sensible woman who had been care-less and was possibly knocked up by a quarterback would do. I picked it up and said, "This could solve all my problems."Not only would it tell me if I was, but it would give me timelines too. Amber seemed to agree as she said, "You and I both. I better get