Once Upon A Half-Time 1(96)

The love of my life.

I’d be damned if I let anyone hurt her.





24





Elle





Some good came from the truth.

When I did my interview with Sports Nation, I was fully clothed…because I certainly wasn’t anywhere else on the internet.

I wasn’t used to being the target of a picture and not the photographer. At least I’d looked good. Not that I wanted the world to see the goods, but I traded my tits for my integrity. And it’d worked. The media had a juicier story in the Rivets’ cheating.

It made for one hellish weekend.

Interviews. Analysis. Investigations.

The only thing bigger than the revelation? Coach Thompson’s immediate response. I checked the time. Right on cue, they replayed it on Sports Nation. Every half-hour.

“This is a grey area in the league rules…” His voice was somber, respectful. “But we never deceived the league or willfully acted in any way which would have given our team an advantage during a game. We may have misinterpreted the rules, but our organization will perform its own investigation in accordance with the league, and the personnel responsible will be disciplined.”

Which meant, Peter was fired.

Some people lost their jobs. Others? The voicemail on my phone didn’t offer me my position back.

It gave me Peter’s.

If I wanted it, I could become head photographer. I’d get a big raise, the travel stipend, all the responsibilities and acclaim.

It was hush money, but damn if I wasn’t considering it. I was part of the Rivets’ family, and families stuck together.

No matter how hard-headed the cockiest rookie in the league was.

Or how stupid and stubborn his wife had been.

I changed the channel on the television. It had been years since the Rivets played a game where I wasn’t on the field with them. I missed the crowds, the excitement, the energy.

But…the couch was a good place to ward away the morning sickness. Or maybe it was just nerves? I could do nothing for Lachlan except wear his jersey and cross my fingers as the game started.

I didn’t have to worry.

The first series nearly gave me a heart attack, but he blocked one ferocious looking linebacker and kept the blitz off of Jack.

They gave him the ball in the second series—an easy screen pass that he turned into a seven-yard gain.

The third series was his best. He got open in the middle, dove for the ball, and came up with an impossible first down that led to a rushing touchdown.

And each and every time he touched that ball or flashed on the screen, I teared up. It was mostly the hormones twisting me, but that pride was something I’d never felt before.

For so long, I searched for the amazing—beautiful places in the world, landmarks, natural wonders. I thought I had to search to find the next biggest, greatest thing life could offer.

Turns out, I didn’t have to go that far.

What I felt for Lachlan was nothing I could capture in a picture or keep on my shelf. The best trinket of his was the little bit of him growing inside me.

And it was time he realized that.

The game ended, but it was late when he finally knocked on my door. It didn’t matter the hour. Our conversation was days overdue.

Lachlan greeted me with a tired smile. “Know how they say…a husband and wife should never go to bed angry?”

“Yeah?”

“Please tell me you haven’t slept for three days.”

“Actually…”

That only panicked him. “Christ, Elle, you’re pregnant, you’ve gotta—”

I pulled him inside. “I’ve gotten some sleep.”

“That’s not good enough.”

“It’s been…stressful.”

“That’s also not good for you or the baby.”

“We’re pretty tough. I think we can handle a couple interviews and depositions.”

“I want to be there with you.”

I believed him, but I didn’t answer. He followed me inside, dropping a bag at the foot of the couch.

“They offered me my job back,” I said. “Technically, they gave me Peter’s.”

Lachlan had the same reaction that I did—uncertainty. “Are you going to take it?”

“I don’t know. I might get more tangled in all these scandals. Who knows what other unethical things are happening.”

He went quiet. “We’re a team—you and me, Jack and Cole and the rest of the guys. Cole was right. The Rivets are fucked up. There’s cheating. There’s bounty-hunting. The only way we can heal is if we stick together—cleanse it from the inside.”

I raised an eyebrow. “That sounds like Jack talking.”

He shrugged. “You have a lot of reasons to stay with the team.”