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Hannah
Two days after being suspended, Hannah was bored and going out of her mind. She hadn't told any of her friends what was going on and after stewing about it half the night, she decided it was finally time.
That’s how she ended up in her car, almost to Valley Falls.
Not because she wanted to see Edwin.
Even if she did.
She needed to talk to someone about what was going on. Heath was a good start but she needed a female opinion on what to do. With both her job and Edwin.
Her first stop was Zara.
She owed her friend an explanation on why she’d fled the party and the town. She’d vaguely told her that she’d had an argument with Edwin but that was it.
It was time to tell the truth.
When she’d texted Zara to let her know she was coming, her friend told her to meet her at the stadium. Apparently, she was there, negotiating Cooper’s new contract.
The stadium was the last place she wanted to be and also the only place she wanted to go. Both reasons were the same.
She might run into Edwin.
After a pep talk for the ages, while sitting in her car and staring at the stadium, she finally made herself go inside and in search of Zara who’d texted that she was in Ruby’s office. The offices were far away from the training facility and locker rooms.
She let out a deep breath, relieved that she likely wouldn’t run into Edwin.
The other part of her that wanted to see him deflated a little at the thought.
She wanted to see him just as much as she didn't want to see him. She knew it didn't make sense but it did to her. In her heart.
She heard conversation and laughter and when she turned the corner, she saw why. Not only was Zara standing outside Ruby’s office but so were Shane, Allana, Cooper, and Mae.
“Hannah!” Ruby shouted when she spotted her. Everyone else turned to look at her too.
“Hey!” She raised a hand in greeting. “Looks like you’re all having a good time over here.”
“We’re sort of celebrating,” Allana said.
“Oh, yeah?” she said. “And why is that?”
“Cooper signed a new contract and is staying around to play a couple more years,” Shane said, slapping Cooper on the back.
“That’s great news!” Hannah said. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks,” Cooper and Shane said at the same time and then both laughed and everyone else joined in.
“I think she was talking to me,” Cooper said, looking pointedly at Shane.
“I don’t know why. I’m the one who gave in and let you only play in half the games.” This time, Shane punched him in the shoulder.
“It doesn’t matter,” Allana said, stepping in between them. “Anyway, you two need to get out of here. It’s girls night and I also believe Dallas is waiting for you downstairs.” She looked at Ruby for confirmation.
“He is.” She nodded.
“Fine,” Cooper said, swinging Mae up into his arms and kissing her. “We’ll celebrate later.”
Hannah felt like she should look away from the deep show of affection but the problem was if she looked to her other side, she knew she’d find Shane and Allana in a similar embrace.
It made her ache for something that could never be.
“It’s nauseating, isn't it?” Zara nudged her shoulder.
It really wasn’t. It was perfect. But that’s not what she said. “It is.”
When the guys left, Ruby said, “Let’s get this party started.”
Hannah looked at Zara. “We’re going out?”
“Yes,” she said. “You need a night out more than anyone I know.”
“And,” Allana chimed in, drawing out the word, “Zara here needed reinforcements to find out what the hell is going on with you.”
This was not what she was expecting. She thought she and Zara would have a night at home where she could scream and rail and cry into her friend's shoulder. Now she was going to have to tell all these amazing women what a loser she was.
Tracked with how her life was currently going.
“You look scared shitless,” Mae said. “And normally I’d tell you not to be, but we all saw how fast you ran out of the New Year’s Eve party. Something is going on and it’s time you got it off your chest.”
“We can do this here,” Ruby said, “or we can do it with margaritas in our hands. Your choice.”
That was a question she absolutely knew the answer to. “Margaritas.”
Zara slipped her arm in hers as they walked toward the exit. “I let you settle and stew for long enough because I know you and I know you need space when you have things to think about. But it’s time to lean on someone else for a little bit.”
Tears swelled in her eyes but she forced them back. She would not cry. Crying was for the weak. She was strong. She was pretty sure she’d proved that when she’d pushed Edwin away when all she’d wanted to do was pull him closer and drown in his kisses.
If she could do that, she could do anything.
Outside the stadium, there was a town car waiting for them. Hannah was shocked but everyone else just slid inside like it was no big deal. She followed them, asking, “Do you do this all the time?”
“Twice a month, if we can,” Mae said.
“I think she meant the car,” Ruby said. “I was a little shocked too, my first time.”
“Shane likes us to be safe,” Allana put in. “So twice a month we take a car, drink to our heart's content, and then get home safely.” She shrugged as if it was no big deal.
“You get used to it,” Zara said. “I’ve only gone with them twice before, but I have to say, it’s pretty nice not to have to worry about how much I drink.”
The restaurant was only a few minutes away so soon—all too soon for Hannah’s taste—they were seated at a table with several baskets of chips, cups of salsa, and margaritas on the way.
Four sets of eyes turned to her.
She groaned but let it all fly. “I think I might be in love with Edwin Boyle.”
Several things happened at once. Zara opened her mouth, shock showing on her face, Allana high-fived Mae who in turn said, ‘I knew it!’, and Ruby just sat there smiling.
Zara was the first to speak. “I feel like I’m the only one at this table who is confused and yet, I’m supposed to be the one who knows you the best.”
Hannah looked at her friend across the round table. “I wanted to tell you but I...” She shook her head. “I don’t even know why I didn’t. I think I might have just sort of liked having him to myself and with my non-relationship clause, it was easier to keep it secret.”
“Hold on,” Mae put up a hand. “What do you mean by having him to yourself? That sounds like you were more than client and agent.”
Oh shit. She probably should have started with that. “Edwin and I have been sort of secret friends for years.” She bit her lip. “He was kind of my best friend.”
“Okay,” Zara said, “now I’m really confused.” She placed both hands on the table in front of her and leaned forward. “Edwin is your best friend?”
Ruby placed a hand on Zara's arm. “She said was. What happened?”
If Hannah had the answer to that question, she wouldn’t be about to cry again. She shook her head, over and over and over again. “I don’t really know. One day, we were having two-hour phone conversations about anything and everything and the next, he asked to be switched to a different agent and stopped answering my calls and texts.” Her voice cracked.
Next to her, Allana rubbed her back. “It’s okay. Take a second if you need it.”
“I don’t. I just want to get this out and then never think about him or talk to him ever again.” She took a deep breath. “It wasn’t until after he stopped talking to me that I realized I liked him.” Just minutes ago, she’d said love. She had no clue which was true. “I felt so lost, so confused. We talked all the time. He knows things about me that know one else knows. When I was sad or unhappy, I’d call Edwin.”
“How’d that happen?” Zara asked. “I’m not mad that you chose him over me, seriously, I’m just happy you had someone. We all need someone to talk to, but I can’t quite figure out how it came to be.”
She smiled, giving a small shoulder shrug. “It was so natural to be his friend. From the day we met at my first agent-client social, we hit it off. When I was put on his team, we started talking more, then before either of us knew it, we were talking every day. He knew I had a no-relationship clause in my contract so we kept it quiet, never meeting unless it was as his agent and never doing anything outside of phone calls and texts.”
“You did that for five years?” Allana asked.
She nodded. “And It was perfect. Until it wasn’t. And then I went and made the dumb mistake of kissing him.”
“YOU KISSED HIM!” Zara shouted, making more than one person in the restaurant turn to look at them.
“While I’m with you on the shock,” Ruby said, “maybe we shouldn’t tell the whole restaurant.”
“Sorry,” Zara apologized then lowered her voice. “When did you kiss him?”
“On New Year’s Eve and then again, three days ago.”
“Where is my drink,” Mae said. “I can’t have this conversation without alcohol.”
As luck would have it, the waiter chose that moment to drop off their margaritas.
“Okay,” Allana said after a very long sip from her drink. “Keep going.”
“I had a few drinks at the party and was feeling just good enough to confront him. I wasn’t drunk, I knew what I wanted. I wanted to kiss him, to tell him that I liked him.”
“What about the clause in your contract?” Ruby asked.
“I wasn’t thinking about that. At least not for that first kiss. All I was thinking was that this had been inside me for years and I’d only just realized it. Kissing him was all I wanted.”
“And?” Zara asked as all four of them leaned in close like they couldn't get enough.
“It was amazing.” She rubbed her lips together, remembering the feel of the kiss. “Until he pushed me away.”
“He did what?” Mae asked, blinking several times.
“He said I was drunk and didn’t know what I was doing.” She could still hear his words, the sting of them in her mind. “That’s why I ran out of there and left town.” She faced Zara. “That’s what I couldn't tell you.”
“Guys can be such idiots,” Allana said. “Was he kissing you back, before he pushed you away?”
“Yes.”
“And the second kiss?” Ruby asked.
“He showed up in Chicago three days ago, in the lobby of my office.”
“Hold up,” Mae said. “That’s where he went? He bailed on Cooper and all he told him was that he had something he needed to do.”
Zara pointed at Hannah. “Hannah being the thing he wanted to do.”
Everyone but her laughed. “It wasn’t like that.”
“Did he or did he not come there to kiss you?” Allana asked.
She sat silently because there was no right way to answer that.
“Let her tell the damn story,” Mae said. “I’m dying over here and you all keep interrupting.”
“We did kiss,” Hannah said, “but this time I was the one to push him away.”
“Why,” all four of them said at the same time.
“Because he was right, I hadn’t been thinking straight when I kissed him the first time. I might not have been drunk but I was thinking with my feelings instead of my head. I have a job and I need to keep it. I can’t kiss or do anything else with Edwin.”
“I want to rip that fucking contract to shreds,” Mae said angrily.
“I see Cooper’s language is rubbing off on you,” Zara said to Mae, completely seriously.
It was a well-known fact that Cooper Holland cursed like a trucker.
“Cooper didn’t invent the word.” Mae rolled her eyes. “Unlike him, I don’t drop it six times in an eight-word sentence.”
“People,” Ruby said loudly, “can we please stay on track?” She looked at Hannah, softening her voice. “Forget the contract. Assume it doesn’t exist. Would you want to be with Edwin? Would you want him to show up and kiss you?”
She let out a strangled laugh. “Yes. So much yes.” That was an easy answer. The rest was not easy. “ But I can’t forget the contract. Even less now.”
Allana narrowed her eyes. “What does that mean?”
Hannah sighed, took a large sip from her margarita, and then leaned back in her chair. “My boss saw security footage of us kissing and put me on administrative leave.”
No one said anything. They all just stared at her, mouths open.
“Now you see why I can’t ignore the contract.”
Zara was the first to speak. “I really hate that place. They treat their employees like prisoners and they aren’t much better with their clients. You should hear the things Heath has told me.”
“Who’s Heath?” Mae asked.
Zara clapped a hand over her mouth as her eyes went wide, realizing that she’d just spilled the beans about her having a brother who was an athlete.
“It’s fine,” Hannah said. “Heath is my brother and until a day or so ago, was also a client at Top Athlete. Now he’s with Zara.”
“He plays soccer?” Mae asked.
“No,” Hannah shook her head. “He plays baseball.”
“Are you talking about Heath freaking Bailey!” Allana practically yelled.
“That’s him,” she answered, pointing at Allana with her margarita.
“Heath Bailey is your brother?” Ruby asked. “Even I know who he is.”
“He uses their mom’s maiden name,” Zara answered for her before they could question it. “Their dad is Buck Temple, a huge star on his own and Heath didn’t want to make it on his dad’s name. Before he started college, he changed it.”
“Proposal,” Allana said, lifting her drink. “We have until we all finish this first margarita to talk about Edwin. After that, I don’t want to hear his name.”
Hannah could get on board with that. Now, if only they could remove her thoughts of him from her brain.
“Let’s set aside the fact that your dumbass employer caught you on camera kissing Edwin,” Ruby said. “What happened when you first saw him? Surely you two didn’t run to each other romance movie style?”
She wasn't that far off. “There was no running. He said my name and then we just sort of stared at each other.” She remembered the way his jaw ticked and the way his eyes held her, full of emotion and need. “Somehow we moved closer and closer, both of us breathing heavily until kissing was the only option.”
“Jesus, that’s hot.” Mae fanned herself with her hand.
“Did he say anything?” Zara asked.
“After I stopped the kiss, he asked why. Why I’d stopped this one after I’d been the one to kiss him that first time.” His voice, filled with both sadness and anger at her answer would live in her mind forever.
“I think I need to be honest here before this goes any further,” Ruby said. “I already knew about you and Edwin.”
“What?” Hannah said, wondering what she could mean.
“He’s Dallas’ best friend and he and I have gotten close. He told Dallas about you guys being friends years ago and then I found out. I also knew about the kiss and that he wanted to talk to you in person, although I had no idea he actually came to see you. He never told me that.” She frowned. “Talking to you was my idea.”
Hannah shook her head incessantly. “How?”
“I saw you run from the party and I went in search of Edwin. He told me what happened and I suggested talking to you.”
“Wait,” Mae said. “Do you know more than you’re letting on? Does he also like her?” Mae’s eyes were huge and in disbelief.
“I’m not going to say anymore. It’s not my place. But I will tell you the same thing I told him. Talk to him. You were friends, best friends from what you both said. You know how to have a conversation. Stop being angry at each other and just talk. As someone who almost lost the best thing that ever happened to her because of fear, I can tell you it’s worth it to do everything in your power if you want another person in your life.”
Hannah’s head was spinning. Edwin had told Dallas about them, about their friendship. She’d had no idea. She’d hid it, keeping it a secret because it felt like it was just hers. Hers and his alone. Nobody else's. And now so many people knew about them. About the kiss.
“What if I don’t know what I want?” She said quietly. Because she didn’t. It was true that her job was becoming a huge stress with little reward. And she wasn’t sure that she wanted more than friendship with Edwin. Yes, she’d kissed him, and yes, she’d said she might love him, but none of that was clear in her head or her heart.
“You tell him that,” Zara said. “I’m no expert on relationships. Hell, you and your brother are my longest ones, and neither of those are sexual, but these ladies know what they’re talking about.”
“Sometimes,” Mae added. “And then sometimes, I still have no clue what I’m doing. Those are the times that I talk to Cooper and tell him what I want and what I need.”
Hannah sighed, picking up her drink. When she was close to the last sip, she looked around the table. “I guess tomorrow I will go see him.”
“That might be a problem,” Allana said, a grimace on her face. “He’s not in town.”
“What do you mean he’s not in town?” Ruby asked, puzzled.
“He ran into Shane yesterday and Shane offered him our cabin up north. He left this morning from what I heard.”
He wasn’t even in town. Hannah had told herself she came for Zara but that was a lie. She’d come for Edwin and he wasn’t even in town.
Wasn’t that just her fucking luck?
Mae’s eyes went wide and an evil smile appeared on her face. Hannah had heard that Mae could be conniving and she was sure she was about to see it in person. “What if Allana lends you the cabin for a few days, not knowing that Shane has done the same with Edwin.”
“But I do know,” Allana pointed out.
“You’re going to conveniently forget,” Mae said with an exaggerated eye roll. “For the sake of love.”
“Or not love,” Zara chimed in. “Just in case that’s what you decide.”
“Is this really a good idea?” Ruby asked, concern evident in her voice.
“It wouldn’t be if you would tell us what Edwin is thinking,” Mae said.
Ruby seemed to think about it but then mimed zipping her lips with her fingers and sat there quietly.
“Decision made,” Zara said.
Hannah wasn’t so sure. But the more she thought about what Ruby had said, the more she wanted to at least fix what was going on between them. She hated being at odds. If they could never be anything more than friends, she’d be okay with that.
Probably.
Looked like she was headed to a cabin where she’d be alone with Edwin.
This could go tits up very quickly. Or it could go tits out. Namely her tits out while Edwin used his very skilled mouth to tease them.
This was either the dumbest idea or the best.