Page 8 of Always My Comfort
“Do you know anything about the other team?” Scarlett asked, fiddling with the radio station until Luke Combs’s voice crooned through the speakers.
“Not much, but Rich is nervous. They must be worthwhile competition then.”
“I hear Jaxon Dexter is cute.” She swiveled around in her seat to wiggle her brows at me suggestively. “The perfect step in the right direction away from Richard.”
“You do know I am sitting right here?” Matt asked his girlfriend, and she scoffed.
“Of course, honey. I’m looking for a man for my best friend because Richard isn’t her forever man.”
“What happened to not getting involved?” He flipped the turn signal and exited the highway, joining a long line of cars waiting to get into the stadium.
Scarlett huffed, crossed her arms over her chest, and looked out the window. “Seriously, Matthew, I hate when you do that.”
And I seriously hated being the in the middle of their lover spat.
“Do what? Remind you of the things you said you wouldn’t do at home not even an hour ago?” He chuckled, but Scarlett wasn’t amused in the slightest.
Turning to face me, she ignored her boyfriend, who meant well, and placed her hand on my knee.
“You know I mean well, right? Even though this idiot drives me crazy, I want you to be happy like I am. I don’t want you to be miserable anymore.” She squeezed my leg. I knew exactly what she was trying to do; it was what she always did. Taking care of people was what she loved to do most. It was probably why she became a nurse.
Blinking back the sudden prickling behind my eyes, I rested my hand on hers and squeezed. “I know, Scar. I know.”
“I hate it when you two get all emotional, man,” Matt groaned, and Scarlett giggled.
“You’re just jealous, honey.” She turned back to the front and reached for his hand, their fingers interlocking on the center console.
She wasn’t wrong. I wanted what she had with Matt. I wanted that delirious kind of love. The type that knocked me off my feet and showed me exactly what I had been missing in life. The kind of love my parents had.
* * *
We lostthe first game of the season, and Richard was a sore loser. I watched from the stands as he chucked his glove to the dirt and shouted angrily at his coach.
We’d only been together for a year, and the more I observed his behavior, the more I found to hate about him. Regardless, I waited for him like always with Scarlett and Matt at my side, but today, he didn’t reach for me. Instead, he shoved the cameras out of his face and stormed past me and the rest of his fans like I was just some girl he didn’t know.
“What the hell was that about?” Scar wrapped her hand around my forearm as the fans shoved past us to get to him and the other teammates.
“Sore loser,” I mumbled, watching his team follow behind him, heads bent down in disappointment, their girlfriends and wives at their sides.
“We have dinner at Matt’s parents’ tonight, but we can drop you off at home.” She played with a lock of my hair, soothing my racing heart at Richard’s rejection.
“Uh, yea, if you don’t mind,” I stuttered, looking at the empty spot where he’d walked past me. “I can’t believe he did that,” I whispered, turning to her. Without my sunglasses covering my eyes, she could see the tears pooling, and her smile faded.
“It’ll be okay. Maybe he didn’t see you.” She pulled me into a hug, and I sniffled, trying my hardest to keep the tears at bay.
“Maybe.”
She led me to Matt’s Jeep and sat in the backseat with me, wiping away the few stray tears that fell before helping me reapply my lip gloss. She pulled a brush through my knotted hair and squirted some perfume on my neck during the short drive.
“Now, you’re going to walk in there and demand answers. I don’t care if he lost. You’re his girlfriend, and he shouldn’t have treated you like that. I’m a phone call away, okay?” I wrapped my arms around her neck and pulled her into a hug.
“You’re the best. I don’t know what I’d do without you. And Matt, you better take care of her. This one is special, and if you hurt her… Well, I’ll just have to kill you.” My voice cracked, and Matt chuckled, his eyes focused on Scarlett, so much love shining in them.
“I couldn’t hurt her. She’d hurt me first. You know that.”
“Damn right and don’t you ever forget it,” she chirped, getting us all to laugh.
I exited the Wrangler and waved as they pulled away. Entering the lobby of the apartment building, I greet the doorman, who smiled at me and bowed his head.