Page 76 of A Little Secret
“For a little while.” She slips her hands beneath my shirt, drawing circles along my chest. The gentle scratch of her nails against my bare skin feels like fucking heaven. Goosebumps scatter along my spine and out to my limbs. “A month. Two, tops,” she offers.
“Are you talking about us, or are you talking about the baby?”
She hesitates. “Both? I think? My family’s already going to freak out when they find out I’m pregnant. Add in a very new…something…between me and my brother’s best friend, and… You have to see where I’m coming from. Besides, I read online that most people don’t announce their”—she gulps—“pregnancy until they’re out of the first trimester anyway, so really, I’m not even too far behind the average girl. And in the meantime, we can…feel things out. See if this is…what we think it might be before signing our families up for heart attacks.”
I want to tell her no, I don’t want to wait. Hiding shit isn’t going to make it go away. But I know this girl, and agreeing to feel out whatever this is between us instead of fighting it is already a big concession on her part.
“Fine.” I grab her wrist, preventing her from moving. “We’ll give it to the end of the month.”
“Deal.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
GRIFFIN
My legs shake as I lower into one more squat.
“Come on, man, you got this,” Everett encourages me.
We’ve been waking up early and hitting the gym for as long as I can remember, but I’ve never felt more tension than today. Sweat beads along my forehead, but I lower into my squat for the set, squeezing the metal bar across my shoulders.
Muscles burning, I push up through my heels and stand. The weights clang as I slide the bar into place and step back, shaking out my tired legs.
Mav’s working beside Reeves at the leg press, and I take note of the weight he’s using. He might not be on the team anymore, thanks to his medical condition, but he’s stronger than he used to be. Not where he could’ve been if fate hadn’t fucked with his body, but still. Stronger.
“How do you think he’s doin’?” Everett murmurs beside me, keeping his voice quiet so only I can hear him.
I lift a shoulder. “He’ll never be one hundred percent, but he’s better.”
“Yeah.” Everett gives a slow nod. “Pretty sure none of us will ever be one hundred percent after Archer.”
He’s right. We won’t. Losing a best friend is never easy. Losing a best friend the way we lost Archer? It fucked with all our heads in a way I don’t think any of us really grasp. But it doesn’t matter how much time I spend analyzing what went down. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to accept it. Any of it.
I don’t have a chance to respond as my phone begins vibrating in my basketball shorts, and I pull it out.
“Who is it?” Ev asks.
I shrug again and slide my thumb across the screen. “Hello?”
“Hello, Griffin Thorne?” an unfamiliar voice questions.
“Yeah, that’s me. How can I help you?”
“Hello, Mr. Thorne. This is Teresa with the Kansas City Tornadoes.”
Everett’s expression lights up, and he gives me two thumbs up. I turn to face the opposite wall, ignoring him.
“Hello, Teresa,” I say.
“Hi,” she repeats. “How’s your family?”
My forehead bunches until I remember the lie I told her when I canceled my last meeting with the Tornadoes’ General Manager.
“They’re, uh, they’re good,” I lie.
“Well, that’s good to hear. I’ll be sure to pass along the update to the team and everyone here at the organization.”
“Uh, thanks?” I shake my head. “Thanks.”