Page 35 of Fierce Storm
“Right. I never pictured Luke as a matchmaker.”
“Oh, you have no idea. It’s become like a sport to him.”
“With all his friends?”
“Nope. Just Keeley.”
“I bet shelovesthat.” The words are out of my mouth before I can process it, and Paige doesn’t bother hiding her intrigue.
“Your sarcasm is spot on. She hates it. I think it’s because she’s hiding something. You two don’t talk about that stuff?”
“What? No. We talk about work.”
“All the time?”
“Yes.”
“But you’re friends, right?” She raises a brow and I nod in confirmation.
“We are.” After everything happened with Zane, it was harder to hide the close friendship Keeley and I had, since Hayley and Reed had seen it firsthand. Only our friendship isn’t exactly traditional in the way Paige is thinking.
“So…it can’t all be about work.” Her brows knit together, and I know it stems from her concern for my lack of a social life. I’m surprised she hasn’t asked Luke to try and set me up.
“Do you think we sit around painting each other’s toenails while talking about our love lives?” I smirk and Paige shakes her head, her concern instantly gone, exactly as planned.
“I would pay to see that. I’m not sure if I’ve said it before, but I’m glad you have each other. You both work too hard. I feel better knowing you’re not alone.”
You and me both, Kid.“It’s nice knowing someone else is in the building at all hours. Only, I’m an old man; I don’t haveanything else going on. Keeley should go out more. Maybe you can help with that.”
“Maybe I can.” Paige nods with a smile, and while I’m the one that suggested it, a pit forms in my stomach. A selfish pit. Because I like having her around. “Maybe we need to take a different approach when it comes to her love life. Thanks, Dad.”
“Happy to help.”
What the fuck did I just do?
With the draft approaching, the topic of Thomas’s replacement surfaces again now that it’s apparent our second QB isn’t going to be fit enough to play. And it’s safe to say, it’s elicited an acceptable level of panic. We won the Super Bowl last season, and to be without a star quarterback now is less than ideal.
I’m the first to arrive for our Monday morning meeting, and as the room fills, I scan my notes, glancing up every time the door opens.
With a minute to spare before we begin, Keeley walks in looking like the epitome of a fucking bombshell with a new, wavy shoulder-length bob, and my eyes bulge before I quickly recover. Not before opening my big mouth.
“You cut your hair,” I rush out the second she sits down, silencing everyone at the table.
“I did. Thank you for noticing.” She rakes her fingers through the strands, her expression confident, despite the fact that it’s probably not something I should have mentioned.
I almost tell her it’s hardnotto notice, but I manage to hold back the remark, turning my attention to our general manager,Wes. “And you got glasses?” I smile, my tone lifting, thankful that he too walked in with a new look.
“I did. For reading. Thanks for noticing.” He chuckles to himself as I tap my papers on the table.
“What can I say? I’m an observant fucker when I want to be.”
“It’s appreciated,” Wes jokes before launching into the reason we’re all here—our lack of a quarterback—and my chest tightens. “As I’m sure you’ve heard, Lawrence injured himself again playing a friendly game of football with his family last week,afterhe was cleared to play by the team trainers and the third-party doctors who assured us he was fit. It’s no one’s fault; it was a freak injury, but it now leaves us down two quarterbacks for next season.” Wes is so calm you’d think he was discussing dropping his sandwich at lunchtime, and it settles my mind. If he’s not worried, I shouldn’t be either. “We already planned to secure one in the draft, but we need star power and we don’t have the picks to secure that,” he continues, stating the obvious. “The team and I have a suggestion.”
“One suggestion?”Dammit. I force a smile while my stomach knots again. I trust Wes. I’m sure he knows what he’s doing.
“It’s a good one,” he confirms, putting me at ease. Wes is a straight shooter. It didn’t take long for me to learn there’s no smoke and mirrors when it comes to him. He says what he thinks and he always does what’s best.
“Let’s hear it.”
