Page 123 of Rhodes

I stop. Every question I've had for four days lines up at once. Ford follows my eyes and shakes his head.

"Don't, dude," he says quietly.

Rage rises up inside me. I ball my fists at my sides, knowing this isn’t about him, even though I want to take it out somewhere.

"She's not your biggest fan right now."

"I'm used to that."

"Then just leave her alone."

"I'm not going to bother her," I assure him.

I make it through eleven points despite the fact that going to the dentist would be more fun than this. I keep thinking that if I fake it until I make it, it will be better.

I miss two balls I should've buried, put one directly into the net, then send an easy return three feet long. Deuce lowers his paddle. "Are you having a stroke?"

"Shut up."

Ford serves.

I don't even see the ball until it skips past my shoe.

"Jesus Christ." Deuce catches it off the back fence. "Go deal with whatever the fuck this is. Chris is ready to step in. Let someone who wants to be here play."

I hand him the ball and walk off the court. Chris fist bumps me as he takes my place.

Jo sees me coming before I make it halfway across the grass. She brings the cup to her mouth, but otherwise doesn't move. I stop a few feet away.

"I just need to know she's okay."

Her mouth presses into a line.

"I'm not asking where she is. I haven't heard her voice in four days. I just need to know she's okay."

Jo looks past me toward Ford. He has very deliberately turned his back on us.

"She's safe."

The breath leaves through my nose.

"Thank you."

I start to turn.

"She stayed with me Tuesday night after she left you. She went to her meeting and then came back to my house."

I stop, but don't say anything. Then I turn back around and walk over, sitting on the wall not too close, but close enough.

"I haven't been back to my house, so you can let her know she can stay there and not worry that I'll be up in her shit. I won't bother her. I just want to make sure she's safe and comfortable."

"I'll let her know. She stayed with me Wednesday, too, because she didn't want to see you. She flew to Charleston after her lab on Thursday."

My hand closes around the paddle grip I'm still carrying for some damn reason.

"She's there now?"

"She was when I talked to her last night."