On The Rebound (Steinbeck U #1) - L.A. Cotton Page 0,101

she whispered, “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

I gave her a small nod and got the hell out of there.

“I didn’t expect you to call,” Maverick said as he approached me. I snatched the ball to my chest and stopped to greet him.

“Me neither,” I admitted. “I’m sorry to bring you out here but I needed to talk to someone who’d understand.”

“Don’t be. I’m glad you called. Let me guess, you and Calli finally had that talk?”

“Something like that.”

He motioned to the bench and we both sat down. Placing the ball at my feet, I grabbed a bottle of water and chugged it down. “You were right.”

“You’ve going to have to give me a little more than that...” He shot me an amused smile.

“I got it wrong. Back when we were in high school… I got it so fucking wrong.”

“Hey, man,” he clapped me on the shoulder, “it happens to the best of us.”

“I think deep down I always expected her to leave me.” My head hung low as I circled my thumbs. “Declan was the popular one, the one all the girls wanted. He was the golden child...”

“You were scared of losing her.”

“Yeah, I was fucking scared. Calli was the only person in the world who got me. So when I heard her tell my dad she didn’t love me, I didn’t stick around to hear the rest.” I’d gone into full defensive mode, barricading my heart behind a steel fortress. At the time, I’d told myself cutting her out of my life was the right thing to do—the strong thing. I didn’t need her. I didn’t need anyone.

“My old man encouraged it,” I murmured.

“What do you mean?”

I let out an exasperated breath, meeting Maverick’s confused stare. “After things between me and Calli went south, he told me I needed to forget about her. Said that now Declan was off at college it was my time to shine and follow in their footsteps. And I fell for it.”

I’d been so angry and hurt, that I knew it was the perfect revenge. Not only would I cut Calli out of my life for good, but I’d become one of the best damn players Bay View had ever seen. I’d become the thing she’d always hated.

What a fucking chump I was.

“He played me.” Because I was too heartbroken to see the truth. “I didn’t even give her a chance to explain.” I slammed my fist down on the bench.

“You know, my dad was an asshole. A real controlling, interfering type.”

“Was?” I asked.

“Still is.” Maverick shrugged. “But I cut him out of my life for good in senior year.”

“You think I should cut him out—”

“That’s not what I’m saying. You only get one family, Zach. Only you know if his actions come from a genuine place. I knew my father’s didn’t. He didn’t care about me. He only cared about his legacy, about keeping up appearances. But something tells me that it might not be so cut and dry with your dad.”

I considered his words. Timothy Messiah wasn’t a bad person, he was just highly driven and motivated. He’d had his shot at going pro cut short, but he was determined not to let that happen to his sons.

Maverick was right, his intentions came from a good place. They just got lost in translation along the way.

“Have you ever told him what you want?” Maverick asked.

“Most of time, I’m not even sure what I want.”

If I wanted basketball, I would always be in Declan’s shadow. If I didn’t, I’d be giving up something that had become a part of me. Something that, no matter how hard it was to admit, I needed.

And I was good.

No, I was fucking great.

I had a shot at going all the way. But I’d never let myself think too far ahead... until Declan’s accident.

“You need to talk to someone,” Maverick said.

“Why do you think I called you?” The corner of my mouth tipped.

“I don’t mean me. I mean a professional or the college guidance counselor. Someone with actual training.”

“I’m not going to see a shrink.”

“It might help. You have a lot of residual shit going on in there.” He motioned to my head. “Add in what happened to Declan and you transferring here, and now this stuff with Calli... it’s bound to take its toll.”

“Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence,” I snorted. But deep down, I knew he was right.

The chances of Declan ever waking up grew smaller with each passing day. Even if