“Yes, sorry about her. She’s old-fashioned in her views, and she also hates every woman I bring home.”
I can see the shadow of her mouth as it quirks up into a smile. “I see.”
“Not that I have a lot of women over,” I say quickly.
“Sure, sure. You know, you’re not the only one the tabloids like to talk about.”
“Whatever you read is a lie.”
“Uh huh.”
True, I’ve had a lot of women. Maybe not as many as the press likes to make out, but enough to write about, I suppose. But that was back when I first joined the team and I was drunk on money and fame and adoration. I would like to think I’ve calmed down since then. I’d like to think I’ve grown up.
And I don’t want Thalia to see me like that. I’m not the manwhore they make me out to be.
It’s not long before we’re pulling through the gates and security checkpoints, and I’m getting out of the car. Manuel helps me out while Thalia uses her badge to gain access to our building.
We go up the lift and down the hall to my room, where Manuel brings me over to the bed.
“I’ll be waiting outside,” he says to Thalia. “Whenever you’re ready.”
I thank him for his help and then he leaves.
It’s just us in my bedroom, the lights dim.
Thalia’s face is grave, her brows knitting together as she makes me comfortable, propping up a pillow under my knee and slowly undoing the brace. “I suppose I should have brought you to the examination room but we can do the work up here. I didn’t want to tire Manuel out, hauling you all over the place.”
She opens the brace and then switches on the bedside light to get a better look.
“It seems okay,” she says. “I can see if they’ll run an MRI in the morning.”
“Honestly I think I just bent it the wrong way. I was just trying to get up after dinner.”
“Ate too much?”
I laugh. “Definitely. My mother tries to overfeed me, like a pig being fattened for the slaughter. Now that I’m injured, I’m powerless against her.”
She gives me a gentle smile. She’s so fucking sweet.
“My mother used to do the same when I was a kid. All my brothers pretended they never needed to be babied, but since I was her only daughter, when I was sick, she was at my side twenty-four seven. Shoving chicken soup in my mouth and giving me cough syrup that made me feel all drowsy, rubbing Vicks VapoRub on my feet.”
“On your feet?”
“I can’t remember if it worked or not, but that’s what she did.” She stares at my knee and then gently touches it.
It hurts, but not as much as earlier.
“I think you just have to be more careful,” she says after she pokes and prods some more. “The brace will protect you as much as it can, but you still have to take it easy.” She pauses and straightens up. The sight of her at the end of the bed does something to me, like she’s slowly pulling at whatever strings I have inside holding me together, making me unravel.
I don’t mind being unraveled by her. I only wish I could do the same.
“What?” she asks, her voice soft as I stare at her.
“Are you leaving?”
She swallows and folds her arms across her chest, almost as if she’s cold. “Yeah.”
“You won’t stay the night?”
“Here?”
“You have your own room…”
She rubs her lips together in thought before she slowly saunters over to me, arms still crossed. “You’re a football player at the top of his game. You’ve dealt with injuries before. Your knee is going to be fine. Don’t tell me you’re afraid to be here alone.”
I feel something hot flash inside me. Without thinking, I reach out and grab her hand. “I’m not afraid to be alone,” I tell her. My voice is rough but my touch is soft. “I just want you to be with me.”
Something comes over her face, maybe desire, maybe disappointment. I can’t tell. “Alejo,” she says gently in the kind of tone that no good can come from. “I can’t be with you.”
“You can just stay the night.”
“I can’t. I’m going to go home. Manuel is waiting for me.”