***
Tanner’s apartment was pitch black again when I walked in. With all the windows, it should have been impossible. It was like he’d installed blackout curtains just for this occasion. I stumbled into the great room and Tanner turned on the small lamp he’d set up yesterday morning.
But this time there were two wingback chairs. One for Tanner and one for Nigel. They were both pretending to read newspapers and I cringed, wondering if there was a picture of Poppy and me plastered somewhere in there.
“You broke curfew again,” Nigel said and slammed his paper on the ground. “We were worried sick, Mr. Caldwell. How could you…”
“Nigel, please, you sound hysterical,” Tanner said and folded his paper neatly. “Matt, we were worried sick! How could you do this to me two nights in a row!”
He sounded almost exactly as hysterical as Nigel had been. “I’m really sorry…”
“Sorry? You’re…you’re grounded, young man.”
I laughed. “What?”
“Go to your room immediately.”
“Tanner.”
“Fine, I can’t ground you because you’re practically an adult.” He threw his paper on the ground. “But seriously, what the actual hell?”
I walked over to him. “I’m really sorry, man.”
“Actions speak louder than words.”
“What if I told you I have a really good reason?” Honestly, Tanner was more invested in my love life than anyone else. He was going to be thrilled when he heard about Kennedy.
Tanner sighed. “Out with it then.”
“Tanner?” a girl called from somewhere down the hall. “Are you coming back to bed?”
I laughed. “So you weren’t that worried,” I said.
“It’s better to be distracted while worried. It makes time fly.” He turned around. “I’ll be back in a minute!” he called to her.
“Isn’t the saying that time flies when you’re having fun?”
He shrugged. “Yeah, distractions can be fun. Tell me your thing.”
For once I could make him wait. Yes, I’d kept him worried all night. But he’d been busy with that girl. Surely he wasn’t that worried. And he always made me wait for stuff. “I’ll tell you tonight.”
“What, when you don’t come home before curfew?”
“Sick burn, Master,” Nigel said. He lifted up his hand and Tanner slapped it. But it seemed like Nigel was going for more of a handshake. Because he ended up awkwardly grabbing Tanner’s hand mid-high-five.
“Nigel, whatever are you doing?” Tanner pulled away. “High-fives are the protocol right now. We’ve discussed this.”
Nigel nodded. “Yes, Master.”
So weird.
“Ignore Nigel. He’s forgetful,” Tanner said. “When can I expect you home this evening? Don’t answer that. I have the perfect restaurant. And before you roll your eyes, you owe me.”
“I never roll my eyes,” I said.
“Internally. And before you even ask, yes, I’ll be scoping out the place for events. And yes, you do have to pretend to be my date. So come to terms with your masculinity and get over it. If you’ll excuse me, Veronica needs my assistance.”
“Your assistance?”
Tanner laughed. “I may have tied her up. It’s truly refreshing. Women get kinkier and kinkier as time marches on.”
“What, since you were in high school?”
“Hmm? Yes. Exactly.” He picked up the paper off the floor. I didn’t see any sign of Poppy’s forced pictures on the page he’d been on.
“Nigel will send you the location of the restaurant,” Tanner said. “7 o’clock sharp. I don’t want to be late for our reservation.” He walked away, knowing that I wouldn’t say no. I was kind of at his mercy here.
“Here you go, Mr. Caldwell,” Nigel said and produced one of those green hangover smoothies. “Just in case.”
“Thanks, Nigel. What’s the secret ingredient in this anyway?” I took a sip and the little bit of pressure in my head faded instantly.
“It’s a secret,” Nigel said with a wink.
I forced myself to swallow down the sip I’d taken. The way Nigel said it made it really seem like he’d skeeted in it or something. “Um…I should get to work.” I tried to hand it back to him.
“Once you finish that. And your lunch is packed. I’ll draw you another bath tonight, but no rose petals this time. They’re a pain to fish out of cold, unused bath water.”
“I’m sorry about the last two nights. But I don’t need you to draw me a bath, Nigel. We’ve been over this.”
“It’s no problem. I like preparing it for you. Have a good day at work, Mr. Caldwell.” He turned on his heel and walked away too.
Tanner was really generous for letting me stay with him. But tonight I would fill him in on the deal I’d made with Poppy. As long as I kept pretending to be Poppy’s boyfriend, I could be safe back at my place. I wasn’t sure how much more I could take of Nigel. I picked up one of their discarded papers and flipped through it.
There was a picture of Poppy holding my hand on top of the table. It looked intimate and quite real. I cringed and threw out both papers. I needed to explain this to Kennedy. And to my friends before they all jumped to a wild conclusion. Well, not that wild, considering the picture. I shot off a text to James asking him to meet up, already knowing what his reaction would be. He’d tell me not to get mixed up with someone from Mr. Pruitt’s family. Because there was no way out.
Chapter 33
Thursday
I kept looking over my shoulder. But it wasn’t because I was scared someone was out there watching me. I was just excited for Kennedy to arrive. Inviting her here may not have been my best idea. But I thought if she could stand on this field and feel okay with it…then we could figure everything else out.
Mrs. Alcaraz had implied that Kennedy was a flight risk. I’d never seen her that way, though. She was loyal. Moving out of the city hadn’t made her forget about Brooklyn. It had just given her the space she needed to live. I hadn’t allowed myself that space. But maybe I was ready. Honestly, if I wasn’t coaching this team, I’d probably convince Kennedy to jump on a flight with me today. I’d go anywhere as long as it was far away from here. I think I needed some distance. I think I was allowed that.
I exhaled slowly. Brooklyn would have wanted me to be happy. Just like she would have wanted me to make sure things were right with James. I was going to stop by his place after dinner with Tanner. I’d fix it. I’d fix everything I’d made a mess of.
I watched Jefferson’s extra point attempt. This time the ball didn’t even leave the ground. It just rolled along the grass, looking as sad and defeated as Jefferson.
I blew my whistle to call him over.
“You’re hitting your laces again.”
“Am I?” He looked like he had no idea he’d made any kind of mistake.
How many times had we talked about this? This kid was going to be the death of me. “Take a deep breath for me.” I’d read that meditation could really help with focus.