Fumbled (The Girls of Beachmont #1) (21 page)

“JT, the Quakes managed to pull out a win today, but there
were a lot of mistakes. What do you think the team needs to do before the game
against the Hustlers?”

“You know, we’re still working on it and we have a great
coaching staff who’s figuring it all out, so we just need to listen and see
what they come up with,” he said while the short man man nodded.

“The defense was pretty good out there, but it looked like
you had to rein in a few of your teammates,” short, obnoxious Kip noted.

“These guys are my brothers. We’re good.”

“We heard that your girlfriend Danielle wasn’t able to make
it tonight. Do you think that affected your concentration?”

“Absolutely not. She’s working and I know she’d be here if
she could,” he said with a smile before looking right into the camera. “I’ll
see you later tonight, baby. I love you.”

Dad looked at me and
laughed, nudging my knee with his. “He’ll see you soon, baby,” he cooed.

“Shut up, Dad,” I
laughed and flushed with embarrassment.

Tabor would be home
soon. The game was over, and even though training camp wasn’t, he was at least
able to return to his home. I’d finally get to spend a little more time with
him. There were still daily practices and long days, but at least he’d have the
chance to come to my place or I could go to his. The only thing that mattered
to me was being able to see his face…and
not
see it on a television screen.

I left Mom and Dad’s and
decided to wait at home for Tabor’s call – only the silence was
excruciating and made the time seem to pass too slowly. I’d cleaned my kitchen,
folded some laundry, and organized my pantry, all in an effort to keep me busy.
My phone rang and I jumped up to answer it, almost dropping the device in the
process.

“Hello?” I asked,
without looked at the caller ID.

“You okay?” Grace asked.
“What time does he get in?”

“Anytime now, I think.
He’s supposed to call. Hopefully it won’t be too late, because I’m dying to see
him.”

“Have you gotten
everything set up for your classroom?”

“Almost. I was there
every day last week, but between my class and getting the program ready, I’m
spread so thin.”

“I’ll bet your boss is
pretty happy you were able to get the funding to come through,” she said. She
was proud of what I’d done for the students.

“Actually, I haven’t
seen Mr. Lopez. I’ve heard chatter that he might be getting a promotion, so
maybe that’s why he hasn’t been around.”

There was a knock at the
door and I walked over to peek through the window. I sucked in a rush of air,
seeing Tabor’s towering figure looming in front of me.

“Gracie, I gotta go,” I
said absently, hanging up the phone before she could ask any questions.

When I opened the door,
Tabor dropped his duffle bag to the ground and I leapt into his arms, holding
him as if I hadn’t seen him in years. Two weeks wasn’t long for many, but to me,
in a very new relationship with someone I adored, two weeks had been an
eternity.

His arms wrapped around
me, holding me close as he buried his face in my neck, breathing me in. I don’t
know how long we stood outside, without speaking, but it was perfection.

“I missed you so much,”
I admitted.

He set me on my feet and
looked down at me.

“What are you doing
here? I thought you were going to call me when you got home.”

“Got my car and drove
straight here. I didn’t want to wait to see you.”

I stepped aside and he
grabbed his things, walking in behind me. He looked absolutely worn out, so I
took the heavy bag from his hand and dropped it on the floor, leading him
upstairs to my room. Tabor sat on the edge of my bed and watched as I scurried
around, straightening up the clothes tossed on the floor.

“Leave it. Come here,”
he instructed with his arms outstretched. He enveloped me and lay back, pulling
me on top of him. I laughed when he groaned, exhausted from his weeks of
practice and torture.

“Are you tired?” I
asked, snuggling against his chest. “Because I could so sleep right now.”

“I’m exhausted,” he
admitted.

He sat up and brought me
along with him, his arm still wrapped around my waist. He had to look up to see
my face and I liked the angle; he was beautiful.

“I missed you too,” he
said, responding to my earlier admission, and then he kissed me softly. “Let’s
go to bed.”

“Sounds good to me,” I
answered. “I’ll be right back, I need to turn off everything downstairs.”

I disappeared down the
steps and made my rounds to make sure the condo was locked up. I returned to
see the shirtless back of Tabor as he pulled the covers back on my bed. But
when he turned around, I gasped as I caught sight of a purpling bruise near his
ribs. I rushed over and examined it closer, dread filling me.

“It looks worse than it
feels,” he said quietly. “Doc checked it out already and says it’ll be fine.”

I stood upright and
looked into his eyes, trying to hide my fear, but I knew it was there for him
to see. Tabor wrapped his arms around me and my hands gripped his bare back.

“Dani?” He moved his
hands to my arms and moved me so he could see my face. “I promise, I’m okay. I
wouldn’t lie to you.”

“Okay,” I conceded. I
wasn’t a doctor—who was I to argue? But I was the girlfriend, and I needed
him to be whole.

“But I could use some
aspirin, I have a bit of a headache,” he admitted.

“Did the doc check that
out too?” I asked. “You took some big hits tonight.”

“Nah, I’m probably just
dehydrated, that’s all,” he answered dismissively.

“Are you sure?”

“I just need aspirin,
water, and you…and I’ll be fine,” he said with a smile.

The medicine was in my
bathroom and I closed the door behind me so he didn’t see the fear I was trying
too hard to hide. I took a few deep breaths and glanced at my reflection in the
mirror. To myself I appeared more haggard than I’d seen in a while, and I
couldn’t help but wonder if those new lines on my face were of the
worry
variety.

“He’s fine,” I whispered
to myself.

I grabbed the pill
bottle and filled a cup with water from the tap and exhaled.

“He’s been doing this
for a long time,” I reminded myself as I opened the door and found Tabor in my
bed.

“Did you say something?”
he asked when I handed him the cup and medicine.

“No,” I lied, as I
turned out the lights and climbed into bed. I snuggled against him and pressed
my ear to his chest so I could listen to his heartbeat. The sound lulled me
into a peaceful rest and it was there that I let my fears dissipate.

At least for the night.

D A N I

“Ms. Miner,” Mr. Lopez
called out as I was walking toward my classroom, a loaded box in my arms. “I
need to see you in my office.”

“Okay, just let me drop
this off in my room,” I answered absently.

“No. We need to talk
now. Just set it on the front desk.”

I stood immobile, trying
to wrap my mind around his words. I felt like I was in trouble, but I sat my
things down and followed him into his office.

“Close the door,
please,” he said, taking his seat and waiting for me to join.

“Is everything okay?” I
asked.

“I’m afraid not,” he
started slowly. “I’m not sure if you’ve heard the news, but I’ve been promoted
to the high school, effective immediately.”

“Congratulations. That’s
wonderful news for them—of course I hate to see you go,” I admitted, and
it was the truth. He’d been a strong ally for all the teachers, always going to
bat for us when he was needed.

“There’s more,” he said.
He clicked the keys on his computer and cleared his throat. “I’ve been asked to
handle a certain situation before I leave.”

“What
situation
would that be?”

He turned the screen to
face me and I saw pictures of Tabor, similar to the ones I had seen with Grace.
But these were ones I hadn’t seen of the two of us before. Private alone time
with my boyfriend had been posted for public consumption.

Upon further
examination, they were taken using a long lens, something I knew because of
Grace’s love of photography. It was extremely intrusive and made me want to
cover myself as if I had reason to hide. There was nothing inappropriate, but
it was still alarming.

Personal moments between
the two of us were captured and plastered on the Internet for curious and nosy
people to view and comment on. It was easy to forget that I didn’t have the
same luxuries afforded to other couples, because I was with JT Hunter and
he
belonged to the city. Our sweet hugs
and innocent kisses were made to look tawdry and scathing—but we had
assumed we were alone.

“I’m not following,” I
finally said. “It’s not exactly news that I’m dating JT.”

“I know, but there’s
more,” he said.

“More?”

Mr. Lopez nodded and
looked away, dejected—maybe even apologetic—as he turned his screen
around and tapped his fingers on the keys again. Slowly, he moved it so I could
have the same view, and I was humiliated.

No one knew of my
stand-in for the real model for the Radical Generation photo shoot. Well, at
least until my sister found out. I figured that Damian would see the proofs and
demand a reshoot, possibly find someone else to endorse the clothing line. I
never expected the images to see the light of day. Yet there they were splashed
across the Fangurl Sports Gossip homepage.

The images were
beautiful, capturing sweet moments between Tabor and me from the session. They
were not inappropriate in nature, but it was the first time I’d seen them.

“Now you see what’s
going on,” Mr. Lopez said.

“I really don’t. Mr.
Lopez, what are you saying?”

Without saying a word,
he pointed to the screen and I realized there was a write-up along with it.

Hunter or the Hunt
ed

Looks like JT Hunter and his girlfriend were seen making a
splash on the beach prior to training camp. Hunter was on location shooting an
ad for Radical Generation Clothing and was set to pose alongside Candayce
Evans. Sources claim that Ms. Evans and Mr. Hunter’s heated chemistry was
enough to make his new girlfriend see green.

Another source was quoted as saying that Ms. Miner was seen
cozying up to the Radical Generation clothing designer and owner, Damian
Salinger, when Hunter wasn’t around.

We can only imagine how stunning the shoot would have been
with Hunter and Evans as the subject, but one can dream. Apparently, after
seeing the vibes between the two, Miner made sure the pair was unable to work
together.

According to Ms. Evans, Hunter’s girlfriend threw a tantrum
and accused the popular model of flirting with her boyfriend, making a scene.
Danielle Miner, a teacher at River Valley Junior High, demanded that Mr. Hunter
walk from the job or find another solution. It was then that Ms. Evans, ever
the professional, graciously backed out.

Sounds like Ms. Miner needs a wakeup call. Men don’t like
possessive, demanding, needy women. We reached out to Ms. Miner, but she was
unavailable for comment.

Leads one to wonder if the mild-mannered schoolteacher is
nothing more than a gold digger. Stay tuned for more.

My knees trembled and I
covered my mouth. I was never contacted in any way for confirmation of the
story, and I wanted to scream. Finally looking over to the man I considered not
only my boss but my mentor, I shook my head.

“This isn’t true. None
of it is,” I defended weakly.

“I believe you,” he said
sadly, but clasped his hands together solemnly. “But it’s not enough.”

“What does that mean?”

“The administration got
wind of the story, and though they can’t force anything, they have asked that you
take a temporary leave of absence—paid, of course.”

“But if I didn’t do
anything wrong, why do I need to hide?”

“Truth is, we’ve been
getting a lot of phone calls since your relationship with JT Hunter came to
light, but after this latest story, it’s putting you in a bad light. Since the
story mentions our school, we can no longer bury our heads in the sand.”

“I’ve been coming in for
weeks setting up my class, organizing everything for the after-school program,
and no one has said anything to me about people calling the school.”

“It wasn’t an issue
until today,” he admitted. “I was handling it and instructed the office staff
not to answer any questions. Everyone here has great respect for you and knows
the story isn’t true. Unfortunately, perception is reality.”

“So I’m fired?”

I’d given my blood,
sweat, and tears to that school. I wasn’t a teacher because it was an easy job
or for the summers off—I did it because I
loved
my students. How were they able to toss me aside like trash
over one damn story…a story that was absolute bullshit?

“Not fired,” he
corrected. “We just need you to take a break. Go on vacation. Spend some time
with family. This will blow over in a few weeks.”

“Weeks? What, and then I
can come back? What about my students? What about River’s Kids?” I asked the
questions in rapid succession.

“We’re working on
finding someone to carry it in the interim. I know this is difficult to hear,
Dani, but it’s only temporary.”

“When does this happen?”

Mr. Lopez remained
quiet, unable to look at me, and I knew.

“Immediately,” I
muttered. I stood up and ran my palms along the sides of my jeans and righted
my posture. “Thank you, Mr. Lopez. I appreciate you seeing me and I wish you
good luck in your new job.”

Before he could say
anything, or before I would break down, I left his office, ignoring the box I
had set on the front desk. Millie was walking toward me, and I didn’t stop on
my quest to get outside into the safety and solitude of my car.

“Dani,” she called out,
but I threw my hand up, waving, unable to speak.

***

Millie called numerous
times between the time I got in my car and when I got home. I hadn’t answered a
single one. Grace called and left a message, but I didn’t bother listening to
it. In my case, misery loved solitude.

And then there was the
call from Tabor that I declined as soon as it rang.

It wasn’t his fault. He
didn’t do anything wrong, but I was angry and hurt and humiliated.

It was only one o’clock
when I got home, but I had nothing better to do so I opened a bottle of wine
and poured myself a glassful. I was afraid to turn on the television, unsure
what I’d see, so I plugged in my iPod and let the music play at an unreasonable
decibel.

Before I knew where the
time had gone, I’d finished the entire bottle and it was only three, so I did
what any depressed, angry woman would do…I opened another bottle.

“Dani,” a muffled voice
said as my body rocked gently from side to side. “Wake up.”

My lids began to open
slowly, feeling like sandpaper against my eyes, but I kept them closed, feeling
a slight relief. My head pounded from the loud music, so I grabbed a pillow to
cover my ears in an attempt to drown it out.

“Dani, wake up.”

When I finally found the
source of the movement, I jolted upright and moved backward, staring at Tabor
kneeling in front of me, his concern etched on his face.

“I’ve been calling you
all day,” he said.

I closed my eyes and
recalled the earlier conversation with my boss and grew both angry and sad.
There I was, the man I loved worrying about me, and all I could see was what
the relationship was costing me.

“Bad day,” I said, not
caring to elaborate. “I’m sorry I worried you.”

“Are you okay?” His hand
rested on top of my shoulder, his eyes full of concern.

“What time is it?” I
responded, ignoring his question.

“Nine,” he answered.

Nine?

I sat up and cradled my
head in my hands as my arms rested on my knees. Recalling the disastrous day, I
shook my head and I could feel a wave of defeat overcoming me.
Again.

“Can you talk to me?” he
asked.

“I’m really tired, I
just want to go to bed,” I answered in defeat as I stumbled to my feet. He was
still on his knees as I moved past him and his hand grazed mine, but it didn’t
stop me. My mind was solely focused on what was happening to me, but I’d have
to deal with it eventually. Despite Tabor looking as defeated as I felt, I was
selfishly only worried about myself.

He was behind me as I
made my way up the stairs, my steps slow and heavy.

I should have washed my
face.

I should have brushed my
teeth.

I should have done lots
of things, but I did
none
of them.

I didn’t bother changing
my clothes, either. Instead I climbed into bed and pulled the covers over me,
waiting for sleep to return. My body tensed for a moment when I felt the bed
shift as Tabor got into bed beside me.

His arm snaked across my
stomach as he moved closer, pushing his chest firmly against my back. I didn’t
want him to hold me, and yet I needed him exactly where he was. And when he
remained quiet, I was thankful. But the silence didn’t last.

“What are you thinking?”
Tabor whispered over my shoulder. “Talk to me.”

“Like I said, a bad
day,” I answered.

“Do you need to talk
about it?”

I shook my head and
squeezed my eyes shut, willing the emotions to stay away. His concern was
tearing me apart because the job situation was
my
problem, not his. And though I knew it wasn’t his fault, a part
of me blamed him. If I hadn’t fallen in love with him, I wouldn’t be where I
was.

“Clearly something is
wrong and you’re shutting me out.”

“Maybe I’m not cut out
for this,” I said quietly.

“For what?”

“This. Us. Football.
Watching you get hit and injured, it’s scary,” I admitted, though it was only a
ruse so I didn’t have to discuss what was
actually
wrong.

It was easy to say when
he couldn’t look into my eyes. I knew that if he could see my face, he’d know
everything I was thinking. So I kept my voice steady and convinced myself that
I believed my own words.

“I’m fine, Dani. I
promise. You just need to have a little faith in me.”

“You know that football
isn’t my thing, and watching the person I love going head to head kills me. It
hurts me to see you hurt. I don’t know how your mom does it. She has to be one
of the strongest women on the planet,” I said.

“She’s been watching it
for a long time. Trust me, she wasn’t always so cool.” He laughed and it echoed
against my back. He placed his hand on my shoulder and pulled me to that I was
lying on my back. His weight rested on his arm and as Tabor looked into my
eyes, the moonlight from outside was the only thing illuminating his face. Why
did he have to look at me like that, like he could read my mind?

Tabor was beautiful, and
not in the traditional sense. Every imperfect part of him, each scar and gash
that marred his body, made him beautiful. The way he looked at me like I was
the only thing that mattered…made him beautiful.

“I’m sorry,” I confessed
sadly. “I wish I were stronger, but it’s so damn hard. I watched your game with
my parents, and I think I spent the entire game when you were on the field
holding my breath and watching through my fingers. And when you were hit, I
worried that it was too much. Too hard.”