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“I already planned to keep her with me. She can be in the training rooms with me and stick close to my side,” I offer.
I’m there in case of an emergency, so as long as nothing catastrophic happens, there isn’t much to do. The trainers tend to make sure all the players are bandaged up prior to the game.
“I am sure Phoenix can show her around, too,” Drew says, and I nod. That’s actually not a bad idea. She’s been through trauma herself and could probably offer more comfort and understanding than any of us on the team.
“That actually would work. I can take her up to Phoenix once I show her around,” I offer.
“Whatever. You all are fucking pussy whipped over a girl you haven’t even fucked yet.” He turns to Tristan, who is his usual quiet self. “You surprise me most. You are always grumpy asfuck, and then you go play hero and rescue her from the bar and get us into this mess.”
“I’m not a heathen,” Tristan grumbles.
“Could ‘a fooled me,” Cam retorts, rolling his eyes.
“Enough, Cam. We will figure this out. No need to be a complete asshole about it. Just go home, don’t be here. Stay away from the girl if she bothers you so much. It’s that simple.” I shrug.
“Except it’s not. We are number fucking one. This is a distraction, and it can cost us our number one spot along with the World Series. It’s a downhill spiral. I need my team with their heads in the game.” He snatches his keys off the counter and stomps out of the kitchen and out of the house.
My eyes meet Drew’s, and he frowns. I can see the worry in his eyes. He is torn between going after Cam and trying to talk him down from the ledge and staying here and letting his catcher storm off and deal with his bullshit. He is going to need to make sure he’s focused tonight or else Cam’s thoughts on this Raelyn thing will prove true. And as if Drew knows what I’m thinking, he nods at me.
“I know, I know.” He turns on his heels, grabs his keys, and heads out to the stadium. And hopefully he’ll give Cam a kick in the ass or work it out with him. I pray it’s the latter. Tristan sighs and trails after Drew.
“Are you bringing her down, or do you want me to?” Kayce asks.
“I can bring her. Go on and get ready, I’ll see you down there.”
Kayce gives my back a quick slap and turns toward the door. I look over at the hall that leads to Raelyn’s room, letting out a sigh and starting my way up the short set of stairs and down the hall.
When I reach her closed door, I knock. “Hey, Raelyn, it’s Asher. Can you open up?”
I hear shuffling behind the door and the turning of the handle. Slowly, the door opens, and I see her poke her head out.
“Hey. How are you doing?” I ask her.
Her lips purse before she answers. “Fine.”
“Good. You ready to come to the game? I was going to show you around and then probably have you hang with me for a bit. Phoenix will be there too if you want to hang out with her.” I shove my hands in my pockets as I watch her.
“Um, okay,” she says softly. “That sounds kinda nice.”
“Phoenix is amazing, and you guys may even be able to head to the box to watch the game,” I offer her.
“Oh, cool.” She looks down at her feet.
“Are you ready to go now, or do you need a moment?”
She shuffles a bit back and forth. “Um, yeah, I-I’m ready.”
“Okay then, let’s head over to the stadium.” I gesture away from us and she cautiously leaves her room, closing her door behind her.
Raelyn has fight in her; she’s made it this far, survived this much. But something holds her back. I’m guessing it’s the unknown. It’s the spotty memory. It’s the fear of whoever took her still being out there.
I can see moments where there’s a spark in her eye and a bite to her words. But most of the time, she is reserved, and she looks like she is pondering the world around her, trying to put the pieces together.
I can see why Drew wants to keep her safe. And a part of me does, too. So I get his need to keep her here. It’s why I am pushing to make sure that happens. I have an instinct to want to watch over her, to shelter her from the bullshit she’s gone through.
And I will do my best to make sure she never suffers again.
We make our way through the stadium until we reach our destination. “This here is the athletic training facility. We are just going to pop in for a moment so I can see how the trainers are holding up,” I announce to Raelyn.