Page 30 of A Little Crush (The Little Things #6)
RORY
“ S o?” Tate asks as soon as I answer my cell.
“So?”
“How was everything?” she prods. “I know I’ve been a little MIA over the last few weeks. Things have been a little crazy over here, but I want to know everything.”
Everything, huh? Where do I start?
“It was…good?” I set my luggage onto the edge of my childhood bed. I’d barely made it through my parents’ door when my phone started ringing. But it feels good to be home. To have some…distance.
“Come on, I need more than it was good,” Tatum pushes, distracting me from a certain person I’d rather not think about.
“Let’s see.” I pause. Choosing the safest subject, I tell her, “I dislocated my shoulder?—”
“What?”
“Yeah.” I laugh, caught off guard by how surreal the memory is. “Uncle Macklin had to pop it back into place.”
“How? ”
“I mean, he pretty much just grabbed my arm as Jaxon held me against his chest, and?—”
“I meant how did you dislocate your shoulder,” she clarifies. “Although, the whole Jaxon holding you against his chest is quite the carrot you just dangled, my squeaky friend.”
Ignoring the Freudian slip of Jaxon’s involvement, I snort. “Don’t ever call me your squeaky friend. It makes me feel like a dog toy.”
“One I’m sure Hades would love. Now, spill. Tell me all the things.”
“There’s not much to tell,” I lie. “I slipped in the bathtub, Jaxon called Uncle Mack, and he held me as Macklin popped my shoulder back into place. See? That’s it.”
“Yeah, but you keep brushing over the whole, he held me to his chest part,” she repeats. “How did that happen?”
I puff out my cheeks. “Well, he wrapped his arms around me, and?—”
“Stop being a smart-ass. That’s my job,” she snaps.
I unzip my bag and begin sorting my clothes so I can start a load of laundry. “You know, you’re a lot more nosy now that you’re in a happy relationship,” I note.
“Guilty,” she sings.
I can hear the mirth in her voice, and my lips curve up.
“So were things…platonic?” she prods. “Did you still feel the connection? How’s your heart?”
“My heart’s fine.”
“It doesn’t sound fine,” she mutters.
Giving up on unpacking, I collapse onto my bed and stare up at the ceiling.
“It’s just weird. Realizing that the stupid crush you’ve had on a guy doesn’t really go away even after a ton of time.
It’s probably because he’s my first or whatever, but…
I don’t know. I thought my date with one of the players would’ve helped me move past everything, especially when I sa w how much it helped when you met Pax, but…
I don’t know. I guess he just isn’t the right guy. ”
“You dated someone?” Tatum asks.
“One date,” I clarify. “But, yes. He asked me if I wanted to go out for a drink, and I said yes, even though I kind of felt pressured into it by the rest of the team, but the butterflies? Yeah, they were nothing compared to when Jaxon kissed me.”
“Jaxon kissed you?” she squeals.
Dammit! I had no intention of ever revealing that particular tidbit to anyone, let alone my best friend who, like we’ve already discussed, is way too nosy for her own good.
“Rory Buchanan,” Tatum scolds, sounding way too much like my mother. “Did Jaxon kiss you?”
“My forehead,” I rush out. “I probably should’ve clarified that.”
“You think? But also, uh, when did he kiss you, and why didn’t you immediately call me afterward?”
“Fore. Head,” I emphasize. “And it was after Uncle Mack popped my shoulder back in, and I was crying and he was trying to comfort me, and…it was purely platonic.” I toss my arm over my eyes in an attempt to block out this conversation entirely, but it doesn’t work.
“You sure about that?” Tatum retorts.
“Positive. I mean, it’s Jax. What else would it be?”
“Hmm. How did he react when you went out with the hockey player?”
“Fine?” My nose scrunches as I replay our stilted conversation before I left to meet Crowther like a bad horror movie. “Even said that he still looked at me like I’m a kid, so…”
“Ouch.”
I swallow past the bitter taste in my mouth. “Exactly.”
“Well, I’m proud of you,” she decides. “You’ve officially spent a copious amount of time with your childhood crush, and not only did you keep it in your pants despite drowning in his schmexy pheromones while watching his adorable daughter, you also accepted a guy’s offer to buy you a drink, which we both know you’ve only done like ten times in your entire life. To me, that’s a win.”
“Is it?” I challenge.
“Yup. And that’s worth celebrating, Squeaks.”
I want to call her out for her bullshit, but I don’t. Mainly because she’s so deliriously happy that I’m pretty sure she can’t even help it at this point. Her overly enthusiastic positivity, even when it’s not warranted. “Thanks, Tater Tot,” I mutter.
“Anytime,” she quips. “So what’s the plan? Are you going back?”
“I mean, yeah?” I pause. “Poppy’s with her mom this week, so I’m hanging out at home and sorting through some resumes. Jax gets her again next Monday, then we fly out for the first game of the season.”
“Well, that’s exciting.”
I hesitate, nibbling on the edge of my thumb before deciding to focus on the less tender parts of last week’s adventure. “Yeah, I think it will be an entertaining game. The team’s really good.”
“I believe it. Now that Reeves, Griffin, and Everett are back on the same team and have the infamous Jaxon Thorne at the helm, people are stoked to see how the season plays out. I bet he’s nervous.”
“Who?”
“Jaxon,” she clarifies. “It’s gotta be a lot of pressure, don’t you think?”
I drop my hand to my side. “Probably.”
“He’ll be fine,” she decides. “I mean, it’s Jax.”
“Yeah, totally,” I agree. “The man’s a rock.”