Page 26
Story: Taylor (Glendale Magic #3)
25
Taylor
“ G reat game,” called out Coach Wagner as he walked into the locker room. “We didn’t even let them get their legs under ’em this time. Keep this energy for next week. I’ll see everyone back here for some game review and practice.”
“Are you going out tonight?” asked Cash as he sat down next to Taylor and took a long drink of water.
Taylor shook his head.
Cash knew the answer, but he always invited Taylor, which he liked. Maybe one day, he would take him up on it.
“I think Evie and I are going to go for a bit. Kate is here, so I think Conner and Sasha might come out, too.”
This did make it seem a bit more appealing but not enough.
Taylor tilted his head. “No, I’m just going to shower and head home.”
“Right on,” said Cash. “I’ll see you later.”
After Taylor was finished up, he was one of the first players out. He turned down the hallway to go to his car.
“Taylor.”
He turned and saw Sasha walking toward him. “Is Conner almost done in there?”
“Yeah, I think him and Cash were on their way out.”
“Thanks. See ya later.”
He turned to leave, but then another voice stopped him in his tracks.
“Sasha, do you need anything else from me tonight?”
He knew that voice, had been dreaming about it since leaving the magical little cabin in the woods.
“No, you can head home, or we’re headed to the Westside Pub if you’re interested.”
“No, I think I’m just going to head home.”
Taylor turned, ready to see her face and her color and smile. Only... that’s not what he found. Where the fuck was his rainbow girl?
Their eyes connected. He barely recognized her in her monochrome outfit. She even had a gray peacoat thrown over her arm. She looked like she was in a black-and-white film. It was like she had gone from Oz back to Kansas, and Taylor fucking hated it. All the life he had come to expect from her was gone.
“Hi,” she said quietly.
He knew he should answer. It was his turn to talk, but he couldn’t get anything past the screaming in his mind. This was wrong. This was all wrong. He had never felt anything this utterly wrong in his entire life.
He was barely aware that Cash and Conner had joined him, and all he could do was glare at his Technicolor girl who was trapped in black and white.
Closing his eyes, he took a breath.
Women had the way to dress anyway they wanted. He had been told that his entire life. But why was she so different? Why did it feel like this is not how she wanted to be? It just felt out of place, and his brain was stuck on the wrongness of it all.
“Taylor?” Sasha asked with concern coloring her voice. “Have you met Alice? She is the newest member of the social media team?”
He’d met Alice, but he felt like he didn’t know this person. His eyes stayed fixed on her. Her mouth parted and breath hitched, and he wanted to move to her to hug her to do anything, but he just stood there, frozen.
“I have to go,” she said before turning and quickly making her way down the hallway.
He could tell she was crying, and he knew he was coming off as a dick, but he just couldn’t seem to get his brain to do what he wanted.
“What was that about? Was that Coach’s daughter?” Conner asked.
Fuck. Taylor closed his eyes and tried to take a deep breath, but it wouldn’t come. He needed to get out of here, but he was stuck.
“You guys head out, I’ll catch up,” said Cash.
Conner gave him a careful nod, and they all headed out.
Cash just stood there next to him. He had no idea how much time had passed, but when he finally got a hold of himself, Cash was still there next to him, just existing.
Taylor was finally able to take a deep breath.
“You good?” Cash asked.
“She doesn’t look like that” was all Taylor could manage to say.
“What do you mean?” Cash asked, confusion drawing his brow.
“Alice . . . she doesn’t look like that usually.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
Did he want to talk about it? Not really, but he probably should. But how was he going to tell him that he hooked up with Coach’s daughter and had feelings for her?
Taylor looked around and saw they were in the hallway alone. “So, you know how I went to Coach’s cabin over the holiday?”
Cash’s mouth dropped open . . .
Of course Cash would know where it was going. Before he dated Evie, he was a playboy.
“Alice was there. And we had a really nice time together. I thought we were dating, but then when I saw her... it was like she wasn’t even the same person.”
“Okay,” Cash said slowly, trying to figure it all out. “What do you mean she doesn’t look like that? If you guys have been dating since Christmas, wouldn’t you know what she looks like?”
“Well... I haven’t seen her since we left the cabin, but when we were there, she had this beautiful colored hair, and she was just so full of life... but now?—”
“You’re dating, but you haven’t seen her since then?”
Taylor shook his head. “I’ve been kind of wrapped up with work.”
“But wouldn’t she tell you if she was working here or whatever?”
“I haven’t talked to her since we left.” Once he said that, he realized he’d fucked up. “Which I can see is my bad.”
“Dude, if you want to date a woman, you have to actually talk to her.”
Yeah... that made sense. What had he been thinking? Of course he needed to be talking to her. He wanted to be talking to her but was just stuck in his routine.
“And I’m not one to give out relationship advice, but even if you aren’t dating her, I think you might owe her an apology.”
Taylor’s head snapped to him.
“I’m not sure what just happened there,” he said, pointing to where she had been. “But that girl left here in tears because all you did was glare at her,” he said in his steady, nonjudgemental voice.
Crap. He had totally done that.
“I don’t know what happened,” he said to Cash in a panic. “It was like I was stuck in time. Everything about her just seemed wrong. I don’t know how to explain it.”
“You don’t have to explain it to me... but you might want to try and explain it to her. Especially if you still think you two are dating.”
He ran his hands through his hair, almost tugging it out at the root. “Fuck!”
“I think I remember Evie saying she lived across the way from her in the same complex where her town house is.”
“Do you think I should go to her?”
“If you want to salvage this, I think you might want to.”
Taylor nodded.
He’d fucked this up and needed to fix it. What would he even say once he got there? Cash was right. Of course he should’ve been talking to her this whole time. And he may not be able to control his brain when it short circuits like that, but Cash was right there, too. He had seen the tears in her eyes when she turned to leave.
“Yeah, Evie says she lives right across the way. Number 4B,” Cash said, slipping his phone back into his pocket.
“Okay,” said Taylor.
He was going to go and fix this. He didn’t know how, but he would fix this.
“Are you good to drive?” Cash asked.
“Yeah, I’m good.”
Taylor was relieved it had been Cash there to witness that. Some people treated him with kid gloves because he was autistic, but Cash saw it for what it was. He was a fully capable, functioning adult. He just needed accommodations and a little more time to come around to changes. Which, apparently, meant he had ignored someone he was starting to care deeply about for over well three weeks.
Fuck!
“Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow. Go get your girl.”
Taylor walked out into the cold parking lot, hoping he would be able to do just that.
It wasn’t too late... It couldn’t be too late.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26 (Reading here)
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41