Page 15 of The Interception (Southern Sports Sweethearts #2)

Chapter Eleven

Layne

Ender was so tired after bringing me home yesterday, I’m worried he might be just as exhausted today.

Day two of the competition is no time to slack off.

I know he knows that, but that doesn’t mean his mind will be in the game.

After spending half the day yesterday with his family, I understand why.

How tragic it was for Sarah Beth to lose her husband, especially with such a small child to raise on her own.

I adore Sarah Beth and Lula, and in the time we spent together, I realized I’d love to maintain contact with them.

It’s hard to find people you immediately mesh with enough to have a karaoke party with a toddler in the living room.

On the way to the lot to pick up the truck, Ender didn’t say much. He kept up light conversation, commented when appropriate, but it was clear he needed rest. I spent the remainder of the day reading, relaxing, and thinking about what we might do for the main course finale.

When I arrive at the stadium, I find he’s already there and has sorted out most of our ingredients. I approach and look over everything.

“Hey, how’s it going?” he asks, seemingly much better rested than he was yesterday.

“I’m nervous but good. How are you? Rested up?” I pull my hair into a ponytail and wash my hands at the sink station.

“Yeah, took a nap and had a quiet afternoon with my sister and Lula. Sorry I was a little off yesterday,” he says, and leans on the table.

“No worries.” I dry my hands and try to put yesterday aside so I can focus on winning this round of the competition.

Soon, the judges arrive and take their places.

The crowd is a little bigger today, which I’ve been told is to be expected with live events.

It will likely grow with each level of the cook-off, right along with my nerves.

I had hoped I wouldn’t notice all the cameras this time around, but no such luck.

The inspectors come along and check everyone’s tables, then we’re ready to go.

The timer goes off, and we enter into our routine.

Just like last time, Ender and I seem to work well together, taking turns and handing off tasks in the most efficient manner possible.

Making the pies today is almost like second nature, primarily because we made it sweet and simple.

I make the crust while he preps the inside ingredients, then we switch to him stuffing while I fry everything.

When I placed the grocery order, I added powdered sugar for a sweet adornment to the tops of the pies.

I accidentally mess up one of the s’mores pies, but we have plenty, so I try not to sweat it too much.

Ender pats my shoulder for encouragement, reminding me I’m harder on myself than anyone else.

When the next pies come out perfectly, I shake it off and plate them up.

Ender dusts them with powdered sugar and we send the plate up to the judges.

There is still fifteen minutes on the clock and I realize we are the first ones to turn in a plate.

“I think we’ll still be in the top five today,” Ender says. The field is divided again today, with fifteen of the twenty-five remaining teams getting cut.

“I’ll just be happy to stay in it another round,” I admit and hand him one of the extra pies to taste-test.

He bites into a gooey, salted caramel s’more pie and groans. “This is even better when I’m not tired.” He swallows but pauses before taking another bite. Turning the pie over in his hand, he glances between it and the vat of oil. He sniffs it a few times and his eyes go wild.

“What’s wrong?”

“Uh…is that peanut oil?” He points to the fryer with wide eyes.

“Yeah, why?”

He doesn’t respond but digs in his bag.

“Ender? What’s wrong? Are you okay?” I kneel on the ground beside him while he rummages in an all-out panic.

Finally, he yanks a smaller bag from inside and unzips it, revealing a tube-shaped instrument.

When he injects it into his thigh, I realize it’s an epi-pen.

“Oh, my gosh! Are you allergic to peanuts?”

Ender nods and lays back, taking a deep breath. Sweat breaks on his forehead and several people surround our table. A medic edges in and kneels beside us. I’m two seconds from all-out panic as my throat tightens and my heart races.

“Are you okay?” the medic asks while he assesses Ender.

“Yeah, I think so.” Ender takes a deep breath and lets his gaze travel to me. “Given that this is a food competition, I probably should have told my partner I’m allergic to peanuts,” he huffs.

“Ender, I almost killed you!” I shriek and shake him by the collar.

He grasps my hands to slow the onslaught. “I’m okay. That’s why I have this.” He holds up the epi-pen, but that does not soothe my freaking out.

“His vitals are great. We still need to get him to the hospital though, just to be safe,” the medic says.

“I’m so sorry. Oh, my gosh, I’m so stupid.” Tears well in my eyes. “I should have asked before switching from canola to peanut oil. I don’t know why I didn’t ask you.”

Ender’s hands slip from my wrists to my face. “You are not stupid. Stop saying that. I should have told you from the beginning that I have allergies. If anything, I’m the stupid one. Can you call Sarah Beth and ask her to meet me at the hospital?”

I nod frantically. “Yes, of course. I’m so sorry. Again, really sorry, Ender.”

The medics try to force Ender onto a stretcher, but he won’t have it. He finally relents and allows them to put him in a wheelchair, but he’s not crazy about it. I watch, along with a few veteran cooks, as they wheel him to the ambulance.

“He’ll be okay,” someone says while grasping my elbow. I realize it’s one of the veterans Ender had been talking to at the bonfire. She seems nice enough, and I let her redirect me to my table. “Let’s get through this, and I’ll drive you over to the hospital, okay?”

I nod, barely registering what she said. I want to go now, but if I leave, then it will be considered quitting the competition. Unfortunately, I have to stay to make sure we make the cut and don’t get disqualified. It’s the least I can do after nearly killing my partner.

There’s a bit of a hoopla for fifteen or twenty more minutes while everyone gets themselves together. I’m sure it’s not every day that one of the contestants almost offs her partner, and people are gossiping. I manage to message Sarah Beth, who responds with a calm presentation.

Sarah Beth

On my way to the hospital now. No worries.

No worries? No worries! How can she not be worried about her brother?

I’m so sorry. I didn’t know he had allergies!

Sarah Beth

It’s okay!

How are you not freaking out?

Sarah Beth

We’ve been through this before. If he got his epi and he’s on his way to the hospital, he’s okay.

I’m still a little panicked. He just…froze…then stabbed himself.

Sarah Beth

It can be scary. I’m sorry it happened, but I promise you he’s okay. I’ll message you when I get there with an update.

I try to focus on the competition so Sarah Beth can drive without texting me, but it’s almost impossible.

The time was paused when Ender had his allergic reaction emergency, so I have to wait for that to run out first. Then the judges eat and deliberate.

Finally, mercifully, they convene at the judges’ table again.

Once the votes are cast and updated to the big screen, I’ll be free to go.

Their tap tapping isn’t fast enough for my liking, so I blow out a breath and pace. Suddenly, cheers erupt and I turn around to check the results screen.

We tied for second. We made it into the next round. I’d celebrate, but I need to make sure my partner isn’t turning into a peanut.

With a deep sigh of relief, I hurry to finish cleaning up—which I should have done instead of pacing—and grab Ender’s bag and mine. I have no idea where the hospital is, but I’m sure I can find it with my phone’s GPS.

“Do you want me to take you?” the sweet woman asks, whose name I still don’t know.

“Oh, uh…” I assess myself. Am I clear-headed enough to drive? I have to be, because I can’t ask Ender to drive me back here to get my truck after poisoning him. “I think I’m good, but thank you so much for the offer.”

“Sure, give him my best,” she says and heads back to her table.

I rush to the lot, drop our things in the back seat, and search for the hospital. It’s not too far from the stadium, but I keep my GPS on just to make sure I don’t miss a turn or get stuck in downtown traffic I’m not ready to navigate.

I cannot believe I poisoned my partner. Despite what he said, I know food allergies can be bad enough to kill someone. When I finally reach the hospital and dash in through the emergency room entrance, I find Sarah Beth and Lula waiting patiently. She waves me over.

“Hey, they’re about to release him. He’s completely fine, the doofus. I can’t believe he didn’t tell you about his allergy.” His sister works to occupy her daughter while updating me.

“I feel awful. I had no idea.” I wipe my forehead and find I’m still sweating. Panic and stress will do that, but when Ender walks through the double doors and into the waiting area, I breathe another sigh of relief. “Oh my goodness.”

He spreads his arms wide as I approach and wraps me in them. “I’m fine. Really.”

“I don’t care. Now I’m going to worry that anything I cook will kill you.”

He chuckles and pulls me back. “Just peanuts. I’ll be more careful and everything will be fine, I promise. Want to tell me the verdict? Did we at least make the cut after all that drama?” He winces in actual worry that we didn’t make it past the second round.

“Well, the awesome thing is that we not only made the cut, but we scored enough points to tie for second.”

“What? Are you serious?” His warm eyes alight and he wraps his arms around my waist, tugging me closer.

I nod and grin ear to ear. We’re one step closer to my dreams, one step closer to his sister having the funds she needs to go back out on her own, and we’ve only just gotten started.

Ender pulls me up and lowers his head into another, deeper hug. “Thank you for being an amazing partner and friend, Layne. I’m not sure I could have done it this year without you.”

And he kisses my cheek, lingering for a moment before standing and releasing me.

Time slows as my brain works to decode what this means, but Lula doesn’t give me much time. She squeals and runs to her uncle, ready to get out of this hospital. I’ll try to figure it out later. For now, I’m going to enjoy some time with the Langley family.