Anton (Chicago Blaze 1)

“Is there something going on I need to know about?” Coach gives me a concerned look.

“You already know what kind of guy he is.”

“But he’s always been that way. Why is it bothering you now?”

I’m definitely not gonna tell him about Mia. It isn’t my place.

“I’m just fed up with his shit. Always running his mouth, cheating on his wife. I’ve got no respect for him.”

“You don’t have to respect him.”

“Yeah, I know that.”

Coach just looks at me from across the desk for a few seconds before saying, “Adam’s not going anywhere and neither are you. And you’re the last man on this team I expect to be fighting a teammate.”

I scoff and smile at the same time. “So you’re saying you expect better of me, but not him.”

“Exactly. We all know who you are and who he is, Anton. And character aside, you’re the highest-earning player on this team and our captain.”

My shoulders tighten with tension. I don’t like being lectured. No one on any team I’ve ever played for has worked harder than me. It’s rare for me to get called out on anything. Gary just wants me to play nice and win games. And that’s exactly what I did…before I saw Mia that night at Lucky Seven. But things aren’t quite so simple anymore.

“I don’t need to be reminded of my salary. I’m worth every penny. And with all due respect, you’re our coach. Maybe you need to have the guy who runs his mouth and bangs strippers in here for a talk instead of me. Just sayin’.”

Gary’s expression goes from surprised to sheepish. “Point taken. But I can’t police my players’ sex lives, no matter how disgusting I find infidelity.”

“Are we done?” I ask him. “I need to get home to my uncle.”

Gary gives a slight nod. I get up and leave the room without looking back. No one will ever convince me to play nice with Adam.

I grab my phone from my locker, steeling myself for bad news before I look at it. Uncle Dix has behaved for the doormen so far, which makes me feel like I’m overdue for news that he pissed where he shouldn’t or called someone a dickless moron.

But instead, I have a text from Mia. My heart pounds as I open it and see a selfie of her and a little boy with a sweet smile, his skin a shade darker than hers. Their cheeks are pressed together and they’re surrounded by unfolded towels.

Mia: Laundry night!

I swallow hard, struggling to get ahold of myself. This picture means more to me than she knows. It means she was thinking of me tonight. She’s opening up to me and sharing parts of her life with me.

But what hits me the hardest is seeing her with the little boy, who must be her roommate’s son she’s babysitting. I’d do anything—anything in this world—to get a photo like that of Mia and a child who was ours.

I’m way ahead of myself, and I don’t think my mind would have gone there without seeing that photo. But now, I’m more determined than ever to wait as long as I have to for her to be single.

I’ve never taken a selfie. I guess I’m too serious for that kind of thing. But for Mia…

I look from side to side to make sure no one’s looking at me, then snap a quick pic of me smiling. I send it to her with a message.

Me: Nice! Hope you had a good night off work.

I leave the locker room and only have one post-game interview to do. After, I call the front desk of my building and ask to have dinner delivered to my apartment. When I get there, the doorman tells me Uncle Dix just watched Jeopardy and napped all evening.

I help Uncle Dix to bed and sit down to eat dinner, listening to a voicemail I got earlier.

“Mr. Petrov, it’s Linda from the nursing agency. I’m sorry, but we can’t help. I can’t keep sending nurses to a job site where they’re sexually harassed. It’s a liability—for you and for us. I hope you understand. Good luck with your uncle.”

I rub my forehead, tension settling into my shoulders once again.

Luck? I need a fucking miracle to solve my Uncle Dix issues.

Or maybe I just need to think outside the box. He doesn’t actually have medical issues that require a nurse; I just hire nurses in case something requiring medical care happens.

All I really need is a babysitter, like what the doormen are doing for me. Someone to keep him in line, help him out when he needs it and make sure he’s safe.

I set down my fork and sit back in my chair. A babysitter. Someone I’d pay extremely well. This could solve two problems at once.

Why didn’t I think of it before?