Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 40074 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 200(@200wpm)___ 160(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 40074 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 200(@200wpm)___ 160(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
"Briggs," I groan, laughing. "You didn't even read it! It could say anything."
"But it doesn't," he says confidently. "I know you better than that, Tia. I trust you. You haven't worked as hard as you have on this just to do some shady shit now. You want this too much."
"Yeah," I whisper, my chest pulsing, "I really do."
"I know you do. It matters to you too much for you to fuck around with it," he says. "Those kids and their futures matter too much."
I nod, grateful he understands. Maybe I thought letting him help was a terrible idea when he first appeared in my office, but… we're already doing a lot of good. Good we never would have been able to do if it weren't for him.
I love him for that. I really do.
"By the way," he says after a moment, peeling a banana. "I heard through the grapevine that Daniel Jordan's contract isn't being renewed."
I startle, staring at him with wide eyes. "You heard through the grapevine?"
"The grapevine has a lot to say," he says, shrugging casually, like he's just reporting the gossip when I know damn well he's the architect of this particular downfall.
"What did you do?" I ask, my heart in my throat.
"Me? Nothing."
"Briggs…"
"I didn't do anything, beautiful," he says, dropping the banana peel into the trash. "I just let Karsen know that he's a fucking creep who should be destroyed. Karsen handled it from there."
Karsen knows.
Old panic surges through me for a moment, weakening my knees. I stumble backward, sinking into the chair, my whole body trembling.
"Shit." Briggs is across the kitchen in two steps, kneeling in front of me. "It's okay, Tia. I'm right here."
"I'm fine," I gasp, shaking my head. My heart is racing like I just ran five miles, but the panic is already receding. "I just…" I'm not even sure I know how to explain or if there is anything to explain. "Does Karsen know?"
"I didn't give him your name or any specifics," he promises, clasping my hands in his. "I just let him know the gist."
I nod, trying to fit that into my mind.
"You know I'd never betray your confidence," he says, his voice soft…almost disappointed.
"I know. I know. I just…" I shrug helplessly. "For a split second, it felt like being back there." I give him a tremulous smile. "It was stupid."
"Hey." He curves his hand around my jaw, tilting my head back until his denim eyes lock with mine. "You're allowed to feel the way you feel, beautiful. Trauma isn't rational. Sometimes, it hits when you least expect it."
"I guess I just feel…" I hesitate, not sure how to explain. "Worse things happen to women all the time. Sometimes, I think maybe I don't have a right to feel the way I do."
"It's not a competition, beautiful," he says. "What happened to you was fucked up. It was wrong. He may not have physically forced you, but he manipulated you into making a choice you never would have made had you known all the facts, and then he humiliated you publicly for making that choice. That's predatory, period."
"Yeah," I whisper, nodding because he's not wrong. "So, he's being let go?"
"Yeah, at the end of the season."
"Will another team pick him up?"
"With his stats?" Briggs snorts scornfully. "Doubtful."
Maybe I shouldn't be happy about that…but I am. I'm glad his career is effectively over. I'm glad he's finally paying for what he did. And I refuse to feel the least bit guilty about that. He did the crime. It's beyond time for him to do the time.
I throw my arms around Briggs's shoulders in a fierce hug. "Thank you," I whisper, burying my face in his throat.
"For what?" he asks, clutching me to him.
"For loving me. For fighting for me. For being you."
He groans softly, his arms tightening around me. "Loving you is the easiest thing I've ever done, Tia."
"Hey," I call, stepping out of the bathroom with a towel in my hand. "I think we should…" I trail off when I catch sight of Briggs sitting on the edge of the bed with his head hanging low between his shoulders, his phone in his hands.
He looks like the weight of the world is on his broad shoulders.
"What's wrong?" I ask, hurrying toward him.
He glances up at me, his expression stark. "She was served about an hour ago," he says. "Tye just called."
My heart clenches. I crawl onto his lap, wrapping myself around him. He burrows his face into my throat, hugging me like he wants to fuse us into one being.
"It's going to be okay, Briggs," I promise, running my fingers through his soft hair. "If the press digs, I'll be okay." I may have moments of panic like I did yesterday, but I'm not the girl I was six years ago, held together by duct tape. I'm someone else now, someone stronger, braver…someone who understands that the shame was never mine to carry.