Page 25 of Game Misconduct

Did he get the information he wanted so he was done? Why didn’t he ask any follow-up questions? Or tell me to have fun. Something to make it feel like an actual conversation based on genuine curiosity and wanting to be a part of the other person’s life rather than a single-minded quest for information.

He wasn’t lying when he said he didn’t have many friends. I added him on my two preferred social media accounts, but he didn’t accept. I could see enough of his profile to figure out he didn’t use them. Fans that created accounts about him, or on his behalf, gave me better insight into who he was than the man himself. This also told me he was popular enough to have dedicated fans that followed him through the trade. All of the information about him online had been updated to his move to Salt Lake and the Fury team. I doubted he’d even had his picture taken in his new jersey yet, but someone had photoshopped a decent version to add to one of the more popular profiles.

According to another social media page, Parker had never had a girlfriend, at least publicly, and most people chalked it up to his dedication to his sport and the time restraints. That would have been a fair enough assessment before I met so many of the Fury players. They had families and relationships just like anyone else. Sure, they had to travel during the season, but so did many professions. They also got summers off, with only personal training to demand their time and attention.

It was perfectly possible for him to have a girlfriend, so why weren’t there any exes?

Just another question to add to my ever-growing list. The next time we saw each other, I was digging in. I planned to show him just what it was like to be friends with a girl. I’d pry and pester until I knew him as well as I knew Kerry or Jess. Then we’d really see how serious he was about continuing this trial.

First, I needed to do what real friends do. Confide in Jess about how weird this whole thing was. I mentioned it to Kerry, but she was too starstruck and a little too in love with Parker’s face to focus on my dilemma. She thought I was rash and not giving him enough of a chance. She was wrong. Giving him a chance was exactly what I was doing.

We were meeting for lunch so I could catch her up. She had an event tonight so she wouldn’t be home early enough for us to talk. Since things were busy, she couldn’t get away to talk alone, but I didn’t mind having another opinion, so I brought lunch for her and Dani.

“You’re a lifesaver!” Dani clapped when I walked into their office with three bags of burgers and fries. “Grease and carbs are the only things that will keep me going until midnight. I love you.”

“Thanks for letting me interrupt. I know you guys are busy.” I unpacked my bag as Jess came into their conference room and fell into the nearest chair.

“We needed a break.” She sighed and leaned forward as dramatically as possible. “I’m famished.”

Dani took a big bite and moaned with her eyes closed. “Delicious,” she mumbled with a full mouth.

I unwrapped my burger and almost drooled. It was rare that I ate something so glutenous but after my first bite of gooey, cheesy meat, I felt nothing but bliss. “Oh, this was a good idea.”

Jess nodded. “I had a feeling we needed the big guns today.” She started eating, then raised her brows. “So tell us what’s going on.”

“Oh, yes!” Dani perked up. “Jess said something happened.”

“Well, Parker called me at work yesterday and asked to come over.” I told them about the conversation we had and my reservations. They listened intently, eating while I confessed I wasn’t sure how to feel about the arrangement. “The only thing that made me agree was that it’s only two weeks. After that, I can point out the many ways it’s not working and we can both move on. Maybe by then, he’ll feel more comfortable on the team and not feel like he needs someone to hold his hand.”

“You think that’s what he’s doing?” Jess asked.

I agreed. “Yeah. Why else would he come over and explicitly ask to be friends?”

“He’s a strange duck,” Dani said with a small smile. “He really doesn’t get how strange that is?”

“I guess not. I read him the text Mitch sent me asking to go out to dinner, and I said that’s what normal people do and he blew by it. Well, that’s not true. Last night he texted me asking what day I was going so he would know what day I was free.”

Jess cocked her head. “But he didn’t ask who sent you the message?”

“Nope.” It was all so weird.

“So he doesn’t know Mitch, his roommate, asked for your number and asked to go to dinner with you?” Dani summarized.

“Yeah,” I replied.

They both shook their heads.

“Men. I don’t understand them,” Jess said.

“Maybe it means that friendship is really what he’s interested in. If he was jealous, he would have asked for more information.”

“He’s not jealous.” I stopped that thought before the women could spiral out of control. “It was pretty clear he doesn’t see me as a potential romantic prospect. I doubt he’s even noticed I’m a woman, at this point.”

Jess rolled her eyes. “It’s pretty hard not to see that.”

I huffed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

She waved her hand up and down where I was sitting. “You’ve got the va-va-voom going on. You’re like one of those fifties pin-up girls with all those curves.”