Chapter 29

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

SASHA

Evangeline looks completely shocked as I tell her my story of an abusive ex, almost dying, and then almost getting arrested.

"Jesus, that's a lot," she murmurs once I'm finished.

"Tell me about it."

"But you're no longer in any legal trouble?" she checks, and I nod.

"My lawyer did a fantastic job at letting the police know that I'm well represented and know my rights, so I doubt they'll try anything more. And as far as I know, Lux doesn't have any family that is going to come for me. He told me he was an orphan when we were together, and he didn't have any siblings."

"Okay, well if anything does come up, just let me know. I'll have your back no matter what, and I'll try to keep the school on your side if possible," she assures me.

"I appreciate it," I tell her, not feeling worried about anything more coming up.

Lux was a fantastic liar, but I'm pretty sure if he actually had a support system, I would have known about it or at least suspected it. But my gut is telling me that I'm finally in the clear.

"Would you like some time off to deal with everything that happened?" she inquires, but I shake my head.

"I'm good," I assure her. "Besides, I don't think the team and their superstitions would appreciate that."

She shrugs. "I could probably get one of the other team members to take your place."

"Don't worry about it. I really am good. Better than I have been in a long time," I tell her honestly.

She smiles, accepting my answer. "I'm glad to hear that. I can't imagine what it must have been like to go through what you did, but I'm glad you came out stronger on the other side. You are an amazing person, and I'm so glad we were able to meet."

"Being a mascot wasn't something I ever thought I would do, but I'm so glad I stumbled upon it because it changed my life for the better. I've made amazing friendships, and getting to travel with my boyfriend is a plus."

"Speaking of that," she says with a lifted brow. "Coach Rudder has filled me in about you sneaking into rooms after curfew."

I sigh but decide not to deny it. "I don't understand why it's a big deal. Honestly, I think he should just let me and BooBoo trade room assignments. We're all adults, so why can't we be in a room with our partners? I could see it being a big deal if BooBoo or Rio stopped performing as well as they are, but get us to sign an agreement or something saying that we'll accept the original room assignments if performance tanks."

Evangeline eyes me for a moment but eventually shrugs. "I'll talk with the coach and the management teams, but I can't see where you're wrong. In the meantime, try to be sneakier," she tells me, and I laugh.

"You've got it," I reply with a salute. We say our goodbyes, and I leave her office with the promise that we'll hopefully have new room assignments for our next away game on Sunday.

"How did your chat with Evangeline go?" Rio asks when I arrive at his apartment.

The day flew by crazy fast, and I can't believe it's already time for our date. We've been dating for a little over five weeks now and have only gone out together without friends once. I decided that wasn't good enough, so last night, I started coming up with a plan for us to do something fun.

"Really good. She told me she has my back, and she's even going to try to get our room assignments changed. But we are all going to have to sign agreements that say we won't allow this to affect anyone's performance on the pitch," I inform him with a bright smile.

He pulls me into his arms and plants a perfect kiss on my lips. "Have I told you how amazing you are recently?"

"Yes, but I won't turn down hearing it more often," I reply with a smirk.

He chuckles and then kisses me again.

"Aww, you two are too cute," Monster says, coming out of his room.

"We are, aren't we," I reply with a wink.

"Are you guys sticking around, or are you heading out on another date?" he checks.

"Another date. It was my turn to plan something awesome."

"Does that mean you have no idea what you're going to do?" Monster asks Rio, who nods.

"Yup, but I don't mind. I'm just happy to be spending time with the man I love."

Is he trying to turn me into a puddle of goo? Because if he is, it's mission accomplished.

"Well, you two have fun, and don't be too loud when you get back," Monster says, making Rio blush.

"We could always go back to my place," I whisper to Rio, who shrugs.

"You have roommates too," he reminds me.

"Yeah, but you don't have to see them every day, and I could give two shits if they hear us enjoying ourselves."

He shakes his head at my antics, then gives me another quick kiss.

"How did I fall in love with someone like you?"

I shove his shoulder gently. "I'm amazing, and you know it. Now come on, we don't want to be late," I say, grabbing his hand and dragging him out the door.

He snatches his jacket quickly and puts it on as we make our way to the elevator.

When we get to Rio's car, I pull up the address to our destination on my phone and begin to give him directions.

"You're really holding on to the whole surprise thing," Rio notes as he drives.

"It's more fun this way," I reply before telling him to make a left.

It doesn't take us long to arrive at our destination but the smile that's on my man's lips lets me know I made the right call.

"A comedy club?" he questions.

"Laughter is the best medicine, and I think after what we've been through this weekend, we deserve all the laughter in the world."

"Can't argue with that kind of logic," he says as we get out of the car.

A warm and inviting energy wraps around my body as we walk toward the front doors, hand in hand. I know it's the love that we feel for each other, and I'm never going to let it go.