My Hockey Alpha Neighbor

Carol’s Pr

The day drags by at an agonizing pace. My mind is ripped away from the file I’m reading by the sound of a familiar text tone, I quickly open up my phone to see the message Aiden has sent me.

‘Of course, love. I would love nothing more

I let out a sigh of relief. It doesn’t seem like he’s seen the interview yet. That still gives me some time to try and explain myself although I have no idea what I’d even say. I hear another notification as Aiden sends another text.

I have a meeting scheduled at 6 pm today. They called an emergency meeting and requested that I host. They’re coming to the house for it. If you have the chance, I’d love to at least say hello beforehand. After that, the rest of my night is yours.”

Aiden’s warm invitation to come home and see him lifts my spirits after the exhausting day. I try to ignore the nervousness about the fallout of the interview that comes with it.

What will he think? I can’t help but wonder. So far he’s trusted me, but what if this makes him doubt my character? I’m sure he’s more than used to people using him for his fame. What if he thinks I’m one of those people? I attempt to banish the thoughts, but they keep returning.

The moment I step through the door of the villa, Aiden pulls me into a warm embrace. I let myself relax into his arms as the Tension of the day drains out of my body. My hands twist into the fabric of his shirt as I press against him intently.

Aiden immediately senses that something is off with me. “Hey, you alright?” Aiden asks softly “Did something happen work today?”

“No.” I murmur. “Well sort of It’s complicated, I guess. I glance at the clock on the wall-it’s 5:30 already. I squeeze Aiden one more time before stepping back.

“Here – your meeting’s coming soon. You probably need time to get ready. I’ll tell you about it later, okay?” I turn and start to head back toward our room. Aiden lingers for a moment by the door.

“You sure? I can always tell them to postpone, if you need me to

I look

up at him in surprise. “Didn’t you say this was an emergency meeting?”

?” I ask. Aiden shrugs.

“That’s not important. Not in comparison to you, anyway!”

Aiden’s offer warms my heart. Still, I think I need a little recovery time, anyway. Having a buffer to decompress before facing Aiden would probably only make things easier down the line.

“Don’t worry about me,” I reassure him. “I’ll talk to you after your meeting, okay? Best of luck

As I retreat to the bathroom, some of the warmth of his embrace still lingers, I can only hope I’ll still be able to receive it after he hears about the events of today.

I start the process of washing off my face and unpinning my haiddo. I do everything can think of to try and relax myself. I’m about halfway through combing through my hair to smooth out any knots when I hear the sound of muffled voices.

I pause. To my surprise, I can just barely hear the sounds of four distinct voices. I try and imagine the layout of Aiden’s house in my mind, It occurs to me that the dining room is directly above our bathroom. The acoustics allow me to hear more of the conversation than I probably should. Unable to stifle my curiosity, I pause for a moment to listen.

“What about….. payments, decrease?”

1 frown, unable to pick up more than a few scattered fragments of the conversation, I turn off the sink and listen more

111

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attentively.

MJ

Although I’m not able to make out every word, I start to pick up on the general focus of the conversation. It seems that the group of voices are discussing sponsorship payments. By the sound of it, Aiden and two others are meeting with the spokesperson of one of the team’s sponsors.

1 focus a bit harder. The two voices alongside Aiden sound somewhat familiar. One seems to be the coach-his gravely and aggressive voice has become more familiar to me as of recent.

I listen for a hule bit longer to try and identify the other members of Aiden’s side in the room. Judging by the track of the conversation, the other is likely the owner of the team. His voice is more calm than the coach’s and he speaks with a more measured authority. Despite this, it seems that the conversation is not going as well as they would like it to.

“This is ridiculous,” the coach huffs. “Your sponsor has never lowered your sponsorship fees to such a ridiculously low level. This is highway robbery.”

“I’m sorry.” the stranger’s voice says, “but there’s nothing that I can do. Our company has come under recent financial troubles. The only way to retai Blaze sports drink as a sponsor is to accept a lower fee!”

Although I can’t make out every word, the tension is palpable even from here. The two sides continue to argue back and forth for a little longer. No matter what Aiden’s side says, they can’t seem to get through to the representative. The circular argument continues until it’s interrupted by the sound of a phone ringing.

“That’s my pager,” the representative announces. This is important. I may be a while, so don’t wait for me.” His voice carries a hint of dismissal as he exits the room.

A suspicion gnaws at me something about the sponsor’s claim doesn’t add up, I stand in contemplation. For a moment. almost think I can overhear the conversation the representatives having with the person on the other end of the line. Despite the conversations sounding muffled up until this point, it sounds as clear as day.

“Yeah, they bought it. I’m sure they’re going to have to settle. All t have to do is seal the deal.

Just as quickly as the forceful image strikes me, it’s gone. I shake my head with confusion. Where did that come from? I think with bewilderment. I just have just let my imagination get carried away.

Still, I’m unable to shake off the feeling. I spend a few long g minutes pacing back and forth across the bathroom. It seems ridiculous, but the need to do something builds more and more inside me.

At last, I decide that I have to act on my intuition. Fingers flyings across my expressing my suspicions about the sponsor’s honesty.

It only takes a few moments for Aiden to respond.

“Were you listening that entire time? I didn’t know you were such a bad girl

y phone screen with urgency, I text Aiden.

My face turns beet red. I’m frantically typing up a response when the next message comes in

“I’m kidding. I appreciate you sticking out for us. We’re definitely in a difficult situation, but no matter how much we push, we just can’t make any progress. We’re at an impasse.”

1 largoni pacing again as thoughts fly through my mind. No matter how I try to quell the feeling. I feel like I need to do something. My fingers are typing out my next message and seg i before I can stop imyself.

ΤContent (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

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