Hart of the Matter (A Love of the Game Novella) Read Free Page B

door, she unlocked it and pushed it open.  Without turning back, she thought about Harley and everything that was going to change for her.  The days ahead that she was going to have to face alone. 
    “What did either of us ever do to the three of you that made us so disposable?  How did you turn out so selfish ?”  Closing her eyes, she added around the lump in her throat she refused to acknowledge, “All we ever did was love you.  What a fucking mistake that turned out to be.”
    Closing and locking her door, she stood in the foyer with her back against it.  They murmured together for a few minutes and finally drove away. 
    Bailey bit her tongue hard enough to bleed but she didn’t fucking cry.
    * * *
    Her classes at Stanford started as summer faded.  Bailey was glad to put distance between herself and her greatest weakness.  It was why she chose to attend college in California. 
    She talked to Harley every single day.  The miles between them didn’t affect their friendship in the slightest.  There was no way for her friend to hide how frightened and lonely she felt but she filled her days with endless activity to prevent too much time to dwell.
    In November, Regina warned Bailey that Hart planned to go with them to visit Harley at Thanksgiving.  There was only so much one could hide from the intelligent matriarch of the Jamison family. 
    “Harley is so gentle and she loves him so much.  They’ll be okay if they spend some time together.”
    “Will you come with us, Bailey?”
    Swallowing hard, she replied, “I can’t, Regina.  I’ll spend winter break with Harley and we’ll get our girl time handled.  Besides, there will probably be a better chance of a peaceful reconciliation without my acidic personality.”
    There was a long pause and Bailey’s eyes drifted closed.  “I consider you my daughter.  You know that, don’t you, Bailey?”
    “Yes, ma’am, I do.  I think of you as my mother.”
    “You are as important to this family as my son.  Your thoughts and feelings matter to me.  Is there anything I can do, Bailey?”
    Blinking rapidly against the tears she refused to let fall, she took a deep breath.  “No, there isn’t anything.  I think time and distance will help.”
    “He’s a fool.  I hope he grows up before you find a man worthy of you.” 
    Unable to speak, Bailey made a small hum that could have been interpreted in any number of ways. 
    “This will be the first Thanksgiving without you since you were a baby.  I’m going to miss you very much, honey.”
    “I’ll miss you, too.  I love you.  Hug the daylights out of Harley for me, will you?”
    “Of course and we’ll see you in a few weeks at Christmas.”
    They hung up and Bailey spent the next several minutes breathing deeply to calm her heart.  Seeing Hart…being close enough to touch him…was still too hard. 
    She wasn’t ready.
    * * *
    Naturally, Harley related every detail of her family’s visit before they were twenty miles away, headed home to Florida.  Bailey had never felt so lonely in her life. 
    “You’ll come at Christmas, won’t you, Bailey?”
    “I wouldn’t miss spending my few weeks off with you.  Besides, you’re almost to the end of this thing.  I have my outfit all ready to go.”
    “What…scrubs?  You plan to help or something?”
    “Um, no.  Yuck on the baby birthing, sweetie and scrubs make my ass look three feet wide.”  She grinned.  “I need to look cute in case there’s a fine ass single doctor in the house.”
    They laughed for a long time and she exhaled in relief.  Bailey was glad Harley had her brother back in her life.  It was important that she had as much support as possible with everything she was dealing with. 
    It was time to put Hart – and what he meant to her – in a little box, seal the lid, and drop it in the nearest river. 
    He was never going to see her in the same way.  Holding out hope was desperate and pathetic. 
    I’ll be