Bring Her On Read online

  Goodnight, Kiri

  I sent the sleepy emoji. Night Echo.

  Nine

  “I did something bad again,” I said, and it was déjà vu with Dom in his office, the only exception that today I’d brought him a latte instead of a smoothie.

  “You are giving me gray hairs,” he said, his head in his hands. “What is it now?”

  “I talked to her, and it was weird, but okay. I mean, she was honest and open and it kind of freaked me out, but I think we can be cordial now, for some reason. Like we needed to do that to move on.” At least, that was the situation I was hoping for.

  “I mean, that’s good, right? So it wasn’t a bad decision.” He stood up and we walked together into the gym. “To be honest, I’ll be glad when this season is over. I’m ready to do dad things and prepare for next season. I have lots of theme ideas.” His eyes went so wide that I took a step away from him.

  “Dom, you’re scaring me. What do you have in mind?” I had heard tons of his theme ideas and some of them were great, and some of them were not so great. It was about fifty-fifty so far.

  “That’s for me to know and you to find out when I decide you get to find out.” He loved holding his ideas over me until I begged him.

  “Rude,” I said as we waited for the team to come in. A few non-cheer kids were hanging around and bouncing a basketball. Dom and I sat on the bleachers and said hello as the squad trickled in. They definitely looked tired after last night. I should take it easy on them, but I didn't exactly have that luxury. I could spend some time watching and dissecting video, which gave their bodies a break for a little while.

  Dom set up the projector and the kids started putting the mats out. The other squad walked in, and their mood was the same as my team’s: deflated. Even Echo looked tired, and I’d had to put extra highlighter under my eyes to draw the attention away from my dark circles. Just one night with not enough sleep and I looked like a zombie. Not cute.

  I was giving the squad a night of rest on Friday, which I hoped they used wisely. I didn’t think Echo was giving hers a day off, but I just couldn’t have a miserable squad on my hands. At this point, one night off wasn’t going to make a massive difference. I mean, come on.

  Echo exchanged a look and a nod with me as she walked by, but that was it. I shrugged at Dom when he sent me a questioning look.

  Time to work.

  The next few days were uneventful, for which I was grateful. I didn’t need more injuries or emergencies or strange texts from Echo. Friday night rolled around and I went out with my friends to The Trap, and Lou brought over the drink she’d come up with to celebrate the group going to Nationals. I had no idea what was in the damn thing, but if I didn’t slow down, I was going to drink five of them and end up passed out on the floor.

  “To Kiri and Dom and the Tigers!” Heath said, and we all toasted.

  “Do you have baby news?” Katie asked, grabbing a wing from the massive basket we’d ordered. Susie made her own sauce, and it was magic.

  Heath said, “Not yet. Still waiting. We’ll get the call when she goes into labor and then we’ll be on a red eye. Just please send good vibes because we don’t know if it’s all going to work out. We’ll have to be there for a few weeks to give her time, just in case she changes her mind. We’d be disappointed, but we don’t want a mother to give us her baby and then have regrets. That would be the worst-case scenario.”

  Dom and Heath really were the real deal. I just adored them both.

  “We’re rooting for both of you,” Penny said, squeezing Dom and Heath’s hands.

  “On another note,” Tom said, “are you going to get any down time next week? Any chance to sit in the sun?”

  “Uh, not exactly, but we are taking one day for Disney, but I’m going to be wrangling a bunch of hyped up teenagers, so it’s not really going to be a day off for me,” I said. Sure, a lot of their parents would be there as chaperones, but I was still in charge if anything went south.

  “K, I will do something for you,” Dom said, putting his hand on his heart. “If you decide you want to go to the spa in the hotel and have a day of self-care, I will take the squad to Disney.”

  It was like he had volunteered to throw himself in front of a bus for me.

  “You would do that?”

  “I would, my dear.” He kissed me on the cheek and I almost started crying.

  “Hey, Kiri, there’s someone at the bar you should definitely check out. I know how much you love redheads,” Penny said. The way we were sitting, my back was to the bar, and I hoped beyond hope that she wouldn’t be there when I turned around.

  My hopes disintegrated as I stared at Echo, sitting at the bar, drinking a beer, and chatting with Lou.

  “Motherfucker,” I said under my breath.

  “Oh,” Dom said. “That’s interesting. What is she doing here? Has she moved to Corsica?”

  “Wait, I feel like I’m missing something,” Jason said, craning his neck to see around Tom.

  “Oh my god, do not all look at her at once,” I said, trying to duck my head so we didn’t draw attention. My friends were anything but subtle.

  “Is she looking over here?” I asked in a hushed voice.

  “No . . . oh, crap, she saw us,” Heath said, since he had the best view. “And she’s coming over.”

  “I swear to god, if you embarrass me, I’m going to poison you all,” I hissed.

  “Hey, Kiri,” she said, and I raised my head and hoped the darkness hid the extent of my blush. I could feel it radiating all the way down to my chest.

  “Hi,” I said, and it came out as a little squeak.

  “Hey, Dom,” she said, nodding at him, and then it was silent as she waited for someone to introduce her. Dom opened and closed his mouth a few times before taking the lead.

  “Right, sorry. This is Echo Rosenthal?” He said her name as if he wasn’t sure of it. “Uh, this is my husband Heath, that’s Jason, Tom, Penny, and Katie. Echo’s the one who coaches the Bulldogs, who lost their gym in that fire.”

  “Did they ever catch anyone?” Tom asked.

  “Yes, it was a senior prank gone horribly wrong.” She shook her head and her hair swished back and forth. She had it down and it was a brilliant red under the lights of the bar. She didn’t look tired now. She looked gorgeous.

  “Are you alone? Why don’t you sit with us?” Heath, said and I tried to kick him under the table for suggesting it, but he dodged me. Even Dom was giving him a look.

  Echo smiled at everyone, but it was definitely directed at me.

  “That would be lovely.”

  And that was how Echo ended up crashing my Friday night. I saw her at the grocery store, and now at my bar. She was like a virus, infiltrating my entire life. What was her deal?

  I watched in horror as she pulled up an extra chair, set it right next to me on the end of the table and proceeded to act like she’d known my friends for her whole life.

  I’d never seen her so at ease with people before and it just further served to confuse and infuriate me. These were my friends. Didn’t she have her own friends?

  Sure, she’d said that she was lonely last night, but that didn’t give her the right to ruin my night off.

  Still, I watched her as she laughed and chatted and my friends, even Dom, warmed to her. I didn’t know what to say. Dom nudged my leg under the table and gave me a look that I guess meant I should be more friendly, but why? I couldn't add anything to the conversation.

  Then Lou came over and Echo got introduced to her and somehow we ended up with an extra plate of beer cheese dip, which was one of my favorite things ever.

  I ate it angrily while Echo talked about her life, and I reluctantly learned more than I wanted to know about her. She was also an only child, and had a cat, which surprised me. I guess I just didn’t see her as the kind of person who would have an apartment and a cat and who would buy groceries and get gas and pay taxes. She’d always been more of a concept, a memory.
<
br />   Seeing her as a person was unnerving.

  “So, Echo, what do you do for fun when you’re not harassing Kiri and Dom?” Penny asked. She’d had a few drinks and I wished she hadn’t.

  Echo laughed. “Not much. Cheer is pretty much my life, but I do enjoy hiking, climbing trees, throwing axes, and making custom dollhouse furniture.”

  I just stared at her.

  “Wow,” Dom said. “That’s a seriously cool list.”

  “Can you tell me more about the custom dollhouse furniture?” Katie asked, her eyes gleaming. Five minutes later she and Echo had their heads pressed together above Echo’s phone as she scrolled through her social media accounts and shop for her creations. I would be lying if I said I didn’t look everything up on my phone under the table.

  The cognitive dissonance in my brain was almost unbearable. If I had just met Echo in her current iteration, not in the past, and didn’t hold the grudges that I couldn’t let go of, I would have been on her like white on rice. Just absolutely would have jumped her bones. I mean, I already had, but that was the past.

  I didn’t want to like her. I didn’t want to enjoy her laugh, or the way she kept tossing her hair over her shoulder. I didn’t want to like the way she asked my friends questions about their lives and was clearly listening and paying attention to the answers. I didn’t want to like any of this, yet here I was, with the girl I’d sworn to hate for the rest of my life, and my ice-cold heart was doing something I didn’t want it to do: thaw.

  Lou called me over to the bar and leaned on it, her leather vest displaying her old-style tattoos. I looked from the anchor on her bicep to her face.

  “Can I give you some advice?”

  “If I say no, you’re going to give it to me anyway. That’s your job.” She snorted and pointed at me while grabbing a glass and then filling it up with one of the beers on tap for a guy down the end of the bar.

  “You got that right. So, here’s what I’m going to say: let it go.”

  I glanced back at the table, and Echo.

  “Let what go?” I asked, turning back to Lou.

  “You know what. Let it go.” She waved her fingers. “Trust me. Life is too short to hold a grudge that might fuck up your happiness and your future. If I hadn’t let go of a grudge, I wouldn’t have married Susie, but that’s a story for another time.” I knew most of the logistics of how they had met, but this part was news to me.

  “Okay, Lou,” I said, pushing away from the bar.

  “You take my advice. I’m an older, wiser lesbian. We always give the best advice.”

  I laughed and went back to the table. Echo was telling a story about a memorable hike where she’d stripped naked to go bathing in a river and her clothes had been stolen by some raccoons.

  “So, there I was, completely naked and chasing two raccoons, hoping they didn’t have rabies, and hoping that no one saw me.” She paused for dramatic effect. “And we crossed the trail just as a local bird watching society was looking for a rare owl or something and I ended up ruining their day in more ways than one. Got my clothes back, though.”

  I couldn’t help it; I was dying from laughter. The image of a naked Echo running through the woods after two raccoons and startling some bird watchers was one of the funniest fucking things I’d ever heard in my entire life. My friends seemed to think so too, and the entire table dissolved into wheezing guffaws. That story was just too much, and it cracked through my shell.

  I was warm from the alcohol and the camaraderie. I was vulnerable, so I got up to head to the bathroom for a break. I felt her following me, but I didn’t say anything until we were both inside the bathroom and alone together.

  “Why are you here?” I asked. “What are you doing in my bar?”

  “Would you believe me if I said that I ended up here by accident?” There she was, leaning against the sink again, only the bar bathroom was a lot darker than the bathroom in the Corsica gym.

  “No, I would not.” I stared into the cracked mirror.

  “I did, I promise. I got in my car after practice and decided to drive around and then I stopped in for a drink. Swear.” She held both hands up.

  “That’s only somewhat plausible. Did you enjoy having the whole gym to yourself?”

  “It was strange and quiet, to be honest. I ended early because it felt wrong to be there without your team. The athletic director was there to supervise, and she was keeping her eyes on me. She’s a force to be reckoned with. Much better than the guy we have at Heartwood. He’s been doing the job for thirty-five years and still thinks cheerleaders are bimbos, but he begrudgingly gives us funding.”

  That sounded like a nightmare. I was so lucky to have Cam in my corner.

  “I didn’t plan to sabotage your evening. You looked like you were having fun and I crashed it. I'm sorry.” For once, I actually believed her.

  I sighed. “Whatever, it’s fine. I’m not a complete heartless bitch.”

  Echo smirked. “Most of the time.”

  “Hey!” I said, attempting to give her a playful shove, and then pulling back at the last minute so I just ended up losing my balance and falling into her. She caught me and my hands gripped her shoulders. They were firm, but soft as well. We stared into each other’s eyes, and for a moment, I didn’t know how to breathe.

  The door opened with a bang.

  “Oops, my bad,” a drunk and stumbling dude said, pushing away and heading for the men’s room. That was my wakeup call. I stepped away from Echo and went back to my friends. Being in enclosed spaces alone with her wasn’t good for me.

  My friends went silent as I rejoined them so, clearly, they’d been talking about me and Echo and what we’d been doing in the bathroom.

  “That was kind of quick for a hookup, but no judgment,” Penny said.

  That earned her a kick under the table.

  “It’s not like that,” I said.

  “Oh, I think it is,” Katie said, her eyes glittering from the combination of the drama and the amount of drinks she’d had. She was stopped from further speculation by Echo returning.

  “This has all been lovely, but I need to get back to my neck of the woods. I have a morning run with my team I have to get up for.”

  Ew, she actually did the run with them? That sounded horrible. I made my kids do conditioning, but I wasn’t about to get down and do it with them. I’d rather die. Yoga was much more my speed now, or swimming, or walking.

  Echo spared a goodbye to everyone, and left with one long look at me that gave me far more questions than answers.

  “I think I need another drink,” I said as the door of The Trap shut behind her.

  I had a second drink at The Trap, and headed home earlier than I would have if I didn’t have to get up and focus on my squad all day tomorrow.

  Ten minutes after I’d walked through the door, a text message came through from Echo.

  You looked really hot tonight.

  The compliment made me feel some kind of way.

  Aren’t you supposed to be sleeping up for your big run?

  I fell asleep and then woke up and I'm bored she said.

  I shook my head as I typed my response: It’s not my job to entertain you, Echo.

  You’re right. I’m sorry. Again. Have a good night.

  I didn't want to end on that note, so I sent another message. When did you start lifting weights?

  There was an understandable long pause. I threw a toy for the kitties to chase in the living room as I waited to see what she’d say to that.

  I’ve always lifted weights, but I got more into it during college. Stress reliever after a breakup. Now it’s just part of my life. Why do you ask?

  Just curious.

  Can I ask you a question?

  I guess? Now I’m scared.

  Don’t be scared! It’s silly.

  Go ahead.

  Can you go outside right now?

  My stomach dropped into my feet.

  You’re not going to be on
my lawn waiting to stab me or declare your undying love, are you?

  I was part joking, part serious. You couldn’t be too careful.

  No, I promise. Just go outside.

  Curious, and still a little nervous, I went outside.

  Okay, now what?

  Look up.

  I did and gasped. It was a full moon. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the moon absolutely glowed.

  It’s a blue moon, she sent after a few moments.

  It is. It’s beautiful.

  I doubt I would have noticed it if it wasn’t for Echo drawing my attention to the sky. So often I got wrapped up in my work and just put my head down and didn’t take the chance to look up at the sky and stop moving for a second.

  I stared at the moon and breathed the summer air and let my thoughts slow down.

  Thank you for making me look up at the sky.

  You’re welcome, Kiri. Anytime.

  Ten

  All I had left were Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and then we left for Orlando on Thursday afternoon. Friday was the first day of competition, and then those who made it past the prelims got to perform on Saturday. No matter what, we were headed to Disney on Sunday, and I was still considering taking Dom up on his offer to let me stay at the hotel and have a day off.

  It was crunch time and I wished that the kids weren’t still in school, but they had two weeks left and I couldn’t get them out of classes. My seniors definitely had senoritis bad, and I didn’t see what point there was in keeping them in class when they weren’t learning anything, but it wasn’t my call to make. Education was important, yes, but at a certain point, you had to throw in the towel and let them go for the summer.

  One more week and it would all be over. I’d say goodbye to my seniors, which was going to make me cry, again. We’d already had our athletic banquet and I’d given them all praise and awards, but we knew we still had Nationals. Once that was over, this squad was in the books, and we’d have to look forward to next year.

  I always got strangely calm about the lead up to competitions, and this was no different. My focus narrowed, and I knew that, at this point, there wasn’t a whole lot more we could do. The routine was what it was, my athletes were as good as they were going to get, and all I could ask was that they tried their best and forgot the rest.