Chapter Twenty-Nine
Dax
The next morning, I woke up with the sun streaming through the window and Payton curled up asleep next to me. Not wanting to wake her up, I lay in bed, watching her sleep as I thought about what this turn of events meant for us. I knew that I was walking a dangerous line between business and pleasure, and that Finn was going to be pissed at me. I wasn’t supposed to fall for Payton, and since admitting I had started to have feelings for her, even to myself, was difficult, I quickly shifted my thoughts back to the training camp and Nick’s objection to having Payton attend practices.
I was angry with Nick for thinking he had that kind of power to dictate what I could and couldn’t do, and, as a result, was tempted to bring Payton back and put her on the sidelines for the rest of the camp just to show him who was in charge. But the businessman in me knew that making a scene over Nick’s objections would only ultimately hurt the team. I knew what I should do, but my pride told me that to walk away would send the wrong signal.
I sighed and shifted my position as I wished, for the hundredth time that week, that Pop was still alive so I could talk to him. He’d always listened to me carefully and then summed up his perspective in a few words. Pop’s advice had always helped me identify the problem and the solution, but he’d never once told me what to do.
Payton stirred in her sleep, moving away from me toward the other side of the bed. Her blonde hair spilled across her pretty face, and I was tempted to reach out and brush it away, but I didn’t want to wake her. I thought about what she’d told me about her mother and her family, and wondered what the rest of the story was. What she’d told me about her mother’s accident didn’t sound anywhere near murder to me, but then I knew better than anyone how the young mind creates stories in the absence of cold, hard facts. I didn’t want to downplay Payton’s pain, but it sounded like a family problem that had escalated over years of failed communication.
“Armchair shrink,” I chortled as I slid out from under the sheet, walked out into the living room, and pulled on the robe that Payton had discarded the night before. I called down to the kitchen and ordered a full breakfast be sent up for both of us before grabbing the paper that had been left out in the hall. I opened it up and swore loudly as I read the front-page headline.
Moments later, Payton came rushing out of the bedroom wrapped in the top sheet off the bed. Her eyes were still adjusting to the light as she pushed her wild hair out of her eyes.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“Son of a bitch!” I yelled as I slapped the paper down on the table and pointed at the headline. “I’m going to fire that bastard for talking to the press!”
Payton picked up the paper and read aloud, “Storm head coach objects to Halas presence at training camp.” She set it down and shrugged, “Why get worked up about it?”
“That asshole works for me!” I shouted. “He doesn’t get to object to what I choose to do!”
“Apparently, he does,” Payton replied matter-of-factly.
“Are you on his side?”
“No, I’m just saying that it doesn’t seem like much of a thing to get worked up over,” she replied.
“Says the woman I found weeping at the foot of the bed yesterday,” I shot back.
“Low blow, Connor,” she said, shooting me a dark look before turning away.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean…”
“Yes, you did,” she interjected. “But I’ll forgive you because you’re not very good at dealing with your feelings.”
“What the—” I objected.
“Listen, if you go out there and make a big scene about this, you’re going to play right into his hands,” she said as she adjusted the sheet and wrapped it around her body toga style. “Why not just let him have this one?”
“Like Pop always said: Give ‘em an inch and they’ll take a mile,” I said. “I have to fight for every inch of what I own, I can’t let this go or the team will lose respect for me.”
“Really?” she asked raising an eyebrow. “Is that what will really happen or just what you think will happen?”
“Lady, I know you’ve been around football for a long time, but the reality is that you don’t know much about actually running a team,” I said. Payton’s face turned to stone as she listened, and then she turned and walked back into the bedroom without saying another word.
I started to follow her, but there was a knock at the door. I opened it and found our breakfast cart waiting on the other side, and by the time I’d had the room server set everything up and signed the check, I turned to find Payton standing in the bedroom door dressed and pulling her suitcase behind her.
“Where are you going?” I asked gesturing to the table and all the food. “I ordered us breakfast!”
“Yeah,” she nodded surveying the table with an unimpressed sweep of her eyes. “Your mansplaining pretty much killed my appetite, but you enjoy.”
“What in the hell?” I shouted as she gathered her bags and headed for the door. “You are impossible, lady!”
“Right back at you, big guy,” she said as she pulled the door open and then slammed it shut behind her without another word.