Page 162 of Iced Up Love: Part Two
Elijah doesn’t move at all.
He’s closest to the door, standing like he’s planted there, like he’s guarding it even though there’s nothing left to fight, and there’s something about the way he holds himself now that makes the air feel heavier, like whatever snapped into place in him out there hasn’t gone anywhere.
None of us say anything.
We don’t need to.
Everything that matters is in that room.
Footsteps pull my attention up before I realize who it is.
Mark.
Of course it’s Mark.
He slows slightly when he reaches us, his gaze moving over the three of us in a way that tells me he’s already taking in more than he’s going to say out loud, before settling properly.
“How is she?” he asks, and there’s something real in it, something that isn’t just obligation.
“She’s okay,” I say, the word still feeling strange every time I use it. “She’s recovering.”
He nods once.
“That’s good,” he says, and I can tell he means it, at least for that part.
There’s a pause.
“Can we expect you back in the next couple of days?”
There it is.
Straight to it.
“For practice,” he adds, like I need the clarification. “And the home game this weekend.”
I drag a hand through my hair, exhaling slowly, my eyes flicking toward the door without meaning to, like I need to check it’s still there, like she’s still there.
“Probably not,” I say.
The frustration doesn’t come out loud.
But it’s there.
“I understand you’ve got personal circumstances,” he says, more controlled now, like he’s trying to keep this professional, “and I’m aware there’s been a change in your representation that’s given you some flexibility in your contract, but you can’t disappear like this, Jackson.”
My jaw tightens slightly.
“I’m not disappearing,” I reply, keeping my voice even, even though it doesn’t feel like it. “I’m here because she needs me.”
“And I get that,” he says quickly, but there’s pressure under it now. “I do. But you’re one of our best players. The team relies on you performing. That’s your role.”
That lands differently.
Expectation.
Value.
“You’ve got momentum right now,” he continues. “You’re having a strong season. You can’t afford to lose that by stepping away for this long.”
