Catch and Cradle: An FF Sports Romance by Katia Rose

Author:Katia Rose [Rose, Katia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-06-07T18:30:00+00:00

14

Becca

“So why this song?”

Hope runs one of her fingertips along the tattoo on my upper back. We’re both sitting on my bed, her kneeling behind me while she braids my hair. I have my cardigan spread over my lap, and she’s wearing her hoodie with the zipper undone, but other than that, we’re still naked. It must be almost two in the morning, but I’m not tired yet.

I can’t be tired yet. If I’m tired, the night will end, and I don’t want to think about what will happen when it does.

“I’ve been a Ben Howard fan for a really long time,” I answer, “and that song meant a lot to me when I was a teenager. It still does.”

“It fits you. You do keep your head up and your heart strong.” A soft, tingly feeling spreads along my scalp as she reaches for more pieces of hair to braid. “You always seem so strong. I noticed that about you from the start.”

“I guess I try to be. I don’t know if I always succeed.”

She makes a skeptical sound as she combs her fingers through a tangle. “What did the song mean to you in high school?”

“It was...hard growing up the way I did.”

I don’t know how to go on. I don’t have words for that kind of loneliness, that kind of doubt about myself. Those feelings carved out a hole in me I’m not sure I’ll ever fill.

“I think I mentioned it before, but my mom was really...in and out,” I begin. “They finally got divorced when I was thirteen, but they didn’t really seem married for a long time before that. I don’t know if they ever really loved each other. I guess they must have, at some point, but I’m not sure.”

Hope traces my tattoo again. “I’m sorry.”

I shrug. “I guess I got used to it, and it wasn’t that bad. Other people have it worse. We didn’t have much, but I always had a house and food to eat. After the divorce, my dad moved us in with his sister. I already stayed with her a lot when he was away working, but we were never close. Her house never felt like home, even after I didn’t have anywhere else to call home.”

“That’s so sad. I can’t imagine not being able to feel at home in the place you live, especially when you were so young.”

I pick at a patch of pilled fabric on my cardigan. “I feel like I’m whining. We can talk about something else.”

“You’re not whining. I asked. I want to know about you.”

My heart speeds up.

“Why?” I ask before I can stop myself.

“Because...” Her hands go still. She trails off, hesitating, but when she speaks again, there’s a forced casualness in her tone. “Because I’m interested. So answer my questions and stop whining about whining when you’re not even whining.”

I laugh as she smacks my shoulder. “Okay, okay. What else do you want to know?”

She starts braiding again. “So you said you weren’t close with your aunt.

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