Always Only You by Chloe Liese (z-lib.org).epub

really means what he says when he expresses self-doubt. If anyone can
empathize with seeing yourself one way and being perceived so dissonantly
from that, it’s this mostly invisibly ill, autistic woman right here.
A new crack forms in my heart. This is a travesty. No one this wonderful
should feel so unsure of himself.
I toss the fortune cookie in my mouth and crunch. “Ren the Red. You’re a
twelve out of ten, inside and out. I bet the queue of women waiting for you is
longer than the line for the next Apple product.”
“Women I don’t know.” Focusing his attention on his cookie, Ren slips out
the fortune paper and stares at it.
“Well, that’s why you get out, buddy. So they become women you do know.
Problem is, you’re a saint. I’ve never even seen you with a woman. I’m aware
puck bunnies aren’t your thing, but in the off-season, you let yourself have some
fun, right? Now that you’re not a rookie anymore, your career’s totally on track,
maybe you’re ready to look for someone who’s relationship material.”
“There’s someone.” His eyes dance across the fortune cookie paper. He folds
and pockets it.
“And?” I press.
“And she’s unavailable for the time being. I’m also not sure she sees me that
way.”
“Then she’s thick as a brick. Move on, dude, that’s her problem.”
He shakes his head. “It doesn’t work right now, but maybe one day it will.
That unavailability won’t last forever. When it ends, I’ll work up the courage to
tell her how I feel.”
“Does she know you’re waiting?”
Also, shit. What guy waits for a woman these days? Most men I’ve known
do not have that kind of old-school courtship patience. They can’t even wait ten
minutes in a Starbucks line for a mediocre latte.
He runs a hand over his beard. “No. And right now if I told her, it would put
her in an awkward position, which isn’t fair to her. The timing’s just not good.”
“Well, welcome to working in professional athletics. The timing is never
good for a relationship. Not until retirement. But, then again, as you know, some
of the guys are blissfully paired off, at least until playoffs, when their partners
are over an eighty-game season. I don’t mean to sound so cynical. If anyone
could make it work, it would be you.”
Ren crunches his fortune cookie and stares at me curiously. “I can wait. I’ve
waited this long. A few more years won’t kill me.”
“But you should have fun, Zenzero. Get your kicks. A guy like you shouldn’t
be sitting on the shelf.”