Player Next Door

CHAPTER 1

Y ou look like hell .

I feel like hell, Reese said, reaching for her takeout cup. She didn’t care that the coffee was lukewarm. Caffeine was caffeine. The people next door moved in a week ago, and it’s party central over there. The music starts around ten o’clock at night and doesn’t end until at least one or two in the morning. I’ve been letting it go because they’re new to the building, but if it starts again tonight, I plan to march over there and let them know how I feel about it.

Your building doesn’t have rules about noise? Daria asked from the other side of Reese’s desk. The executive assistant was organizing paperwork for Reese to sign.

We have rules, but my new neighbors don’t want to follow them, she said, followed by what felt like her hundredth yawn of the day.

Hopefully you can get this sorted. Daria handed over some files. You have a meeting with Jack from textiles later. He has samples he wants you to look at. But we can reschedule.

I do need to look over those samples even though I don’t think I can keep my eyes open.

Daria smiled, her deep brown eyes full of sympathy. She and Reese had gone way back, right back to Reese’s skating years. It helped that they were relatively close in age. With the exception of Cam, Daria was Reese’s closest friend. If you change your mind, I’m happy to reschedule. You know, we don’t have a lot going on this afternoon. Why don’t you head home early? I can handle things here. Jack can wait.

Reese stifled another yawn. I can’t do that.

"You can. Go home, take a nap, and then talk to these new neighbors. We can tackle everything tomorrow."

She did like the sound of that, but she had work to do. Reese did not take days off. In fact, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d even missed an afternoon. And a lack of sleep wasn’t going to stop her from seeing those textile samples for their new athletic-wear line. Reese gulped back some more cold coffee and set her attention on the files Daria had given her.

I’m fine. I need to get this done.

Daria gave a resigned shrug. Sounds good. Holler if I can do anything else.

Reese nodded, then dove into the files, financial reports she needed to sign off on. Reese’s head spun. Usually, she could get through reports like these in minutes, but the headache coming on had the numbers swimming in her vision. There wasn’t enough coffee in the world to get her through this day. For a moment, she considered Daria’s suggestion. A little afternoon nap wouldn’t hurt. Maybe an early evening walk to clear her head?

No. She had work to do.

She lumbered through the day, trying to keep her eyes open as she went through fabric samples with Jack. As the head of production, he kept Reese on schedule, and he also had an eye for cutting-edge materials that would set her athletic-wear creations apart. The second time he suggested they pause and pick up again the following morning, Reese insisted they work on it now. Of course, there was also that little voice in her head telling her that in her present state, she’d need to review her choices in the morning anyway. She told that voice to shut up. Reese Beresford was not a quitter.

As four o’clock rolled around, Reese found Daria across from her once more. Her slim, tall form loomed over Reese’s desk, and by the expression on Daria’s face, she meant business.

All right, now I’m insisting. Go home! All this work will be waiting for you tomorrow and nothing is urgent. Get some rest. And I mean it!

Normally, Reese would put up a fight, but Daria was right. Slowly, she gathered some paperwork and her laptop and packed it all into her messenger bag. She felt a little bad leaving early. She was usually in the office well after 6 p.m., but her sleepy brain needed a break.

You will call me right away if something comes up?

Daria was clearly fighting not to roll her eyes. We can take care of things here.

I know, but—

Reese!

Reese cast one look back, but by the scowl on Daria’s face, she knew it was time to go. She took the short drive to her downtown condo. The place had cost her a fortune, but it was a sound investment, and the location was worth it...well, until the noisy neighbors had moved in. But she’d take care of that another day. She walked through her door, set her bag down, and headed straight for the sofa. She normally had no time for television, but she switched it on to half listen to the news, and before she knew it, her eyes closed and she was fast asleep.

SHE’D BEEN DREAMING about a cabin on the lake. Whose cabin, she didn’t know, but it had been peaceful. She was sitting on a dock with a book—how long had it been since she’d read a good book?—when the music started. It confused her at first. She was alone at this cabin by the lake. The only sounds should have been loon calls, so who was playing the loud music? She tried to block it out, but it became louder and louder, and worst of all, she felt herself being pulled away from her sense of tranquility.

No, I need more sleep!

Her eyes shot open. The music wasn’t from her dream. It was the new neighbors.

She shoved herself up and stared at the television screen for a moment, trying to get her bearings. The six o’clock news was ending, and she realized she’d slept for a few hours. But she didn’t feel rested. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and pulled herself to her feet. The music was thudding in her ears, and she groaned at the prospect of listening to it all night. But no, she wasn’t going to listen to it all night. She deserved a good night’s sleep, and that was what she was going to get. And if the new neighbors didn’t want to cooperate, she’d take it to the condo board. The rules were clear: no loud music that would disrupt other tenants.

She stormed out of her condo and marched over to her neighbor’s door. She knocked on it as loudly as possible and waited. Twenty long seconds went by with no answer, so she waited for the current song to end. Long minutes ticked past, and her anger ratcheted up. When the song finally faded out, she rapped on the door as hard as she could again, and kept on rapping until, a moment later, she heard the lock unlatch.

The door swung open to reveal a young man. She guessed him to be no older than twenty, twenty-two, tops. A baby compared to her twenty-seven years. He looked at her with eyes the color of the bluest ocean. He seemed a little surprised to see her there, but before he could say a word, she was talking.

Are your parents home?

He blinked a few times. My parents?

Yes, are they home?

Probably.

Great. I’d like to talk to them.

They aren’t here. They live in Milton. What is this about?

It was Reese’s turn to be confused. Sorry, what?

They live in Milton. You know, a few hours from here.

Yes, I know where Milton is.

Okay, cool. So why are you asking if they’re home??

She pursed her lips, figuring out a way to approach this. There had to be some story here. Maybe he went to the university downtown and his parents had gotten him the condo. And because he was a rich kid with no respect for his neighbors, he played the music as loud as a DJ at a nightclub.

Who owns this place? she asked.

He narrowed his eyes and tilted his head just as a hard rock song blasted through the condo and into the hallway.

Sorry, why are you here? Who are you?

I am your neighbor. And for the last few days, I’ve had my sleep interrupted by your music. You aren’t here on some short-term rental, right? That’s not permitted. Condo rules.

He smirked at that, as if something had dawned on him. "Well, hello, neighbor. I own this condo. I moved in last week. I’m not renting it and my parents didn’t buy it for me."

She was trying to make sense of everything with her sleep-deprived brain. Look, I’ve lived here for two years. And I enjoy peace and quiet. That peace and quiet was shattered when you moved in because your music is too loud. I can hear it clearly and very loudly from my condo. So I’m asking you very nicely to turn it down because if you don’t, I’ll make a formal complaint with the condo board.

His light brown hair flopped into his blue eyes, and he nonchalantly brushed it away. She was infuriated by how casually he was taking all of this.

My name is Grady, he said, extending his hand. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I wish the circumstances were different, but now that I understand your problem, I’ll make a concerted effort to keep the music down. And thank you for asking so nicely.

She frowned because she wasn’t sure whether he was being sarcastic. Nevertheless, she shook his hand. I do appreciate that, Grady. I get up early for work, so I need my sleep. She paused for a moment, realizing how that must sound. Did he think she was crazy? Look, I understand we probably got off on the wrong foot, so I apologize for that. Maybe we can forget this conversation?

Sure. Already forgotten.

She was about to turn and leave but he spoke again.

You didn’t introduce yourself, or would you rather remain my mysterious next-door neighbor?

She smiled at that. I’m Reese.

His eyes narrowed again. Why do you seem familiar? Where do I know you from?

No idea, she said. Anyway, thanks for keeping the music down.

She headed back to her condo, and for some reason, she couldn’t wipe the smile from her face. She told herself it was because she’d won, and not because she’d enjoyed meeting him. If she’d been younger and single, cute Grady may have been more interesting to her. For now, as long as he kept the music down, that would make her life a lot less complicated.

REESE HAD NEVER SLEPT so well— she’d even slept through her alarm. When she did finally wake up, there were a million texts and missed calls on her phone. As she padded to the kitchen for her morning glass of lemon-infused water, she scrolled through the messages. Most were from her agent, but a few were from Daria, and even one from her mother. What was going on? Had she missed an important meeting? She didn’t remember having anything planned. She hit Daria’s name. Her assistant answered on the second ring.

Don’t go anywhere, Daria said before Reese could say a word.

What’s going on? she asked, then downed half her lemon water.

You haven’t seen it, have you?

Seen what? I was in bed by nine o’clock last night, and I just got up. Panic gripped her. Who’d died? Her first thought was of her grandmother. Why else would her mother call? Has something happened? Has someone passed away?

No, nothing like that. It’s different, but it’s bad.

Reese sat at one of the white bistro chairs at her kitchen island. She needed for Daria to get to the point.

Daria, tell me right now what is going on.

Do you remember someone named Jennifer Brennan?

The name was like a gut punch, and it took Reese a moment to catch her breath. Reese would never forget Jennifer Brennan. That woman—or girl at the time—had made Reese’s life a nightmare.

What about her? Reese asked slowly.

She’s gone to news shows, gossip rags, and trash TV to say that you’re a horrible person. She has texts and emails. It’s a bunch of stuff about you saying that you wished she was dead and some other stuff about you making fun of her being adopted. Does this ring a bell?

Reese clapped a hand over her mouth. Maybe she had said some of those things, but Jennifer had said and done so much worse. And if Reese had retaliated, it was because she’d been at the end of the rope. Suddenly, the lemon water wanted to make a reappearance.

I haven’t seen or heard from Jennifer in nearly ten years! All this happened when we were kids.

Well, the press doesn’t care, and they ;re having a field day. I’d avoid social media if I were you.

Reese closed her eyes and tried to think, but the only thing that kept coming back to her was that this was just like a death: it was the death of everything she had built.

CHAPTER 2

W e can’t keep quiet about this. We have to issue a statement.

Reese massaged her temples. Her agent, her publicist, and Daria surrounded her at her kitchen island. For the last two hours they’d been trying to make sense of this, trying to figure out a way to find anything positive, but it wasn’t looking good.

I don’t know what to tell you. She kept things from when we were fifteen years old. I didn’t keep that kind of stuff. Why would I? And if you think what I said and did was bad, you won’t believe the kinds of things she said and did to me.

Marnie, Reese’s long-time publicist, rubbed her arm. Marnie had been around from the days when Reese’s parents controlled her career. And in a role reversal, it had always been Marnie who’d been consoling, sympathetic, and encouraging, while Fran Beresford had been cold and uncaring. Reese had been a business and discussion piece for Fran and nothing more. Marnie had been the maternal one, watching out for Reese and her partner Cam. She’d found their agent, John Gilmour, and then she’d hired Daria to handle the day-to-day skating business. Daria had been Reese’s assistant ever since. Reese wasn’t as close to Marnie as she’d once been, now that John had given Marnie new responsibilities with other clients, but she was still someone Reese trusted.

Are you sure you didn’t keep emails on an old phone or computer? Is it possible you deleted the old email address, and we can find it on a server somewhere? Or maybe she wrote you notes?

I don’t know. I don’t think so. But Cam would remember all this. He knew what a terror Jennifer was to me.

We’ll talk to Cam. Anyone else who would remember anything?

Reese racked her brain. Sure, there’d be a few others we skated with. Jennifer had her crew, and anyone who wasn’t in it was a target.

John took his turn to speak. Why do you think she’s doing this now?

Because I’m successful and she’s not, Reese said bluntly. We’re about to launch our new plus-size athletic line, and people are buzzing about it. Maybe that’s pissed her off. This is a woman who never wanted me to be successful. Do you know how many times she cut my laces or poured shaving cream in my skates? Or called me ugly? Made fun of my clothes and hair? Laughed at my mistakes?

She didn’t say that part out loud.

I guess the question that I need to ask is if you actually said all those things, John said. Because if you did, we need to get ahead of this, and fast.

Reese lowered her head and her shoulders sagged. Yeah, I said all those things. I’m not proud of myself. I wasn’t proud of myself then, but she was angry, and I was a fifteen-year-old under so much pressure.

Marnie and Daria smiled sympathetically, but John remained stone-faced.

Okay, he said. We’ll release a statement saying just that. You were a kid when this happened, that you’ve grown up since then, and you are remorseful. You’ll apologize to Jennifer and stay out of sight for a while. It will all go away.

Reese bristled at that. Apologize?

We need to make this disappear before it gets out of hand.

No way! I will not apologize to her!

John frowned, deep lines forming around his mouth, and when Reese looked to Marnie and Daria, she could see they were firmly in John’s camp.

Reese’s heart picked up beats. She needed to calm herself down with the breathing exercises she’d learned in therapy. The thought of saying sorry to Jennifer Brennan made her sick. Jennifer had done everything in her power to sabotage Reese’s skating career, and if it hadn’t been for the fact that Jennifer had essentially aged out without showing more promise, they would have been rivals for years to come. Jennifer had gone on to coach young kids, and it made Reese’s blood boil. Jennifer was one of the cruelest people she’d ever known. How would she treat her students?

You will. We will craft a response for you and find the appropriate way to deliver it to her. I’m suggesting a phone call.

Reese sucked in a huge breath. Call her? I haven’t seen her since we were eighteen. I don’t want to ever see or talk to her again.

Reese, you need to cooperate, John said. We need this in our rearview mirror.

Reese popped off her chair and paced her long kitchen. The thought of hearing Jennifer’s voice, having to grovel...it made her skin crawl. How many times had the other girl left Reese in tears, crying herself to sleep and wishing the world would swallow her whole? Even when Jennifer had pushed her to the breaking point and Reese had spewed how much she’d hated her, she knew it had been wrong. But she’d been so hurt and angry. At fifteen, hormones were raging, the pressure to perform on ice was intense, and having to endure the meanest bully around didn’t help matters.

Fine, I’ll do it, Reese said bitterly.

John gave her a perfunctory pat on the back. Good. This is the right thing to do. In the meantime, I want you to start going through old emails, see if you can find any evidence that Jennifer was mean to you. We’ll talk to Cam, get a statement from him and from others who know anything.

My mom may have kept an old phone of mine, maybe a laptop. I’ll take a look at her house. And I’ll see what I can find.

I’m going to hire some people who specialize in dealing with this. It may cost a few bucks. Are you okay with that? Marnie asked.

Whatever it takes. I want this to go away as soon as possible. I don’t want it to interfere with the launch.

Or my reputation.

I’ll make some calls right away.

She could see that Marnie and John were ready to leave.

There’s one more thing. She bit her lower lip, pained at what she was about to say. There is more. The few things Jennifer has provided...they’re the tip of the iceberg.

REESE TRIED CALLING her boyfriend three times. Each time, her call went to voicemail. She knew Jordy was in the office, and surely he’d heard what had happened? Her face was all over social media. She’d gone from the Queen of the Ice to evil villain in a few hours. And right now, what she needed more than anything was a shoulder to cry on. She finally left a message asking him to call her back right away.

Her next call was to Cam. The second she heard his voice, she started to cry. She could always count on him. He’d never let her down.

Damn, Reese. I saw it all. What was Jennifer thinking?

I don’t know, Reese said, grabbing a tissue and blowing her nose. After all this time? Holding this grudge?

It’s crazy. John and I talked, and he prepared a statement for me. I’ll share it on social media, and he has some interviews he wants to set up. A part of me feels responsible.

Responsible? You have nothing to do with it.

He sighed heavily. Come on, we both know she had a thing for me.

And you had a thing for me.

Still, it’s been more than ten years. You think she’s still pissed off that you wouldn’t go out with her? Even if that were true, why would she blame me? I didn’t stop you.

You know that she thinks you did.

She’s crazy.

Let’s just hope it goes away. Some other scandal will happen, and this will be forgotten.

But she has more ammo, Reese said. She’s only posted a few things. And of course she omitted all the things she said to me. I didn’t keep any of that stuff because I didn’t want to remember it. Other than your word and maybe a few others we trained with, I don’t have proof. She’s got all the documentation.  Plus, won’t people think you’re all just saying that to support me? They would expect you to.

People will see through her.

I hope so. Until then, I’m on lockdown. Marnie and John want me to keep a low profile.

Tell you what, I’ll come down for a few days and keep you company. How does that sound?

I’d like that, Reese said, mustering up a smile.

I’ll let you know when I’m on my way.

They said their goodbyes and as Reese stood from her living room sofa, she saw a piece of paper someone had tucked under her door. Her heart began to pound. Was it a death threat? Someone leaving her a nasty note? She thought to preserve it in a Ziploc bag and hand it over to John and Marnie as evidence, but as she got closer, she could see Neighbor written in scratchy handwriting. She picked up the folded paper and opened it.

I’m sorry what’s happening to you. I’ll keep the music down. If you need anything, call or text.

He’d left his number with a smiley face, and it made her want to cry all over again.

CHAPTER 3

Reese was staring at the login screen of her old email provider. Who remembered a password from ten years ago? Was it Monty,