Free Laura's Light by Donna Gallagher Page B

forwards across the globe, and now here we sit, drinking juice from a bloody yuppie juice bar at the gym. What’s next—sipping caramel lattes with the womenfolk?”
    JT’s gruff mocking tones had Trevor chuckling under his breath. Just the thought of the monster that was JT sitting around sipping fancy coffee was a sight he’d pay to see, and filming it would be even better.
    “ Skinny lattes, mate,” Brodie added, laughing. “Honestly, think we’re getting old, big guy. I’m exhausted—my body aches and it wasn’t half the session we’d have been doing if we were still playing. At least we won’t have to do the bloody Kurnell sand hills anymore. Pre-season training’s the pits.”
    “Boys, come now, you’ve only been retired for a minute. Just wait till you have to sit through a game…just watching. Then you’ll feel the pain of old age. You’ll both be dinosaurs before you know it,” Trevor added, feeling better than he’d thought he would, enjoying the laughter his comments caused from the men sitting with him. True mates.
    “Dinosaurs. Huh. Just like we thought about the older blokes way back when we started out, hey, mate. Karma, Mandy would call it.”
    “God, JT, what has happened to you? Mandy is turning you into a metro—all this yuppie and karma shit. The JT I knew wouldn’t have known what those words were, let alone used them in conversation.”
    “Fuck you too, Brodes.”
    Trevor laughed at the two-fingered salute JT gave Brodie.
    “Good to hear you laughing, Trev. Wanna tell me what had you all in a spin earlier?”
    “Here we go, touchy-feely Brodie comes a-calling.” Trevor grinned as he used the same words that he had uttered in anger a short while ago.
    “You might as well spill, mate,” JT butted in. “Brodes is like an old woman when he gets a bee in his bonnet over something.”
    “It’s not much really…just… I blew it with Laura Harris this morning. Everything was going great and then I had to open my big mouth—you know, mentioned how I would probably stuff up and disappoint her, said she probably shouldn’t count on me. And the next thing I knew, she’d booted me to the kerb. I was just trying to look out for her, you know?”
    “Mate, when it comes to women, they just don’t get us. Just take me and Mandy. After she got hurt I tried to protect her by not having sex, didn’t want to hurt her. Next thing I know, she’s accusing me of going off her. Fuck, I’d walked around with a hard-on for days with wanting her. You can’t win with women.” JT shock his head, clearly frustrated.
    “Yeah, but you can’t live without them once they get under your skin,” Brodie added, his tone serious.
    Trevor would have laughed over their conversation if it hadn’t been exactly how he was feeling.
    “Thanks for that insight, JT,” Trevor said, raising one eyebrow in JT’s direction. “I’m sure Mandy will be pleased you shared it with us.”
    “Trevor, do you think you really blew it? Or are you using it as an excuse to hide away?” Brodie’s directness caught Trevor off guard. “If you want something with her, don’t give up. Laura’s a top woman—solid, mate. Go back, try again. She doesn’t strike me as the sort of woman that just wants a casual thing. You two really had chemistry last night. And before you make some smart-arsed remark, JT, I’m quoting your missus. Caitlin and Mandy were gushing about it for hours after you left last night, Trevor. And if I know anything, I know my wife and Mandy notice stuff like that.”
    Trevor liked the sound of that—chemistry, noticeable chemistry. The more he thought about what Brodie had said, the more positive he felt. Brodie was right. Again. He and Laura had a connection. She wasn’t the sort of woman to have a fling. There had never been even a hint of her being involved with anyone, never any gossip surrounding Rookie’s mother… Up until now , he thought grimly.
    “Do you really think she could put