Free I Think I Love You (Australian Sports Star Series Book 3) by Iris Blobel Page B

able to make any, let alone give his management an answer. The job in Sydney sounded great. He didn’t have to do it for the money. He’d saved enough to have a decent living for the next few years and possibly invest in a sports store. Yet, commentating on the game he loved. That’d be the icing on the cake.
    He lifted the phone to his ear and waited.
    “Hi, Marky.”
    Sarah sounded tired and uncertain.
    “How are you?”
    He thought he heard the door closing in the background before she replied. “I’m good. What about you?”
    “Down at the bay with Annie and the kids.”
    “What about Miles?”
    “Doing hard-core studying for his exams.” He stood and walked to the window to watch the water. The waves rolled up towards the beach only to break and fall away. It was like the chaos inside that confused him. Unsettling.
    “Babe, tell me what’s wrong,” he said softly, closing his eyes.
    The sigh he heard was one he’d heard many times before, yet this time it came from deep within her, a sigh of pain, giving up, and something else.
    “Baby?”
    “I’m fine. Just need to sort through some stuff. When are you coming back?”
    “Do you need me?”
    “No.”
    His eyes flew open. Did he imagine it, or had she replied too quickly?
    “Okay,” he said slowly. “We’re here for a few days, but you never know with Annie.”
    Then he heard a phone ringing in the background. “Do you need to get this?”
    “It’s not mine.”
    The idea that someone was with her irked him, but he tried to ignore his irritation. Was it Timmy? Was that the reason she didn’t need him?
    “Baby, tell me what’s wrong.”
    “I’ve got to go, Marky. Enjoy your time at the beach.”
    Before he was able to say anything else, she’d already hung up.
    “You’re all right?”
    Markus shot around. His sister stood in the door with Ellie sleeping in her arms.
    “Yes. All good.”
    With a subtle shake of her head, she said, “You’re such a liar.”
    He stepped closer and placed a kiss on her temple as well as on his niece’s. “How about I grab us some dinner and a bottle of wine?”
    His sister nodded. “Too late for this one, but I’m sure Henry is up for some Italian dinner. Will you get some?”
    Nodding, he grabbed the keys and headed towards the front. “Want me to take Henry?”
    “Nah. The little man needs some soap on his skin first.”
    Markus laughed and left. He looked forward to a glass of wine with Annie. A little chat with another woman might enlighten him about whether he was reading too much into any unspoken words from Sarah.
    Or whether he had simply stuffed up.
     
    ***
     
    Sarah wiped the tears before she stepped into the spare room, where her sister was staying at the moment.
    “I’ve got some chicken left over. In the mood for some tossed salad to go with it?”
    Rachel nodded. “Whatever.”
    With her heart aching in more than one way, Sarah stepped closer to her sister.
    “Remember when we were little and secretly added salt to Mum’s cake when she’d invited yet another man to our house?”
    Rachel snorted.
    “Or stealing Oliver and Marky’s porn magazines and putting them into Mum’s drawer?”
    This time Rachel burst into laughter.
    Sitting down next to her sister, Sarah took her sister’s hand. “We had fun, didn’t we? What happened?”
    “Life.” Rachel’s eyes closed. “Life happened,” she repeated. “We grew up, some of us luckier than others.”
    They sat in silence for a long moment before Sarah said, “D’you think I was lucky?”
    The look her sister gave her said it all. Yes, Rachel thought Sarah had been lucky. She thought about it. Her childhood hadn’t been the best. Money had always been short. When the other girls wore the latest fashion, she made the best with what she’d found at the op-shop. There were days when she envied others for the little things like the latest CD, tickets to the movies, or their holidays, and she was jealous of their happy family