Halftime

epilogue

TWO YEARS LATER 

I swore silently in my head as I rushed across New York's icy pavement in my heels.

Why did I wear heels? Who told me that was a good idea? Because it seriously wasn't.

I was about to miss my train and I really did not want to wait for another one. I was too impatient for that. Plus I had things to do.

One day I'd be able to drive, but until then, I was stuck training. And since Harley was away visiting Aiden in Colorado I had no one to drive me places. Although, Harley was still a questionable driver at best.

Ty and Lia were also away on family visits.

They'd become pretty close over the past year and despite their claims of being just friends Harley and I were secretly their number one fans. We'd already planned their wedding.

And Jess had also rejoined our group, although, like me, she was single. Well, no. She was single. I was on a temporary break. There was a difference.

After what had happened with Mark, Jess had reached out and we'd ended up having a long chat over coffee.

I ended up forgiving her and we slowly rebuilt our friendship. And we were both better people because of it.

She'd ended up being a massive help in my lawsuit against Mark, after giving a statement about him pressuring her to let him borrow her phone to text me.

In fact, all of my friends had helped and our evidence had been fool proof. There hadn't been a single objection when Mark was finally sentenced to four years in jail.

It had been a massive relief winning that case. Something I hadn't known I needed. It allowed me to regain a sense of confidence I didn't actually know I was missing.

It gave me back a sense of freedom. No need to be afraid again. No more need to tear myself down or let him tear me down. I'd won the case against him and proved to myself that I was capable of being strong on my own and that I wasn't worthless and undeserving.

I'd been empowered.

I stopped relying on external reference and instead listened to myself. I trusted myself. And I was truly happy for the first time in what felt like so long. I was happy being on my own and creating a career without having to worry about someone threatening it.

And if someone did, I would be able to handle it.

After I finished my degree, I began working full time at Maxwell and Jones but after quickly tiring of Dave and his sleaziness, I'd transferred to a different firm. Rebecca had helped too, connecting me with some other litigation lawyers.

It was tough work, having to start at the bottom and make my way to the top, but I loved it. It was all worth it to me.

Which is also why I was running in heels. Because law firms, sadly, still had dress codes.

I glanced back at the time, swearing to myself again. I forced myself to run faster, wishing I had brought a spare pair of shoes.

Zack was playing against Aiden's team today and I promised both of them that I'd watch the match. Which was starting in fifteen minutes. I was thirty minutes away from my shared apartment with Harley and Lia. Plus, I rarely had time to watch any games since work kept me so busy, and this would be the first I was going to watch for the season. I refused to miss it.

It wasn't actually that big of a deal but I did want to watch the game. Turns out, I was actually a fan of lacrosse. After properly learning the rules and understanding the game, it became enjoyable to watch. And I was still friends with Zack and Aiden and I loved being able to support them.