White Lie | Danny Amendola

Chapter 17

Finally! It's Wednesday! If you're in the Midwest, stay safe in the -50 degree weather!

** Kristene's POV **

I sighed as I put the last of my personal belongings in the cardboard box on my desk. I had another twenty minutes until the meeting in coach Belichick's office, and as the time got closer to it, the sick feeling in my stomach sank more and more.

At this point, I hadn't heard from Danny since I left his place, and that was beginning to worry me. I knew this was something neither of us wanted to go through, but in this time, we needed each other. I couldn't figure out how to function all day, and I had a feeling that it was only going to be getting worse.

There was a knock at my door, and then Vicki's head popped into my office. "Hey hun," she said with a sigh. She walked in and closed the door behind her. "How ya doing?"

I collapsed in my office chair and let out a sigh. "I can't believe this is it. I'm really going to be missing this place," I mumbled as I looked around at the now blank walls.

Vicki nodded. "I will, too," she said as she looked at me with a small smile.

"What do you mean you will too? You're not the one leaving your job," I told her. I was beyond confused by what she meant. It wasn't like it was her and Julian who got caught; it was Danny and me.

"The day that you uh... You got assaulted... I was back at Julian's and I got a call from the Celtics. They wanted to re-interview me from my application that I sent in last year. They offered me the job... We agreed that I would start the Tuesday after the Superbowl... So, yeah," she said and bit her lip.

"No way, Vicki! Congratulations! That is so great for you! Maybe you can help me get a job! Rumor has it that I will be needing one," I told her with a small chuckle.

She rolled her eyes, but nodded anyway. "Thank you... Jules and I have been keeping it under wraps until I was able to put my two weeks in," she informed as she leaned back in the chair she was in. "Also, I may be able to look into getting you a job there once I am established... You said you minored in marketing, right?"

I nodded with a smile on my face. "That would be great... I'm really hoping to apply for the Providence Bruins... Or even the Red Sox," I told her. I shrugged.

"But If you work for the Red Sox your season will be during Danny's off season," she pointed out.

I nodded. "Yeah... That's true... I guess we will see where the path goes," I replied. I looked at the time on my laptop and then to Vicki. "I must be heading to the end of my job with the Patriots... I'll text you to bring my stuff down if they won't let me back up." I told her as I pushed my chair out and stood up.

She stood as well and wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug. "Good luck, hun. Love ya."

I nodded into her shoulder. "Love ya, too."

***

I was sat in Coach B's office waiting on Mr. Kraft and Danny. Coach B was clicking away on his laptop as Mr. Kraft slid into the room. I instantly stood and shook his hand. "Mr. Kraft."

"Hello Kristene," he said, then looked to Belichick. "Where is Amendola, Bill?" I sat back down.

Bill looked up at Mr. Kraft and shrugged. "Last I saw him, he said he was taking a shower, and then he'd be right back. That was nearly an hour ago," he said, emotionless.

Before Mr. Kraft could reply, the door opened, then shut. A damp haired Danny took his seat next to me. I glanced over at him, he was only looking straight ahead at the two older men. "Sorry," he mumbled. "They wanted to check my shoulder before I left for the day." He sat down next to me.

"I trust that you two have made a decision," Mr. Kraft said as he sat at the edge of the desk-- Just like the day before.

We both nodded. "Yes, sir," we said at the same time.

"We de-," I was cut off by Danny speaking up.

"We decided that we will no longer have relations with each other outside of the workplace," Danny said. My jaw dropped and I snapped my head in his direction. "It was very inappropriate, and will not happen again."

"What," I asked, in shock, not caring that Belichick and Kraft were in the room. "What do you mean, Danny?"

After a second, Danny turned to me, brown eyes emotionless. "I'm sorry, Kristene. I-- We never should have done this in the first place. It was a mistake," he said.

My heart was torn out of my chest at that very moment. "A-Are you serious?"

He nodded slowly. "Yes... I came to the decision last night after you left my apartment. You deserve to keep your job... I do not want to be at fault for you not having any income," he said, quite flatly if you ask me.

It was like he was stomping on my heart, repeatedly. I sucked in a breath as tears began to surface in my eyes. "I-I..." I nodded. "Okay... Then I guess you have your answer," I told the two older men, trying to keep myself together.

Both Belichick and Kraft nodded. "We appreciate you two coming to a decision so quickly," Kraft said as he stood up.

I stood from my seat and shook his hand, as well as Coach B's. "Thank you. If you need me at all, I will be up in my office," I told them in a low mumble.

Without even looking at Danny, I sucked in a breath and made my way out of the office. With every step, it felt like my heart got heavier and heavier.

** Danny's POV **

"I will be up in my office," she said. Her voice sounded stone cold. My heart shattered. She moved out of the office and let the door click shut behind her.

"You made the right decision, Dola," Kraft said as he stood from the desk.

I shook my head as I looked down at my lap. "No I didn't," I mumbled. "I just broke her heart... And mine."

Coach B let out a sigh. I looked up to meet his eyes. "You didn't have to break up with the girl. You probably wouldn't have been sat during the game anyway," he grumbled.

I squinted at him and shook my head. "You think I broke up with her so I could play on Sunday? I didn't do that," I said loudly. "I did it so she could keep her job. She didn't deserve to lose her job because of me."

"You know what? Come with me to my office... Let's have a little chat," Mr. Kraft said as he motioned toward the door.

I looked up to meet his eyes, instantly nodding.

We made our ways up the elevator, and to his office without saying anything to each other.

"Please have a seat, Danny," Mr. Kraft mumbled as he closed the door behind us.

I moved to sit in the chair in front of his desk as he moved to his office chair. "Danny... I know this situation is not ideal... And I can tell you love her... And she loves you... But you do understand why we have this policy, right?"

I nodded. "I completely understand, sir... That's why I had to do it... We talked about what we wanted to do... And after we talked I felt worse and worse... I couldn't just let her lose her job. I would rather be out for a whole season than have her lose her job," I mumbled and shook my head. I was twiddling my thumbs in my lap. "It is her dream job... She worked for this her entire life... I couldn't take that away from her."

Kraft sighed, but nodded. "I understand that, Dola... I'm sorry that we've made you come to this decision. However, we do appreciate it greatly. Kristene has been a wonderful worker... And you, an amazing player. If you need anything, please just let me know."

I needed my Kristene back... But I knew better than to ask.