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“I’m sorry. I know how much you were looking forward to today.”
“Flexibility is required when you’re dating a professional athlete. Hopefully there will be plenty more games for him to see.”
“There definitely will be.” Avery smiles. “Want to warm up? I’m afraid I’m going to forget everything you taught me about playing defense.”
“Stop.” I laugh and kick the ball to her. “You’re going to be just fine.”
“I hope so. I can’t make a fool of myself in front of the Big East player of the year,” she says, and I blush. “I watched your highlights, Maven. You’re so good.”
“Was. I was good,” I say, correcting her.
“That badass woman is still in there. I can tell.”
“Thanks, Ave. If you want to practice defense, I’ll come up the field and?—”
The sound of a helicopter drowns me out. It gets progressively louder, and I look over my shoulder, shocked to find the chopper descending on the adjacent field.
Grass goes everywhere. The corner flags whip around. The ground vibrates under my feet. Both teams crowd together and try to figure out what’s going on.
The glare of the sun makes it almost impossible to see. I can make out the door opening and a figure jumping out, but I have no clue who it might be.
“This is weird, right?” Avery yells, and I nod.
“Yeah. I wonder if it’s a training exercise or something,” I yell back, and I shield my eyes.
A man jogs toward us. His long legs cover the distance between the two fields in a matter of seconds. My breath catches in my throat when I realize who it is.
I know that body.
I know how those arms feel when they wrap me in a tight hug.
I know how those hands feel when they run up my thigh.
Seconds pass, and then he’s right in front of me, inches away. His hair is a mess and his shirt is wrinkled, but his smile is dazzling.
Dallas.
“Hey, sunshine,” he yells, and I stare at him, bewildered.
“What are—aren’t you supposed to be on a plane?” I sputter, and his smile stretches wider. It crinkles the corners of his eyes and scrunches his nose, and I’ve never seen a more beautiful sight. “How—why?—”
“I was on a plane. Until fifteen minutes ago. I bought tickets on an earlier flight then arranged a helicopter to bring me to the field because I knew traffic on a Monday afternoon was going to be fucking horrific.”
“What?Why would you do that?”
“Because, Maven.” Dallas steps closer. Our toes touch, and he cups my cheeks with both of his hands. “There’s no way in hell I was going to miss my girl’s first game.”
My throat feels like it’s closing up. I can’t get a good breath to stop my lungs from seizing. My eyes sting and my bottom lip quivers. I think I’m dangerously close to falling apart.
“You did this for me?” I whisper.
He tips my chin back. His thumb drags across my bottom lip. “I would move mountains for you, honey. I told you I’d be here, and I am.”
My heart splits in two. Cracks straight down the center because I love this man so much,it hurts.
“I didn’t mean you had to pay for a helicopter ride just to be here,” I say, and I grab a fistful of his shirt. “How expensive was that?”
“Who cares? What’s the point of having a shit ton of money if I don’t use it on a worthy cause? You know I’d spend more than that just to be by your side.”
