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“I’m not sure life advice was in the job description when I started working for you, but thank you. Thank you for listening to me, and for sharing your story, too.”
Dallas opens his arms and welcomes me into a hug. I practically leap into his embrace. He wraps me up tight, and I rest my cheek against his chest. “You’re going to be alright. I can already tell you work so hard at things, Maven. If your heart’s in it, it’s yours.”
“You sound like my therapist,” I say into his shirt. “Or like you’re trying to hit on me.”
His laugh is a deep rumble. “I have to admit I’m out of practice and have no idea how to hit on anyone, so if that’s the way it came across, I’m sorry.”
“What you said means a lot, and I’m going to do some soul searching. Who knows what I’ll find?”
“Save some room for me and June,” he says, and his fingers dance up my spine. “We like you.”
“I like you two, too. Her more, obviously. She gives great manicures. My nails are so pink.”
“Obviously. Wait until she does your makeup. You’re going to feel really special. The ladies at the park complimented my eyeshadow for days after she made me her muse.” He untangles our limbs and grabs our beers. “I think we need another toast.”
“Oh?” I reach for my drink and hold it in the air. “What are we going to cheers to this time?”
“Second chances,” Dallas says, and his gaze holds mine. “And the right things coming along at exactly the right time.”
“Sounds like a Vertical Horizon lyric.”
“Are you even old enough to know who that is?”
“Pretty sure that’s considered classic music now, lone star. You’re aging yourself.”
“Lone star?” he asks
“Yeah. You know. Texas. Cowboys. Dallas. Yeehaw,” I explain, and he grins at me.
“Wow. You’re kind of a little shit.”
We knock the bottles together. His eyes stay on me as we take a sip in tandem. They follow me when we move to the couch and go through the rest of the scrimmage photos. The moon gets higher in the sky and the night stretches longer and longer, and the whole time we’re together, Dallas never looks away.
NINE
DALLAS
Maverick leans backon my couch and cracks open a beer. “How are things going with the nanny?”
I kick my feet up on the coffee table and stretch out my legs. “She’s great. I don’t know how I survived for so long without her. I’m sleeping better. I’m eating all of my meals, and I haven’t felt this good on the field since my rookie year. June is so tired by the end of the day from being out and about, she falls asleep well before her bedtime.”
“Where are they?” Reid asks. “I hope you didn’t kick them out just so we could come over.”
“They’re at the movies. Maven told me to have an afternoon off before I fly out to California tomorrow for our first preseason game, so I am.”
“Is she hot?”
I choke on a sip of beer and shoot Maverick a death glare. “Stop it.”
“What? I’m just asking a question.”
“You’re trying to meddle in something that doesn’t need to be meddled in.”
He sits forward and rests his elbows on his thighs. A shit-eating grin stretches across his mouth, and he drops his chin into the palm of his hand. “I am not. I’m curious, Dal. That’s all.”
I know he won’t give this up until I answer him, and I sigh. “She’s fine.”
Maverick blinks. He tilts his head to the side. “Fine? The weather is fine. Food is fine.Peoplearen’t fine. What does that mean?”
