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Chris cleared his throat. He opened his briefcase again and pulled out a napkin with two coffee rings stained into it. But there was a crudely drawn image as well below the name “Home Run Buns.”
I lifted my eyes to his, then worked my lips to the side in thought. The picture was what appeared to be two bread loaves shaped like butt-cheeks getting hit by a baseball player with a bat. “Home Run Buns,” I said dryly.
“Home Run Buns,” Chris said with a proud smile.
“I can’t believe I’m actually considering this.”
“I can. It’s brilliant.”45Epilogue - JackI watched Nola move around the restaurant while it was packed with people. Music was playing, people were laughing, and the TVs were broadcasting several of the afternoon’s college football games.
She stopped to talk to a pair of women and had them all smiling wide and laughing within seconds. Then I saw her go to one of the servers who looked frazzled as she pointed to something on the computer where they put in the orders and tried to explain it to her. Nola put a hand on the girl’s arm and talked calmly for just a few moments before the girl visibly relaxed.
This was her element. It was her pitching mound. Her stage.
I’d put up with Damon and my former teammates calling me fucking insane for risking my career for “some woman I barely know and her failing restaurant.” I’d already known the Nola half of the equation was worth it. But it felt good to see that she was blossoming here.
Maybe she’d convinced herself it was okay to give up on her parents’ dream, but I knew I’d done the right thing by making sure she got to stay here and pursue this. Her life had been on hold to take care of everyone else first, and now she finally had something that was hers. Something she could pour her talent and energy into.
I was sitting with Chelsea, Belle, Damon, and Chris at one of the corner booths. Ben and Griff were currently doing something to the salt and pepper shakers that had Griff highly amused and Ben looking deeply curious. Luna was also following the boys along and appeared to be both taking notes and criticizing their technique at the same time.
Chris blew on his fingernails and then brushed them off on his shoulder smugly.
“Proud of yourself?” I asked.
“Please don’t even ask him,” Belle said. “He’s been insufferable. He thinks he’s going to have some post-football career as a brand consultant now. Our fridge is covered in expo marker pictures of ridiculous name after ridiculous name and all kinds of logos. It’s out of control.”
“Out of Control Branding…” Chris spread his fingers out as if he was imagining some giant flash-bulb lit sign. “That could work.”
Belle rolled her eyes, then gave her attention back to the too-small-to-be-real bundle of humanity in her arms.
It had been a long ass time since Ben had been so small, but seeing the baby was igniting a sort of biological man-clock inside me. Nola would look good with a swollen belly. With my baby inside her.
She caught me watching her from the bar and twinkled her fingers at me, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.
I’d been waiting for the right time and the right way to pop the question, but now I was starting to wonder if I could wait any longer. I wanted to have a baby with her, and if I needed to propose first, then I had a feeling the proposal might come sooner rather than later.
“Somehow,” Damon said, setting his phone down after he’d spent a few minutes reading something. “Your move to Florida has been good for us. There’s a whole swathe of sponsors who had their eye on the Southeastern markets. Your existing sponsors aren’t wanting to give you up, and now we’re getting offers left and right from new ones.”
“That’s great,” I said, completely distracted and barely hearing him. Nola was reaching for something on the other side of the bar, which meant her perfectly shaped ass was pointed in my direction.
Chelsea followed my eyes, then scoffed. “I swear. Men and asses. Like, what is so mystical about two hemispheres of fat sandwiched together?”
“Stop,” Chris said. “You’re making me think about sandwiches. And my stomach is already growling. Shouldn’t we get our orders faster because we know the owner, anyway?”
Chelsea jumped a little and her eyes went wide. I saw Damon discreetly taking a handful of her ass for himself. She was barely concealing a smile now.
“It’s easy,” Belle said. “Men are like big, hormone-filled arrows looking for a place to penetrate. A woman’s ass is the easiest target.”
“Has it been six weeks yet?” Chris asked, giving Belle a longing, lustful look.
“Almost,” Belle said. “But if you try to bring that thing anywhere near me before I’m fully healed, I swear I will kick it right off.”
