Page 95 of Penalty Kick

Flopping into one of the chairs, Dash tried to hide his annoyance. Fans were still watching him, no doubt wondering why his head wasn’t in the game. He’d better start thinking of an answer now, so he’d have one once Cowboy threw him to the wolves during post game media availability. Surely the answer of “I lost the best thing that ever happened to me” was not going to be acceptable. Leaning forward, he rested his face in his hands, just wanting this all to be over.

“Hi.”

The soft, sweet voice was barely audible above the roar of the crowd. Dash wasn’t sure he’d heard it at first, thinking it was all in his head. But then he heard it again, and this time he knew he wasn’t imagining things. Head whipping up, Dash blinked, hard, convinced that this was a figment of his imagination. There was no way this was real. His mind was playing tricks on him.

But then she flashed that smile, the one that made his stomach do weird things, and he knew this wasn’t a mirage.

The most beautiful woman he’d ever known was standing right in front of him.

“It’s generally considered polite to respond in kind when someone greets you,” she said. Her amazing smile grew bigger, a teasing look in her eye sending sparks through him.

“Talia…” Popping up out of his seat, he exhaled, long and hard, heart starting to race, not realizing he’d been holding his breath. That was just what she did to him—literally took his breath away. “What are you doing here?”

“There are some things I need to say to you.”

What?!

“Here? Now? I am not sure this is the best place for us to talk.”

Sure? He knew damn well it wasn’t. Talia probably had a list as long as her arm of all the things she wanted to say to him. And he would take it. He’d listen to every last word she had to say about how he wasn’t good for her and that she hated him. He’d simply prefer not to do it on the sidelines, in the middle of a game, with sixty thousand people in attendance. That wasn’t too much to ask, was it?

“Yes, here. Now. And I can’t think of a better place to talk.”

Mierda…

“Okay…” He gestured to the seat next to him for her to sit, but Talia shook her head no. This was already off to a less than stellar start.

“Dash, I love you.”

* * *

Talia’s heart had been racing all day. She’d been rehearsing everything she wanted to tell him, like a child practiced lines for a school play. Each time it came out a little differently, new things seeming to sneak their way in. By the time she’d actually set foot on the turf, she’d figured it was just best to wing it.

Dash stared back at her, slack-jawed and wide-eyed. Those three little words had obviously not been what he had been expecting. She liked that. Catching him off guard had been half the plan. Now it was just time for the rest of it.

“I love you,” she repeated. Biting the corner of her lip, she inhaled slowly, her stomach twisting. Dash didn’t seem to move, stock-still like someone had pushed pause. “You’re my person, and I should have done better by you.”

Dash shook his head, as if to clear out his thoughts, lowering himself into the chair behind him. “You…you should have done better by me? Talia, I was the one who—”

“Was absolutely perfect? I know.”

Perfect might have been a stretch. He was the resident good-time guy. But she’d gone into this knowing that. Willing to accept that. Even with the Vegas debacle on the table.

Dash hadn’t been that with her though. When it came to her, he’d been—well, perfect. Kind, sweet, loving, understanding, and patient. Oh, how he’d been patient. Felicity had—ever so gently—pointed out that Talia hadn’t really made Dash wait all that long between telling him she was a virgin and sleeping with him, but the length of time he’d waited wasn’t important to Talia. His being willing to wait, his complete understanding and lack of pressure—that was what had sealed the deal for her. That was what had made her fall. His outburst in the ice cream shop hadn’t hurt either.

“You were yourself from the start,” she continued. “I knew who I was inviting into my life, and that’s why I was so reluctant at first. Until you showed me perception isn’t always reality, and that there was so much more to you than I thought. Than everyone thinks. Which is why I should have known better when Horny von Honeytrap showed up.” Dash scoffed out a laugh at her name change. The sound was soothing, and her insides started to relax. “I should have asked questions. Thrown it back in her face that she was full of shit, that those photos didn’t prove anything. Instead, I walked away.”

The ref’s whistle blew, quickly drowned out by the fans, their voices melding together to express displeasure at something. Talia glanced over her shoulder to try to see what was going on, but couldn’t make out more than a massive clump of players over on the other side of the field. The time clock was perfectly clear though, and she knew she was running out of time.

Turning back to Dash, she found him standing only inches away from her, staring at her, eyes warm with emotion. Her own insides started to melt. He hadn’t looked at the game the same way she had. The action behind her was irrelevant to him. He was focused on her, and only her. Dash has only had eyes for you since the second you walked in the door. Dalton’s words replayed in her head, carrying even more meaning now.

“Talia, you were upset,” Dash replied, closing the gap even more. Talia’s breath hitched. She was the one who was supposed to be groveling, making this the perfect, daresay romantic, moment. So how the hell was he the one making her swoon? “I do not blame you for walking away. I confirmed all your fears.”

“You didn’t. And not just because everything she claimed wasn’t true. But because whatever did or didn’t happen in Vegas doesn’t matter. You proved to me who you are at every Unified practice. The night you filled in for me at Bunz, even though you didn’t have a clue what you were doing. When you handled my dad with so much grace and turned that family dinner on its head. And when you stood your ground with Gunnar…well that might just have been the sexiest thing I’ve ever witnessed.”

Dash laughed again, his megawatt smile lighting up the space around them. Talia loved that smile, and she wanted to spend the rest of time on the receiving end. Closing the gap between them fully, Dash’s hands found her hips, the heat of them searing through her clothes. Every time he touched her she couldn’t help but think they had been made to fit together, like two puzzle pieces. He rested his forehead against hers, the rest of the world instantly fading away. They were no longer on the sidelines in the middle of a professional sporting event. They were someplace far away, surrounded by the sound of their shared heartbeat.

“I love you, Talia. You have no idea how much. Nothing is ever going to change that,” he whispered.