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Her eyes widen in awe. “Does David Beckham go to the Olympics?”
“I don’t know…” I resist the urge to pull out my phone and google it for the both of us.
My little sister shrugs, a little frown appearing. “Then it’s probably not cool.”
“I’m sorry, but is nothing cool unless David Beckham does it?” I laugh. Val picks up her pace, seeing our apartment building up ahead.
“Duh, Sage. He’s like the best and Lindsey says he’s really hot.”
I can’t control the twitch in my eye. “I don’t think Lindsey should be talking about who she thinks is hot at six.”
“She’s seven,” Valerie says matter of fact.
“Oh, okay. That’s much better.” I nod, letting go of her hand so she can sprint up the stairs. Val waits for me at our door as I pull out the keys.
“So, who was your coach?”
My mood drops when I think back to this morning, wondering why I brought it up to begin with. “Nobody as cool as David Beckham.”
She giggles. I smile as I ruffle her hair and head inside. I pause at the sight of our mom slumped on the couch, confused about why she’s home considering today is one of my designated days. She’s usually asleep till the time she has to head to the hospital for her twelve-hour shift.
“Mommy!” Val screeches, jumping onto the couch and startling her awake.
She blinks at my little sister before looking up at me. “Did you finalize your schedule with the coaches?”
The flare of annoyance burns in my chest, but I nod. “Yeah. Why are you up?”
She holds onto Val as she stands. My little sister wraps her arms and legs around our mother as we all head into the kitchen. “I’m on call.”
I run a hand through my hair, my chest hurting at the deep dark circles under my mom’s eyes. “Leave your phone with me and go rest. I’ll wake you up if it goes off.”
Val whines. “No, Mommy! You promised you would do my homework with me.”
My mom flinches, guilt hollowing her face. I grab Val from her and tickle my sister’s side. “Hey. What about me, Squirt? Am I not good enough to help with your homework?”
Val laughs as I try to avoid looking at where our mother is sliding past us to retreat to her room.
Chapter Four
Fallon
I thank the bartender as he sets the bottle down and walks away. Taking a sip of the cold beer, I glance around the small sports pub, impressed by the clean floor and booths.
“Fuck. I am so glad to see you,” Conor says, collapsing onto the stool next to me and waving the bartender over to order a beer for himself. I smirk at my old college roommate, watching in amusement.
“You good?” I ask when he sighs for the second time. I’m not one for small talk, but I can pick up when someone has something to say.
He pulls at the collar of his shirt, nodding. “Yeah, yeah. It’s just weird to not be doing the kids' bedtime routine.”
“We can do this another day if you need to go play with some rubber ducks and read a princess story.” I hide my smile behind the beer bottle as I sip.
Conor laughs. “You’ll understand when you’re a dad. Well, maybe. None of the other husbands get it.”
“Other husbands?” I ask, confused.
He leans forward, glancing around ominously. “Yeah, I swear having kids is like starting a tiny cult. You get to know all the local moms and dads, but since Britt makes the big bucks, I stay home. Lemme tell you buddy, that blows their mind.”
“What does?”
