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Jake:Actually you blowing…delete
Rakell:Based on all the lucky jackets. I think you already had a following or wanna be following….willing to blow you but not off…Send
Jake:I only care about one pair of lips on my cock??…Send
Rakell:Is that so Mr. Skyler?...Send
Rakell:Dirty!You’re so fucking romantic…Send
Jake:I can be both…I can be anything for you!...delete
Jake:I’m going to find a place to meet…call in a bit. Be careful out there…Send
He chuckled to himself, but it was true she made him want to be everything to her. The rooftop was jammed with people drinking, eating, and laughing. He negotiated his way through the crowd, smiling as his teammates slapped him on his back, stopping momentarily as the owners, Mateo and Nick, toasted him with high-end champagne, a brand he didn’t recognize. Then he saw his dad’s blondish-gray hair and knew the rest of his family was near.
From across the room, he could see his mom’s eyes were puffy from crying, juxtaposing the big grin on her face. Jake knew she was a mess of emotions. He came up behind her, crouching down, and whispered, “You glad you put up with me all those years?” Then he planted a firm kiss on her cheek.
She turned. “Jake, we are so happy for you…Grand-pére stayed up to watch you on his computer. Dad walked him through the steps to livestream the game. He was a wee bit intoxicated when he called, going on about how you came by your physique from him. I have a feeling everyone in his favorite café is going to hear about this for days. We booked his flight, he’ll be flying in from France in two days, so you’ll see him soon.”
“I’ll let him know how thankful I am for his genes. Grandma and Grandpa?”
“Dad was on FaceTime with them throughout the game. Everyone was at their house, all your uncles and aunts…they aresoproud of you. Jake, you did it. I’m not just referring to the Super Bowl, but more importantly, the focus and the leadership.”
Jake cupped his mom’s chin in his hands. “I am a product of that nurture thing they talk about in biology…I love you, Mom.” Bending, he kissed her forehead. “I know I wouldn’t be here without you guys prodding, nagging, cheering for me.” He whispered into her ear, “Especially that nagging thing.”
She swatted his arm, and he dropped his hands. “I’m not convinced I did enough of that, but there’s still time.”
He chortled, thinking he couldn’t imagine life without his parents trying to center him all the time.
He saw her eyes sparkle as she crooked her finger for him to lean in closer. “Was the girl there…the one from the Jumbotron? I couldn’t tell because there were so many white jackets. I think it was kind of rude for other girls to steal her look, and didn’t you say that was the lucky white jacket you bought her?”
Jake scanned the nearby space, making sure no one was listening. “Mom, you’re usually not so nosy, but yes, she was there in the sea of white. I am hoping to see her, but there’s no way I can talk her into coming to this party.”
“Say hi to your sisters. Melissa’s just getting off the phone with Cassie, and apparently, Cassie said that she’s never heard Cameron talk as much as he did while he was watching the game. I guess Tom said it was closer to screeching words,” his mom said. Jake registered her frustration aimed at Tom.
He made a mental note to spend some alone time with Melissa after the coming week of celebrations. His mom continued, “Honestly, Tom doesn’t seem to see that Cameron is trying to communicate. Never mind, just go talk to your sisters for a bit, then I’ll try to help. I can cover for you…say you wantedto call Grandma and Grandpa, even though it’s too late, and your father already FaceTimed them from the game. It’ll be a good excuse for you to slip out and see Ke…” she stopped, swallowing her next words.
What the hell is going on? My mom is helping me sneak out to see a girl?Jake watched his mom still herself as she decided what to say next. She was starting to say a name…Of course, his parents had heard her name on TV…Ironically, Jake thought.They probably know as much about her as I do.That struck him as something that had to change.
When Lana and Rakell entered the hotel, the lobby was brimming with people. “You go hang out with Levi, and I’ll hide in the bathroom,” Rakell said sheepishly. Seeing all the people ebbing around them, bursting with excitement, took her back to the San Antonio game. Anxiety scratched at her insides. “I shouldn’t be here” jumped from her mouth.
“Hey, hey, Rakell…just take a deep breath. You wanted to see him, congratulate him. Listen, no one is going to recognize you…”
Rakell pulled air into her lungs, talking herself down from the panic brimming within her. Here she was, taking another chance on this guy. What about Jake made her act so recklessly and with such abandonment, as if the consequences didn’t matter? But they did, and even as she said that to herself, the realization that the end of them might be near made her chest cave. This was her chance to show him that she cared about him. That his dreams mattered to her. Then maybe he’d understand the sacrifices she had made for her dreams.
Lana pounced on Levi when she got off the elevator, a little buzzy from the booze. “The half-time show was brilliant. Selena Gomez rocked it. Definitely the best part of the game. I mean, at the end of the day, these boys”—she looked around the room—“were just playing the same game they did in high school, but now they get paid a lot of money to do it, so I’m a bit more impressed with Selena than boys moving a football up and down a big yard,” she spat out, her British accent more pronounced than usual.
Levi hushed out a laugh. “Shhhh…these guys just won the Super Bowl, and you’re going off on the half-time show. I’m guessing Jake snuck downstairs to meet Rakell. Shoot, I hope they don’t get caught. The other media outlets are hungry to get this story. They are like savages when they smell a story this big.”
“I know. I feel sorry for Rakell. No way is she ready for the onslaught of media attention looming. She was like a cat on hot bricks when she saw all the media buzzing about. I thought she was going to sprint right out of here. She’s going to have to get accustomed to it if they are going to get together, and there’s a big ‘if’ there…” Lana’s hazel eyes grew round, her eyebrows arching. “Not sure how it’s going to go. She wants to open up to him, and I…” Lana shook her head.
Levi put a finger to her lips. “Baby, Jake’s a good guy, plus he’s aware of his own reputation, so I can’t imagine him going hard on her. I mean, so what if she was pretending to be Matt’s girlfriend? People do the friends-with-benefits thing without thought, and he hadn’t come out publicly yet.”
“I know, she’s just nervous. Let’s get a drink,” Lana said, shifting away from the conversation. She’d only shared the outer edges of what Rakell did with Levi, but the Matt piece seemed to be digestible.
Jake:Where are you? I’m downstairs in the hallway off the restaurant near the bathrooms…Send
Rakell:You mean the individual unisex bathrooms that are practically suites? Those? I’m in one already...Send
