Page 42 of The Sacrifice
“She is. When my parents came over, they were all over my ass, and she stood up to them. On both mine and Hadley’s behalf. She even told them I was doing a great job of taking care of her.”
A sweat bee flies past Tony’s head, causing him to jump and dodge out of the way. Moments later, Gunner mimic’s Tony’s movements and swats at the annoying bug.
“That’s awesome.” Tony smiles now that the bee is bothering Gunner and not him. “It sounds like she has your back. If you find a woman who won’t back down and supports you one hundred percent, that’s….” He winks. “Wife material.”
I chuckle, but I don’t disagree with him. “It might be a little soon to tie her down that much. She just moved from thinking I’m her younger brother’s irresponsible best friend to sexy as fuck single dad boyfriend. I don’t want to get too far ahead and scare her off.” Single dad. Happiness swells in my chest. I’m a single dad. There’s no reason to wait. She’s mine, and nobody is taking her from me.
“Gunner,” Coach Slater yells from midfield.
“You don’t want to wait too long. She might find out you’re not as good as you think.” Gunner punches me in the upper arm and glances over my shoulder. Coach Slater yells his name again. He nods and gives him a wave, letting him know he’s coming. “Back to work, boys.”
Tony and I walk side by side onto the field. He’s a great guy, and I’ve learned a lot from him. “Jenna thought I was an irresponsible player also. When she finally got her head out of her ass, it was smooth sailing ever since.” He laughs and rakes a hand through his short hair.
“That’s not the story I heard.”
He winks and says, “If she was here, she’d kick me in the nuts for saying that. But don’t think you have to wait forever to stake your claim. We’d skated around each other since we were kids. I was her older brother’s best friend. But I didn’t wait around. The first month we were fake dating, to get the paparazzi off my ass, I knocked her. By the second month, I was begging her to stay. When you know. You know.”
As we line up on the field, I soak in the sun. The heat index hovers near 95 degrees. Tony is right. I don’t want to wait. Once the DNA results come in and I get Roxanne permanently out of the picture, I’m asking her to marry me.
I lean forward and hold my arms still while waiting for the whistle to blow. The players on the field are frozen in position. My stomach clenches. What about Andrew? Is he going to be okay with us being together, or is he going to oppose it? How do I handle it if he hates the idea?
We’ve been friends since we met on the playground in third grade. He could kick the soccer ball farther than anyone else, and I could run faster than any other kids.
We were thick as thieves and won every game we played. No matter who else was on our team. The thought of losing his friendship makes me sick.
The whistle blows, and I race down the field to the thirty-yard line, cut to the left, and sprint across the open field. When the ball zings toward me, I jump up and snatch the perfect spiral out of the air. Like Andrew was when we were in grade school, Gunner is a ringer at delivering the ball. Doesn’t matter what kind it is. Give him a club, and a golf ball and he’d get a hole-in-one.
I land on my feet and race to the endzone, crossing the plane untouched. Losing Andrew would make me sick but losing Mia would kill me. There isn’t a choice.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Later that Day
Mia
“Come here, beautiful girl.” I scoop up a freshly changed Hadley and press a kiss against her cheek. My heart swells with love when she rewards me with a smile and sweet babbling sounds.
“I was so not supposed to fall in love with you.” I kiss the tip of her nose. “Or tumble into a relationship with your daddy, but I sure know how to break those rules, now don’t I?”
And there’s not a part of me that cares. Every night this week, Jackson’s come home, and we’ve had a quiet night of dinner, snuggled with Hadley and then crashing in front of the television. God, I love that sofa. And the stairs. And the shower. And his bed. And mine. I’m not picky.
As I descend the stairs with her tucked against my side, her little sock-covered feet kick outward. On the last step, my phone vibrates and buzzes.Jackson.A ridiculous smile covers my cheeks.Ouch.I rub my cheekbone. They hurt from being so happy. Who knew that was even a thing?
Hadley bats my face with a matching grin, and a drop of slobber trails down her chin. “Let’s see what daddy has to say. Do you think he’s buying us a present?”
I dig my cellphone out of the back pocket of my jeans.
Jackson: Hey, gorgeous. Miss me?
Me: Absolutely
I stash Hadley in the playpen I set up in the laundry room across from the dryer so I can get work done but keep an eye on her. My phone bumps in my hand before I can get the door open.
Jackson: I’ll be home at 6.
Me: Perfect. I’ll have dinner ready.
Jackson: You and a bottle of whipped cream? It’s been hours since I tasted that sweet pussy. I miss sliding along your slick lips and hearing those little whimpers before you come.