Page 11 of Let Me Love You
“But…you’d have to choose somewhere relatively close to campus.”
“I was gonna choose somewhere close to campus anyway since it’s where you’ll be. Why don’t you do some digging, and we’ll look at a few places this weekend?”
“You want me to pick a place for us to live?” I confirm.
“Yeah.” He smiles. “I trust you.”
With the straw between my teeth, I can’t help my grin. Those words will never lose their charm, especially considering our past and his lack of trust and communication in the beginning. To be honest, we pretty much sucked at communicating when I first moved to LAU. But after I found the Lions contract in his room and begged him to start actually talking to me instead of making decisions without any communication on his part, he finally understood where I was coming from. And now? Now, he’s the king of communication and trust, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Okay,” I tell him, taking a sip of my iced latte. “I’ll see what I can find.”
“Perfect.”
4
KATE
“So…?” My voice trails off as I watch Macklin chop lettuce. He has a black apron wrapped around his waist, making him look like a sexy Betty Crocker with a side of mountain man.
“So…?” he repeats, glancing up at me.
“How’d it go?”
“It went well.” The knife slices through the lettuce with another swift slice as he returns to chopping.
“Seriously? That’s all you have to say?” I collapse onto the leather barstool in Macklin’s kitchen and rest my chin in my palm. He had a meeting with Buchanan and Dr. Peroshi, the head of the medical staff for the Lions for next season. I still can’t believe Buchanan hired Macklin to reel in the team and make sure they’re taking care of themselves in hopes of keeping the team thriving. He’ll be perfect for it, though, so I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised.
Macklin’s eyes are alight with mischief as he scoops the lettuce into a bowl and begins slicing tomatoes. “Yeah. It went well. Peroshi seems like a good guy.”
“Is he older? Younger? Nice? Laid back? Grumpy? Come on, Macklin. I need some adjectives here.”
Adding the sliced tomatoes to the salad bowl, he answers, “Older. Reserved. Nice. It’s about all I have so far. It was only an hour-long meeting.”
“And? Do you feel good? Confident you’ll get along? Nervous he’ll step on your toes?” I push, watching as he grabs an avocado and slices it as well.
“I don’t think he’ll step on my toes. The guy’s kind of quiet. I can see why Buchanan might’ve thought I’d be a good fit since I’m not afraid to go head-to-head with players.” His mouth quirks up, and he stops cutting the avocado. “I think Peroshi’s too nice.”
“Nice is good,” I muse. “But is hegolden retrievernice or…?”
“Wise-old-man nice,” Mack clarifies while scooping out the avocado from the skin with a metal spoon. “Not sure he has the energy to be much of anything else. Buchanan pulled him out of retirement so he could help with the Lions.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Buchanan wasn’t kidding about wanting to run the team differently. We’ll see how it goes.” Sliding the knife under the sliced avocados, he sets the layers on top of the rest of the salad, making the dish look like it belongs on a freaking Food Channel show. Satisfied, he wipes his hands on his apron, then turns off the burner behind him. The scent of cumin and garlic fills the air. My mouth waters as he picks up the chicken breasts from the stove and sets them on his cutting board, giving them time to rest. “It’ll be good, I think,” he adds. “We’ll probably be rooming together during away games unless you or his wife tags along.”
“He’s married?” I ask.
“Yeah. Been married for fifty years.”
“Fifty?” I squeak.
He nods.
“That’s insane.”
His chin dips again, and he starts cutting the chicken into cubes. “What’s insane is how much travel is involved with all of this. You sure you’re okay with me being away so much?”
“I mean, I’d rather be with you, but I’m a big girl, and this is an awesome experience,” I remind him. “Besides, ModernLabs is great with time off and has already agreed to let me work from home whenever I need to. My schedule is four ten-hour days, so my Fridays will be free too. I think you’ll be surprised how often I’ll be able to tag along. How do you feel about it? Are you excited? Nervous? To be traveling so much?”