Chapter 34
Trinity
The following week was filled with the same stolen moments from the garage. Wherever we could sneak in a searing kiss, that usually led to us both breathless and aching.
The season was picking up, and practice was intensifying more with each win.
Unfortunately, that meant more strains on the body that Julia and I had to tend to.
My dad had to leave early from practice twice this week, and Preston had to take over, which left him there longer than planned.
Dad had assured me that everything was fine.
It was just a prior commitment with Jodie and I didn’t need to worry.
With my shifts at the bar and my classes, it made it difficult to steal time with Preston.
This was new and although we were both in, he was patient with my skepticism.
My worry that I would get him into trouble and he’d resent me.
But he continued to remind me every night when he called.
Talked to me for hours like we were a couple of teenagers who were floating on a cloud.
We had another away game this weekend, but it was close enough to bus there instead of flying.
Which was why I was currently shoved up against the window of a Greyhound, AirPods in, listening to the audio of one of my favorite romance books to pass the time.
Preston sat about twelve rows up from me, and I hoped I’d fall asleep and try not to make a fool of myself by sneaking glances.
A few hours later, we had made it to our destination.
Check-in was quick, and I opted to stay in tonight instead of going down to the hotel restaurant with everyone else.
The week had been long, and my mother had moved from cryptic text messages to voicemails.
Long ones, which frankly sucked the life out of me.
A part of me wanted to just call and make amends so she would leave me alone.
The other part still felt hurt and betrayed.
After taking a hot shower and slipping into a hoodie and shorts, I aimed to crawl into bed when a knock sounded at my door.
My bare feet moved across the carpet, and I pressed up on my toes to peer through the peephole. A sharp dip hit my stomach when I saw who stood on the other side. I quickly twisted the lock, flipped the latch, then yanked open the door.
“Preston,” I hissed before snatching him by the T-shirt.
“Calm down.” He chuckled while balancing two boxes of pizza in his hand as I dragged him across the threshold.
“Are you trying to get us caught?” I asked as I searched the hallway, relieved to find it empty.
Closing the door, I faced a smiling Preston. “You think it’s funny?” I crossed my arms.
He placed the pizza boxes down on the table. “Absolutely not.” He advanced toward me. “Baby, do you really think I would be that careless?”
I gnawed on my lip. “No.”
“Right.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss to the corner of my mouth. “You’re the only one on this floor. The team is three floors below you.”
Relief washed over me. “How did you manage that?”
He intertwined our fingers and led me to the bed. “I just told Loretta that it was at your request.”
“Smooth.” I rolled my eyes as I climbed onto the mattress.
He moved across the room with comfort, dressed in gray freaking sweatpants and a faded Cougars T-shirt. He looked cozy and hot, and I had to clench my legs when I thought about his words in the garage last weekend.
“Last time, I didn’t get to enjoy this with you.” He plucked both boxes from the table, then slid off his sneakers before he joined me on the made bed.
“Thank you.” I reached out to squeeze his forearm. “You didn’t have to.”
“I know. But I’m selfish and I wanted time with you. I missed you.” He casually tossed out the confession before stuffing a meat lovers slice in his mouth.
Meanwhile, I almost physically swooned off the king-sized bed.
“I missed you too,” I admitted.
“Eat.” He motioned. “Tell me about your week.”
When was the last time someone asked me that and genuinely wanted to know? Never.
I recounted my week in between bites of pepperoni magic. He laughed, listened, and at one point I thought he’d blow a blood vessel when I told him about the voicemails from my mother.
“What about you?” I asked.
He polished off his piece before leaning back against the headboard.
“Wasn’t bad. Practice was good and I feel confident about tomorrow’s game.
Ray had a couple of good days this week, so that always gives me a little relief.
Liv called to tell me she’d be here for Thanksgiving.
” He shrugged. “Other than not getting to be alone with you, it was a good week.” He held my stare. “But you’re here now. So I’m golden.”
I fiddled with the edge of the comforter, nervous to ask intrusive questions about his life. “How did Wesley’s girls become your goddaughters?”
I wanted to know everything there was to know about Preston Rusk.
“Wes and I grew up next door to each other in a small town about an hour from here.”
“Really? I had no idea.”
“Yeah. When Liv and I went to stay with Ray and Cecile, we met the boy next door. We clicked that first day, and the rest was history.”
Wow. A friendship that spanned that amount of time was precious.
“Crazy we ended up here. We played ball in high school and went on to play in college, but at different places. I went on to the NFL, but Wes didn’t go pro after college. He focused on his family.”
“What are the odds?” I laughed.
“I know. Wes had married Kassidy, and Kyndall was a baby, so the coaching thing just fit him. The time spent away from them would have been tough and he didn’t want Kyndall growing up without a dad.”
As soon as he said the words, his eyes widened. “Shit, baby. I didn’t mean…”
“It’s okay.” I shuffled up to lean against the headboard next to him. “I’ve got thick skin.”
He sighed and reached down to take my hand.
“Where is their mother?” I asked.
“Not around. Being a mom was never really Kassidy’s thing.”
“Hmm.” I hummed.
Sounded familiar.
“And your parents?” I asked hesitantly.
His hand found mine, lacing our fingers together. “Not sure. I’ve never tried to find them. My father was a drunk. He ran off after my sister was born. My mom…” He paused. “She had a lot of problems that she took out on us.”
I squeezed his hand, giving silent encouragement.
“On Liv.” He swallowed and I could see the pain in his eyes. “When she…”
“You don’t have to share, Preston,” I whispered. “If it’s too much.”
“No.” He shifted but didn’t look at me. “I want you to know. To know who you’re getting involved with. My past isn’t a pretty picture, but I did everything I could to turn it around. Give Liv the life she deserved.”
Heaviness filled my chest. A sadness I’d never held for another human.
“What happened?” I asked.
“She tried to drown my sister when she was two.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “I called nine-one-one. They took us away and we never went back.”
I couldn’t keep from climbing to my knees and wrapping him in my arms. I wanted to give him all the love he deserved. My heart broke for the innocent kid inside of him. The one who had to witness such depravity before he could fully comprehend it.
He tugged me onto his lap, my lips resting on his forehead. “I’m so sorry.”
His arms wound around me, his palm sliding up my spine. “It’s behind me. I washed my hands of that life when we met Ray and Cecile.”
I released him, leaning back to meet his eyes. “And Wes.”
“And Wes. His parents were like a second family. He was an only child, so they welcomed us anytime. We were happy.”
“I’m glad you had them.”
“We went through hell.” His hands dropped to rest on my hips. “But we made it to the other side. I found a family and then football. That was all I needed.” His gaze seared into mine. “Until you.”
A raw emotion thundered through my chest. One I was scared to process. So I switched the heavy topic.
“What about Theo and Shaw?”
“I knew of both just from being in the NFL world. You know players, especially those as good as them. Theo isn’t from here.
His family lives somewhere on the East Coast. But Shaw is from Texas.
His family is super wealthy. They own oil companies all over the state.
We became good friends when we started coaching together. ”
“I admire your friendship.”
The confession landed heavily. He sensed it.
“What about you? Anyone you grew up with back home?”
I shook my head. “I was more of a lone wolf.”
He laughed, bringing up our conjoined hands to drop a kiss on my knuckles. “Nothing wrong with that. But you and Landry seemed to hit it off?”
I smiled at the thought of my bubbly blonde friend. “I don’t think she’s the kind who lets you have a choice when you meet her.”
“You both have that in common,” he murmured.
Gosh, his words.
His blue eyes dipped to my lips, want filling the depths.
“I need you to do something for me.” He repeated my words to me, the rasp of his voice signaling goose bumps to dance across my skin.
My heart skipped a beat. “Anything.”
“Let me stay?”