Chapter 38 – Phoenix #2
Reece, unable to contain her excitement, yells out, “Jordie!” and my newly crowned Super Bowl champ’s eyes light up when she sees us.
She breaks away from the group and jogs over, grabbing Reece and twirling her in a circle.
My heart is so full seeing my girls smiling and laughing together, and I lift my phone to snap a couple pics.
“You did so good, Jordie. You caught that ball like this!” Reece stretches her arms over her head to mimic that last touchdown pass.
“Yep, I definitely had to reach for that one,” she says with a chagrined smile. “Hey, I have something for you.” She turns and searches the crowd, signaling when she finds who she’s looking for. A ball boy runs up and hands over a football.
Jordie gives the ball to Reece. “This was the ball I caught at the end. Would you like to keep it?”
My daughter’s eyes are blue saucers as her head bobs up and down.
She may be young, but even she recognizes the importance of this gift.
“I’ll keep it in my room so I can see it every day.
” I massage my chest with shaking fingertips as Reece tucks the ball beneath her arm and uses her other one to hug Jordie. “Thank you, Jordie. I love it.”
Jordie sets her down, and Reece runs over to my brother to show him her new treasure, and I’m left facing my beautiful, sweaty woman who has purple confetti in her hair. I want to grab her and kiss her till she can’t breathe, but I’m fully aware of her family milling nearby.
So I give her a PG-13 hug, not too much body contact, though the embrace lingers longer than it should. “I’m so fucking proud of you,” I say against her ear.”
“I love you,” she replies, and I close my eyes.
“I love you too, baby. And your ass looks fan-fucking-tastic in those pants.”
Reluctantly, I release her just as Bubba runs up and grabs his sister again, looping her beneath his arm like a football. She screams and laughs, slapping at his stomach.
“This is how I carried you around when you were a toddler, Jordie-pie,” he announces.
Jordie-pie. I’m going to have to remember that one.
The rest of the family files up, and Bubba takes that opportunity to scoop Juliette under his other arm, drawing a squeal from her too. Both of his sisters now rest beneath his massive arms, facing each other with their blonde ponytails almost touching the ground.
“What is wrong with him?” Juliette asks Jordie.
“I think someone dropped him on his head as a baby,” she replies. “Or maybe he ate paint chips?”
The sisters look at each other and simultaneously nod at some silent agreement before reaching for their brother’s stomach and tickling him. The big guy jolts and almost drops them.
“Dammit, stop,” he grunts, putting them gently on their feet and rubbing at his belly. “You know I can’t stand being tickled.”
Unfazed by the shenanigans, Reno Swain, Juliette’s husband, approaches me and holds out his hand. “You’re Hale, right?”
“Yeah, Phoenix. I’ve been… working with Jordie.” And fucking her. And falling in love with her.
“I’m Reno, her brother-in-law. The two campaigns you’ve done so far have been great. I knew it would be a good opportunity for her, but I was a little worried because she’s not that into cosmetics. You guys did a good job of making it authentic to her.”
I chuckle. “She helped a lot with that. Let me know her feelings on wearing a fancy dress.”
Reno booms out a laugh. “I bet she did. Hey, we rented out an entire bar for the evening. You’re welcome to join us and party for a while. We hired a babysitting service if you need that for your daughter,” he says, glancing at Reece.
“She’s staying with my dad tonight, but I’ll come to the party. Is it private?”
“It’s invite only, but you’re welcome to bring a date or whatever.”
Yeah, buddy. The only woman I want to date is your sister-in-law.
“I might bring my brother, if that’s okay. He’s in town from London, and he’s staying at my house for a few days.”
He nods and we slap hands. “Sounds good, buddy. Hell, bring your whole family, if you want. We just want to celebrate and have fun tonight, so the more the merrier. As long as you don’t bring any press. Poor Jordie has had enough of them this week, and we want her to be able to relax.”
Reno gives me the address and the password to get in. I want to toss Jordie over my shoulder and carry her off for a private moment, but I also want her to bask in this moment. So I round up my family, and we head for the exit.
I secure Reece into the car seat in Dad’s Escalade and kiss her goodbye, telling her to have fun making cookies tonight. Turning to Remi, I toss him the keys to my SUV.
“You drive. My nerves are shot.” As we make our way through the throng of cars, I ask, “Do you want to go to an after-party with me? Reno Swain invited me and said I could bring someone.”
“Aww, I’m your plus-one?” he croons, and I smack him on the back of his crazy head.
“Do you want to go or not, asshole?”
He grins as we reach my vehicle. “Yep, let’s go get dressed.”