Chapter 30
30
LEO
“ H ow’s the plan coming along?” Cooper asks as we huddle around the practice field.
We got our asses handed to us today, that’s for sure. Not only was Coach livid about our terrible performance yesterday, but we watched tapes until half of us were falling asleep. We lost communication somewhere, and we can’t do that again unless we want to lose our momentum and therefore the season.
It’s a slippery slope. Lose two games in a row, lose our hope, and we’ll just keep losing. We need to get on a hot streak and win game after game.
“I don’t know, we had a heavy conversation this morning. Elara was up and?—”
“Elara’s her kid, right?” Dirwin asks, stretching his quads.
“Her daughter, yes. She was up when I got up for some reason. Said her mom was upset last night and she wanted me to make her breakfast to make up for whatever I did.”
“She’s got her daughter working for her. Smart woman,” Cooper says, scratching his scalp.
I shrug. “She just kind of said that my publicist emailed her to say that we’re doing great, finished her breakfast and then went back to her room. I had to get ready and get here quick, so I didn’t see her after that. I’m not sure what to do, you know? I really like her but I don’t know if this is something I can win.”
“Why wouldn’t you be able to win this?”
I look at him incredulously. “Have you met Briar Crosby?”
“Yeah she’s kind of a b—” Emmett mutters as he comes up behind me.
“Don’t you dare finish that word,” I snap at him. Briar may be a lot of things. She may even be a bit of a jerk sometimes. But that’s not for any of these men to say.
“Sorry,” Emmett says, his hands in front of him in surrender.
I nod, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Anyways,” Cooper says, looking between us all. “Lulu’s tonight?”
“It’s Monday, isn’t it?” I chuckle. “Bringing anyone?”
Cooper has been seeing someone off and on, but we haven’t met her and as far as he says, we don’t know her. We have our doubts.
He shakes his head. “Not bringing anyone,” he pauses, looking me up and down. “Are you?”
But the answer is I’m not really sure.
“Where are you off to?” Briar asks as I take the stairs two at a time from my bedroom.
“Lulu’s. Wanna come?”
Her eyes meet mine as I round the corner, her body visibly relaxing as she sees my face. I can feel her gaze make its way down my chest to my jeans and back up, and when they meet mine once more, her pale cheeks turn a pretty pink shade that suits her.
“I don’t think so. I can’t leave Elara alone,” she says, and I have to keep myself from frowning.
When I started to let a woman make or break my night, I’m not quite sure. “Oh, okay.”
I stand there awkwardly as she watches me, unsure of what to say next.
Biting my lip, I try something. “What if I found someone to watch her? I think it would be good for us to get out again. Be seen.”
She leans against the doorframe to the office, and I can feel her dissecting my intentions. “It’s already getting late, Leo. I’m not sure who you’re going to find this late at night, and I’m not quite sure I’m comfortable with them watching my daughter just for me to go out, you know?”
Right. Responsibilities. And I wouldn’t want to put Elara in any bad situation, either.
“Okay,” I say simply, kicking a small ball of dog fur with my foot, suddenly way too interested in it.
“Okay,” she replies simply, looking back into the office, and I can tell she wants to get back to whatever she was doing.
“What are you up to?” I ask her. I’m glad she seems to be liking what I did for her in the office, and I remind myself to ask her about the car. At some point. When she’s in a good mood and liking me more again.
“Working on designing a layout for my cookbook,” she tells me, biting her lip. Shaking her hair out, she grabs it at the base of her scalp and clips it up. I watch her open mouth, a wave of lust washing over me.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been with anyone, and the only person I can think of is standing in front of me, wearing sweats and a baggy t-shirt, looking hotter than anyone ever has naked .
I’m so fucked.
“That sounds fun. Do I get to see it at some point?”
Looking back at me, Briar’s deep, warm brown eyes darken a bit, a smirk crossing her full lips as her gaze drops down to mine. “Maybe.”
Shoving my hands into the pockets of my jeans, I mentally slap myself. Get out of here before you do something stupid, man.
“Well, I have to go meet the guys at the bar. I hope you have a great night, Briar.”
I turn, about to head for the door when I hear her call after me. “Leo?”
I turn, finding her head peeking out the door. “Yeah?”
“Please be good, okay? I really don’t want to do any more damage control than we have to, alright?”
“I’ll be a good boy just for you, Briar.”
Her cheeks flush in an instant.
The boys and I stand in the main club part of the bar, drinks in hand. Emmett got his usual beer—an IPA, like the pretentious dick he is—while Cooper has some fruity little drink because he can’t shoot nearly anything else. Literally.
“Are we planning the bye week vacation soon?” Emmett asks, taking a long sip. “I need to find someone to bring and watch my daughter.”
Emmett has always been one of my best friends ever since he was drafted to the team. But it wasn’t until two years later that he opened up about his wife dying when his daughter was only six months old. He doesn’t talk about it often, and he doesn’t like leaving his daughter alone with most people. He’s protective of her, especially since she’s growing up without a real mother figure in her life .
The man has done everything he can to ensure that she gets what she needs, and I respect the hell out of the man.
“Yeah, I think next week we should take a look.”
“Did you ask Briar if she’s going with you?” he asks, leaning against the wall.
I purse my lips, about to lie. Because I haven’t asked her yet. It slipped my mind, as it’s not coming for weeks. But I also can’t expect her to just drop everything she may have in order to go with me. And Elara may have school, which she’d have to be taken out of for the week.
So instead of lying, I shake my head. “I’ll do that tomorrow,” I say simply.
As Cooper and Emmett start talking about the latest episode of some crime show they’ve been watching, I watch the door, hoping and praying a certain blonde walks through, but knowing she won’t.
But when it opens and Dirwin walks in, a smile stretches across my face.
Dirwin is one of the best backup quarterbacks I’ve worked with, and although we haven’t talked a ton lately, he’s been doing amazing in practice. Almost too good to be backup worthy, in my opinion. He’s also in the lead in my fantasy league at the moment, so it’s time to shake him down a little.
“Hey!” I put my hand up, getting his attention. He smiles, pointing to the bar.
It’s when I turn to the other two men that a pit settles in my stomach.
There’s women everywhere, and there’s now a group forming around Cooper and Emmett, who look happier than ever to get the attention.
But I don’t want attention, and as I feel the alcohol hit me little by little, I know that I’m far too unstable for this right now.
Therapy. Right. I need to call my agent tomorrow and ask them to find me the best therapist there is and get me an appointment… for this week.
“Why are we here?” I ask them over the loud club music.
Cooper gives me a sidelong glance before he meets Emmett’s questioning stare. “What do you mean? We come here every Monday.”
I shake my head, setting my drink on the table to my left. “No, why are we here right now. Like why am I here with you guys?”
“To hang out?”
“But we’re not. Not really, right? We come here to have fun sometimes, sure. But you guys are here to talk to women”
One of the women hanging off Cooper scowls at me as if I personally offended her. Hey, I get it. Cooper is hot as hell. I’d do the same exact thing if I were her.
Emmett rolls his eyes and lets out a loud sigh. “Man, if you want to go home to Briar, just do it. We don’t need the dramatics, okay?”
And it falls into place.
“Yeah, I’ll see you guys on Wednesday.”
And with that, I head home.
I stop at the small twenty-four hour convenience store on the way home, loading up on all the snacks I can get my hands on. Chips, cookies, you name it.
I’m in a snacking mood tonight, and I know the girls will be too. Elara asks her mom every night if there’s chips, and she has to say no.
Don’t tell my trainer.
The first thing I notice when I get home is that all of the lights are off. I check the time on my phone, and since it’s only ten, I creep down the hall to see if anyone is still up.
I never quite realized how noisy my feet are until this moment, as it creaks under my shoes.
“Leo?” Briar’s voice calls from her room. Clearly being sneaky is not something I’m good at.
“Uhh, yeah?” I call.
“You can come in,” she says, her voice quieter.
With a deep sigh, I push her door open, peeking inside.
And my heart instantly melts.
Briar is in bed, propped against a pillow as Elara lays in her lap, her head lolled to the side as she sleeps.
“You okay? You’re back early,” she says, her brows furrowed. Her hair is thrown up haphazardly in a bun and I can see her freckles from here.
“Yeah I just, well, I just wanted to be home. I was wondering if you wanted to watch a movie together or something,” I ramble, trying to get the words out before she shuts me down.
Her eyes narrow slightly as if she’s trying to read me before looking down at Elara’s peaceful face. Something stirs in the corner of the room, and I find Champ rolling over and letting out a loud yawn as her puppy eyes meet mine.
“Yeah, sure. Let me just put her to bed, okay?”
Briar pauses the show they were watching before carefully picking Elara up, bringing her to bed. When she walks past me, her warm almond scent engulfs me, wrapping me in a warm hug as she heads across the hallway, Elara’s head bobbing as she goes.
And it’s suddenly my favorite scent in the world.
Five minutes later and she looks shocked to find me in the same place, backed up against the doorframe.
“Are you going to tell me why you’re here?” she asks with a small smile.
“I wanted to hang out with you,” I tell her honestly, but I can tell she doesn’t believe me. “What movie do you want to watch?”
She purses her lips, unsure.
“I can pick if you really want me to.”
She nods, which I wasn’t really planning for. I was honestly really hoping that she’d pick something she wanted to watch considering when it comes to movies, I don’t really know shit.
“How about National Treasure?” I say, thinking of the very first movie to come to mind.
“That’s a bit random but sure,” she says with a shrug, climbing into bed and picking up the remote.
I gulp.
“Do you want to watch in the family room?” I ask, biting my lip.
Stretching, Briar rolls her eyes. “Get the fuck in the bed, Leo.”
Wincing, I look back toward the kitchen. “Actually, I got snacks before I came back. Do you want anything? I got those chips you said you liked at our first dinner.” Are my hands shaking? Why am I so nervous?
She had asked what my favorite lunch spot was, and I had asked what her go-to meal was. She informed me that she loved the kettle cooked potato chip, and no other plain chip. I believe her exact words were “I love the way they rip apart the top of my mouth.”
Her eyes instantly sparkle as the corner of her lips tip up. “Of course.”
Walking far too quickly to the kitchen, I kick off my shoes before panicking, trying to figure out where my cologne went. I swear I keep it down here just in case I forget, but it’s not by the front door, and it’s not in any of my jacket pockets. If I were to run upstairs, I don’t want to spook her. But then again, wouldn’t it make sense for me to change into something more comfortable ?
You’re overthinking it, Leo. Just go change.
Holding my breath and already thinking about what I’ll have to tell her if she questions me, I run up the stairs and into my room, instantly heading to my drawer and pulling out a pair of gray shorts and a white t-shirt.
Pulling off my pants a little too enthusiastically, my foot catches and I tumble over, my face hitting the floor first as I land with a loud bang.
And I lay there silently, counting the seconds.
Nothing comes.
Okay, maybe that wasn’t as loud as I thought.
God, wouldn’t the team be pissed if I broke myself while taking off my pants. But then again, it probably wouldn’t be the most stupid thing I’ve done.
Hyping myself up, I pull on my clothes, grab my other bottle of cologne, spray some on, and head back out, taking the steps two at a time before grabbing the bag of chips and walking into her room as if I hadn’t almost killed myself changing fast.
“You okay?” she asks with a laugh, the movie already loaded onto the TV on the far wall. The city lights over the inner harbor out the window twinkle, and it hits me that there’s literally nowhere I’d rather be right now.
I nod, trying to shake it off. “Yeah. Something fell while I was changing. All’s good.”
She doesn’t look too convinced.
Rounding her bed, I sit on the side before she yanks the blankets out from under me as well as she can, making it clear that I should get settled in under them with her.
And my heart thuds in my chest.
Holding my breath, I climb in, getting settled as she presses play.
“Thank you for doing this with me,” I tell her.
She rolls over, her face so close I can feel her breath on my shoulder. “Truth or dare, Leo.”
Confused, I roll over just a touch to face her. “Truth.”
“Why are you here?”
“Because I want to be.”
“Cut the shit.”
Closing my eyes, I decide whether I want to get into this before deciding that yes, it’s worth it. “I was out with the guys and realized that I wanted to be home. I wanted to hang out with you, Briar.”
Her eyes study me with such intensity that I feel like shriveling up and fading away.
When it’s clear she’s both not going to give up or continue watching the movie, I ask her the same. “Truth or dare?”
“Dare.”
“Accept the car.”
She shakes her head.
“I want you to have it, Briar.”
She looks down, and I reach out, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Truth or dare,” she says.
“Dare.”
“If I accept the car, please don’t hurt me,” she says quietly, swallowing loudly.
“I would rather live out my days as a miserable, sad little man than hurt you, Briar. I can promise you that.”
She studies me for a long time after that, until what feels like fifteen minutes later, she rolls over and continues to watch the movie without another word.