Chapter 16 #2
“Don’t you tell me it’s just a game.” With a toothy smile, he shook his head. “Ryker, you know me better than that.”
I choked out a laugh. “Fine.” I tutted. I’d never seen this side of Casey. Did his opponents see this on the field?
Threading his fingers in mine, he said, “I’m sorry, babe. I’m just—I’ve never coached someone and then watched them play. It feels like if he loses or fucks up tonight, I didn’t do him justice. You know?”
I squeezed his hand. “Casey, you did everything you could for him. He might not be playing tonight if it weren’t for you. In fact, he might still be on JV.” I trailed my gaze across his face. “He might be just as nervous as you are with you watching him.”
“Did he say anything before the game?” Casey’s brows wrinkled.
“No, I didn’t see him. They had a team dinner, and he was gone before I got home from the shop.” I swung my attention to the field. They lined up again for another down.
Wes made his calls, and the ball snapped to him. Stepping back, he focused downfield and threw a spiral high and to the left.
A tall, thin player jumped in the air between two Liberty defenders, grabbed the ball and took off like a shot toward the end zone.
“Holy fuck, did you see that?” Casey hopped from the bench, jumping up and down. “Go, kid. Fucking go!”
I rose and shouted, “Go for it!”
The receiver evaded several tacklers, sprinting toward the end zone.
Over the loudspeakers, the announcer said, “Touchdown Toros.”
“Woo-hoo!” With his eyes as big as saucers, Casey twisted to me, grabbed me around the waist and lifted me in the air. “Did you see that? Our boy’s a fucking gunslinger.”
Laughing, I patted Casey’s shoulders. “Yes, I see that. Now put me down.” I scanned the crowd cheering along with us while the marching band played a shortened version of the fight song. No one cared that he’d practically carried me.
After lowering me to the bleachers, Casey primped his hair and adjusted his t-shirt. “Damn, I lost it.”
“You did.” My gaze found Wes’s, watching us with a wide smile on his face from the field. Yeah, he knew he’d done Casey proud.
Following the game, where Mountain View won by a field goal, we lingered near a school door where the players had entered. Casey was driving us home, and Wes knew to meet us out here.
“You know he deserves a treat for that game tonight. The kid was on fire.” Casey beamed at me.
“Yeah, I know. He likes Dairy Queen, and there’s one on the way home.” When would Casey need to leave? He had a game tomorrow too and needed his rest.
“Then I guess Dairy Queen it is.” He ticked his head.
Wes strutted from the building in his team athletic shirt and shorts, holding a duffel bag, his hair wet. “What did you think, Casey?”
“You were amazing.” Casey patted Wes’s shoulder. “I don’t think I could have played better myself.”
“Thanks.” Wes’s cheeks grew rosy. “I can’t wait to see you play tomorrow night.” He strolled with us toward the parking lot.
“Yeah?” Grabbing my hand, Casey said, “We’re playing NAU. It’ll be an easy win.” He bumped his shoulder on Wes’s. “Hey, your brother here says you like Dairy Queen. Want to stop on the way home?”
“Oh, hell yes.” Wes’s smile grew even wider.
We arrived at home with our ice cream, with me and Wes getting hot fudge sundaes and Casey getting a banana split, and then we all sat around the dinette, eating.
Wes stuffed a spoonful of ice cream and fudge into his mouth. “Casey, I owe you an apology.” His brows creased, and he stuck his spoon into his ice cream.
“You do?” Casey cut into his banana. “Why do you say that?”
There hadn’t been time to talk with Wes this week. What would he say? My pulse hummed, and I set my spoon on the table.
“It was selfish of me to complain about losing my brother when my mom comes home.” He dipped his head. “I’m sorry. It’s not like you’re trying to steal him from me.” He peeked at me from under his dark bangs.
Casey squeezed Wes’s forearm. “Hey, it’s all right. I won’t steal him, but I can see where your head was at.” He ate a scoop of his ice cream. “I don’t have any siblings.” He glanced at me. “And you sort of feel like a little brother to me now.”
“I do?” Wes’s eyes grew wide.
Tilting his head, Casey said, “Yeah. I enjoyed coaching you last summer, and no matter what happens this spring, I want to still hang out when we can.” His gaze panned to mine. “I love your brother, and I want what’s best for you both. Breaking up a family isn’t it.”
Wes’s brows drew together. “But if you leave for an NFL contract—”
“I’ll come back and visit.” He shrugged. “Hell, maybe I’ll have a home here and one in whatever state I end up in. I’ll be able to afford it.” He threw me a sly smile. “I won’t always have games and practices. They give you time off in the NFL, you know.”
Did that mean Casey intended to leave here without me?
I swallowed hard and focused on my dessert.
Maybe a long-distance relationship would work.
He was already so busy. It was difficult enough to see each other now.
When his NFL season started, he’d be traveling for games all over the country.
Fuck, I didn’t know what to do. It seemed to change every day.
“You okay, babe?” Casey shoveled ice cream and a banana slice into his mouth.
“Yeah, I’m good.” I ate more ice cream and fudge. I’d stay the course with training Dylan to manage the shop and focus on how to get Mom set up after her release.
After eating our ice cream, Wes thanked Casey for everything and left me to walk Casey to the door. He was a smart kid. He knew we needed time alone. As we approached the door, we faced each other. “Casey—”
“Ssh.” He cupped my cheek. “One of us is sleeping over tomorrow night. We can talk more then.” He pressed a passionate kiss on my mouth and then set his forehead against mine. “It seems like we’ve both done a lot of thinking since we heard about your mom’s possible parole.”
“Yeah, I know I have.” I clasped his fingers in mine.
“I want to keep all our options open. We don’t know what it’ll be like when she comes home until she’s actually here, you know?” He lifted his head, his gaze finding mine. “Everything I do will include keeping you in my life. What it looks like? I don’t know.”
Fuck, he was thinking of leaving me here. My heart wrenched. I had to let it be. He was right. “I’ll do the same, okay? We’ll both keep our options open.”
“Okay then.” Sliding his hand to my nape, he claimed my mouth in a searing kiss, his tongue brushing mine and his hips closing the gap between us, his cock pressing into mine.
With a whimper, I clutched his hips and rubbed my dick against his, and a shock of pleasure whipped up my spine. Goddamn, it had been too long.
Breaking the kiss and inside a breath, he said, “Holy fuck, I want you, babe.” He panted. “Tomorrow night. Be ready.”
“My place or yours?” I nipped his lower lip.
“I don’t care. Figure it out with Wes and text me tomorrow.” He dropped his hand from my neck and fixated on me. “I love you, Ryker Hart, and nothing will keep me from you for too long.” The edge of his lip lifted. “You get me?”
“I do.” Even if he left without me, he’d be back. I opened the door for him. “Love you, babe.” I had to trust him, in us.
With a quick kiss and a grin, he walked away from me.
Before leaving for Casey’s game, I strode to the mailbox. I hadn’t checked the mail in a few days, and it was time. After opening the box, I slid out a few folded ads with an envelope tucked inside them. I’d go through it when I got back home.
Humming a tune, I stepped through the door to the apartment. “Wes, are you ready to leave?” He’d been in the shower when I left.
I strolled to the kitchen island and sifted through the mail. The envelope caught my eye. “Fuck.” It was from Carl and addressed to Mom. I recognized the angular handwriting. I glared at it, holding it to my face. Should I read it or toss it? Why the fuck couldn’t he leave her alone?
With a scowl, I opened it, slipped the folded letter out and read it.
Dear Linda,
Why won’t you talk to me? If you can’t visit, you could at least send me a note and let me know how you’re doing. I’ve sacrificed a lot for you. The least you could do is send me a letter.
I have a feeling I’ll be let out of here soon. I’d like to see you when that happens. We have unfinished business to discuss. I know you still have feelings for me. We were good together once.
Love,
Carl
“Goddamn it.” I crushed the letter and stuffed it in the trash bin, under some other items. I didn’t need Wes to see it.
“What was that?” Wes stood in the hallway, drying his hair with a towel.
“Nothing, just an advertisement for uh…” Fuck, what could I tell him? “Viagra. Like either of us needs that shit.” A stuttered chuckle sprang from my throat. Could drug companies even send ads for that? Hell, Wes wouldn’t know.
“Oh, seriously?” With a quick laugh, he turned. “I’m almost ready for the game.”
“Good. I don’t want to miss the kickoff.
” I glanced at the garbage, crumpled the letter’s envelope and tucked it inside the bin.
What the hell was Carl bullshitting about?
They’d be releasing him too? I thought they extended his sentence for bad behavior?
He was full of shit. The fucker hadn’t sacrificed for Mom. He’d used her, plain and simple.
We strolled into the stadium, using the friends and family tickets Casey had given us, and past concession stands offering the typical beer, pizza, hot dogs and hamburgers. “Want something to eat?” It seemed with Wes’s new workout routine, he was always hungry.
“Yeah, a hot dog sounds good.” He stood in line.
“If I have a few beers, do you think you can drive us home?” With a smirk, I focused on another guy at the counter having a tall, frothy beer handed to him. It sounded great in this heat.
“You mean it? I can drive your truck?” His eyes lit.
“Yeah, you need to drive more, anyway.” I stepped closer to the stand as the line moved. “Dylan and I are looking for a car for Mom that we can restore. When we do that, you can drive it until she’s released.”
“Cool.” He faced the concession stand. “When can I get a car?”
“Maybe after this football season you could get a job outside of the shop?” It was time for him to take on some responsibility. “Save some money, and me and Dylan can do the same for you.” I took another step forward.
“Awesome.” His smile reached his eyes.
After getting our drinks and hot dogs, we made our way to our seats, not too far from the field and behind ASU’s bench. The lights shone brightly over the grass on the field and beyond, the outline of “A” mountain stood.
Casey, holding his helmet in the crook of his arm, twisted and gave me a wide smile and a short wave.
Warmth rustled through my chest. There he was, my man. I gave him a quick up-nod as a smile swept my lips.
Glancing from Casey to me, Wes said, “Look at you two. I swear I’ve never seen you so happy.” He unwrapped his hot dog.
“Yeah? Well, he makes me happy. What can I say?” I sipped my beer. It had been fun watching him play in Tontozona, but this was on a new level since it was an actual game.
Shortly before half-time, Casey advanced the team toward the twenty-yard line. With ASU leading by a touchdown, a field goal would work, but there were two downs left to go.
I leaned into Wes. “What do you think he’ll do? Give it to the running back or throw it to a wide receiver?” With my pulse picking up speed, I watched the players line up for the snap.
“The safe bet would be to grab yards with a run and then kick a field goal if they have to. But knowing Casey, he’ll go for a pass.” Wes drank some soda through a straw. “Casey looks quicker in the pocket than last year, so we’ll see.”
I stared at Wes. How much ASU football had he watched last year? “How do you know that?”
He flicked his gaze to mine. “I watched a bunch of replays on YouTube. After he started coaching me, I studied his style.”
“Oh.” Shit, I didn’t know he’d done that. I swung my gaze to the field.
The center snapped the ball and Casey hopped backward with it, holding it at chest level, his head swiveling.
Wes’s drink gurgled as he sipped the last drop. “He’ll either throw it or—”
“Holy fuck.” I hopped from my seat along with everyone in the stadium as Casey took off through a hole in NAU’s defense, sprinting toward the goal. “Go, babe!”
“Go, Carter, go!” Wes jumped up and down.
Casey sprang to the goal line, throwing himself over a few defenders, and tumbled into the end zone. As he hopped up, he tossed the ball to a ref, and teammates swarmed him, hugging him and patting him on the back.
The announcer said, “Touchdown ASU!”
The stands erupted in cheers while the band played the ASU fight song.
Laughing, Wes turned to me, grabbed my hand and hopped. “Your boyfriend is sick!”
“He sure is.” Warmth swelled my chest, and I smiled so hard my cheeks hurt. He was such a light in our dark lives. How had we lived without him?