Quitting the Quarterback (The Nash Brothers #4)

CHAPTER 1 Tanner Banks

I Can’t Believe It’s Really Happening

“I’m not going anywhere without my brother.”

The first time I remember speaking those words, our preschool teacher was trying to separate us into two different groups. One was going outside to the playground with the aide while the other was forced to stay inside and practice lettering with the teacher.

I wasn’t about to let my best friend in the entire world have to deal with the nonsense of writing his letters, and eventually Miss Catherine relented.

He broke his arm that day jumping off the top of the slide, but that’s irrelevant. Or an omen…I’m not really sure which one. But sometimes that happens. I do something that I think is protecting my brother, and in the end, it turns out I shouldn’t have gotten involved in the first place.

I glance up, and my eyes meet the ones that have mirrored my own since the day we were born a mere twelve minutes and thirty-seven seconds apart. I wonder how many times I’ve spoken those words since I first learned how to say the words—or how many times he has .

I tighten my grip on the phone as I wait for a response to come through the speaker.

“They want Miller, too. They have an offer with a restructured contract, and they want to give you what you asked for. Both of you.”

I grin at my brother, and his wide grin back mirrors mine. They want to give us what we asked for? We asked for guaranteed money for the next two years for both of us.

A lot of money.

Fuck yes .

“Then we’re in,” I say, forcing my voice to remain calm and businesslike despite the excitement coursing through my veins.

“Excellent. I’ll get in touch with Mr. Hall, and I will have a contract for you to sign shortly.”

“Thanks, Greg,” I say to my agent, and I cut the call.

My brother holds his hand out like I should shake it, but I slap his hand with mine. We move back to slap hands backward, grab hands, shake once, let go, fist bump once, and hug. It’s been our not-so-secret celebratory handshake since we were probably in that preschool classroom together twenty-five years ago.

Admittedly, a lot has changed since then. But one thing hasn’t, and that’s the fact that not only is my twin brother my best friend, but he’s just about the only person left in this world who I can trust.

As we embrace for an extra second, I can’t believe it’s really happening.

We’re trading the Arizona desert, where we’ve played football together for the last seven years, for the beaches of San Diego, where we’ll continue playing on a team together.

We’ve never not been on the same team, and even though San Diego came knocking on my door for this blockbuster trade, they knew he was part of the package. He’s the best running back in the league, so it would’ve been stupid of them not to take him.

We work in tandem. We read each other’s signals on the field like nobody else can, which makes sense given our relationship. And together, we’ll learn the signals of the rest of our teammates so we can have the sort of rhythm we’ve worked hard to build in Arizona.

But it’s time. It’s been time for a few years, and communication broke down enough that I was ready to move on. I was waiting for the right opportunity, and it fell onto my lap.

It’s a blockbuster deal. Four trade picks and two players for my brother and me.

San Diego is rebuilding, and they acquired an excellent wide receiver last season who happens to be our half-brother, something we only learned recently.

And now they’re getting the Banks brothers. Or… technically the Banks-Nash brothers, I guess.

We have a lot to work with in San Diego, and I’ve always wanted to move to the beach. I also don’t hate the fact that we’ll be moving a little further away from our mother, who is an Arizona native and, as we’ve recently learned, a pathological liar.

I love Arizona, but I could not be more ready for this new opportunity. It’s coming at a time when my entire life has been thrown into chaos anyway, and the people of San Diego have been willing this to happen.

The trade deal was narrowed down to three teams, and I had my fingers crossed for San Diego. Perfect weather year-round and the chance to work with one of my new half-brothers along with the head coach and general manager over there? It’s a dream come true, and even though I don’t handle my own messages on social media, my PR firm and my assistant have communicated to me that I’ve gotten hundreds of messages from fans eager to hear whether I’ll be joining their team.

They’re welcoming me with open arms as they work to replace a quarterback who didn’t give them what they were hoping for, and they get an all-star running back as well.

It’s a huge deal. The Storm is considering me their new franchise quarterback, and they’re going to build the offense around me and my strengths.

I can’t wait to sign on the dotted line, get there, and start putting in the work.

Miller pulls back after slapping me on the back. “I’ve already looked up places, and I found a house not far from the practice facility. It’s up in the hills.” We agreed we’d live together as we get to know this new city even though we haven’t lived together in years, and I’m excited at the chance to take on San Diego with my brother.

“Let’s fucking go,” I say, one of my mottos both on the field and off.

He pulls up the house on his phone and flips through a few pictures.

The panoramic views of downtown with the ocean in the backdrop are what sell me on the place.

“Vegas?” he asks.

We’ve already agreed that we’re heading to Vegas as soon as we sign on the dotted line…not just to celebrate, but to be the first to tell our half-brothers who live there the big news.

“Fuck yeah,” I say, and we do our secret handshake one more time to seal the deal.