Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
The lights of Neyland shone brightly over the field of the stadium, the Kings silver crown stark against the green grass.
Sutton tugged her jacket tighter around her as she followed Amy to their seats, a large section for the wives and girlfriends of the players near the field.
“Here they are,” Amy said, motioning to the large group of at least twenty-five women in the section, all decked out in Kings merchandise of all kinds to represent the team.
“These are great seats,” Sutton said as she took hers. She tucked her small purse into her lap, opting for the smaller one for the game instead of her daily bag.
It was also blue, so she was happy it matched the team’s colors since she didn’t have anything else that did.
“Carter made sure to get good ones,” Amy said.
They were in the stands right on the field at the ten-yard line and were able to see all the action.
“Carter paid for all these seats?” Sutton asked, looking around. “That’s generous.”
“Most of the guys pitched in for their significant others, but he paid for those who couldn’t.” She nudged Sutton’s arm. “Reese paid for yours.”
Sutton’s eyes widened. “He did?”
“Do you see them yet, Amy?” Hailey asked, drawing Sutton’s attention away from Amy. She stretched in her seat, trying to get a look at the Kings entrance onto the field.
“The game doesn’t start for another ten minutes,” Nicole commented. She glanced at Sutton. “Do you not have a jersey?”
Sutton shook her head. “I wasn’t sure he’d want me to wear it. We just started dating, so I didn’t want to assume anything.” She looked around and felt a little out of place.
Nicole, Amy, and Hailey all wore jerseys with their guys’ numbers—43, 7, and 18.
“Of course he’d want you to wear it,” Nicole said. “It’s showing support for your man and the team.”
“Sutton Cooke!”
Sutton turned at the sound of her name, watching as a gentleman came down the stand stairs.
“That’s me,” she said. She made her way past Amy to the stairs and met the man. “What can I do for you?”
“Special delivery,” he said, handing her an unwrapped jersey. She shook it out, Reese’s number 37 staring back at her. She turned it around to see his name on the back.
That’s not freaky at all.
A chorus of aww came from the section, and she turned to look at the group, who were all now staring at her.
“Put it on!” Nicole shouted, the rest of the group cheering her on.
She shrugged off her jacket and handed it to Amy, who tossed it into her seat. Sliding it over her head, she straightened it out, looking down at the number.
More cheers erupted from the group as she walked down to re-take her seat.
“Did you guys get it for me?” Sutton asked.
Amy shook her head. “We didn’t.”
“I bet it was Reese,” Hailey said. “That’s even cuter! I wish Eli had done that for me.”
Sutton looked back down at the jersey and ignored the warmth that welled up at the sweet gesture.
“Here they come!”
The ladies jumped to their feet as All I Do is Win by DJ Khaled blasted over the speakers, and the players took the field.
An hour and a half later, Reese stood in the huddle as Eli called the play.
He was sweating so hard, but he was running on adrenaline and excitement.
The Kings were up by a touchdown, but the Fortune had rallied to hold them to a three and out since the second half started. Their defense had stepped up their game, and the Kings were currently at a third and three, only needing three yards to get a first down.
“All right, guys,” Eli said. “Quicky Flicky on one.” He looked around the huddle. “Quicky Flicky on one. Got it?” Everyone nodded, and he clapped. “Break!”
They moved into position for the slant play, Reese lining up to Eli’s left.
Eli stepped up to the center and called, “Set, hut!” and the ball snapped into play.
Reese ran forward and held his arms out so Eli could fake the pass to him, and he took off to the left, drawing the defense off so Eli could throw the ball to Carter as he pivoted toward the center of the field to catch the ball.
Reese was able to see Carter get the first down and more before he was rammed by a defensive tackle.
They crashed to the ground, shouts coming from the players all around him.
“Get off me,” he croaked out, the wind knocked out of him.
The defensive tackle was dragged from him and some pushing and shoving ensued, Spenser and Carter getting in the tackle’s face for the late hit on him.
Reese took a few deep breaths to calm himself, adrenaline making his heart race.
He turned his head and looked at the jumbotron as the camera panned to Sutton in her seat, concern on her face as she stood, trying to get a glimpse of him in the scuffle that surrounded him.
His heart felt like it skipped a beat when he realized she was wearing the jersey he ordered for her, his gold #37 bright against the blue.
She’s wearing my jersey.
“Vaughn, you good?” Spenser reached down and grabbed his hand to tug him to his feet.
“Yeah,” Reese replied as the crowd applauded. Reese could see relief was over Sutton’s face on the jumbotron.
Coming up with an idea, he realized where her seats were and jogged over to the stands. He tugged off his helmet as he got close, the cameras following his movements.
She stood at the edge of the stands, waiting for him. She leaned over the side and asked, “What are you doing?”
“Kiss me,” he said, and her eyes widened, looking around as understanding hit.
She planted her hands on his cheeks and kissed him, the stadium exploding into cheers.
He relaxed into her touch and unexpected heat raged through him at their connection, his hand cupping the back of her head as they made out on the football field.
A whistle cut through his lust-filled haze, and he broke the kiss, both of them breathing hard.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
He grabbed the jersey sleeve and tugged on it. “I am now.”
She smiled, tenderly brushing a piece of sweaty hair from his face. “Be careful out there. You almost gave me a heart attack.”
Her concern was so genuine, he was caught off guard by it. “I’ll do my best. I promise.”
Another whistle came, and he released the jersey. “Gotta run.”
“Run fast,” she called, blowing him a kiss as he walked backwards toward the Kings sideline.
He caught it and pressed it to his heart, a chorus of aww coming from the crowd.
If that’s not social media worthy, I don’t know what is.
Reese sat out for a play to catch his breath but swapped back in after that play ended in another first down for the Kings.
Before he walked onto the field, Magnus called him over.
Reese could still feel the sting from Magnus’ words the morning after his first date with Sutton. Magnus saw the Instagram post and had given Reese the talking to of his life, and it wasn’t only about football.
The disappointment from his coach hurt the most, though.
“What’s up, Coach?” he asked, tugging his helmet on.
“Be careful out there,” Magnus said. “We’re up, but there’s still plenty of game left. They’re going to be gunning for you, so pay attention to the defense. And keep that personal stuff off the field.”
“Yes, sir,” Reese replied, shaking his head with a chuckle. Magnus clapped him on his shoulder, dismissing him, and he trotted onto the field to join the huddle.
“You good?” Eli asked.
“All good,” Reese replied.
“Good to hear,” Eli replied, looking around the huddle. “Okay, boys, Manball 34 right on one.” He looked around to confirm everyone had heard it before he called, “Break!”
They lined up at the line of scrimmage, their fullback, Eric Danes, in front of Reese to help put a hole in the defense so Reese could get through.
“Set hut!”
Reese followed Eric toward the hole between the right guard and the right tackle as Eli passed him the ball. He tucked it into his elbow and took off as Eric blocked for him, creating a hole for him to pass through.
He darted to the right to avoid a Corner, narrowly avoiding being tackled. He saw a Safety head for him, and he pushed farther to the right to the sideline, making sure to keep his feet in bounds.
His heart raced as he pushed down the field toward the end zone, the hair on his neck rising when he realized the Safety was closing in.
He heard a tackle and turned his head to see Carter and the Safety on the ground, the stadium bursting into cheers when Reese crossed into the end zone for the touchdown.
He held his arms out and drank it in, laughter spilling out when he was tackled by Spenser and Carter, Eli not far behind him.
“Let’s fucking go!” Spenser called, smacking him on his helmet.
“Great job, brother,” Eli said, clapping a hand on his shoulder.
“Hey, I had a lot of help,” he said, pointing at Carter who gave him a thumbs up. He looked around for Eric and ran over to him, giving him a fist bump. “Great block, man.”
“That’s what I do, baby,” Eric said, doing a little dance.
They gathered on the sidelines and watched as Preston and the special teams went for the extra point. The holder received the snap and instead of holding it, he tossed it to Preston and took off to the right to block as Preston rushed the end zone and dove in for two points.
Reese leaned over to Eli. “Did you know they were going to do that?”
Eli shook his head in amazement. “I didn’t.”
They looked over at the coach, and Magnus gave them a shrug, the two of them bursting into laughter.
Reese looked around the field, welling up at the sea of blue and silver in the crowd. The support from Knoxville was unmatched in his opinion, and he felt their excitement and anticipation at the possibility of the outcome of this game.
First the championship, then onto the big game.
A vision of him holding the silver trophy flashed in his mind, Sutton standing next to him as he held it up.
Whoa.
His reaction must have shown on his face because Eli asked him if he was all right.
“I’m good,” Reese replied, surprised by the vision. “Hey, can I ask you something?”
Eli looked at him, curiosity in his eyes. “Sure.”