32. Jason Kingsley
Chapter thirty-two
Jason Kingsley
Soft, hazy morning light filters through our bedroom curtains, bathing the bed and Willow’s sleeping frame in pale gold. I carefully set two mugs of coffee on my nightstand. While I’d love to cradle Willow as we both sleep the day away, she does need to go to work, and I need to go to a game film review meeting.
I brush her silky hair away from her face, smiling at how peaceful she looks. My chest warms to know that she’s comfortable enough to sleep next to me so soundly.
“Lo,” I murmur, running my fingers through her hair. She hums when I begin gently massaging her scalp. “It’s time to wake up.”
She blinks her eyes open, a sleepy smile gracing her lips when her gaze lands on me.
“Good morning,” she says in an adorable sleepy voice.
“Good morning, beautiful. How did you sleep?” I continue running my fingers over her scalp.
“Amazing.” She snuggles under our comforter more, her eyes falling back shut.
“No, don’t do that.” I laugh. “You need to start getting ready for work.”
“I quit,” she mumbles, making me laugh more.
“I think you’d regret that decision later.”
“I doubt it.”
“I brought you coffee.”
Her eyes open once more. “That helps.”
Smiling, I reach over and grab her mug. She brought it when she moved in, a deep blue color with star-like speckles. It brightens up my cabinet of plain white diner mugs.
Willow sits up against the headboard, stretching her arms above her head. The sight of her in my t-shirt makes my smile grow. Once she finishes stretching, she accepts the mug, murmuring a quiet thank you over the rim.
I settle in next to her and pick up my cup. We drink our coffee in silence for a few minutes as Willow begins to wake up more. Soon enough, she’s turning toward me, her gray eyes sparkling.
“Do you have a lot to do today?” she asks before taking a sip of her now half-gone coffee.
I shake my head. “Just a game tape review, and I’ll probably get in some mobility work to make sure I’m loose for the game this weekend.”
“So you won’t be at the stadium for very long then?” She traces a fingertip along the rim of her mug.
I set my coffee on the nightstand. On days when we’d both be working most of the day, we’ve been taking my car and leaving together. “No, but I thought I could drop you off and pick you up so we have more time together,” I voice my thoughts.
She beams, warming me with her bright smile. “I would love that.”
“Me too.” I lean over and steal a kiss.
“I probably have terrible morning coffee breath,” she says against my lips.
“I don’t care if you don’t.” I take her mug and set it aside before sliding my hand along her waist and drawing her to me.
“I thought I was supposed to be getting ready for work,” she teases.
I kiss her soundly, only pulling back when we’re both thoroughly breathless. “We can spare a few minutes.”
She giggles in between my kisses. It’s the sweetest sound in the world…that’s then halted by a phone buzzing incessantly on the nightstand. With a frustrated growl, I move to check it. Brock’s name is on the screen. I almost silence it, but after the past few days, I know it might be important.
“It’s Brock,” I explain to Willow with a sigh. She nods in understanding. “Hello?” I answer, trying and failing to keep my annoyance out of my tone.
“Well good morning to you too,” Brock says with a laugh. “Did I wake you?”
“No.”
He clears his throat, likely gathering what I’m not saying. “Well, I’m calling with good news for you and your outspoken wife.” I sit up taller in anticipation. “The production company in charge of the documentary called and said they fired Nancy. Apparently you weren’t the only player she was pushing too hard. They want to continue filming, but with a producer that better fits their original intentions. I told them I would talk to you before committing to anything.”
I glance over at Willow and put the phone on speaker.
“You’re on speaker,” I inform him, then recap what he said to Willow. “Are you comfortable continuing filming?” I ask her.
“It’s about you,” she replies. “I’m okay with whatever you decide.”
“Are you sure?”
She gives me a soft smile. “I’ll support you no matter what.”
Brock groans. “You two could have hung up if you were going to be all lovey-dovey.”
“This is what you get for calling this early,” I say, making Willow laugh.
“Well? Are you in or not?” Brock asks. “It’s more good publicity, but you have plenty between yours and Willow’s social media accounts.”
I rake a hand through my hair, unsure of how to decide. Willow touches my arm.
“It could be a cool way to document our lives right now.” Her smile turns shy. “Something to look back on in the future.”
I nod slowly. A smile spreads across my face at the thought of us older and showing our kids and grandkids this glimpse into the first few months of our marriage.
“I want to do it,” I say.
“Great!” Brock says. “I’ll let them know and send you a new contract to sign digitally.”
“Sounds good.”
“All right, I’ve gotta get going. Too many meetings, not enough time.” I can hear him shuffling things around on his desk in the background.
“Wait,” I say before he can hang up.
“Yeah?”
“Thanks, Brock. I know it’s your job, but it still means a lot to me that you went to war for us.”
“I’ll always have your back.”
“Same to you.”
We exchange quick goodbyes, with Willow chiming in, and then he hangs up. I look over at her, relief and joy flooding my veins. Now we don’t have anything up against us. We can just be .
“Now, where were we?” I ask with a smirk before pulling my wife against me.
“You might have to remind me,” she replies with a sultry smile.
I run out of the tunnel with my teammates to the sound of screaming fans and thumping music. Even though this is an away game, there are plenty of our fans here tonight too. It’s a big game here in Louisiana. And I’m determined more than ever to win. Willow’s parents flew in for the occasion, so I want to make them—and more importantly, her—proud.
“This place is insane!” Jamal yells, waving to some fans sitting behind our bench. I turn and wave with him, increasing the cheers–as well as the boos–from the crowd.
We go through all of the pregame theatrics and I’m bouncing on my toes by the time we kick off. We’re on defense first, so I won’t be able to get my energy out for a minute. I watch intently, trying to pick up on every little detail to use against them. The defense gets a turnover, and I run out onto the field, strapping on my helmet as I go.
Within two plays, we score. The crowd goes wild and I can’t stop grinning around my mouthpiece. This is why I love football. The energy is unmatched. We maintain that energy throughout the game. It’s closing in on halftime and I’m chugging Gatorade beside Jamal, watching as the defense attempts to keep them from getting so much as a field goal.
Jamal hits my arm and indicates the jumbotron. “Looks like you’ve got quite the crowd tonight.”
Up on the screen, filling an entire box seat section, is what looks to be almost everyone I know. Coach Bash and his family are next to Willow’s parents and Granny Mae. Next to them are Miles and Ellie, and after that–I blink, certain my eyes are deceiving me. Are those my parents next to Shepherd?
“My parents came.” No doubt I sound as shocked as I feel.
“That’s awesome, man! I’m happy for you.” He claps me on the shoulder, then goes back to watching the game. The jumbotron switches to another section of the stadium, but I can’t shake the image of all the people I love up there.
This has to be Willow’s doing. Even Shepherd wouldn’t have managed to convince our parents to come on his own. We’ve both tried countless times in the past.
I search for my wife on the sideline as halftime begins but don’t find her. I know she’s likely busy getting all kinds of content. She started a new trend of fan interviews during halftime, so she’s probably already in the stands doing that.
I’ll have to see her after the game, then. I can’t lose focus. The people who came to support me didn’t come to watch me lose.
We ended up allowing two touchdowns in the second half, but we still managed to win by thirty points. It’s a huge win within our division and will help us secure a path to the playoffs. I’m grinning ear to ear as the clock ticks down, and as soon as it hits zero I break out into a run. But not onto the field with my coach and teammates. No, I head down the sideline to my wife.
Willow spots me running toward her and meets me halfway, jumping into my arms. I hold her tight as she wraps her legs around me.
“You were amazing out there!” she says into my ear.
I pull back and look at her bright eyes and wide smile. “You got my parents to come, didn’t you?”
“I did. I hope it’s okay I called them–”
I cut her off with a shamelessly passionate kiss.
She pulls back with a blush. “Jase, there are cameras everywhere.”
“Let them watch. I’m too happy to care. They can be jealous because I have the best wife in the world.”
She laughs, shaking her head. “I didn’t do much.”
“I’ve never had this many people at a game supporting me before. You got them all here.”
“Kingsley! We need you for postgame interviews,” one of our assistant coaches calls.
I look at Willow, considering telling him I’ll pay the fines for not coming.
She gives me a gentle kiss. “ Go . We’ll all be waiting for you when you’re done.”
I set her back on her feet. “Okay. I’ll see you soon. I love you.”
“I love you too.”
After stealing one more kiss, I jog toward the awaiting reporters. I can’t stop smiling, and none of it has to do with the win tonight. It has everything to do with my amazing, perfect wife. And I make sure to tell every reporter just that.