26. Bonus Epilogue
26
Roxy
Six Months Later…
“To life’s pleasures.” Hadley holds up her cocktail with a smile.
“To life’s joys,” Tessa adds, holding her glass high.
“To lots of sex,” I say, growling the last word.
“With big, strong boys!” Skye says, completing the toast as we clink our glasses together.
It’s Friday night, and we’ve been at Blue Skye’s for the last forty-five minutes, waiting for the guys to join us after their last full practice before the new season starts Sunday. Tessa, Skye, and I are on our second round, but in an unusual display of loose inhibitions, Hadley has hoovered down three and is putting in some good work in on her fourth.
“What is going on with you?” I ask her, not for the first time.
“Nothing,” she says, her eyes glassy as she takes another drink. “I’m just fine and dandy, like always.”
“Fine and dandy?” Skye asks, her tone skeptical. “What are you, an eighty-year-old grandpa?”
“More like a thirty-year-old virgin,” she mumbles, then freezes as a look of panic sears across her face.
We all go still. Tessa’s drink is halfway to her mouth, and she stares at Hadley with wide eyes as she slowly lowers it back to the table. I watch it from my peripheral vision as I stare at Hadley with my own widened eyes, and we all flinch when Skye jerks up a hand to point at our friend.
“Wait. Are you serious?”
Hadley wilts before our very eyes, her head bowing as she drops her eyes to her lap. “As a heart attack.”
“Oh, Had,” Tessa says, reaching over to grip our friend’s shoulder. “Why didn’t you ever say anything?”
Hadley’s head snaps up, her gaze zeroing in on Tessa. “You think I wanted to admit that? To anyone? I’ve been living vicariously through all of your sexploits for more than a decade. You’re all so outgoing and beautiful, and men have always fallen all over themselves for you. I feel like such a loser.”
Okay. Hadley is seriously drunk if she thinks she’s anywhere close to being a loser. She’s literally the best of us. Sweet, kind, funny, and sensitive, she’s always a comfort and a joy to be around.
“Uhm, I lost my virginity to some douche in college just to get rid of it,” Tessa says matter-of-factly. “I never had a positive sexual experience until last year, with Riggs.”
“I lost mine in the back seat of Jeremy Potter’s mom’s Tempo. He came in fifteen seconds, didn’t get me off, then told everyone I was a shit lay,” Skye offers.
“My first was a college boy I met at a party I crashed, and when I left his room, his frat brothers sang a terrible song to me as I made my walk of shame. It was awful,” I add.
“At least you all have the experience to learn from,” Hadley says, then takes another long swig of her drink. “I’ve been too cautious, waiting for the perfect man and the perfect moment that never came. Now, here I am, thirty years old, and I’ve never made it past second base.”
“Wait. When––”
“I let Percy Milton feel me up in the computer lab during lunch junior year. Not my finest moment, and I never want it mentioned again,” Hadley says, cutting off Tessa’s question.
Tessa’s eyebrows hike up, but she holds up her hands in surrender, then mimes zipping her lips. I tilt my head to study Hadley, questions rolling through my mind until I settle on the most pressing one I can think of.
“Why now?”
“What?” Hadley asks, her eyes darting up to meet mine.
“Why is this all coming out now? You’ve kept it a secret without a problem for years, and suddenly you’re drinking like a fish and blurting it out. What’s changed?”
“Nothing,” she says, lowering her gaze as a blush stains her cheeks.
“Foster McKenna is moving in tomorrow,” Tessa says after a small gasp.
My own eyes widen as I watch Hadley grow even redder. Tessa’s right. Foster arranged to rent a room at Hadley’s bed & breakfast for the next several months while he finishes the house he’s building on the outskirts of Sublime. I remember the conversation we had at the restaurant six months ago, when I told him Hadley would gladly rent him a room for the duration. After several delays thanks to bad weather and an unforeseen supply shortage, he’s finally ready to start building. And he’s eager to get out of his condo after a full summer of dealing with his younger, rowdy teammates.
“Do you like him?” Skye asks, then nods before Hadley can answer. “I can see it. The quiet, reserved, and deliciously tatted-up football stud and the shy, sweet B&B owner. It has Hallmark Channel written all over it.”
She nudges Hadley with her elbow, and Had groans as she drops her forehead to the table, banging it twice for good measure. When she finally lifts her head, she stares us each down with narrowed eyes.
“Not a word to him or any of his teammates about this,” she warns, giving Tessa and me an extra second or two of the stink-eye. When we all nod in agreement and assure her we’ll take it to the grave, she sighs. “I have fantasies of us growing closer with each day that passes, then he seduces me and shows me everything I’ve been missing while we fall in love.”
“Hallmark,” Skye barks on a cough, and I kick her under the table.
“I know it’s stupid. He’s this hot, famous sports star, and I’m a mousy little nobody,” Hadley says, her shoulders slumping.
“Mousy?” Tessa asks, incredulous. “Have you looked in a mirror lately? You’re freaking gorgeous, Hadley.”
Tessa is right. I may love my red hair, but if it wasn’t this color, I’d want Hadley’s warm honey highlights that make her gray eyes pop. She’s curvy in all the right places, too. I’d kill for her ass. We all would.
I honestly have no idea how she’s held on to her V-card for this long. Guys should be weeping at her feet for the chance to touch her.
“Tessa’s right,” I say. “You’re a goddess, and Foster McKenna would be lucky if you gave him the time of day. I think you should flip the script, though. Don’t wait for him to seduce you. You should be the seducer.”
“No way,” Hadley says as Tessa and Skye cheer for my suggestion.
“Yes,” Skye says. “Put yourself in the driver’s seat, Had. That boy won’t know what hit him if you shake that fine ass in his face.”
“Go for it, Hadley,” Tessa adds. “What have you got to lose?”
“My self-respect?” Hadley asks with raised eyebrows.
“He won’t say no,” I say firmly as I recall the times we’ve all hung out together. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”
“He doesn’t look at me,” Hadley scoffs.
“How does he look at her?” Skye asks, ignoring Hadley’s outburst.
“Like she’s a five-course meal, and he’s been on a diet for ten years. Like he wants her, but is holding himself back. Like he just needs a little nudge, and he’d eat her up.”
“I’ve seen it, too,” Tessa says. “I never said anything because it didn’t seem like you were interested.”
“Self-preservation,” Hadley mumbles in apology for keeping her desires a secret from her best friends.
“There’s my girl.”
All four of us jump in our seats as Miles appears beside me, looping his arms around me before pulling me out of my chair for a hug and a kiss. He takes my seat, then pulls me down onto his lap before studying the other three.
“What’s going on here? You all have this deer-in-the-headlights look like you got caught doing something nefarious.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Tessa scoffs with a shake of her head. “It’s just girl-talk. That’s all.”
“Okay,” he says, then brings his mouth close to my ear to whisper, “I’ll get the truth out of you later, when we’re alone and naked.”
His husky tone sends a shiver down my spine, but I ignore it, saying, “No way. I’m a steel trap.”
“Challenge, accepted,” he promises, making me shiver again.
“Where are the rest of the guys?” Skye asks, looking toward the door.
“Oh, yeah. That reminds me.”
Miles stands, holding me against him as he pulls my chair to the center of the walkway between the front door and the bar area. Moving around me, he kisses my lips before gently pushing me down into it. I give him a questioning look and open my mouth to speak, but he holds a finger to his lips.
“Trust me?” he asks.
“Always,” I reply.
He smiles and winks, then rushes back to the door, slipping outside and letting it close behind him. I turn to look back at the girls, but their confused expressions mirror my own. Whatever is happening, they’re in the dark just as much as I am.
The soft music from the jukebox suddenly cuts off, and I glance over to see the bartender dropping the plug to the floor before giving me a wide grin. He walks back to the bar, lifts a large portable speaker onto its surface, then taps at the screen of his phone. A song starts to play, and before I recognize the melody, the front door of the bar slams open, and Riggs strides in.
His feet move in a complicated rhythm to the beat as he lip syncs the words. The crowd in the bar starts to cheer, but I remain frozen as the familiar song and its lyrics click in my brain.
Porter walks in on the next line, matching Riggs’ dance moves as he lip syncs the words. Then comes Foster, looking a little stiffer than the first two, but pulling it off perfectly.
I watch the empty doorway, my heart pounding against my ribs as the song plays. The lyrics are clear and crisp, words describing a boy asking a girl to be spontaneous and marry him.
My breath halts as Miles reappears, only now his casual post-workout clothes are gone, replaced by a black tuxedo. He starts to lip sync, falling into line with the others. The bar crowd is going wild, but I can barely hear it over the pounding of my pulse in my ears. Tears sting my eyes as Miles runs toward me, dropping to his knees and sliding the last few feet, stopping right in front of my chair.
The music slows, and he stops lip syncing. He actually sings the last line, changing the words to fit us, as he pulls a small box from his pocket, opens it and presents it to me.
“Roxanne, baby. I know I want to marry you.”
The music cuts as the other guys all fall to their knees behind Miles. I’m full-on ugly crying, but I don’t care. This moment is perfect, and so Miles, I start to laugh through my tears.
“Roxy, I love you so much, it almost killed you when I said it the first time.” Chuckles ring out around me, but my attention is focused on the man I love. “I want to spend the rest of my life loving you so much, you’ll barely survive it. Say you’ll marry me, baby.”
“Yes,” I gasp, sniffing back the tears. “I love you. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Miles leaps to his feet in one smooth motion, then yanks me out of my chair to lay the mother of all kisses on me. Cheers erupt around us, and I laugh when he pulls back to place the exquisite ring on my finger. It’s set with a brilliant square diamond surrounded by tiny rubies, and it takes my breath away.
“I love you so much, it hurts,” Miles whispers before kissing my temple.
“I love you, Miles Blake,” I say, staring into his bright blue eyes. “Forever and always.”