Chapter 28 #2
“There are so many people,” Maeve said, twisting her fingers nervously as they walked through the stadium.
Quinn could tell it bothered Maeve, so she and the girls made sure to surround Maeve to prevent anyone from bumping into her.
That and the Rahmi guards and the princes of Rahmi were rather intimidating.
People tended to get out of their way very quickly.
“The suite will be much more your style,” Sloane told her with a mix of empathy and excitement.
Throngs of Thoroughbreds fans had shown up in blue and white to support their team. The stadium was packed as they made their way to the suite. They showed their badges and then were greeted with silence as they entered the suite.
“Damn,” Elisha whispered as she took in the suite. There was a bartender, a full bar, and a buffet layout of food.
Maeve visibly relaxed now that the noise level was lower and people weren’t running into her. “Okay, now I see why you like this. I can do this,” Maeve told them as she walked up to the glass to look out at the quickly filling stadium.
There was a glass door that led to the seats in the stands connected to the suite. The owners’ suite was already filling up next to them. Keeneston was everywhere around them.
“The guys should be running out of the tunnel soon for warmups. Are you two ready?” Quinn asked Elisha and Chantel.
Quinn couldn’t hide the smile on her face.
She was part of a group now. She had a work family, as indicated by Juniper smiling at her from the seats that belonged to the suite.
She had Knox’s family, Trey and Taylor, and a sister in Annaleigh and a brother in Holt.
And of course, she still had her sister, Helena.
But there was also the community of Keeneston who had welcomed her with open arms. A royal family or two, scientists, law enforcement, models, landscapers, distillery owners, firemen, and even a very pregnant first female pro-football coach who waddled onto the field below them.
It was more than Quinn ever dreamed was possible.
Knox and his team stood at the entrance to the field. The lights dimmed, the music turned up, and the lasers flashed as the cheerleaders ran out ahead of them to hype the crowd up.
Their opponents had run out onto the field already, but now it was their turn.
This was a feeling Knox would never get used to and would never take for granted.
The way his hair rose on his arms from the electricity in the place.
The way the noise was deafening in the best possibly way.
He could feel it coursing through his body and pumping his heart.
“Deon, Jaylen,” Knox called over. “Run out with me. I need to show you something when we get to the sidelines.”
Deon stood to his right. Jaylen to his left. Zack and the O-line behind him. They were going to have a chance at the championship if they could win this game.
“Let’s fucking go!” Knox yelled as the music shifted to their entrance song.
The team cheered and ran onto their home field to the deafening cheers of their fans.
Knox took in the packed stadium, but his eyes landed on Quinn.
She was jumping up and down, holding Elisha’s hand and his heart nearly burst.
“You got a play for us?” Deon had to yell once they reached the sideline.
“A competition of sorts,” Knox said, grinning. “I want to see which one of you has the better game. Winner gets a date night at Landon’s on me. Plus, I have a little motivation for you both.”
Deon smirked and Jaylen was already trash-talking to Deon that he was going to win when Knox pointed to the suite. Both men turned at the same time the jumbotron cameraman landed on the suite. First up was a close-up of Quinn who blew Knox a kiss.
“Is my wife holding a sign? I can’t see what it says,” Deon muttered.
“The lights are funky. Who’s that next to Quinn?” Jaylen asked.
The jumbotron showed the camera pan from Quinn to Elisha who was smiling.
“Aw, dawg! She’s here!” Jaylen was hitting Knox in the chest with his arm as he bounced on his toes.
Then Elisha held up two fingers, dropped her coat, and turned around.
There, across her back was Jaylen’s name.
Now Jaylen was jumping up and down, hitting Knox’s shoulder pads.
“I love you, baby!” he was screaming even though Elisha couldn’t hear him.
“You’re going down, Deon! I’m going to have the game of my life tonight. ”
But then the camera panned to Chantel who lifted her sign above her head.
Your wife and baby want to go to the National Championship.
Deon froze next to Knox as Jaylen started jumping on him in excitement and the crowd somehow went even crazier. Deon just stared at the sign as a tear began to roll down his cheek. “I love you,” he mouthed to Chantel as he began to pound his closed fist over his heart.
“I’m still winning,” Jaylen yelled, laughing as the whole team came up to congratulate Deon.
“I’m taking you down, Jaylen. That’s my date night with my wife and baby.” Deon wiped the tears from his face and pulled on his helmet. “Now how fast can we win this game so I can get to my wife?”