Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Amil’s first official game with the Mountain Lions was in the Sunday Night Football timeslot.
They were on the West Coast, so the game started at five o’clock local time, with a great deal of fanfare.
He had to give a handful of pregame interviews, assuring reporters that yes, he really did want to be part of the Mountain Lions franchise.
Did he think he could take the team to another Super Bowl?
He thought this team had a reasonable chance of making it to the Super Bowl again. But did he think he was the golden ticket that would get them there?
No.
“There’s no I in team,” he joked to the reporter, who would not stop asking the same question over and over, in ten different ways.
She was tall and blonde, with a tight, short skirt and breasts that were too perfect to be real. Attractive, although she gave off a mean girl vibe, which was pretty much an instant turnoff for him.
It didn’t help that she was eye-fucking him while at the same time trying to goad him into admitting that he believed he was some sort of savior who was going to bring goodwill to the team.
“It’s going to take all of us working hard and working together,” he finally snapped, not even pretending to smile.
“Halsted!”
He turned, saw Diana standing maybe fifteen feet away, arms crossed, scowl on her face.
“I gotta go,” he said, grateful for the interruption. He’d be grateful even if it hadn’t been Diana, but that it was her made it even sweeter when he strode away before the reporter could figure out a way to either ask for his number or press him yet again to claim to be the team’s savior.
“Thanks,” he said after he jogged up to Diana’s side.
“It was my pleasure, really. That woman looked like she was about to strip naked and start rubbing against you like Patches does.”
There was only one woman he’d like to strip naked and rub herself against him.
“She was also trying to make me to say that I’m going to lead the team to a second Super Bowl win,” he admitted.
“Well, generally that’s the quarterback’s job, but I can see where the local media sees you as a bit of a prophet. The video of Jalen fumbling that pass last season still gets far too many views. And everyone knows it was your fault.”
“I was just doing my job, which was to try to keep the opposing team from winning. Which, by the way, didn’t happen.”
“Yes, we are all well aware. And that is why you are a Mountain Lion now. You get into the other team’s heads like you did with Jalen and we will definitely get to the Super Bowl again this season.”
Her logic was faulty. He was able to get into Jalen’s head because of Jalen’s obsession with her. Unless she slept with a player from every team on their schedule, he was not confident he would have the same effect on any other game.
“Are your parents all settled in?” she asked, scanning the growing crowd.
“Why are you so concerned with my parents?” he asked.
Her gaze snapped back to him and narrowed. “It’s my job to ensure our VIP guests are comfortable.”
“They aren’t VIPs.” He shook his head. “I mean, I think they are, but they don’t. Trust me, they’re fine.”
She sighed. It clearly frustrated her that she could not coddle his parents. “Did you get to talk to them before suiting up?”
“I did.” It felt like she needed assurance that, even though his parents didn’t have expectations, he'd still made sure they were happy.
“We’re meeting up after the game, having a late dinner.” It was on the tip of his tongue to invite her. His parents wouldn’t mind. They’d probably give him a hard time afterward; his mom would be able to tell that he liked Diana as way more than a friend. But he could handle that.
“Good.” She patted his shoulder pad. “I need to make sure the national anthem singer is ready to go. Apparently, we forgot to take out the brown M the Arizona Cardinals won and chose to receive the ball. Special teams jogged out onto the field, Callahan kicked the ball, and the season was officially underway.
Amil and the rest of the defensive line headed onto the field, lining up, ready to keep the Cardinals from scoring a touchdown—or getting close enough to kick a field goal.
For their first play, the Cardinals’ offense tried to run the ball, but the guy was tackled with only three yards gained.
They tried to run it again on the next play, and the guy managed to get past the first line of defense.
The linebacker to Amil’s right charged at him, knocking the player onto his ass with enough force to dislodge the ball.
It popped out of his arms and Amil dove for it, curling his body around the pigskin while players piled on top of him and the fans lost their minds over the fumble.
After what felt like an eternity, the cluster of bodies on top of him shuffled and rolled away, leaving him on the ground clutching the ball.
The refs officially declared it the Mountain Lions’ possession, and Amil groaned.
He was going to hurt like hell later. But right now, in the moment—this fucking rocked.
He grinned when Gunner Valentine, the Mountain Lions’ safety, thrust out his arm and helped Amil to his feet.
“Not a bad start,” Gunner said, grinning back and patting his helmet.
Amil jogged off the field, slapping hands with Dante, Royce, and Jalen, who were all heading out now that the Mountain Lions had gained possession of the ball.
First down, second down, a holding penalty, and then Dante threw a beautiful pass that Jalen caught seemingly effortlessly and ran down the field for a touchdown. Callahan kicked for the extra point. Amil hadn’t thought it was possible that the crowd could get any louder.
And yet, they did.
By halftime the score was 14-0, but the Cardinals made a valiant attempt to come back, scoring a touchdown in the third quarter.
The game ended with a 24-7 win, and Amil was feeling pretty freaking fantastic.
Coach’s post-game locker room speech was filled with F-bombs and the word incredible. Amil got a shout-out for that fumble recovery in the first quarter.
He waved it off. “Jalen catching that pass and running for a touchdown was the best part of that play.”
Jalen scoffed. “Just take the compliment, man.”
Amil showered, dressed for dinner, and headed out to find his parents.
Who were standing in the tunnel with Diana.
He slowed his pace, took his time, carefully studying this unexpected interaction.
Diana was talking animatedly while his parents both nodded, his dad interjecting a comment every few moments. Amil could not imagine what else they might chat about other than the game.
But then he remembered that single night he and Diana spent together, how they lay side by side in the dark and just…
talked. About their lives. About their families.
She’d told him she’d been raised by a single mother, that her father had been involved in her life for a few years.
But then he’d remarried and started a new family, and eventually their relationship dissolved into child support checks and a card on her birthday.
He couldn’t imagine his parents not being together, either one of them not being a part of his life.
Each time the bullying started up, his father had wanted him to fight back, while his mother wanted to take a more diplomatic approach.
The compromise was to move him from school to school to try to get him out of the situation.
While he had emotional scars from all that moving around, what would he have become if he’d had only one of his parents to influence him? Diana had turned out pretty fantastic—the family curse not withstanding—but he wasn’t so sure he would have gotten so lucky.
And now that he knew about the family curse, combined with what she’d confessed to him under the blanket of postcoital relaxation, he could understand her hesitancy to try a real relationship on for size.
He hated it, but he could understand it.
His mom noticed him first. She cupped her hands over her mouth and blinked like she was trying to keep tears at bay.
His dad glanced over, grinned, and gently pushed his wife’s back, as if she needed the prodding to rush forward and hug her son.
He wrapped his arms around Mom, who produced a tissue from somewhere and dabbed at her eyes. Dad came over and enveloped them both, muttering at his wife for being so teary eyed and at the same time congratulating Amil for such a great game.
Diana watched it all with wide eyes. She didn’t move closer, she didn’t walk away; she simply stood where she was and stared at the little family reunion.
Amil had the most ridiculous urge to invite her into the group hug.
But he held back, mostly because he suspected she’d refuse.
If going out on more than one date was off the table, bonding with a guy’s parents most definitely was.
Finally, his parents released him and Amil indicated her. “You’ve met Diana.”
Mom nodded enthusiastically. “She’s lovely. She gave us several recommendations for where to go for dinner. She also assures us that you are fitting in with your new team better than you expected.”
Yes, under the guise of darkness and a belief that he’d never see her again, Amil had told Diana about the bullying, about constantly switching schools, about never feeling like he fit in.
At the time, he’d actually thought he’d found his place with the 49ers, as it was the best situation he’d ever been in.
But now, after only a few weeks with his new team, he knew without a doubt that this was where he was meant to be. The Mountain Lions were the team, the family he’d been seeking for all this time.
He wondered if part of that was because of Diana. Because she was part of the Mountain Lions’ organization.
He cleared his throat. “Yeah, I really like these guys.”
“And you all play so well together,” Dad enthused. “That was a hell of a game, son.”
“Thanks. So, did you settle on a restaurant? I’m starved.”
Mom nodded, told him the name of the place—he’d never heard of it, but he trusted Diana’s judgment—and then turned to Diana. “We’d love it if you could join us.”
Amil held his breath, but he knew before she opened her mouth what her answer would be.
She shook her head a little too vigorously and began backing away before even speaking. “N-no. Thank you for the offer, but I, uh, Emma and I have plans.” Her gaze was on him, silently begging him to help her ease out of this situation.
“Emma is our team photographer,” he explained to his parents. “She and Diana were also college buds. I’m sure they’re planning to hit the clubs to celebrate the big win.”
He had no idea if it was true, but he knew that would get her off the hook without any more needling from Mom.
The look Diana threw him was appreciative. She stopped backing up for a moment, instead reached forward and shook each of his parents’ hands, telling them it was so nice to meet them and she was looking forward to seeing them again when they played the Patriots in a few weeks.
And then she walked away, and Amil watched her go.
Would he ever stop hoping for more?