EPILOGUE #2
“Yeah,” I murmur. “But you get to go home to your family now.”
He nods, and I see a rush of emotion seem to hit him at that. He has Kate and JJ and their new baby girl Ava. “And in four days, you’ll be a father.”
“What’s it like?” I ask.
He chuckles. “You’ll see.”
I can’t help when my lips tip up at that despite the edge of sadness at the loss and the end of our season. This is the last time the locker room will look like this. The last time we’ll share this dynamic with these people.
Over the next few months, players will come and go. Trades, retirements, acquisitions. Coaches will come and go. It’s the nature of the game—an unstoppable force in this business-oriented world. The thought depresses me a bit like it always does, but it’s just part of the reality of this life.
The thing today that’s comforting amidst the thought of losing teammates is the fact that when I go home, I have Kaylee. Whatever team I’ve played for has always been my family. It still is…but I’m building a different sort of family now with the woman I love.
We’re having two kids in four days. Two baby girls, as we discovered a few weeks after I learned she was pregnant. We’re getting married soon.
We’re reaching for dreams I didn’t even know I had since my dreams were always on the field.
And I couldn’t be more excited about the future I’m building with her.
I grab my phone out of my locker and check the most recent text.
Kaylee: When you scored that TD and did your Big O Thunder, it totally reminded me of Tuesday night.
I laugh as I think back to the night she’s referring to.
I never realized how goddamn hot a woman’s body is as she grows your babies inside her, but hot damn.
She’s incredible, and I’m horny all the time.
That’s nothing new, but this is a whole different level of horniness.
And even though she’s tired and sore and uncomfortable, she has this strangely heightened sex drive.
It took a few tries for us to find the most comfortable position for her, but once I got in behind her to spoon her… well, we found it.
Another text comes through just as I’m about to write her back.
Kaylee: Sorry for the loss. I’m waiting with a big hug. Well, as big a hug as I can give with these watermelons in my stomach.
I smile down at my phone as I think about her waiting for me.
She’s probably in the recliner since it’s her favorite spot in the home we’ve owned for the last two months.
We found the perfect place in Vegas in the same subdivision as Luke and Ellie.
She’s pretty much always in the recliner since we moved in, but even more over the last couple weeks as she nears the end of this pregnancy.
Me: It better be a naked hug.
Kaylee: It’ll be a tight fit on this recliner since I’m not getting up, but if anyone can do it, it’s the best tight end I know.
I’m still smiling down at my phone. The mood is somber in this locker room, but right now, I have a whole lot to look forward to even beyond this game.
When I thought about retirement before, I was terrified. I knew I would do something with Tight Fit, but Kaylee has helped me organize exactly what I want to do. I’m not scared anymore. Instead, I face the future with excitement.
I’ll be a tight end another year or two. Maybe three at the most. It’s all I’ve got left in me.
But when I’m done, it won’t be the end. It’ll just be the beginning.
* * *
Keep reading for a prequel story from Ben Olson, or click below for more Ben and Kaylee with the Bonus Epilogue!
Want more Kaylee and Ben? Download the bonus epilogue to spend more time with them! See what they name their girls PLUS get some hints about what’s coming next in ROOKIE MISTAKE, the first book in a hot new season of the Vegas Aces.
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1-CLICK ROOKIE MISTAKE
I fell for the boy next door, and then my father ripped it all away from us.
The first person to catch my eye in a long time is a colleague who tells me what we just did over his desk will never happen again.
And then my mother calls with news from back home.
I have to head back to the small town my father forced me to leave seven years ago knowing the boy I still love will show up, too.
When I finally see him, it’s clear we have unfinished business. But it doesn’t matter. His life is in the Vegas spotlight now, where he plays pro football and goes home to his wife.
My life is in Chicago now, where I embark on a torrid affair with my colleague.
And then two little pink lines show up with the power to change everything. The first time I saw them, my world imploded.
This time will be different. It has to be.
I won’t be making the same rookie mistake again.
* * *
NOW AVAILABLE: CURVEBALL
She has no idea who I am. I immediately like that about her.
The gorgeous woman who sat down at the blackjack table beside me and asked me to teach her to play doesn’t recognize me as the third baseman who played pro baseball for seven years.
I tell her I’m in town for a job offer when the truth is my buddy just asked me to leave my quiet existence in San Diego and unretire so I can lead the new Vegas Heat expansion team to the championship.
She simplifies my career dilemma down to doing what will bring me the most joy, and as I spend the weekend with her, I realize she is bringing me more joy than I’ve experienced in years.
Twelve years stand between us, but we agree it doesn’t matter as much as our feelings do.
And as she takes me out to the middle of the desert to stare up at the stars, I know this is the place I’m meant to be.
I agree to play. I agree to move to Vegas so I can explore whatever this is with her.
But life is about to throw me a curveball I never saw coming.
* * *