Change of Hart - M.E.Carter

**** Change of Hart Copyright © 2014 M.E. Carter All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the author of this book. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. License Notes This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author

Title Page Dedication Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty-One Chapter Twenty-Two Chapter Twenty-Three Epilogue Acknowledgements

About the Author

“How the hell do they always know I’m coming?” I asked my manager Adam in an irritated voice, leaning forward to look out the window of our black SUV at the sea of news reporters. “Do they not understand that this is about the kids?” Adam chuckled and pressed the lock button on his phone before putting it in his pocket and looking around. “Probably some well-meaning mom on the PTA alerted the press, hoping to get some publicity for the school.” I snorted. “This isn’t about publicity for the school. I won’t answer their questions, Adam. Especially not that bitch, April Gill.” As the starting defensive lineman for the Dallas Cowboys, I was well known in the area. As the best in the country, I was hounded relentlessly by the media. I tried hard not to let it get to me. It was part of my job. And sure, it was fun seeing my name in lights. But it could get old. All the male reporters wanted to buddy up to me and chat like we were old friends. All the female reporters batted their eyes at me and acted like they wanted to take me home with them. The only reporter I ever got along with was Catherine Hernandez. But of course, she was good enough at her job that she and her husband moved to California so she could take a gig in San Diego. It was times like these when I missed seeing her in the crowd. “You don’t have to answer any questions,” Adam

assured me. “But be ready, Jason. I’m willing to bet they will be in the school during the pep rally.” I sighed as our driver pulled up to the curb. I didn’t usually make public appearances at schools. After coming home four years ago to play for the Cowboys and setting several records in that time, the big wigs liked to reserve me for higher end events like galas for the American Cancer Society and big events being put on by one of my sponsors. It’s not like I minded doing things like this. But I wasn’t really in charge of my own publicity so I usually just went along with it. But when I got a call from my high school buddy, Lindsay Miller, who happened to be the music teacher at this school, I couldn’t resist. She was my next-door neighbor when we were kids and we were choir buddies all through middle school. Yes, I admit it. Jason Hart was in the middle school choir. The only thing I could do was carry a tune. Lindsay, on the other hand, had an amazing voice. Scored almost every solo. She was also one of the only girls that still treated me like a person once we got to high school, and not some varsity football god. Even back then I craved for people to just like me for me. Sure, I enjoyed the notoriety. What seventeen-year-old kid wouldn’t like getting laid by the hottest girls in school? But to Lindsay, I was just Jason . . . her friend and next-door neighbor. We ended up at the same college, but lost touch as my life became more about getting drafted into the pros and her life became more about her music degree. Thank goodness for Facebook. I was stoked when a random memory caused me to look her up online and friend request her. “Jason, can you give us any insight into next week’s game?” “Jason, do you realize you are on track to break the record for most sacks in the history of the NFL?” Dear god, the car door had just opened. I didn’t even have my foot on the curb before I was

surrounded by cameras and had microphones in my face. One good thing about choir . . . I learned how to smile through every performance. “Thanks for coming out guys,” I said as I made my way through the crowd and to the front door. “But I’m not here to talk football today. This is all about the kids.” I kept walking, ignoring the questions being thrown my way, until I reached the receptionist inside the first door. She had a team jersey on and a starryeyed look. I’d recognize a hard-core fan anywhere. “Hi, I’m Adam Roberts,” he said to the receptionist. “This is Jason Hart. He is supposed to be speaking at the ‘Back to School’ pep rally today.” “OHMYGOD IT’S JASON HART!” I heard the shriek over my shoulder and turned just in time to see Lindsay jumping up and down like she used to when she made fun of me in high school. “Can I have your autograph? Can I have your babies?” She squealed with her hand over her mouth, stifling a laugh. I smiled wider than I had in ages. “Girl, quit your fangirl act and get yourself over here to give me a hug,” I said as she ran over to me, throwing her arms around my neck. “You just couldn’t resist making fun of me, could you?” I asked, laughing as I held her tight. “I thought your followers were bad in high school,” Lindsay joked. “But geez, these reporters have been camped out here all morning!” She pulled away and smacked me on my shoulder. “How the heck are you, my friend? And forget all this football nonsense. How are you really?” She always did cut to the core like that. To her, football was what I did, not who I was. More than once I had kicked myself for letting her get snatched up by her hot shot accountant husband. But dang, it was nice having my friend back. “I’m doing ok,” I said, looking around at the school that she called her second home. “Working a lot. Training a lot. Pretty much the same thing I’ve

been doing since you’ve known me. How are you?” I asked. “Looks like you’ve got a pretty sweet gig here at Mountain Park Elementary School.” She laughed. “Not as sweet as the gig you have, but I can’t complain. Husband is great. Daughter just turned five and she’s great. Job is great. I couldn’t ask for more.” “It can’t be that great. Don’t you have to teach kids how to play the recorder?” I asked with amusement. She scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Don’t remind me. I wasn’t happy with the way the fifth grade performance had been going, so this year I came up with the brilliant idea of adding fourth graders to the mix . . . you know, to give them an extra year of practice before the show.” I laughed. “And how is that going?” She sighed and rubbed her fingers in circles on her temples. “I’m about to take out stock in Tylenol.” “Your ideas always were better before they came to life,” I joked. “Tell me about it,” she said. Adam walked up and slapped a white sticker on my shirt. “Here, man,” he said. “School policy. Everyone coming in has to have a name tag.” “Thanks,” I said. “Adam, this is my good friend Lindsay Miller.” Adam stuck out his hand for Lindsay to shake. “Oh, that’s right! You’re the one who coordinated all of this. I’m impressed. Usually we can’t get him off the field to do any PR. I appreciate you helping us show that my boy has a heart.” Lindsay laughed and looked at me. “I like you, Adam,” she said. “Why don’t we head into my classroom until the pep rally starts? The kids should be heading this direction any minute and we don’t want to ruin the surprise that you’re here. Um . . . ,” she said, looking out the window at the reporters that were still loitering around. “Unless the surprise has already been ruined.” She buzzed us in through the security door and led

us into her classroom. The center of the room was open and empty, with some marking tape on the floor, presumably to remind the kids where they were to stand while singing. Some chairs with music stands in front of them were off to the side. A closet door was open. Inside I could see all kinds of music-related items on shelves . . . dozens of xylophones, a couple of keyboards, some triangles. “I see you designed your room after Mr. Whitman’s,” I said. Mr. Whitman had been our choir teacher. He was a notorious pack rat and never threw away anything musical. “Don’t judge,” Lindsay said. “Music budgets aren’t what they used to be in the schools. This school is lucky to have a music department at all, with all the budget cuts that went through last year.” I looked at her with what was probably a look of shock. “Really? Are they cutting music out of the schools? I mean, is your job on the line?” She waved me off like I had asked a ridiculous question and walked over to her desk. “Nah. A lot of the music teachers have to split their time between two campuses now. But I’m the head of the arts program here and I’m on the board that writes all the curriculum for the district, so my job is pretty secure.” She sat down in her rolling chair and crossed her arms. “So tell me the truth, Jay, is there a special girl in your life?” I turned to glare at Adam as he cracked up like it was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard. When I looked back at Lindsay, she was grinning from ear to ear. “Um, no,” I said. “You know that lifestyle isn’t for me, Lin. Never has been. I’d rather sow my wild oats.” “You’re twenty-nine years old, Jason. Aren’t you tired of oats yet?” she asked. I looked at her and rolled my eyes. “I like my oats,” I started. “And until a quality woman like yourself falls into my lap, I’m content to keep it that way.” She shook her head. “Jason, you know I love you,

but you need to quit being such a man-whore. Your mama raised you better than that.” I looked at her and knew she was right. As a single mother, my mom had made me the center of her world for a lot of years. Once I left for college, she started building a life for herself again. Even having a few boyfriends. Gross. I knew she wanted me to have what she’d had with my father. I wanted that, too. But I wasn’t going to force it with anyone. It would happen. Eventually. Before I could respond, I heard someone else come into the room. “Well hello, Jason. You seem to be buddy-buddy with this lovely teacher.” She walked over to Lindsay and shook her hand. “I’m April Gill, Channel 5 News.” Lindsay shook her hand but didn’t say a word. “Just how do you two know each other?” April asked. Adam jumped in and started guiding April by the arm to the door. “I’m sorry, Ms. Gill, but Mr. Hart isn’t here to answer media questions today. You are welcome to get all the footage you need during the pep rally, but any request for an interview will need to go through me. Do you have my card?” Adam whipped out a business card and held it out to her. April’s eyes narrowed as she answered Adam. “I have your number already. Thanks Adam,” she said with a chill in her voice. Then she turned and stomped away. “What was that about?” Lindsay asked me. I shook my head. “That,” I answered, “Is April Gill. She is a thorn in my side.” “Why?” Lindsay asked. “Don’t tell me she’s one of the oats! “ I pulled the name tag off my shirt and began absent-mindedly playing with it. “Oh, believe me,” I started, “I do my best to stay far away from that one.” “We’ve had a lot of problems with her,” Adam said, sitting down in the blue chair right next to mine. “She is notorious in the locker room for buddying up to some of the team. Then she turns on them once she

gets some dirt she can turn into a story for the ten o’clock news.” Lindsay raised an eyebrow. “And it keeps happening? Seriously, Jay, what kind of idiots do you work with?” I chuckled. “Idiots that get hit in the head a lot on the field.” We sat around, catching up on life for about thirty minutes before her principal came in to introduce herself and give us a quick rundown on how the pep rally was going to go. Lindsay led me through a door that brought us backstage. While we waited for our cue, I got to peek through the curtains at roughly seven hundred children sitting on the floor of the cafeteria. They seemed to be equally mixed: black, white and Hispanic - with a few Asian children sprinkled in here and there. It was funny watching how they were all fidgety and couldn’t keep their hands to themselves while they were waiting for the show. Lindsay had told me Mountain Park was fortythree percent economically disadvantaged. Meaning forty-three percent of all these kids lived in enough poverty that they got to eat lunch for free or a reduced price. That struck me as odd because it didn’t look like any of these kids were poor. They were clean. They were well behaved. They listened well, once they stopped fidgeting. Lindsay said the staff and administration worked really hard to make sure these kids understood that not having a lot of money didn’t mean they weren’t expected to always do their best. And it showed. Seeing all of that through the curtains really cemented my respect for my friend. I always knew she was amazing. But little did I know she would make such a huge impact in her community. It made me really proud of all she had accomplished. As Lindsay came out from behind the curtain, I positioned myself for my entrance. “Hi, kids,” Lindsay said into the microphone. “Welcome back to school! Are you guys excited to

have another fantastic year?” “Yeah!” I heard the kids respond. Lindsay continued. “It is very important to study hard and always try your best, because your future holds big plans for you. But you can’t get there without hard work and preparation.” I peeked through the curtains again to see the small faces that were absorbing everything Lindsay was saying. They looked so excited and hopeful about their futures. It made me excited to get to talk to these kids. I needed to show up at more events like this. “So today, I have a special person here to talk to you about working hard and always trying your best, no matter what. He was my very good friend in school and he’s still my very good friend! Can you please welcome Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman, Jason Hart!” I walked out from behind the curtain and waved amid squeals and cheers as I made my way to Lindsay and the microphone. I was used to hearing people yelling for me, but it made my chest puff up even more to hear all the kids. Something about it being kids made it more exciting to me. “You always had a way with a microphone and a crowd,” I said in Lindsay’s ear when I got to where she stood. She rolled her eyes and handed me the microphone. I looked around at the sea of young faces. “Hey, guys!” I started. “My name is Jason Hart and I play football for the Dallas Cowboys.” At that moment, a blur came rushing at me, throwing its arms around my legs. I looked down to see a brown-haired little boy, probably only six or seven, clinging to my legs and sobbing. “I love you, Jason. I knew you’d come for my birthday. Thank you for coming to see me. I love you so much. You are my hero.” I looked at Lindsay who was as wide-eyed as I

felt. What the hell?

“I am so sorry, Mr. Hart,” the principal, Mrs. Teske, said. Again. “We’ve never had a problem with students rushing the stage before. He was just a little . . . emotional.” I’ll say. Once his teacher was finally able to pry the little boy off me, he sat down with his class and cried for the rest of the pep rally. I spent the next thirty minutes talking about all the hard work it takes to succeed and how even I still did homework in the form of research on other teams. I answered a lot of questions, and listened intently as some of the younger ones misunderstood that asking a question was very different than telling me a story. Even after a strange beginning, I was still excited to talk to the kids. But I couldn’t tear my eyes off of that little boy. I could understand part of how he felt. I had had the occasional fan get emotional when meeting me. It came with the territory. I’m sure I would have burst into tears growing up if I had ever met Troy Aikman. But something about this felt very different. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it, either. “Who is he, anyway?” I asked. “His name is Jaxon,” said Lindsay, standing by the door of her classroom with her back against the wall. “Please don’t be freaked out, Jay. He has had some hard life changes recently and I suspect having you here just sent him over the top emotionally.” I knew better than to ask what “hard life changes” meant. I knew confidentiality was a priority in school nowadays, so I didn’t even bother to ask. I turned to the principal. “He said it was his birthday,” I said. She nodded. “I don’t think it would be a good idea to hang out

with him in the cafeteria or anything. But do you think I could hang out with him in here for a little bit? Maybe talk football with him?” This was something I wouldn’t normally ask to do. But there was just something about that kid. Mrs. Teske shrugged. “I don’t see why not. Can I use your phone, Lindsay?” While Mrs. Teske walked over to Lindsay’s desk and called down to Jaxon’s classroom, Adam sat down next to me. “Do you want us to get some pictures? Maybe pick the least annoying reporter out there to get some footage while you talk to this kid?” he asked. I shook my head. I was just as happy with good PR as the next guy, but that’s not what this was about. I wanted to know what this kid meant about knowing I would come on his birthday. I wanted to know why he was crying so hard. And what kind of life changes could make a little boy react so strongly? Something was making this boy sad and the least I could do was try to make his day. But I wasn’t about to let Adam get into my head about this. “Nah,” I said. “Those vultures weren’t even supposed to be here. This isn’t about that. Let’s just make sure the little guy is ok and maybe give him an autograph and a picture.” Adam nodded in agreement. “I’ll make sure to email any pics to the school for him.” Adam stood up, typing into his phone again when Jaxon walked in the room. When his sad eyes looked up and he saw me, his whole face lit up. He smiled wide and came rushing at me again. Only this time I was ready. “Hey, little man. How are you?” I asked, bent over at the waist, trying to hug him back. “This is the best birthday ever,” I heard him respond, muffled through my jeans. The principal dragged another chair over and coaxed Jaxon into it. I sat down across from him. “I take it you are a football fan?” “My dad and I always used to watch your games!”

he exclaimed. “Do you remember that time when Beau Prince went to kick that field goal and you jumped up and SMACKED it out of the air?” He actually jumped out of the chair with his arm up like he was swatting the football himself. “And do you remember that time you tackled Terrell James before he could even throw the ball?” I chuckled. I’ve made thousands of plays in my life. Maybe hundreds of thousands if you included middle and high school games. Most of them, I didn’t remember. But that didn’t faze Jaxon one bit. He just kept spouting off every single play he could think of while Adam chuckled in the corner. “Have you and your dad gone to a game before? Or do you just watch on TV?” I asked him. Man, he was a bundle of energy. “No,” Jax said, suddenly seeming sad. “We were supposed to go to a game, but we never did. And now I don’t get to watch you on TV anymore.” “How come?” “My mom doesn’t watch football so she doesn’t know when any of the games are,” he replied with his eyes downcast. “Why don’t you ask your dad?” I asked hesitantly. Jaxon sniffed and kept looking at the floor. “He died. So I only get to watch football when my Peepaw comes over and turns it on. But he doesn’t come over very much anymore.” My heart broke. So this was the life change Lindsay was talking about. Jaxon looked up suddenly. “I told my mom, all I wanted for my birthday was for you to come to see me. She said you didn’t know us and wouldn’t come. But I told her you would. I told her! How did you know it was my birthday?” I smiled at his question. And maybe a little at his ability to move on from what was obviously a difficult topic, to something as fun as his birthday, with ease. “Actually, Jaxon,” I said, leaning closer to him, “I didn’t really know it was your birthday.”

“You didn’t?” he asked. “No. But something made me feel like I really needed to come to your school today. I just had a feeling that I needed to meet someone special. And here you are!” Jaxon beamed. “Did you know you are my hero, Mr. Hart?” “I am?” I asked with a smile. “How come?” “Well, you know you play really good football.” I chuckled. “So I’ve heard.” “But my dad used to say you were really nice.” I tilted my head, taking in everything Jaxon said. “He said you helped people who were sick and you were nice to kids. He said if I was gonna grow up to be a football player, he wanted me to be like you.” My jaw dropped and I looked over at Lindsay. She smirked and shrugged at me. I cleared my throat. “It sounds like your dad was a really nice man,” I said. “Yeah,” Jaxon said, looking at the floor again. “He was. I miss him.” I took a deep breath, steeling myself to say the words I hadn’t said out loud in years. “My dad died, too,” I said. Jaxon looked up at me with wide eyes. “He did?” I smirked at him. “Yeah. When I was about your age. Maybe a little older. I was in third grade when he died. It really sucked.” “Yeah,” Jaxon said. “It really sucks.” We talked for a while longer about our dads and football and his teacher, Mrs. Arrevalo, who he said smelled like cheese. Mrs. Teske snickered at that one. Adam took some pictures and promised to email them to the school. This time, when Jaxon went to hug me goodbye, I got down on my knees to hug him back. As he wrapped his little arms around my broad shoulders, I heard him loud and clear . . . “This has been the best day ever, Jason. I love you.” Then he turned around and literally skipped out of the room.

“Thirteen, fourteen, come on, Deuce! One more!” I shouted. “Fifteen. Nice job.” I grabbed the bar and helped guide the weights back onto the rack. Fifteen bench presses may not sound like a lot. But when you’re pushing three hundred and twenty pounds to the sky, it feels like way more. “Thanks,” Deuce said, sitting up and wiping his face off with a towel. “This workout is killing me today. You’d think I’d never bench-pressed before.” I barked a laugh as I adjusted the weights. “It’s all that home cooking you’re getting now that you finally made an honest woman out of Vanessa,” I reminded him. Deuce stood up and threw the towel into the bin by the wall. “Don’t I know it,” he said. “If she had told me what a good cook she was when we first started dating, I would have married her two years ago.” Michael “Deuce” Johnson was my teammate and best friend. We were both traded to the team at the same time four years ago, and we immediately clicked. We were so much alike in personality, our teammates joked that if we weren’t different races, we could be mistaken for brothers. With his dark African-American skin tone and my lily whiteness, I personally thought we looked like an old Benetton ad whenever we took a picture together. Except for our height, we couldn’t be more different physically. He

had black, shoulder-length dreads. I had cropped black hair. His eyes were dark brown. Mine were blue. His build was muscular and cut. I was shaped more like a square. Deuce and I worked out together every day of the week except Sundays. And during the season, we saw each other on game day Sundays, too. The only time in four years that we didn’t see each other every day was a couple months ago when he got married to Vanessa and took her on an extravagant honeymoon to Bali. Vanessa was this tiny little Hispanic woman. And I do mean tiny. At 6’ 3” and 6’ 5” respectively, Deuce and I towered over her. Even by average height standards, Vanessa still came in on the short side at 4’ 11”. But what she lacked in height, she made up for with her feisty Latina attitude. And her culinary skills. “Don’t start going into details about her cooking,” I said as I lay down on the bench and adjusted my body so I didn’t fall off. “The season is just starting. The last thing I need is some of her enchiladas.” I pressed the bar up with a grunt. “Tell me about it,” Deuce replied while I counted my own reps. He always seemed to forget that was part of his job when he was the spotter. “Taking a couple weeks off to relax was nice, but I feel like I can’t catch back up to where I was. In muscle tone only, of course. I actually got in a lot of good endurance exercises while I was gone,” he said, waggling his eyebrows up and down. “What number are you on?” “Twelve!” I grunted and kept pressing the bar skyward, trying not to laugh at his perverted joke. “Vanessa wants me to invite you to dinner tomorrow night,” he continued. “She says she misses you. I don’t get why she misses you when she’s got this hunk of man to come home to.” Deuce grabbed the bar and spotted as I dropped it down on the rack. I sat up and took a quick gulp of my water. “Yeah,” I said. “I think I can do dinner. I already

fulfilled my PR obligations for this month so I don’t think there’s anything on the schedule.” “Oh yeah!” Deuce said. “I forgot about that school thing you had to do. How did it go, anyway?” “It was . . . interesting.” I filled Deuce in on how the media tracked me down and April Gill’s intrusion. Deuce made a face when I got to that part. Thankfully, he’d been smart enough to never fall victim to her deceptions, but that didn’t mean he was happy to see other people get sucked into her trap. By the time I finished telling him about Jaxon’s reaction to seeing me, the barbell and our workout had been long forgotten. “That’s really weird,” Deuce kept saying. “I get that the kid looks up to you, but . . . that’s really weird.” “I thought so, too,” I said, wiping my face with my towel again. “But there’s something about this kid. I can’t stop thinking about him and wondering how he is.” “Well, yeah,” Deuce agreed. “His dad just died, man. Of course you’re wondering about him. You’ve been there.” “Yeah,” I said thoughtfully, resting my elbows on my knees. “What?” Deuce asked. I looked up, confused. “What, what?” “You have that weird look on your face. Not the one that’s just your face. I’m used to that weirdness. The one that means you’re trying to decide something.” I ignored his good-natured ribbing. “I don’t know. I just feel like I should be doing something for him.” Deuce thought for a second before speaking. “Is this about your own dad?” he asked. “Are you feeling some sort of weird connection to this kid because he reminds you of yourself?” I sat up and stretched out my back. “I don’t think so. I just . . . I don’t know. You should have seen his eyes light up when we talked about football. He was

so animated. And he’s just this bundle of energy. It was so fun just watching him be excited about things.” “Okkkaaaaay,” Deuce said crossing his arms. “I’m starting to get a little creeped out by your strange fascination with a little boy.” “Shut up,” I replied, snapping him with my towel. “Maybe I just wanna help. Be his friend or something.” “So invite him to the stadium. Take him on a personal tour of the locker room. Play catch with him on the field. He’d probably love it,” Deuce said, walking around the bench to spot me again. “That’s not a bad idea, Deuce,” I said lying back down to resume our workout. “I’ll see if Lindsay can help me get in touch with him.” I pushed up the bar with a grunt and started counting. We spent another thirty minutes lifting before getting in five miles on the treadmill. A two-hour workout wasn’t very long for us, but practice had been kicking our butts lately. And Deuce was still in that newlywed phase of his marriage and anxious to get back to Vanessa. Besides, I could come back to the weight room later if I wanted. There was always someone milling around looking for a spotter. After a quick shower, I jumped in my black Range Rover and headed toward home. Once I got on the highway, I hit the hands-free button. “Jason’s phone,” the computerized voice said, followed by a beep. “Call Lindsay,” I responded. “Calling Lindsay,” it replied and beeped again. As I waited for the call to connect, my mind wandered back to Jaxon. I wondered how his birthday had gone after I left the school that day. I wondered how his dad had died. And I wondered if getting involved was really something I wanted to do. He was a really sweet kid. But even sweet kids had parents and you never know what you’re going to get when the adults start getting involved. “Well hello there, Mr. Fancy Football Man,”

Lindsay teased as soon as the call connected. “This is a nice surprise.” “Hey, girl,” I said with a smile. “How goes the wonderful world of recorder practice these days?” “Ugh. Don’t remind me. I was just sitting here thinking about the joys of drinking heavily on the weekends, trying to get that noise out of my head.” I laughed. “Hey now, you are molding young minds!” “While slowly but surely losing my own in the process,” she said dryly. Her sarcasm was always one of the things I liked the most about her. “Oh! I meant to tell you, Sam wanted me to invite you over for dinner. He says a single guy like yourself deserves a home-cooked meal every once in a while.” That was two dinner invites in one day. I felt like I had won the lottery of real food. “Well that was nice of him.” “Maybe. Secretly, I think he just wants you to help him upgrade his season passes from the nosebleed section to on the field. But don’t tell him I let you in on his secret agenda.” “Are you kidding?” I admonished, glancing over my shoulder to change lanes. “You only let that poor man sit in the nose bleed section?” “It costs a ton of money to go to these games,” she said defensively. “Between parking, food and tickets, it can get pretty pricey. It’s a good thing you’re good at your job or I might have nixed the nose bleeds a long time ago!” A laugh burst out of me again. “Well then I guess I’d better come to dinner so I can help that man get an upgrade. Can’t do it this week though. Maybe sometime next week.” “That works,” she said. “Just let me know your schedule. I’m gonna have to go shopping to make sure I have enough food in the house to feed someone your size.” “Don’t go out of your way. I’m a bachelor. I’m used to living off string cheese and hot dogs.” She laughed. “I will make sure to stay away from

dairy and processed pork products that night. Show you what a real meal looks like. Maybe encourage you to stop sowing those oats.” I groaned. “Are we back to this again?” “I just worry about you,” she sighed. “I know you’re perfectly content. I’m just looking forward to watching the Jason Hart finally fall head over heels for someone.” “Don’t hold your breath, Lin,” I said. “I am not stupid. I have a very limited amount of time in this line of work. My focus is on football. Once I retire, I’ll still be young and virile.” “Ew,” Lindsay said. “I don’t need to know anything about your virility. It makes me gag.” I died laughing. “You started it!” “That I did,” she sighed. “So is this a professional call? Or did you just call for a friendly chat?” “Actually,” I hesitated just briefly. “I wanted to ask you about Jaxon.” “Jaxon Bryant?” she asked. “From the pep rally?” “Yeah. That Jaxon.” “What about him?” “What can you tell me about him?” Lindsay paused. “I think Jaxon already told you most of it himself. Just turned seven. Lives with his single mom now that his dad has died. What else are you wanting to know?” “How long ago did his dad die?” “Um . . . I guess about six months ago. Right around Valentine’s Day. Car accident on his way to work.” “Oh.” “Why are you asking about him, anyway?” “Well, he’s been on my mind a lot lately.” “How so?” “I don’t know how to explain it,” I said, rubbing the top of my head. “I just can’t stop wondering what I can do to help him. I’ve been right where he’s at, but I had a fantastic uncle that just stepped right in when my dad died. I just . . . I know Jaxon said he had a Pee-paw, but does he get to see him a lot?”

“I don’t really know,” she said. “Jaxon’s mom has been kind of tight-lipped about the whole thing. She wasn’t terribly forthcoming with personal information to begin with. But she kind of closed up a little after the accident.” “So you know his mom?” I asked. “Sort of,” Lindsay said, pausing as I heard what sounded like her taking a drink. Probably a large gulp of wine, knowing her. “She used to volunteer at the school once a week. She was super nice. From what I’ve pieced together in passing conversations, she went back to work over the summer. “ “Oh,” I said, lost in thought. My mind was kind of spinning as I thought about all the interactions I’d had with Jaxon and how much I enjoyed him. Was it weird that I kind of wanted to be friends with a little boy? “Ok spill, Jay . . . what’s going on in your head?” Lindsay finally asked, cutting through the silence. “This might sound really weird, Lin,” I started, “but I kind of want to spend some time with the kid. There’s something about him. He kept saying I’m his hero. And I have a chance to make a difference with him. That sounds kind of creepy, doesn’t it?” “I don’t think so,” she said. “I saw the way you two connected the other day. Spending some time with him might be a nice idea for both of you. It’s not much different than what Big Brothers/Big Sisters does.” I felt relieved that she didn’t think I was crazy. I also heard her take another drink. “Uh, Lin, exactly how much wine are you going to drink while I’m on the phone with you?” I joked. “Shut up. The glass isn’t that big. And I’m thirsty. So,” she said, switching gears. “I’m assuming you’re needing my help to set this whole shindig up.” “Shindig?” I asked. “Are you sure the glass isn’t that big?” “Ohmygod, stay focused!” Lindsay admonished. “What do you need me to do?” I chuckled. “Ok, ok. Focused. Do you think you can get in touch with Jaxon’s mom? Maybe have her

call me?” “You want me to give a strange woman your phone number?” Lindsay asked, mock concern in her voice. “Ok really, lay off the sauce, babe.” She snorted. “And yes, give this particular strange woman my phone number. And tell her I’m wanting to invite her and Jaxon for a personal tour of the stadium. If I’m gonna spend some time with her kid, I probably need to start off by showing her I’m not a scary guy with lots of things to hide.” “True,” she said. “Ok. I’ll call her on Monday and give her your number.” “Thanks,” I said as I turned left onto my street, heading for my parking garage. “And Lindsay?” “Yes?” she asked cautiously. “No more refills on that big-ass glass I know you’re holding, ok?” She huffed and, I assumed, rolled her eyes at me. “Watch yourself, Hart. String cheese and hot dogs only come in so many different flavors.” I laughed as I pulled into a parking space. “Ok, ok. I’ll talk to you next week.” “Enjoy all those processed foods,” she said. “And you enjoy all those recorders,” I replied. “Ugh, don’t remind me,” she said. And hung up.

It was Monday afternoon and Deuce and I were at the gym. Because, well, where else are we going to be? “I feel like I have a brick sitting in my stomach,” I complained as I squatted to the floor with the bar securely resting on my shoulders. It wasn’t the heaviest weight I could squat. But after last night, I had to take it a little bit easy so I didn’t spew all over the gym floor. “Quit your bitchin’,” Deuce said, still not counting my reps. “You know you loved every bit of my wife’s cooking.” “Twenty,” I grunted and walked forward, dropping the bar on the rack. “Oh, I didn’t say I didn’t love it. It just likes to hang around for a while after I eat it.” “Or,” he argued as he settled himself under the bar and stood up. “It could be that you ate, what, four servings of her mama’s famous enchiladas? Who does that?” As he squatted down, my phone started ringing in my pocket. It usually stayed in my locker during my workout, but I knew Lindsay was calling Jaxon’s mom today and I didn’t want to miss her call. That is, if she called. I looked at the screen and didn’t recognize the number. As much as I wanted to answer, I couldn’t exactly leave Deuce alone with four hundred pounds on his back. I shoved the phone back in my pocket and waited for Deuce to get done. Just as he finished,

I heard the beep telling me I had a new voicemail. “Why the hell do you have your phone with you?” Deuce asked as he grabbed his water bottle and popped the top open. “I’m waiting for a call,” I said absentmindedly as I punched in the code on the screen and lifted the phone to my ear. “You’re waiting for a call from that kid’s mom, aren’t you?” he asked. I ignored him and punched “1” to start the message. “Hi, um, my name is Addison Bryant,” a softspoken voice said over the phone. “Mrs. Miller, the music teacher at my son’s school, gave me your number and told me you wanted to speak with me? Um . . . I guess you have my number now. So let me know how I can help you.” She paused. “Thanks. Bye.” I pressed the “end” button and looked up to Deuce who was shaking his head. “What?” I asked. “Was it her?” he asked. “Who?” I replied, playing dumb. “The kid’s mom, jackass.” I smirked. “How did you know that was the call I was waiting for?” “You mentioned it, oh, half a dozen times or so at dinner last night,” he answered. “I’m still not getting why you are so interested in this kid.” I put my phone back in my pocket. I knew it was dumb to have it with me. Obviously I wasn’t going to be able to return the call any time soon. But I was anxious to at least see if she called. My head wouldn’t be in my workout if I were thinking about the phone sitting in my locker. “I don’t know,” I said. “I like him. And I think it’ll be good for me to take some time to make a difference in someone’s life. Get out of my selfish little bubble for a while. Do something that has more long-lasting results than making a few tackles every week.” I picked up my water bottle and took a drink. “So, then, why are you so nervous about talking to

his mom?” I smirked. “Now that’s an easy one. Moms make me nervous. They didn’t like me in high school when I was dating their daughters and I seriously doubt much about my reputation has changed. I just don’t want her to think I’m a weirdo with some hidden agenda.” “You are a weirdo. But whatever,” Deuce agreed. “Go call her back.” “Thanks, man,” I said, clapping him on the shoulder. “I’m not sure my head will be in the workout until I get this out of the way. I’ll be right back,” I said, turning the corner and quickly walking down the hall to the locker room. I grabbed my phone and checked the log screen to find the number. As I dialed, I pushed into the locker room door, sat on the bench and took a breath. There was no telling how this was going to go. I kind of found the entire thing a little strange myself so I couldn’t imagine how Addison Bryant felt. “Hello?” a soft voice answered on the other end. “Um, Mrs. Bryant?” I asked. “This is she,” she answered. “Hi, my name is Jason Hart. My friend Lindsay Miller gave you my number.” “Oh! Mr. Hart, hi. I’m actually glad you called. I’m so, so sorry about what happened at the pep rally last week,” she rushed out her words. “I don’t know what came over Jax . . . I know that must have been really strange and I’m just . . . I’m just sorry he put you in that position.” I smiled. “Actually, Mrs. Bryant, I’m kind of glad he rushed the stage. I enjoyed getting to know him a little that day.” “You did?” she asked. “Yeah,” I reassured her. “He’s a really cool kid.” She paused for a few seconds. “He is,” she said slowly. “Thanks.” “That’s kind of the reason I called,” I continued. “I wanted to invite him, and you of course, on a tour of the stadium.”

No response. “I’m getting the feeling that information wasn’t relayed to you.” “Wait . . . um, no. I was just told to call you. So you want him to come tour the stadium?” she asked, seemingly confused by my offer. “With you?” I chuckled. “Yeah. I know how into football he is and thought he might enjoy it.” The phone went silent. “Um, Mrs. Bryant?” I said. “Are you still there?” “I really appreciate the offer, but I don’t think that’s the best idea right now.” I was kind of shocked. I thought for sure she would jump at the chance to let Jaxon get down on the field. I’ve never heard of anyone saying no to a stadium tour before. Heck, I play in them and even I wouldn’t turn down a tour from a player on another team. “Can I ask why not?” I finally asked. I heard her take a deep breath and blow it out before she spoke. “I just don’t think now is a good time for Jaxon to star in a publicity stunt.” The comment made me feel like I had been slapped. “Jax is a good kid and I know he would love it. It’s just not a great time for him to be in the public eye like that. His father’s death is just too fresh right now. I don’t like to answer the few questions I get already. I don’t really want to have reporters asking questions, too.” When I thought about it, her answer didn’t really surprise me that much. Nor did her confusion about my offer. “Oh, no, Mrs. Bryant,” I said. “This isn’t an invitation for a publicity stunt. My publicist doesn’t even know I’m calling you right now.” “Oh.” “Yeah,” I said. “There wouldn’t be any cameras there or anything. It would just be the three of us touring around the building.” “Really?” she asked skeptically. “Really,” I said with a smile. “I wanna do something for Jaxon. He deserves it.”

She paused for a few more seconds. “Well, then I guess that would be ok.” I broke out into a broad grin. “Well great!” We made plans over the next few minutes. Since she worked during the week, Saturday seemed to be the best time to meet up. Which was fine with me. The stadium would be buzzing with excitement with the season opener the next day. It would be fun. When I hung up the phone, I was really excited about giving this tour. It was about time I started contributing to the wellbeing of others on a more personal level. And not just by attending events in a monkey suit.

I walked around the locker room, searching for dirty underwear or jock straps. Everyone had already gone home after the short practice we’d had. But with Jaxon and his mom on the way, I wasn’t taking any chances. There wasn’t a lot I could do about the smell, but I could at least make sure the place was cleaned up. The phone in the locker room rang once before I picked it up. “Yeah,” I answered. “Hey, Mr. Hart! This is Ronald from security!” Ronald was always this pleasant. He resembled an older Wayne Brady and he greeted everyone with a smile. Every time. “I have an Addison Bryant and her young man, Jaxon, here for you,” he said. “Thanks, Ronald,” I said. “I’ll be right there.” I hung up the phone and took one more glance around the room. It was as good as a professional locker room was going to get. On my way to the west side door where the Bryant’s were waiting, I passed a few maintenance and administrative people in the halls. They didn’t really notice me and certainly didn’t seem surprised

to see me. It seemed like I was always there. Some said I was too dedicated to my job, but like I had told Lindsay the other day . . . I have a very small window of time to be a professional football player. Especially since my job was to tackle people. Regularly. The minute other players got faster than me, my career was over. No one much older than thirty-five can keep up with twenty-two-year-old first round draft picks. That left me with about six more years playing the game I loved. And I would make the most of it. But my world was starting to feel a little too small. So it was nice having Lindsay back in my life. And hopefully Jaxon and I would continue to hit it off. They were a nice reminder that once football was over, there was still lots of life left to live. I rounded the corner and immediately caught sight of Jaxon. “Jason Hart!” he yelled and ran toward me. I knew what was coming this time, so I squatted down for him to hug my neck instead of my legs. “I always wanted to come here and see a real football field! Are we going on the field? Are we gonna see a game?” he started launching rapid-fire questions in my direction. “Slow down, buddy,” I said with a smile on my face. “Yes, we are going onto the field, but no, there’s not a game today. The season opener is tomorrow, so there’s gonna be a lot of people setting things up but not much else. Gives us a chance to check everything out. I figured you might like to see around the whole stadium.” He started jumping up and down. “Yeah! And the locker room and the trainers and can I run out of the tunnel you come out of?” “Sure!” I said. “We’ll make sure to go through the tunnel to get onto the field.” “Alright!” he yelled, throwing his fist in the air while I stood up to introduce myself to his mom. I hadn’t really paid much attention to her once I caught sight of Jaxon. So when I turned my eyes to her, my steps faltered just a bit.

I was expecting someone in her mid to late 30’s. Maybe older. But she couldn’t have been older than 30. If that. And she was beautiful. Not in a tall and skinny super model way. But in a real woman way. Her dark brown hair came down just below her shoulders and when she looked at me and put out her hand for me to shake, her smile about knocked me on my ass. “Hi, Mr. Hart,” she said. “I’m Addison Bryant. It’s really nice of you to invite us here.” I grabbed her soft hand and smiled back, trying to keep my cool and praying I didn’t look like a stupid tongue-tied teenager. She didn’t seem to notice so I think I covered it well. “Thanks for coming, Mrs. Bryant. But please call me Jason. We’re not very formal around here.” “Only if you call me Addison,” she said, her lips turned upward as she removed her hand from mine and tucked it in her back jeans pocket. “Addison it is,” I said, still smiling. Damn. I’ve never seen a smile light up a face like that before. She looked like someone who enjoyed laughing a lot. I could get used to being around that, I thought to myself. “Sorry he’s so . . . ,” she started, waving her hand in the direction of Jaxon who was still jumping up and down. This time he was talking animatedly to Ronald about something football-related. I wasn’t really sure what and didn’t really care at that moment. “Nah, he’s fine,” I said with a chuckle. “Ronald is the most talkative and friendly man I’ve met in my life. I’m sure they’ll keep each other entertained for a while.” She looked over as I said it and sure enough, Ronald was clearly just as engaged in the conversation as Jaxon was. “Did you find the entrance ok?” I asked. Obviously she had since she was standing right in front of me. But I wanted a few more minutes to talk to her. I was intrigued by her and wanted to see if I

could figure out why. She shuffled in front of me. Clearly a little nervous. Could she be intrigued by me, too? I quickly put the thought out of my brain. The woman had lost her husband and father of her son six months ago. There would be no intrigue on her end of it. So I chalked up the nerves to meeting her first professional football player. “Oh, your directions were great,” she said. “Thanks for making sure Ronald knew we were coming. The last thing we needed was security thinking Jaxon was gonna make an unauthorized break for it. He’s been jumping around the hallway for ten minutes now.” I grimaced. “Sorry about that. I was in the locker room and it’s a small hike to get over here from that side of the building.” “Oh, I’m sorry,” she started, blushing just slightly. “I didn’t mean to imply that waiting was a problem. Jaxon can just be overwhelming sometimes.” “I know what you meant. I just feel bad that I kept him waiting so long. Speaking of which. . . ,” I began, “Hey Jaxon! Are you ready to get this tour started?” I yelled in his direction. Jaxon turned and started running toward us. “Yeah!” he yelled, bouncing on his toes. I could relate. Being in the stadium before a game always gave me enormous amounts of energy, too. “Are we going on the field first?” I looked up at Addison, not for any other reason than to look at her. That’s when I noticed her clear hazel eyes. They were just so bright and . . . I don’t know, joyful, maybe? “I thought we’d hit the locker room and trainers first. Maybe even see if my coaches are still in. If we want to get to the field through the tunnel, we need to be on that side of the building. Is that alright with you, Addison?” I swear I saw her bat her eyelashes just slightly. “Sounds good to me,” she said softly. “Then lead the way.” I motioned for them to start

walking ahead of me. As they headed in the general direction of the locker room, I made no effort to hide that I was checking out her backside. A man could get used to seeing that every day. She wasn’t model skinny. Nope. She was the size of a normal woman. With some hips and quite a bit of junk in that trunk being shown off by some very flattering, sparkly jeans. Nice. I heard a snicker off to my side and looked over to see Ronald watching my every move. I winked at him and smiled as I jogged to catch up to my guests. An hour later, Jaxon had seen every square inch of the locker room and training room. He had met every single person in the building who happened to be on the training and coaching staff, as well as learned what every single piece of equipment does. He even stuck his feet in the ice bath, while my teammate Matt was sitting in it nursing a groin injury, because he wanted to see how cold it was. His conclusion? “That’s cooooold!” The kid was like a hurricane. Except he didn’t leave any destruction behind. His energy was just contagious. I couldn’t help but wonder how Addison survived the energy overload all by herself. Which got me thinking about my own mom and wondering how she dealt with my energy overload when she was single. Because truth be told, Jaxon really did remind me a bit of myself at that age. Always curious about everything. Not afraid to ask questions. Never met a stranger. My poor mom. She needed a bigger bouquet of flowers on Mother’s Day next year. The biggest one the florist could make her. And maybe a trip to Hawaii. As soon as Jaxon had seen everything and talked to everyone, we found the tunnel. He wanted us all to run through it together as we headed toward the field. So we did. Jaxon threw his little fists up in the air and yelled, “GO COWBOYS!” the entire way. It made Addison and I both laugh. He, of course, beat us out to the field with Addison a close second. I could have smoked them both. But I’ve seen the view down the

tunnel before. The view from behind Addison was much better. Jaxon marveled at all the seats in the stadium and how big it was. Then we tossed the football around until he started to get bored. Maybe bored isn’t the right word. Distracted is more like it. “What’s that guy doing over there, Jason?” he asked me, staring at one of the maintenance people. Eli looked up from his project right then and I waved in his direction. “Looks like he’s painting the goalposts, buddy. Making sure everything looks nice for tomorrow.” “Can I go watch him?” Jaxon asked, staring at Addison with wide eyes. “Um . . . ,” she stammered, looking over at me like she wasn’t sure what the right answer was. I smiled. “Sure you can, Jax. Just don’t touch anything.” “And don’t bother him for long!” Addison yelled after him as he took off down the field. But he was already so far away, he either didn’t hear her or just chose not to respond. Addison and I looked at each other and started meandering toward the goal posts, which were a good seventy-five yards away. I was kind of glad Jaxon left us by ourselves. And not just because she was hot. Turns out, she was witty and smart and had a great sense of humor. We’d had a lot of fun during the tour and I was interested in getting to know her better. “Thanks again for inviting us,” Addison said shyly. “He’s really having a great time.” “Well, he’s a great kid,” I smiled back at her. “I enjoy spending time with him. Kind of reminds of myself when I was his age.” Addison laughed. “Oh, your poor mother!” “I don’t know how either of you do it as single moms,” I said. “I’ve heard raising kids is hard. But I can’t imagine raising boys with so much energy all by yourself.” “I didn’t know your mom raised you alone.” She blushed. “I mean, it’s not like I know a whole lot

about you. I don’t stalk you online or anything. I just . . . oh, geez . . . you know. You’re on the news a lot so I just see things here and there.” There was that nervousness again. I liked seeing her blush. “Yeah, I’m on the news more often than I like. But what can I do? I chose the job and everything that goes with it.” “Did your parents get a divorce, or . . . ,” her voice trailed off. “I’m sorry, I’m getting really personal. You don’t have to tell me.” “No, no,” I said, trying to reassure her. “It’s actually kind of funny.” Addison looked at me with those bright hazel eyes again. Damn, she was beautiful. “Well, not ‘ha ha’ funny. Just kind of ironic.” “How so?” “My dad actually died when I was a kid,” I said, glancing over at Jaxon and Eli, happily conversing about, well, whatever Jaxon was interested in at the moment. “Oh, I’m so sorry,” Addison said, knowing firsthand the difficulties. “How old were you?” “I was eight,” I said, my gaze dropping to the grass in front of me, memories coming back as we walked. “Car accident. Just like Jaxon’s dad. I’m actually surprised he didn’t tell you about it. We had a whole conversation about it after the pep rally.” I looked over at Addison, whose eyebrows were raised. “Wow,” she said. “I’m surprised, too. He usually tells me just about everything about . . . well . . . everything. That is ironic, though. Is that why you invited Jaxon here?” I smiled sheepishly. “Partly. I still remember what that first year after losing my dad felt like, and it really sucked. I’m so grateful that I have an amazing uncle who kind of stepped into that roll. But it didn’t make me miss my dad any less.” I shrugged. “I figured if I could give Jaxon something to do that he’d really enjoy, something that his dad would have loved . . . I don’t know . . . maybe I could help make him not so sad and feel close to his dad at the same

time.” We stopped walking, still about ten yards away from the goalposts, and just looked at each other. I was worried that talking about her dead husband would make her sad or even tear up or something. But she didn’t. So I wasn’t quite sure how she was going to respond to my confession. After a few seconds she finally spoke. “What’s the other part?” “What?” I asked, confused. “You said knowing how Jaxon feels is partly why you invited him. What’s the other part?” I looked back over at the goalposts again. This was either gonna sound crazy or really sweet. I was hoping for the latter. “I like him,” I shrugged and looked back at Addison. “I’ve met a lot of kids at different events over the years. But Jaxon and I just connect. Like we’re meant to be friends or something.” I snorted, looking down at my feet. “That is the sappiest thing I have ever said in my life. I’m pretty sure I’m gonna need to do a few extra tackles to get my man-card back after that one,” I said, looking back up at Addison. She was smiling at me. “If it’s ok with you, I’d love to hang out with him again. The invitation extends to you, too, obviously. I wouldn’t want you to be uncomfortable or anything,” I said, trying not to sound desperate but knowing I didn’t really want to say goodbye to either one of them today. The wide grin I saw when Addison first introduced herself came back. “I think he’d really like that. He could use a good male role model these days.” She turned and started walking toward Jaxon, with me right on her tail. “Jax, it’s time to go, honey,” Addison said, walking the final few yards to where he was painting. “What are you doing?” “Oh, I’m sorry, ma’am,” Eli said nervously. “He said you wouldn’t mind if he helped paint.” “No, it’s fine,” Addison said with a smile. Eli

visibly relaxed. “I just hope he wasn’t bothering you while you were working.” “Oh no!” Eli said with a smile. “I’ve got two boys of my own and five grandsons. I’m used to working around little men. Besides, he’s a pretty good painter!” I looked over at Jaxon who was still painting, his tongue sticking out of the side of his mouth while he concentrated. “Hey, Jaxon,” I said, “Buddy, your mom said it’s time to go.” “I know,” he said, “but I’m not done.” I looked over at Addison who rolled her eyes. Clearly this wasn’t the first time he’d ignored her instructions. I walked closer to Jaxon and squatted down in front of him. “Hey dude, I’m about to teach you something every man should know, ok?” That got his attention. He looked right at me. “Ok,” he said quietly. “When mom says it’s time to go, that means it’s time to go. Right then,” I took the paintbrush out of his hands and put it on the tarp next to him. “See, they don’t like having us men come along with them on errands. So if they’re taking us with them, that means it’s really, really important.” Jaxon looked directly into my eyes. “Do you go with your mom when she says it’s time to go, too?” I smiled. “Every single time, buddy. Even if I don’t want to. I always obey my mom.” I looked over at Addison who had her arms crossed in front of her chest, a smirk on her face. “Sorry, Mom,” Jaxon said. “I’m ready to go.” I stood up and put my hand on his shoulder. “Bye, Mr. Eli. Thanks for letting me paint.” “Yeah, thanks Eli,” I said. “Hope there’s not too much to fix now.” Eli laughed. “Oh no! He’s a good painter. You come back any time and help, Jaxon!” Addison waved goodbye to Eli and the three of us made our way off the field, past security and into the parking lot, Jaxon resuming his normal chatter.

When the car was started and Jaxon was safely buckled in, Addison leaned against the car door, arms crossed in front of her, feet crossed at the ankles, smirking at me. I got a vibe from her that maybe she was more interested in me than I originally thought. “Well, you are coming in handy already,” she flirted. At least, it looked like flirting. “I haven’t had him break away from an interesting activity without a fight since, well, I don’t even remember when.” I chuckled and moved next to her, leaning against the car door and mimicking her pose. “There are certain things every man needs to teach a boy. How to respect your mother is one of them.” “Well, I really appreciate it. I really appreciate you wanting to be his friend,” she said softly. “Just . . .” “Just what?” I asked. “Just make sure if you really want to be his friend, you will always be his friend,” she said, looking up at me. “I don’t wanna have to watch his little heart break again if another important man leaves him. And yes, I know his dad didn’t leave him. But the heartache is still painful.” “I promise,” I said. “He’s a special kid. I think we can be good for each other.” “Good,” she said, shoving off the car door. “Now that that’s settled, I think a certain little boy needs to go home and take a nap. Look at him,” she said, gesturing to the window. “He’s already nodding off.” I turned around and saw Jaxon’s eyes rolling into the back of his head and his head bobbing. He was trying so hard to stay awake, it made me laugh. I turned back to Addison as she started to open her car door. I knew in my mind that it had only been six months since her husband had died. But my gut kept telling me she might be interested in me. Now was as good of a time as any to find out. “Hey, Addison,” I said, stopping her before she could climb in. She turned and looked at me over her shoulder. “I really enjoyed talking with you today.” She smiled that smile again. “Me too, Jason.”

I cleared my throat. “I’d love to take you to dinner some time. Just the two of us. If you’re interested, that is.” Addison’s back immediately stiffened and the smile fell off her face. Her eyes widened almost like she was in fear. “Um . . . I, uh . . . ,” she stammered before taking a deep breath. “I’m flattered. But no. No, Jason. Just . . . um . . . no.” She climbed into the car without another word, not even so much as eye contact, and drove away. Leaving me standing in the middle of the parking lot wondering how the hell I had read those signals so wrong.

“Mmmm . . . ,” I said, raising my head up, my eyes rolling into the back of my head. I heard a giggle to the right of me and opened my eyes. “Mommy, he said, ‘Mmmm . . .’” Emma laughed. I just smiled and winked at her, taking another bite of the roast Lindsay had made and moaning again just to make her laugh again. “It’s good,” I defended playfully. “Don’t you like your mama’s cooking, Emma?” At five years old, she was already the spitting image of her mother. From the hair to the eyes. Even her sarcastic personality. She was a cute kid. She and Jaxon would get along really well. That is, if Addison ever let me see Jaxon again. I wasn’t really sure after the way our visit ended over the weekend. “She loves when I make roast and vegetables,” Lindsay said. “She just eats really, reeeaallly . . . sloooowly . . .” I finished chewing and reached my fork over to Emma’s plate, getting ready to snag a carrot. “Well you’d better hurry up, Emma, or I’m gonna eat yours, too!” She squealed and quickly speared the carrot, shoving it into her mouth. I looked at Lindsay and winked before digging in to my own food again. “Seriously, Lin, this is really good,” I said again. Sam, Lindsay’s husband, grabbed the bottle of Merlot off the table and topped our glasses off.

“You do realize you can make it yourself, right?” Sam said playfully. “It’s been sitting in the slow cooker all day. It’s not like she actually cooked for you.” “Thanks a lot for blowing my secret, babe,” Lindsay said sarcastically, taking a sip. “I don’t care how it was made,” I said, shoveling another bite in my mouth. “I haven’t had a meal like this in forever.” “Mommy, I’m done,” Emma said. I looked over and saw that her plate, which had been full just seconds ago, was empty. “How did she do that?” I asked. “That’s all you, buddy. Still so charming you can get the ladies to do just about anything,” Lindsay teased. “You gonna try to get her to do your homework next like you used to do to Katie Woodrow? She always fell for it.” Sam laughed and pushed his chair away from the table. “I’ll take her upstairs and get her ready for bed now that she’s done. Come on, Emma.” I swallowed my last bite and put my fork down on my plate as Sam and Emma walked up the stairs. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Lin. I’m not that big of a player.” I grabbed my wine glass and took a large drink. “Really,” Lindsay said, sitting back and crossing her arms. “Name one girl you’ve shown even the slightest bit of interest in who rejected you.” “That’s easy. Nina Randolph.” “That doesn’t count!” “Why not?” “That was in the sixth grade! You didn’t even play football yet!” “So what?” I defended. “I had a big crush on that girl and she turned me down flat! You know that!” Lindsay snorted. “If it makes you feel better, she spent all of high school pining over you and telling me how you were ‘the one that got away,’” she said, making air quotations. “What?” I asked. “How come you never told me

that before?” “Because she was an idiot who only cared about her reputation,” Lindsay said, standing up and piling all the plates together. “She was only upset because she missed out on dating the star athlete and all the notoriety that went with it. Besides, she was a whore.” “Which was exactly the kind of girl I was into back then,” I argued, gathering a couple of serving plates and following Lindsay into the kitchen. “I wouldn’t have minded showing her what she had missed out on.” Lindsay started making a gagging sound. “Ew. Don’t even talk about that. The thought of you showing anyone anything like that makes me wanna puke.” I burst out laughing. It was almost too easy to get Lindsay riled up. “So really, that’s the best you’ve got? Nina Randolph is the only girl who ever turned you down?” she said, turning on the water to rinse the dishes. I leaned against the counter next to her and ran a hand down my face, not sure I wanted to tell her any more. “Well . . . I was turned down one other time.” “I don’t believe you.” “It was kind of recent, actually.” Lindsay looked up at me with surprise on her face. “Are you kidding?” I shook my head. “I wish I were. Apparently I misread some signals.” Lindsay stopped what she was doing and turned her whole body to face me. “Who was it?” I paused. I didn’t really want to tell her, but I knew she would get it out of me anyway. I looked at the floor, suddenly feeling sheepish. “Addison Bryant.” “Jason!” Lindsay chastised. “Did you ask her out during the playdate you had with her kid?” I groaned. “Not during.” “Ohmygod, Jason!” she said, throwing a towel at me. “So now she thinks you used her kid to get to her!”

My head whipped up to look at her. “That’s not how it happened! I didn’t even know she was hot until they showed up!” “You did not just say that,” Lindsay said with a smirk. I smirked back. “What? So she’s hot. So what?” Lindsay rolled her eyes and sighed. “You’re a pig. So, fine. Then what happened?” “I don’t really know,” I said thinking back to the whole day. “We were talking and having a great time. She batted her eyelashes at me,” I said, turning toward Lindsay. “I swear she batted her eyelashes at me!” Lindsay turned the water off and grabbed a fresh towel to wipe off her hands, turning all her attention on me. “Go on.” “I don’t know. I just . . . when I told her I’d like to take her to dinner, she just got stiff and couldn’t look at me and just kept saying, ‘no . . . just . . . no’ and took off in her car without any explanation.” She threw the towel on the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. “Jay, I love you. But you are an idiot.” I snorted as she continued. “Her husband died six months ago. Six months. That’s not a whole lot of time to grieve over someone you spent several years building a life and family with. Think about how long it took your mom to get over your dad.” “I thought about that while we were taking the tour,” I said, shifting my feet. “But I swear I was getting this vibe that she was as interested in me as I was in her.” I ran my hand down my face again. “I don’t know. Now I’m worried about exactly what you said . . . that she’ll think I’m using Jaxon to get to her. And that’s not true. I really like the kid.” Lindsay’s lips quirked up in a small smile. “He’s a really special kid.” “Yeah, he is.” “So call her and ask if Jaxon can come over and

play.” I threw my head back and roared with laughter at her use of words. “I’m serious. Show her that even though you are interested in her, you wanna be Jaxon’s buddy, too.” I looked up at her. “We have another home game in a couple weeks. He had such a good time on the tour, I was thinking of inviting them to come to the game. Meet all my teammates and see what I do.” “And not ask his mom out again.” I wish I could say that didn’t disappoint me, because it did. I liked Addison and wanted to get to know her better. She was nice and funny and really cute when she got nervous. I was secretly hoping Lindsay could give me some advice on how to get her to go out with me, not just tell me to back off. But she was right. It had only been six months since her husband died. I guess she just wasn’t ready yet. “Yeah, you’re right,” I said reluctantly. “What’s she right about this time?” Sam asked, walking in and grabbing a glass from the cabinet. “Pfftt, what am I not right about?” Lindsay asked, putting her arms around Sam and pulling him in for a hug. As I watched them interact, for the first time I started wondering what that would be like. Not to just hang out with someone, but to build a life with someone. I knew I wanted that someday, but I wasn’t gonna go looking for the woman of my dreams in the middle of my career. But I couldn’t stop wondering if that perfect woman had just fallen into my lap. From a distance, there wasn’t really anything that different or unique about Addison. But our connection felt different. The comfortable way we could interact felt different. If she was my perfect woman, what do I do now? I hung out for another hour once the kitchen was all cleaned up. Sam and I sat around watching a movie and talking about yesterday’s game while Emma played. And by played, I mean ran circles around the room singing the entire soundtrack from some children’s movie. When Lindsay saw that the

high-pitched screeching was starting to irritate me, she did what she does best. She encouraged Emma to sing louder and even sang along. Yeah. That Lindsay’s a funny one, isn’t she? I got her back by sneaking Emma a few drinks of my coke and tossing her around a bit. By the time I left, that kid was so wound up she probably wouldn’t hit the sack for hours. I had no idea how Sam does it. On my way home, I thought about what Lindsay said. As much as I thought Addison was interested in me, I knew in my mind that six months wasn’t enough time to grieve over someone you loved like that. It wasn’t fair for me to put her in that position. So I resolved to let that part slide and concentrate on hanging out with Jaxon. I just hoped it wouldn’t be awkward between Addison and me. I pressed the hands-free button on my steering wheel. “Jason’s phone,” the computerized voice said. “Call Addison.” “Calling Addison.” Yes, I had already programmed Addison’s number into my hands-free set. But driving was the most uninterrupted time I had to talk and if I was gonna be Jaxon’s friend, it would come in handy. “Hello,” she answered softly after two rings. “Hey, Addison,” I said nervously. “It’s uh, Jason Hart. How are ya?” “Hi Jason. I’m doing well. You?” “I’m good, thanks. Just got done with dinner at Lindsay’s. I’m not calling too late, am I?” “No,” she said. “It’s only 9, so . . . who is Lindsay?” If occurred to me that most parents call teachers by their last names, just like their kids. My own mom still calls my former teachers by their last names when she runs into them at the grocery store. “Lindsay Miller . . . Jaxon’s music teacher?” “Oh. I thought she was married. Are you dating or something?” I laughed out loud at that one. For a split second I thought I heard some jealousy in her voice. I quickly

brushed that thought aside. Surely I was hearing things and that wasn’t why I was calling her anyway. “No! No way! Her husband wouldn’t go for that at all! No, Lindsay and I go way back. I think we were three when we became next-door neighbors.” “Really?” Addison asked. “I didn’t realize you knew each other so well.” “Oh yeah. You can thank me for how good her music programs are,” I teased. “She got a lot of practice directing when she used to make me sing show tunes in the backyard for our parents.” Addison giggled. “I can’t even picture it.” “Picture it,” I said, amused at the memory. “Then she made me sign up for choir all through middle school. Thank god football practice got in the way by high school. I bet my mom still has one of my old glittery choir costumes in the back of a closet somewhere.” Addison laughed louder this time. “I’m gonna start calling you Jazz Hands,” she joked. “HA! Only when you aren’t in the stadium, ok? And never in front of Lindsay,” I said with a smile. “I don’t know who is more relentless . . . my teammates or her.” “Deal,” she giggled. And then paused. “Listen, Jason, I’m actually glad you called. I want to apologize for the way I left the other day.” “Don’t apologize,” I said, stopping her. “I should be apologizing to you.” “Why?” she asked. I shrugged, even though she couldn’t see me. “I don’t want you to think my interest in you has anything to do with Jaxon. Because it doesn’t. Those are two separate things.” “Well, thanks,” she said, “because that thought actually did cross my mind. Even though I know we hadn’t met before that day.” I smiled. “I know. I just wanted to make that clarification. And,” I continued, “I know it’s only been six months since your husband died. That’s not a lot of time and I shouldn’t have put you in that

position, so I’m sorry.” The car went silent. For several seconds. “Addison, are you there?” I asked, wondering if the call had dropped. “Yeah, I’m here,” she said quietly. “I’m just . . . processing.” “Ok,” I said, confused. “It’s not that . . . ,” she started and then paused, gathering her thoughts. “Well, there’s actually a lot to it. But I don’t really want to get into it right now.” I furrowed my eyebrows, still confused. “I accept your apology if you accept mine for being rude. And now we can move on. Will that work?” she asked. I was still confused, but didn’t want to push the issue. “Sure. Let’s move on.” “Great,” she said, perking up. “So there’s another reason I’m glad you called.” “Ok,” I said, exiting the highway toward my neighborhood. “Jaxon’s birthday was a couple weeks ago, like you know. But I haven’t had time to have a birthday party until now. And he really wants you to come,” she said. “Really?” I said, a big grin breaking out on my face. I hadn’t been to a kid’s birthday party, well, since I was a kid. “Are there going to be pony rides and a piñata and cake and stuff?” Addison laughed. “No to the pony rides and piñata. There isn’t enough room in our back yard or money in my pocket. But, yes . . . there will be cake and food.” I wasn’t sure how to take the money comment, but I let it slide. We weren’t comfortable enough for that yet. “I think I’d love to, but it depends on when it is. The season officially started yesterday so my schedule is about to get a lot more packed.” “How are weekends for you?” she asked. “I know Sundays are probably hard. But the party is going to be on Saturday at two.” I thought through the practice schedule email I

had gotten this morning. “I’ll probably be late by an hour or so, but if it’s ok with you, I’d like to at least stop by for the last part. Can I bring a friend?” “You . . . you wanna bring a date?” she asked, sounding more flabbergasted than I think she realized. Or maybe it was just me. “If you consider Lindsay’s five-year-old daughter a date, then yes. I’d like to bring a date.” I swear I heard her breathe a sigh of relief into the phone. “Oh. Of course you can bring Mrs. Miller’s daughter! I think that’s a great idea. In fact, you can bring Mrs. Miller, too, if you want. We like to make birthday parties a big deal around here. The more the merrier.” I smiled as I turned into the underground parking garage of my apartment complex. “Great. I think Jaxon and Emma will have a blast together.” “Can I email you all the details?” she asked. “Sure,” I said as I parked, sitting back in the seat to get comfortable while I talked to her as long as she’d let me. “My email address is actually on the team website. My manager, Adam, will get it first. But just write in there that I asked you to send me the details. He’ll get it all to me. I have a bad habit of forgetting what my plans are until they sneak up on me. He makes sure I don’t miss anything important.” She laughed that laugh and it made me smile just hearing it. “Well aren’t you important, with your own manager and all,” she teased. “Hey now! Do you know how many emails I get every day?” I joked. “I would never have time to play football if I spent my day trying to check them all!” “I know,” she said softly. “I was just teasing you.” I smiled again. “I like it when you tease me.” Silence filled the car again as both of us tried to figure out what to say next. I came up with something first. “So Addison, I never asked you the other day. I know you went back to work. Where are you working?” “Oh, um, I do data entry for a social services agency.”

I stretched my legs out. “How did you get into that?” “Um . . . my degree is actually in social work. I was a case manager before Jax was born but quit to stay home. When Austin died, I had to go back to work but I didn’t really want to be around people. My old bosses brought me back on board and let me move into data entry. With the exception of an occasional phone call, I really don’t have to interact with clients very much.” “So you can save your energy for when Jaxon gets home,” I said with a smile. “Exactly,” she chuckled. “He keeps me on my toes.” Silence filled the car again. I wanted to keep talking to Addison, but I didn’t want to make her nervous either. “How much longer of a drive do you have?” she finally asked. “Oh, I’m home,” I admitted. “I’m just sitting in the parking lot.” “Oh,” she said nervously. “I guess I should probably let you go then.” “Yeah,” I said reluctantly. “That little boy will be up and at ‘em before you know it.” “So true. Thanks for calling, Jason. I enjoyed talking to you.” “You too, Addison. I’ll see you Saturday.” “See you then. Sweet dreams.” “You too,” I said, and she hung up. I got out of the car and headed toward the elevator. It didn’t even occur to me until I walked into my apartment that, despite all the comfortable conversation, Addison never even asked why I had called.

“I just don’t get it, man,” Deuce said in between reps on the leg press. The man’s ability to talk while lifting was amazing. I couldn’t do much but groan during reps. Deuce, on the other hand, could hold an entire conversation. “We had a fantastic honeymoon, an even better homecoming, and now . . . now she’s pissed at me all the time. How many reps have I done?” I finished my push-ups and sat back on my knees. “I have no idea how many reps you’ve done. I was counting push-ups.” I grabbed my water bottle and popped open the top. “You must have done something stupid to make Vanessa mad at you, Deuce. She’s feisty, but she’s never been a bitch.” Deuce locked the leg press in place. “I think that’s twenty,” he said before standing up. “I’ve been trying to figure that out, man. But she’s all over the place,” he said, adding a twenty-five-pound weight to each end of the bar. “One minute she’s all over me and being her spicy little Mexican self. The next she’s mad that I brought the wrong brand of garlic salt home.” “You know how she is about her cooking,” I said, moving back into push-up position. “You should always ask her what brand before you go shopping. Even I could have told you that.” I started the up and down motion of push-ups again. My arms and shoulders were burning. Just how I liked it.

Deuce climbed back onto the leg press machine. “I don’t know, man. It doesn’t feel like that’s it. Something’s going on and it’s making me crazy.” He released the lock and started pressing more weight. “I know marriage isn’t easy. But we’ve only been married like two months. I’m still excited about having something to do with my morning wood every day. I don’t wanna fight yet.” I snorted and finished my push-ups, sitting back again. “Does Vanessa know you say things like that to me?” “I’m not sure Vanessa would care. You should hear some of the conversations she has with her sisters when they come over. I know more about visits to the gynecologist, mammograms, and some table that has a hole to put your boob in when you get a biopsy,” he said a little more winded than before. “I’m sure the size of my junk has come up, but I haven’t caught them talking about it yet.” “Probably because there’s not much to talk about,” I joked. “More like she’s trying not to brag and make them feel bad.” I laughed out loud. “Are you sure? You know what they say about the size of a man’s hands. And your hands are kind of tiny for a football player.” He locked the bench press in place again and threw his towel at me. “Fuck you.” “It’s ok, man,” I said with amusement. “You know what they say, it’s not the size of the wave, it’s the motion of the ocean.” He stood up and started re-racking the weights for the next person. “Oh, but when you have a giant wave that moves just right . . . it’s the best feeling your woman can ever have,” he said, his eyebrows waggling up and down. “Obviously not, since she’s pissed at you,” I reminded him, earning a scowl in my direction. “I don’t know why I talk to you about Vanessa,” he said, squirting his water bottle into his mouth and swallowing. “It’s not like you have any experience

with relationships.” “I’ve had relationships before,” I argued as we headed toward the treadmills to get our cool down in. And by cool down, I mean five-mile run. “I just don’t have enough time to make a real commitment.” “Is that what happened with Sara Perez?” he asked, the treadmill next to me creaking when he stood up on it. I don’t know how we didn’t go through more of these things with the size of all the players. I shrugged. “I liked Sara,” I said, programming the machine. “Just not as much as I liked my job.” Sara Perez would be considered a B-rated actress by most standards. She had done several films, but never as the main character. She was beautiful and really sweet. We got along just fine. There just wasn’t much spark. Not to mention, she lived in LA and you know how easy long-distance relationships are. We were still friends but hadn’t seen each other in a while. Different lives and all that. The treadmills started moving and we started jogging. “It is a lot of work, man,” Deuce agreed. “I think you’ve got the right idea. If you’re thinking more about football than you are about the woman you’re dating, she isn’t the one.” My phone beeped a text message alert right then. I paused my treadmill and pulled the phone out of my pocket. It was a reply from Addison. Since I had forgotten to tell her about the next home game the night I had dinner at Lindsay’s, I had the perfect opening to call her again the other day. Once again, we had a fun, easy conversation. I really liked talking to her. But I couldn’t think of any important conversation starters so I had resorted to texting. I would only send one piece of information at a time about the game, pretending the details were still being worked out. There wasn’t really much to it: parking, tickets, seats, that’s it. But she didn’t need to know that. Those details had led to a two-day long text conversation that we both participated in as we could.

One of the things we had talked about was how she was working out several days a week, but not seeing any results. She knew changing her eating habits would help, but admitted to liking food a little too much. So when I happened to see one of those meme things I thought she’d like, I texted it to her. It was a picture of a cat eating lettuce and it said, “This salad tastes like I’d rather be fat.” I sent it a few hours ago. She was finally responding. Addison: Exactly! LOL ;) I smiled and started typing a reply. Me: I thought you’d like that. Now eat something healthy while I get my ass kicked on the treadmill. Addison: Deal. :) I put my phone back in my pocket and reached over to press the start button again when I looked up and saw Deuce’s grinning face. “What?” I asked. “Aw shit,” he said smugly. “You’ve got the hots for someone.” “What? No I don’t,” I argued. “Man, I saw the look on your face when you were looking at your phone. You have the hots for someone and I wanna know who it is!” “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I said, staring straight ahead while jogging again. He laughed one quick laugh. “You know exactly what I’m talking about. You were smiling like a damn love sick puss. Who is she? Who is the woman to finally catch Jason Hart’s eye?” I sighed. When Deuce got an idea in his head, he wouldn’t relent. It was better to tell him now. “I don’t have the hots for anyone. We’re just talking. Actually, we’re just texting.” “Ohmygod, someone finally captured your attention. And during the season,” he ribbed. “This is big news, Jay! You stopped the treadmill during a workout to text her back! You never even bring your phone to the gym but you’ve done it twice now. Do I need to start singing about love being in the air?”

“NO!” I argued. “It’s not like that, ok? We just met not that long ago. We’re just texting and talking a little. I’m not asking her out or anything.” “What? Why not?” he asked. “The season just started. You still have a few months to see if you like her more than football,” he joked. I shot him the evil eye. “It’s complicated, okay?” I said, hoping he would drop it. “What’s so complicated?” he asked. “You like her. She likes you. You go out. You get laid. She gets happy. The end.” “It’s not that easy,” I said, feeling frustrated by the entire situation. “Her husband just died six months ago. She’s just not ready yet.” As soon as I said it, I knew I had opened up a new can of worms with him. “Wait . . . she’s the kid’s mom?” “Shut up, Deuce.” He laughed so hard I thought for sure he would fall off the treadmill. In fact, he laughed so hard I hoped he would fall off the treadmill. “First, you decide you really want to be the kid’s friend.” “His name is Jaxon.” “Jaxon, whatever. First you decide you want to be Jaxon’s friend. And now you have the hots for Jaxon’s mom?” he asked, still doubled over in a belly laugh. “What is it with this family?” “I didn’t say I had the hots for his mom,” I said. “You did.” “So you’re saying his mom isn’t hot.” “No.” “So she is hot.” “No,” I said getting frustrated. “I already asked her out and she turned me down. Ok? She’s not ready yet after losing her husband. Are you happy now?” “Oh,” Deuce said. We ran in silence for a few minutes, me trying to concentrate on my workout, although Addison kept coming back to the center of my thoughts. And Deuce, well who knows what Deuce was thinking about.

“So are you gonna be this kid’s daddy now or something?” Deuce asked with a smirk. “Fuck it, I’m out,” I said, slamming on the stop button and leaving the treadmill. I would go run the stairs in the stadium. I wasn’t gonna listen to Deuce make fun of me. Not about this. “Come on, man!” he yelled after me. “I was just kidding! Come on, Jason. I’ll stop, I promise!” I gave him the finger over my shoulder on my way out the door. I heard him roaring with laughter behind me. For the next thirty minutes I ran up and down the stairs. That’s a lot of stairs. But I was worked up. I thought about why I was so pissed off. It’s not like Deuce said anything different than he would normally say. I just didn’t know where I stood with Addison and it frustrated me that Deuce could pick up on it so easily. This was different than when I had dated before. This wasn’t a woman who was just gonna fall in bed with me. I couldn’t charm her into a date. This was a woman who needed to be courted. And damn if I didn’t know how to do that without looking like an idiot in the process. Because she didn’t act like a grieving widow. She didn’t get teary eyed when we talked about her dead husband. She didn’t seem nostalgic at all. And we had great conversations. It was all really confusing. On top of that, I wasn’t sure how I felt about being this interested in someone. I had spent my entire life planning for a career that only spanned a few short years. Did I really want this kind of distraction at this point in my life? Then again, could I even help it anymore? After five times up and down the entire stadium, I decided I was done. We already worked out that morning, but had practice that afternoon. If I was gonna get some food and run a couple errands, I needed to head to the shower. I could take out the rest of my frustration that afternoon on the field. As I opened my locker and peeled off my shirt, I

felt Deuce sit down on the bench next to me. “Ok, all jokes aside, bro. Tell me the truth.” I turned to face him. He had a towel wrapped around his waist and his hair was still wet from his shower. “When you were running those stairs, you were thinking about her, right?” I whipped back around, my anger resurfacing, and started taking my running shoes off. I was not in the mood to hear this shit again. “Just hear me out,” he pleaded. “I’m listening,” I said, not turning back around. “When I first started dating Vanessa, she was all I could think about. Before practice, during practice, after practice. Like I was obsessed or something. It bugged me because I didn’t want to be focused on a woman. I wanted to be focused on playing football. But I couldn’t help myself with her. I used to bring my phone in the weight room, too.” He shrugged. “You just never caught me because I’m not a dumbass who left the sound on. I had it on vibrate and only checked it when you weren’t looking.” I smirked and chucked my socks in my locker, stripped my shorts off and wrapped a towel around my waist. “She turned me down the first few times I asked her out, too,” he admitted. “You never told me that.” “Dude, it bugged me so bad I didn’t want anyone to know,” he said. “Even you. I couldn’t figure her out and she drove me crazy. Kept making it seem like she was interested but turning me down if I pushed. But I kept at it. Talking and flirting and enjoying our conversations. And one day, she agreed to go to that gala with me.” I looked over at him and sat down. “I thought that was a blind date.” “That’s what I told you,” he said, slugging me on the shoulder. “I didn’t wanna tell you what was really going on because I couldn’t wrap my brain around it. I had never felt about anyone the way I felt about my little fun-size girl. I wasn’t gonna look like a pansy-

ass if it never went past that date.” I smirked. “Yeah, I get that.” “My point is,” he continued, “I’ve been there. And dude, I’m gonna keep making fun of you,” he said in a sensitive-sounding voice, making me chuckle. “But stop thinking so hard and just enjoy this ride. Maybe she won’t go out with you. But maybe she will. And then you’ll fall in love and get married and have to put up with her turning into a psycho for no apparent reason and you’ll have a whole different set of problems to worry about,” he said, shaking his head as he stood up and grabbed his clothes. I chuckled. “Deuce, you have the strangest way of making this situation look like a win-win for me.” “Man,” he said, his head in his locker, “Some days I wonder what I saw in her at all. And then I remember, and it makes all that mind fuck worth it.” I headed toward the showers, still confused, but looking forward to my next text.

“You got him an Xbox?” Lindsay and I were heading to Jaxon’s birthday party. Emma was in the backseat of my car, happily singing along with whatever was on Disney Radio. I always listened to satellite radio to keep up with all the sports talk, but it sure came in handy with a fiveyear-old in the car. “Yeah, so?” I asked Lindsay. She sighed like she was dealing with one of her school kids. “You don’t know how much money I make, do you, Lin?” She looked at me and furrowed her brow. “Do I want to know?” “Probably not,” I shrugged. “Let’s just say I have more money than I know what to do with and a great financial planner. Besides,” I continued, “Deuce went shopping with me and we agree; every kid deserves an Xbox.” “You went shopping with someone named ‘Deuce’?” she asked. “There’s part of your problem. What kinds of parents name their kid ‘Deuce’?” I laughed. “They didn’t. He’s Michael Johnson the Second,” I said, turning into the neighborhood. “His dad was the football coach at his high school and there was another Michael Johnson on the team, same time as him. Apparently it got kind of confusing trying to keep everyone straight.” “Let me guess,” Lindsay said. “Some obnoxious kid on the team thought it was funny to turn bathroom

humor into his nickname the minute they figured out what the phrase ‘dropping a deuce’ meant.” I laughed so hard it was a good thing I had found the house and was pulling over to park. “Ohmygod, Lindsay. Don’t ever let him hear you say that!” I put the car in park and wiped my eyes. “Darren Watkins made fun of his name once on the field and he almost got his aaaaa . . . butt kicked for it,” I said, remembering Emma in the back seat. “Nice save there, hot shot.” “Thanks,” I said smiling, opening the door and climbing out. “Come on, Emma. Let’s go to a party.” “Yay!” She yelled. “I need to drop a deuce!” I burst out laughing and Lindsay rolled her eyes. “I should know not to say anything even remotely inappropriate around her. Ever.” “Oh, please do,” I said. “It’s kind of fun for me.” She scoffed and grabbed Emma’s hand while I gathered the presents from the back. “I still can’t believe you got him an Xbox,” she grumbled as we walked up the sidewalk. “You’re gonna make my present look dumb.” I followed behind her as she got to the front door and knocked. “At least tell me you didn’t get any games.” I pretended to be offended. “How can you even ask that? Why would anyone give the gift of a video game player without giving all the video games to go with it?” She whipped around. “How many did you get him?” I smiled. “Just the latest football games I could find.” “Oh.” “And every Lego game in stock.” “Jason!” she barked at me, her eyes wide. She pretended to be upset, but her smile gave away the fact that she actually found it funny. The door opened and we were greeted by a brighteyed, smiling Addison. Yeah, I was right about that smile. Once again, it about knocked me on my ass. I couldn’t look away

from her as she greeted Lindsay. She just had this presence about her. I just . . . gravitated toward her. “Mrs. Miller, I’m so glad you could make it,” Addison said cheerily. “Please,” Lindsay replied. “I totally understand going by last names at school, but call me Lindsay everywhere else or I’ll feel old.” Addison smiled in agreement. “I understand, Lindsay. And this must be Emma,” she said, bending down to look her in the eye. “How are you?” “I need to go to the bathroom,” Emma said seriously. “I need to drop a deuce.” I roared with laughter and Lindsay smacked her palm to her face. “Blame him,” she said with a sigh, pointing her thumb at me over her shoulder. “He’s a bad influence.” “Hey! I didn’t even say it! That was all you,” I said, still chuckling as I put the presents on the table by the door where a bunch of other gifts were. “Whatever,” she said, waving her hand to dismiss me. “Can you point me to your bathroom?” As Addison walked them to the corner and gave directions, I found myself checking out her backside again. She was wearing white shorts this time. Long enough to be considered conservative, but short enough that I could get a good picture of her legs. Damn, did she have good legs. Solid, thick, sexy legs. I know she would probably hate that description. Don’t get me wrong, she wasn’t obese by any stretch of the imagination. But stick thin legs weren’t attractive to me. I’d had some flings here and there with tiny girls and was always afraid I was going to break them. Nope. I preferred my women on the meaty side. And Addison, she was just perfect. As she turned around, I caught a glimpse of that smile again. “JASON!” I heard a shout to my right and turned to see Jaxon barreling toward me. I leaned down and caught him right as he jumped in my arms. “Hey! It’s the man of the hour,” I said, standing

up. “Happy Birthday!” “It’s not really my birthday, Jason,” he said with a giggle. “I know,” I replied with a smile. “But isn’t that what you’re supposed to say at a birthday party? I haven’t been to one in a really long time.” “You haven’t?” he asked with his eyes wide. “Nope. Not since I was a kid. So I’m really excited to be here.” He smiled wide at me and wiggled to the floor. I glanced over at Addison to see her watching the exchange with a small smile on her face. “You wanna come see my Pee-paw?” he asked, grabbing me by the hand and dragging me through the kitchen to the backyard. Jaxon introduced me to his grandfather and several other partygoers. Fortunately, everyone was pretty relaxed around me. No one asked for my autograph or a picture or anything, except for some woman named Samantha who kept giving me “fuck me” eyes and standing a little too close. I was able to grab a bottle of water and just relax in a lawn chair, watching all the festivities around me. There were about a dozen kids and their parents going in and out of the house. It was a small backyard, but had enough room for a small swing set and some regular party games like a ring toss and pin the tail on the donkey. In this case it was “Pin the Cube on the Transformer”. I cracked up when one of the kids spun around during his turn and toppled over while trying to walk with the blindfold on. “This is a cute house,” Lindsay said, sitting down next to me, a glass of wine in her hand. She wasn’t a lush, but the girl did love her wine. “The whole neighborhood is nice,” I said. “I was thinking it looks like a bunch of cottages.” “Are you talking about my house?” Addison said with a grin, walking over and sitting down on the other side of Lindsay. “I was just saying how cute this neighborhood is,” Lindsay said. “I’ve been teaching at Mountain Park

for three years and never even knew it was here.” They continued talking about school, kids, life. Lindsay explained that Sam had a project to finish up in the office this weekend and Jaxon’s party was the perfect excuse for him to miss out on some family time without Lindsay nagging him about “work/life balance”. Ok, she didn’t say that last part. But I heard it a few times at dinner. I didn’t really participate in the conversation. I just sat back and watched the two of them get to know each other. Once again, I found myself dumbstruck being around Addison. She was more soft-spoken than Lindsay, but wasn’t lacking in things to say. She just had this presence about her I couldn’t explain. But I knew I wanted to be around it. She caught me staring at her, but I didn’t care. I caught her staring at me a few times, too. “Hey Addison, we’re running low on the fruit,” Jaxon’s Pee-paw said. Mick was his name, I think. Addison stood up. “I guess that means my rest time is up. You guys have fun,” she said and turned to walk away. “I’ll help you,” I said and jogged after her toward the door. “Always the charmer,” I heard Lindsay mutter from behind her wine glass as I walked past her. We walked into the small kitchen. It was covered with paper plates and napkins and balloons and a cake with the Cowboys logo on it and a bobble head of a player on top. Thank goodness it wasn’t #53 - my number - because that poor bobble-headed bastard was ugly. “What can I do to help?” I asked Addison as she pulled a bowl of fruit out of the fridge. “Oh,” she said, like I had startled her. “Um . . . can you help me slice the fruit? There are knives in there.” She pointed to the drawer next to me and pulled out an extra cutting board. We started cutting up the fruit in a comfortable silence. Every once in a while one of us would catch the other one looking and we’d

smile. I know I looked like a total idiot, but at that moment, I just didn’t care. “I’m really glad you could come,” Addison said softly. “Jaxon is really excited you’re here.” I smiled. “I’m glad I didn’t have to miss it. Everyone seems really nice.” “They are,” she agreed. “Except my sister-in-law, Samantha,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I kind of got that vibe,” I replied. “I caught her taking a couple of selfies today that seem a little . . . strategically placed.” She snorted. “Yeah . . . you can expect to be in the background of her Facebook pictures tonight so try not to pick your nose or anything while you’re here.” “I will refrain from all nose-pickery while in the vicinity of Samantha’s phone, I promise.” We went back to our comfortable silence for a few minutes. “So why doesn’t Mick come over much anymore? Jaxon said he doesn’t come around much, but they seem to get along really well.” “They do,” she said, grabbing the newly sliced apples and putting them on the display tray. “But he lives in Lancaster, so it takes a good hour or so to get here.” She shrugged, grabbing some grapes. “I was hoping when Austin died he’d be over more, but, ya know, life moves on I guess.” “It’s gotta be hard on him,” I replied. “Austin was his son, right? It was bad enough when I lost my dad. I can’t imagine what it must have been like to lose a son.” “Yeah, he was a mess for a while. But he’s starting to get back to normal again . . . smiles more, and, oh shit!” she yelled, throwing the knife down on the counter. “Oh fuck that hurts,” she said, holding one hand in the other, a grimace across her face. “What happened,” I asked, feeling panicked. “Did you cut yourself?” “Yeah,” she said, turning to me. “Sliced right down my thumb.” I grabbed her hands in mine, pulling her closer to me. “Breathe through the pain, Addison,” I said. “I

know it hurts. Just breathe through the pain.” She took a couple of deep breaths and stopped hopping around so much. “Let’s get your thumb under some cold water and see what we’re dealing with.” I reached over and turned on the faucet, noticing all the blood on both of our hands. I hoped it didn’t need stitches. Even with a minor cut, thumbs could bleed forever. I should have been focused on Addison’s thumb, but I couldn’t help the part of me that noticed how close she was. Frankly, it made me nervous. Not because I didn’t want to be near her, but because I could really get used to being this close to her all the time. After a few minutes under the water, it wasn’t bleeding as hard anymore. “Looks like it’s just a small slice,” I said. “Doesn’t look like you need stitches. But you do need a couple bandages. Do you have any?” “Yeah,” she said in that soft voice I just loved. “In that cabinet right above your shoulder.” I handed her a paper towel to dry her hands with while I grabbed the bandages. Then I took her small hand in mine and started patching her up. I tried to be gentle and take my time. Not just because of the injury, but because I was trying to draw it out as long as possible. I really liked touching her. “You’re pretty good at that,” she remarked. I smirked. “I’ve had an injury or two,” I said, finishing up with the last bandage. “These won’t last all day long, but adding the gauze inside should help keep the bleeding a little more under control.” “Thank you,” she said, looking up at me with those hazel eyes. “You’re welcome,” I said softly, looking down at her, still holding her hand. I swear I was getting those signals again but after being rejected, I just couldn’t be sure. So I just kept holding her hand and looking at her when . . . She stretched up on her toes and kissed me. Right on the lips.

I was stunned for a moment, but quickly remembered what to do and kissed her back. I kissed her softly and slowly, just wanting to enjoy the moment. When she didn’t pull away, my hands made their way to her face and I tilted her to the side so I could slide my tongue into her mouth. Good god could the woman kiss. Her tongue was soft and gentle. Seductive, without turning into a soft porn movie in the middle of her kitchen. And her breath. Damn. Let’s face it, breath is pretty nasty. We put up with it to get to the good stuff. But unless you brush your teeth before you kiss, you aren’t going to smell minty fresh. Addison, she wasn’t minty fresh but even the smell of her breath turned me on. Her hands grabbed my waist and I just kept kissing her. Enjoying this moment. And her hands. And her lips. And her tongue. The back door flew open and Addison jumped away from me, throwing her hands up to her lips. “I have to go potty!” Emma yelled as she ran by, completely oblivious to the scene in front of her. I turned back to Addison, only to see her bandaged hand clutched to her stomach, her other hand over her lips, and her wide eyes filling with tears. “Addison,” I said, moving toward her. She took a step back, away from me. “That was . . .” “I’m so sorry, Jason, that should never have happened,” she said hurriedly and rushed from the room, down the hall until I heard a door shut. “Which way did Emma go?” Lindsay asked, walking through the kitchen. “Bathroom,” I said, still staring after Addison. Once again, I was left standing here thinking, “What the hell just happened?” With nothing else to do but cut fruit and sort out my thoughts, I sliced everything and cleaned up before heading back outside. Addison was still hiding

in the back, probably in the bedroom she had shared with her husband, so I delivered the fruit. It was times like these when my media face came in handy. It wasn’t hard to smile and fake my happiness the rest of the afternoon. I even posed for an actual picture with Samantha, but only because she was Jaxon’s aunt. If she had been anyone else, I would have politely told her to buzz off and reminded her that this was a birthday party for a child. Maybe part of me was hoping Addison would see it on Facebook later and feel some jealousy. About ten minutes later, Addison finally reappeared, this time with the cake. She completely ignored me for the rest of the party. She didn’t look at me when we sang “Happy Birthday”. She didn’t look at me when she passed out slices of cake. She didn’t even look at me when Jax opened his present. Jaxon, of course, jumped up and down and squealed with excitement, which made me smile a real smile. But Addison didn’t so much as glance in my direction. “What the hell is going on?” Lindsay asked quietly. I hadn’t noticed her standing next to me. As always, she apparently hadn’t missed anything. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” “You’re full of it, Jason. Something happened between you and Addison and it’s making things really uncomfortable.” I looked around the backyard at all the partygoers laughing and having a good time. “It doesn’t look like anyone is uncomfortable.” “Yeah. No one except you and her,” she said, pointing at Addison. I tightened my lips but didn’t say a word. “That’s what I thought,” she said. “What happened?” “It doesn’t matter,” I said, turning around to sit back down in the lawn chair, silently praying Lindsay was the only one to notice the tension. After all the presents were opened and the cake was devoured, Lindsay and I agreed we could slip out

without seeming rude. We said goodbye to Jaxon first, who was way too distracted to really notice we were leaving. It didn’t matter to me. I was just happy he was having such a great time. We found Addison sitting next to Samantha, of all people, on the other side of the yard. “Hey, Addison,” I started, shifting from foot to foot, my hands in my pockets, trying, and failing, not to seem nervous. But damn, how was I supposed to act in this situation? “We’re headed out. Lindsay’s husband is heading home and wants to take them to dinner or something.” “Ok,” she said, not moving from her chair or looking me in the eye. “Thanks for coming.” “Uh, yeah, thanks for inviting us,” I said. “I guess I’ll talk to you later?” “I’m sure I’ll talk to you soon,” she said, glancing at me quickly and looking away even quicker. “Jaxon will be asking about you, so . . . there’s that.” I nodded once, feeling the sting of her remark. “Ok. Thanks again. It was nice meeting you, Samantha,” I said with small wave. “You, too,” she said. “Oh, and I friend requested you on Facebook, so we can talk any time you want.” Addison flinched just slightly. Samantha didn’t even notice. “I’ll let my publicist know. I’m not really on that Facebook page. It’s more of a marketing thing.” Samantha’s smile fell. I barely noticed. But I noticed Addison’s back straighten just a bit. Yeah. She had been jealous. But that didn’t make any sense. Hadn’t she just blown me off after kissing me? And not just kissing me. But really kissing me. And now here she was, pretending like she’d never even met me before. I was so confused. “Ok well,” I started walking backwards toward the door, “see ya.” “See ya,” she said without another glance. I got all the way through the front door before the Lindsay Inquisition started. “What the hell is going on, Jason?” she asked,

Emma skipping beside her, dark ponytail swinging from side to side. I just shook my head. “I don’t know.” I unlocked the doors and helped Emma climb in. That’s as far as I could get. Booster seats had too many straps so I let Lindsay buckle her in while I walked around the car. “What do you mean you don’t know?” she asked when I opened my car door. She already had her seatbelt in hand. I have no idea how she got Emma situated so fast. “I mean, I don’t know! One minute we were talking and having a good time. The next minute she’s running out of the room like I’m a burglar or something. I don’t know!” I turned the ignition and pulled away from the curb, wanting to drive fast to get out the adrenaline, but very aware that there was a child in the back seat, so it wasn’t an option. After a few seconds, Lindsay spoke up again. “How did she cut her hand?” “We were slicing up the fruit and she cut her thumb. She’ll be alright,” I said. “It wasn’t very deep. Just bled a lot.” She nodded but didn’t ask any more questions, which was fine by me. I didn’t really want to talk about it. I just wanted to go home and lift some weights or run. Something to get this frustration out. “Mommy . . . ,” Emma asked from the back seat. “Yes, sweetie,” Lindsay replied without turning around. “Why was Jason kissing Jaxon’s mommy like that? Doesn’t Jaxon’s daddy kiss Jaxon’s mommy?” Lindsay’s head whipped toward me, her jaw dropping open and making an “o” with her mouth. “You kissed her?” she hissed at me. “No!” I said, glancing over at her while trying to keep my eyes on the road. “No, I kissed her back. She kissed me.” “Oh,” she said with a look of understanding crossing her face. “I see what you mean by mixed

signals.” I shook my head and kept my eyes on the road. Lindsay spent the rest of the ride back to her place trying to explain to Emma that Jaxon’s daddy was in heaven. I will admit, listening to Emma try to wrap her poor little brain around that huge concept was pretty humorous. They started with Jaxon’s dad and ended up discussing every single animal she had ever known that had died, including her goldfish and the road kill we passed on the street. When she asked if Jaxon’s dad had to be flushed down the toilet to get to heaven like Goldie, I’ll admit I snickered. I knew it was morbid to find that funny. But . . . well, it was. When we pulled up into the driveway, Sam was already home, so I didn’t even bother to get out of the car. Once Lindsay got Emma out of her seatbelt and she bounded away, Lindsay turned to me. “I’m sorry, Jason,” she said as she dragged the booster out of the back seat and dropped it on the driveway. “I know you’re not used to this type of thing. But just give her time, ok? She’s a nice woman. She just needs time.” I turned to look at my friend. “I understand that, Lin, but that’s the thing . . . she doesn’t act like she needs time. She doesn’t act like she’s grieving. She flirts with me and glances at me when she thinks I’m not looking and all those things women do when they are interested in a guy.” I sighed. “But then when a move is made, even if she’s the one who made it, she gets a look of terror on her face and she runs away. I know we just met but I’m just . . . confused. And maybe a little frustrated.” Lindsay smiled at me. “I’m sorry that this is hard for you, Jay. I really am. But you’re gonna have to work a little harder this time if she’s a keeper.” “Did you just say ‘if she’s a keeper’?” I teased. “Aaaand he’s back,” she said, pushing away from the seat and closing the door. I rolled the window down. “Thanks for the ride, Jay. I had fun.” “See ya, Lin,” I yelled out the window as I backed out of the driveway.

I thought about the best plan of action the whole drive home and decided I just needed to clear the air. So I sent her a text. Me: I’m not exactly sure what happened, but I wanted to touch base with you before the game next week. I don’t want things to be weird just because we kissed. It was a great kiss, Addison. I’m sorry it happened too soon for you. Let me know if we’re ok. I waited all night for a response. I never got one.

It was the second home game of the season. Jaxon was coming to the game this time. At least, last time I talked to Addison that was the plan. I had tried reaching her a few times, but she never responded to my texts. So I had Adam email her all the details and instructions. She responded to him. I was looking for Jaxon in the stands as people started streaming into the bleachers when the coach blew the whistle for us to huddle up. I jogged over to the group, taking one last glance at the seats I had reserved. They were empty. I felt a twinge of disappointment in my gut. But I brushed it off. I had a job to do now and it was time to concentrate. “Ok boys,” Coach Ramiro said, “I know we have the home-field advantage today, but I don’t wanna see any showboating out there for the fans. Injuries happen, but you know how I feel about dumb-ass injuries.” I chuckled and slapped Deuce upside the head. He’d had a dumb-ass injury a couple years ago when he tried showing off for the fans. It was all over the news that night. From a coaching standpoint it was ridiculous. From a teammate/best friend/personmost-likely-to-make-fun-of-you standpoint, it meant hours of fun for me. “La Russo!” Coach yelled, “Get these guys warmed up!” We all spread out and started our stretching

regimen. I looked over in the stands again, mentally preparing to see the seats still empty. Instead, I saw Jaxon’s smiling face. Only Addison wasn’t with him. Mick was. I smiled and sent a quick wave in their direction. I swear Jaxon’s whole body waved back in response, making me chuckle under my breath. “Is that him?” Deuce asked me quietly through his legs. “Yep.” “Man, he’s got energy,” Deuce remarked. I snorted. “You have no idea.” For the next three hours, I thought about nothing but the game. Washington was looking really good this year and at one point it looked like they might be able to win. But they didn’t. We ended up edging them out by one touchdown for a final score of 21 14. We didn’t usually stick around to talk to the fans, but with it being so close to the beginning of the season, and having just won, most of us took the time to sign some autographs and take some pictures. Even the coaches stuck around a little bit to interact with people, which I appreciated. I made my way around the stadium, talking to people, before finally getting to Jaxon. “Hey, dude,” I said with smile on my face, ruffling the top of his head as he hung over the security bar. “I’m glad you made it.” I reached up to Mick to shake his hand. “Nice to see you again, Mick. Did you guys have fun?” “It was awesome!” Jaxon said, bouncing around again. “I got to watch an actual game! You tackled a lot of people!” he said wide-eyed. I laughed. “Well that’s my job.” “Thanks for the jerseys and hats and, well hell, all this crap, Jason,” Mick said, waving his hand in the direction of the bag. It looked pretty full. I’d have to thank Adam later. “I’ve got Addison’s jersey right here to take home to her.” “I’m just glad they found you one, too, Mick,” I

said with a smile. I was hoping he couldn’t pick up on my disappointment. I was looking forward to having Addison wearing my number. I’m not sure what it was about her wearing my jersey that got me so excited. The concept seemed a little primal and possessive. But I’m a guy. Sometimes I can’t help it. “Can I wear it to school, Jason?” Jaxon asked. “I wanna show Mrs. Teske and Mrs. Miller. And that stupid Vincent Parker. He says we’re not friends. I wanna show him the jersey you got me!” “I think you’re gonna have to ask your mom about that one, bud,” I said, flattered that it meant so much to him. “She’s the one that does laundry at your house.” “So this is the famous Jaxon,” Deuce said as he walked up to join us. “Deuce Johnson!” Jaxon yelled. “You’re my favorite tight end! Do you remember that time . . .” I tuned Jaxon out when he started telling Deuce all the plays he remembered seeing on TV. Instead, I turned to talk to Mick. “I got us a reservation at the restaurant right here in the building,” I said to him. “In about a half hour from now, is that ok?” “Aw, Jason,” he argued, “you don’t have to take us to eat. Why don’t you save your reservation for another day?” I plastered a smile on my face, hoping he didn’t notice that I was kind of shocked he knew I was disappointed. “Nah. I’m starving and getting out of this parking lot is a nightmare after a game so I’d rather just eat here anyway.” “Well, if you’re sure. I’m sure Jaxon would love to spend more time with you. He talks about you all the time.” “He’s a really good kid, Mick,” I said. “Addison’s done a great job with him. I’m sure Austin did a great job with him, too.” “Yeah, he loved his boy more than anything.” Mick’s face was suddenly sad. He paused for a few seconds and looked down at me. “But I appreciate you

taking some time to get to know him. It means a lot to Addison for Jax to have some strong male role models in his life.” I couldn’t be sure, but I got the distinct impression he was dropping hints in my direction. Before I could try and feel him out more, a voice that made me shudder came from my left. “Do you boys mind if I ask a few questions?” April Gill asked. I looked over at Deuce who had his eyes narrowed in her direction. I looked back at Mick. “Why don’t you guys head on and I’ll meet you over there after I’ve taken care of this.” He nodded and put an arm on Jaxon’s shoulder to lead him out. “Wait! I actually wanted to ask you two some questions,” she said, waving a hand in their direction. “Us?” Mick questioned. “Yeah,” she said, turning her attention to Jaxon. “Aren’t you that little boy from the pep rally at Mountain Park Elementary?” “No,” I said sharply. “Are you sure, Jason?” she said, glaring at me. “He looks just like the kid that rushed the stage.” “I said no,” I said again, getting angry this time. “Okay,” Deuce said, stepping in front of me and grabbing April by the arm to lead her away. “I actually have some really great fans for you to interview over here . . .” His voice trailed off as they walked away. I turned around and faced Mick. “Sorry about that. She is the resident snake in the grass,” I said, looking over at Deuce who was hamming it up with some female fans, probably college kids. He was gonna catch hell for that tonight. I owed him one - or twelve - once Vanessa was through with him. “I don’t think Addison would appreciate putting Jaxon in the limelight.” “I appreciate it,” he said, turning to Jaxon. “Come on, Jax. Let’s head on over to the restaurant and wait for Jason there.” “Ok,” Jaxon said. “Bye, Jason.”

“See you in a minute, buddy.” I turned around as Deuce jogged back over to me. “There. In and out and I’m done. But you know I’m gonna get my ass kicked by my shortie tonight. I need to get her on the phone and give her a heads up.” “Thanks for the deterrent,” I said as we made our way to the locker room. “Let me know if you need me to help talk her down.” “I hope I get to her before that bitch starts the rumors. Things are bad enough as it is right now.” “Is she still acting psycho?” I asked, pushing the locker room door open. “Yep,” he said, dragging his jersey over his head and throwing it into the communal laundry basket. “Last night I thought I was helping by folding towels. Apparently I don’t fold them right. We fought about it for almost an hour.” I started taking off all my pads and throwing them in my locker. “Did you ever think of just saying, ‘Yes, dear’ and letting her be right?” “Man, with as much as she has been back and forth lately, I just snapped,” he said, sitting on the bench to unlace his cleats. “I knew I should have just let her be right, but I was so mad that I was trying to help and she went all La Diabla on me. Anyway, I don’t wanna talk about it anymore, it’s just pissing me off,” he said, stripping off the rest of his clothes and heading toward the shower. “Where are you going to eat? I’m starving.” I stripped my shorts off, following after him. “I’m actually having an early dinner in the restaurant with Jaxon and his grandpa.” “Oh, that’s right. He’s a cool kid,” Deuce said, already under the water. “I see why you like him.” I turned on the spray and tensed just slightly as it gave me a quick blast of cold water before warming up. “He reminds me a lot of myself when I was his age.” “Except I doubt you had his memory,” Deuce jabbed. “He probably remembered every single play I’ve ever made.”

I chuckled and ducked under the spray, cleaning off. “I noticed his mom didn’t come this time. What’s her name again?” “Addison,” I answered as I grabbed some shampoo. “Addison, that’s right,” he said, rinsing the soap out of his hair. “What happened to her? Why didn’t she come?” I stuck my face in the water, delaying my response. I was hoping Deuce would move on. He didn’t. “Dude,” he said, “why didn’t Addison come?” I looked over to see him looking right at me. “Why are you staring at me in the shower, you perv,” I said with a serious look on my face. He stared back. “You’re not gonna distract me with a not-so-witty comment and your fake-ass media smile. Trouble in paradise? Already? What’d you do this time? I dropped my head down and sighed. “I don’t know.” I looked around and saw that no one was paying us any attention and the media hadn’t been let in yet, so while we finished up, I told him the whole story. Well, I didn’t tell him how I couldn’t stop thinking about that kiss. I wanted to keep that to myself. Plus, if my body had any reaction to me thinking about it, showering with the team could get pretty awkward. That’s the last story we needed to be on the ten o’clock news. “I don’t know what to tell you, man,” he said while we got dressed. “I’d say she sounds like more effort than she’s worth. But if you really feel it . . . I just don’t know.” His phone rang and he checked the screen. “Speaking of more effort than it’s worth, let’s hope Vanessa is in a better mood.” He swiped his finger across the screen. “Hello? Baby, baby, slow down, why are you screaming, what happened?” I stopped what I was doing and turned to look at him, afraid something was wrong.

Deuce groaned and ran his free hand down his face. “Ugggghhhh, baby I was coming home to tell you about that before that skank whore spun the story to make me look bad. Fuck, man,” he said to me, moving the phone away from his mouth. “That bitch works quick. There are some choice pics already on the Channel 5 website. I gotta get out of here before the reporters show up. Yeah, baby, I’m listening,” he said, quickly moving the phone back to his mouth. “But you gotta stop screaming at me so I can tell you what really happened.” He shoved his wallet in his back pocket and slammed his locker door. “Babe, I promise it’s not what it looks like. You owe me more than one, douchebag,” he whispered to me on his way out the door. He was in for a world of hurt when he got home. After getting dressed and doing a few locker room interviews, I headed toward the restaurant. On my way, I sent Adam a message asking him to send Vanessa a giant flower bouquet on my behalf, thanking her for understanding Deuce’s moronic way of keeping Jaxon out of the spotlight. Emphasis on the word “moronic”. She’d get a kick out of that. When I got to the restaurant, Jaxon and Mick were waiting at the front. “Hey guys, I’m sorry you had to wait. There were a few extra reporters I wasn’t expecting. I was hoping they’d let you have a seat before I got here.” “It’s ok,” Mick said. “Jax and I were just checking out the view of the field from over here. He’s been pretty entertained watching all the maintenance people.” “Pee-paw! That’s Mr. Eli,” Jax said, right on cue and pointing to the field. “I helped him paint that goalpost.” “You did?” Mick replied. “Why I knew that was the best looking goalpost out there.” Jaxon smiled and kept watching all the work happening down below. “Why don’t we head to our table,” I suggested. “I’m starving.”

The three of us walked up to the hostess stand. She recognized me and seated us right away. The restaurant usually stayed open after the games, but only for executives and players like me who couldn’t wait the extra twenty minutes it took to get home to eat. After we sat down and put in our drink orders, I looked over at Jaxon, excited about getting to talk to him a little more. “So did you have a good time at the game?” I asked, leaning my elbows on the table. “Yeah,” he said, looking down at his hands. He wasn’t at all like his usual bubbly self. “Hey, buddy,” I said, leaning over and putting my hand on his shoulder, “What’s up? Are you feeling ok?” He sighed a deep sigh for a little kid. When he looked up at me, his eyes looked so sad. “Why did you tell that lady I don’t go to Mountain Park? You said I wasn’t at the pep rally. But I was. Is it cause I cried at the pep rally?” My head dropped in defeat. With just a couple sentences he broke my heart. Which I deserved. Apparently I had unknowingly already broken his. “Aw, buddy,” I said, looking up at him. “It has nothing to do with you crying at the pep rally. Everyone cries. Even I cry.” “You do?” he asked, his eyes wide. “Yep,” I confirmed. “But that lady who was asking about you, she’s not a real nice lady.” I looked up at Mick for some help. He just nodded for me to continue. “She likes to tell stories about people on TV and on the internet. And not nice stories. She likes to tell made up stories.” “She does?” he asked, his mouth open and eyes wide. “Yep,” I nodded. “Sometimes she even likes to tell people’s secrets.” “But that’s not right!” Jax argued. “You aren’t supposed to tell secrets!” “I know. But she does,” I looked over at Mick

again who was just following the exchange. “Now, I know your daddy dying isn’t a secret, but I don’t think your mom is ready for a lot of people asking about those stories. So when that lady asked, I got a little mad and I lied to her.” Jaxon looked back and forth between Mick and me. “But,” he started, “but you’re not supposed to lie either. My mom always says it’s bad to lie.” That’s when Mick stepped in. “I don’t think Jason was trying to lie this time, Jaxon. I think he was trying to protect you and your mama. I think it was ok this one time.” Jaxon thought for a minute. “Ok,” he said with a small smile. “I thought maybe you didn’t wanna be my friend anymore.” “Nothing could be further from the truth, dude,” I said, ruffling his hair. “I like being friends with you. You keep me on my toes.” “My mom says that all the time.” Mick and I laughed. “I’m sure she does, buddy.” “Can I go look at that fish tank, Pee-paw?” he asked Mick, quickly changing topics. “Sure. Just don’t touch it.” “Ok!” Jax said, pushing out of his chair and bounding away. “Thanks for bringing him, Mick,” I said, watching Jaxon as he stared at the lobsters crawling around. “I was a little worried he wasn’t gonna be able to come.” “Well I’m glad I was able to bring him. I know you were hoping Addison would be with him but I appreciate you being so accommodating.” “As long as Jaxon gets here, that’s all the matters,” I said, taking a drink of water. “Don’t bullshit me, son. I see the way you look at her.” I choked on my water and started coughing into a napkin. As soon as I could talk again, I responded. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Mick.” “Sure you do,” he said, sitting back and crossing his arms over his chest. “I was watching you during the birthday party. I’ve seen that look before. You’re

smitten.” I paused and realized there was no way to talk myself out of this one. “Was it that obvious?” “Only to me,” he said. “But I’ve been there. The way you were looking at Addison reminded me of the way I used to look at my Lisa.” “Wait . . . I thought your wife’s name was Angela,” I said, confused. “Oh it is,” he replied. “Lisa was my first wife. Mother of my son. He took a little too much after his mama if you ask me. But I was so in love with that woman.” He leaned over, elbows on the table. “Before she came along, I didn’t have any interest in building a life with anyone. But when she fell into my lap, I don’t even know how to describe it,” he said, looking over at me. “I couldn’t get her out of my head. She owned my thoughts. At work, at home, it didn’t matter where I was. I was always thinking about her.” I smirked, understanding how he had felt back then. “So what happened?” He sighed. “She apparently didn’t love me as much as I loved her. About three years after Austin was born, she just up and left. No explanation. Just . . . gone.” My eyebrows rose. “She just up and left her kid, too?” “Oh, she saw him every weekend. She just wanted nothing to do with me.” “Wow,” I said, sitting back. “That must have sucked.” He sighed. “It’s the ugly side of love. The part no one ever talks about. But then Angela came along and I’ve never looked back. She isn’t Lisa, but she is one hell of a woman.” We sat in silence for a minute, watching Jaxon make friends with one of the servers who was picking out a lobster. “I guess my point in all this, which I am obviously not making very well,” he said, “is that I know what it’s like to lose your spouse. And if you are using that little boy to get to Addison, I will come after you. I

don’t care that you are bigger than me, or stronger than me, or younger than me. I’ll get in a few good punches.” I whipped my head back around to look at Mick. Wow. I did not see that coming. I nodded once. “I understand where you’re coming from, but I can assure you, I had never met Addison before she brought Jax on his tour. I wouldn’t have been able to pick her out of a crowd. I had asked them here for the sole purpose of getting to know Jaxon better.” I sat back, crossing my legs, resting my ankle on my knee. “That being said, I’ll admit, I am interested in Addison. But since she hasn’t been responding to my texts lately, I’m assuming the interest isn’t reciprocated. So you don’t really have anything to worry about.” He leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest, looking at me like he was trying to figure me out. Then he nodded. “I don’t know what happened at the party. I know something happened, but Addison is a grown woman and it’s not really my business. She holds a special place in my heart because she was married to my son. I love her dearly and I want her to be happy. She’s been through a lot. And I won’t watch her go through heartache again if I can help it.” “Understood,” I answered, more out of respect than understanding, because I really didn’t know where all this was coming from. “If you feel about her the way I felt about my Lisa, then you need to respect her timelines. Take things slow.” I nodded. “But she’s a good one. You’d be a fool to give her up without a fight.” “Pee-paw!” Jax yelled, bounding back over in our direction. “Did you know people eat those things?” he said, crinkling his nose in disgust. I cracked up and Mick rubbed his tummy. “Sounds yummy,” he said in a deep voice, making Jaxon giggle. We continued on with our dinner, the topic of Addison never coming up again. But that doesn’t mean I wasn’t still mulling it over in my brain. Even

during my drive home, some of the things he said kept rolling around in my head. Especially the part about fighting for her. Because damn it, for the first time ever, I was worried that I had finally found the one person, and her son, that were worth fighting for. And I’d be lying if I said that didn’t scare the ever-loving shit out of me.

Addison: Thank you for the jerseys. That was really sweet. I’m sorry I’ve confused you. I’ve confused myself, too. It won’t happen again. What the hell? I read over the text I had gotten last night for the umpteenth time. She had been ignoring me for days. But giving her and Jax a couple of jerseys is what finally gets a response? I sighed and dropped my phone into my locker so I could finish getting dressed. I didn’t know how to answer her, but I figured I shouldn’t do anything rash. What I really wanted to reply with is “WTF?” But that wouldn’t do any good. I couldn’t figure her out, but that didn’t mean I was out for blood either. I was tying my runners before hitting the weight room when Deuce came barreling through the door. “WOOOOO!” he yelled at the top of his lungs and jumped to stand on top of one of the benches in the middle of the room. “CAN I HAVE EVERYONE’S ATTENTION, PLEASE?” The room got quiet while Deuce fidgeted around like he had to pee in his pants. He was definitely excited about something. “I have an announcement to make. It appears,” he paused, “that I,” he paused again, “the stud muffin of the Dallas Cowboys,” another pause while the rest of the guys booed him. “Y’all, hang on, hang on, shut up for a minute,” he said, quieting everyone down again. “It appears that I have KNOCKED MY WOMAN

UP!” He jumped off the bench amid the cheers of congratulations and started dancing, hands behind his head and gyrating his hips as he walked toward our lockers, getting pats on the back as he went. “Congrats, man,” I said, giving him a manly hug. You know, two back pats and done. “Man, my swimmers couldn’t hardly even wait until we got married,” he said excitedly, a big-ass smile on his face. “She was pregnant almost as soon as we got back from Bali and didn’t even know it!” “When did she figure it out?” I asked. “Yesterday,” he answered, trying to get dressed for our workout, but still bouncing around as he talked. “Her mama was over last night and Vanessa said the smell of the flowers you sent her was making her sick. Nice touch, by the way. It helped me out a lot.” “No problem.” “Anyway, her mom heard her say it and mentioned something about Vanessa having that ‘glow’, whatever the hell that means,” he said, waving his hands around animatedly. “So she sent me to the store to buy a bunch of pregnancy tests. Do you know how many different brands there are? I ended up buying fourteen of them. Fourteen! Every single one of them came up positive. You know why?” he asked. “Why?” I asked, afraid to know his answer. “Because my boys got game!” he yelled, bobbling around some more. “Those sticks didn’t just turn pink. They turned all blingy, neon signs, shootingfireworks-out-the-top pink! Wooooo!” More teammates walked by, patting him on the back. I laughed out loud. “That’s awesome, man. I’m happy for you. Do you know when Vanessa is due?” “Uh . . . she got on some baby website last night and did some calculations,” he said, throwing his clothes in his locker. “She thinks she figured out when my boys went in for the kill. So she said the baby should be here around May, I guess.” “You better hope she doesn’t pop early,” I ribbed.

He stopped and looked at me. “Oh, shit. What if she pops super early? Like during the playoffs. Shit like that happens all the time!” he asked, his eyes wide. “What am I gonna do?” I laughed. “Relax, man. You’ll deal with that later. You’ve got a lot of other things to do before then.” “Like what?” he asked, slamming his locker shut, finally dressed. “You’ve got doctor’s appointments and baby showers and midnight cravings and shit. It’s the beginning of the end, my man,” I teased as we headed toward the weight room. “Try to scare me all you want, I don’t even care,” he shot back. “There is nothing you can do that can change my mood. My woman and I are having a baby. Dude,” he said, suddenly getting quiet. “We’re having a baby.” I had never seen him look like he was in awe before. Ever. Not even when he and Vanessa got together. Kids will do that to you. Or so I’ve heard. “I’m happy for you, man,” I said, clapping him on the shoulder. “Now let’s get this workout going so you can get home.”

Later that night I was lying on my couch trying to watch SportsCenter. It had been a long day and a really tough practice. But the team was continuing to mesh really well. The rookies were starting to click on the field with the veterans of the team and I was confident we could be contenders for the Super Bowl this year. At least, I hoped so. I only had a few years left and hadn’t made it all the way yet. I was having a hard time concentrating on the announcers on TV, because I kept thinking about that damn text from Addison. I wanted to respond, but I wasn’t really sure how. Fuck it, I thought, sitting up and grabbing my phone. I took a deep breath and started typing.

Me: You’re welcome for the jerseys. I missed seeing you there. Had a great time with Mick, but it wasn’t quite the same. I dropped my phone next to me on the couch, expecting to get no response. Surprisingly, she replied. Addison: I had to work. Me: On a Sunday? She took a little longer to respond this time. Apparently she hadn’t thought that lie through. Addison: Listen, Jason, I think you’re a great guy and I love that you have been there for Jaxon for the last couple of weeks. But I just don’t think it’s a great idea for us to hang around together. I rolled my eyes and shook my head. Why was I not surprised that she was, once again, being cryptic. Me: So you’ve said. You’ve just never said why. Addison: It’s complicated. Please don’t be mad. Me: I’m not mad. So listen, we don’t play until Monday this next week so I was hoping I might be able to come get Jaxon on Sunday. Do you have a second to chat? She knew I was lying but I didn’t know what else to do at this point. I waited a full five minutes for a response this time. I even used the restroom and got another bottle of water before I heard back. Addison: Sure. This time, I made her wait. I knew it was petty, but I just wanted her to have to sweat a little. Like she kept doing to me. When I finally dialed and put my phone to my ear, I was half expecting her to just not answer. Once again, I was wrong. “Hello?” I was surprised when she answered and I realized how much I had missed hearing her voice. “Hey.” We both paused for a few seconds. With all the strange emotions coursing through me, I honestly had forgotten what I had called about. “So, um . . . you wanted to see about picking up Jaxon on Sunday?” she asked nervously.

“Oh . . . yeah,” I said, finally remembering. “My apartment has this really awesome pool with a slide and a high dive. I was hoping I might be able to take him swimming. I mean, does he swim? Maybe I should have asked that part first.” It was strange feeling so nervous talking to Addison. I didn’t like it. “Yeah, he swims,” she said. “He was on the neighborhood swim team last summer. He’s pretty good.” “Yeah?” I said with a smile. “Did he have to wear a little bitty speedo and shave his legs and all that?” She giggled. “They actually have jammers now. They’re like biking shorts. It’s what most of the little boys wear these days. And no . . . he didn’t have to shave his legs. The neighborhood team isn’t that competitive.” “Oh. Good,” I said. “I wouldn’t want to have to call him a pansy to his face or anything.” “Yeah, that probably wouldn’t help his ego,” she joked. “Especially considering their jammers don’t exactly fill out at this age yet.” I laughed. And then we paused again. It’s like there was a lot we wanted to say, but I was the only one willing to say it. It made it hard to keep the conversation going at times. “You know, Addison,” I said, clearing my throat, “you’re welcome to come swimming with us. I mean, if that would make you more comfortable. I know you don’t know me that well yet.” “Oh, I trust you, Jason,” she said, ignoring the invitation. “Mick seems to like you and you’re friends with Mrs. Mill—Lindsay—so I’m sure Jaxon will be fine with you.” “You could come anyway,” I pitched. And held my breath, waiting for the rejection. “Um . . . I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she said, confirming what I knew was coming. It didn’t make it sting any less though. But I wasn’t about to admit it. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right,” I said. “It’ll be nice to hang out one-on-one with him. The further we get

into the season, the more my schedule gets packed so it’ll be harder to see him.” We paused again. I assumed she was trying to figure out what to say. I was just trying to save face by giving her the next move. “So,” she finally began, “do you wanna pick him up here at about eleven? Or I mean, I could bring him to you . . .” “No, no,” I interrupted. “I can pick him up. It’s only like a thirty-five minute drive and I’ll be coming from working out, so it’s no problem.” “Wait, you work out on Sundays, too?” “Oh yeah,” I said with a smile. She was finally making conversation. This was good. “I usually work out seven days a week. Except on the Sundays when we have a game. But yeah, we work out a lot. That doesn’t include practice either.” “I didn’t know that,” she said. “I never really paid attention to sports. But with Austin gone, I guess I’m gonna have to learn a little more to keep up with Jaxon.” “Yeah,” I said, hoping what she meant was she was learning more to keep up with Jaxon and me. Then I heard her yawn. “Well, it’s getting late. I just wanted to run those details by you.” “Thanks, Jason,” she said softly. “I really appreciate you taking an interest in Jaxon.” “You’re welcome. I’ll see you Sunday?” “See you then,” she said. And she hung up. I stared at the phone for a while, just running the conversation through my head. I still wasn’t sure where she and I were at, but at least we weren’t going backwards anymore. At this point, if that’s all I could have, I’d take it.

The next few days was more of the same . . . practice, work out¸ listen to Deuce talk about what a stud he was. Except now Addison and I were texting again. It was little stuff here and there. But I was being cautious. I’m not really sure if it’s because I was protecting her or myself. I was a little nervous when I pulled up into their driveway on Sunday. Although we’d been in contact, I hadn’t seen her since Jaxon’s party and I wasn’t sure how comfortable we’d be around each other. Just seconds after knocking on the front door, it swung open and a brown-haired force of nature flew into my arms. “Jason!” he yelled, wrapping his arms around my neck as I scooped him up. “My mom said we’re going swimming! Are we really going swimming at your house?” “We sure are,” I said, smiling at him, still holding him up so we were at eye level. “Where’s your mom? We need to tell her I’m here.” “I’m right here,” she said, walking through the door with a beach bag. When she looked up, I swear I stopped breathing. Just the sight of her made me forget all the conflict we’d had and want to stay right here. But I had a seven-year-old boy who was dying to get to the pool, so there would be no sticking around.

“I packed his towel, some sunscreen and a change of clothes for when you’re done,” she said, digging through the bag. “Oh! I put some snacks and bottles of water in here, too.” “I could have done that,” I said, smiling at her. That’s when she looked up at me and about knocked me on my ass again. I was starting to look forward to that feeling. “I know,” she said. “But he’ll probably start asking for a snack on the drive back. I figured it was better to be prepared.” “Can we go now?” Jaxon asked, wiggling down to the floor. “I wanna see if they have a slide. Do they have a slide?” I smiled down at him. “Yeah they do, buddy. Hey, why don’t you run to the bathroom one last time since we have about a thirty-minute drive, ok? I’ll be ready to go as soon as you’re done.” His shoulders slumped. “Ok,” he grumbled and meandered around the corner. “He’s been looking forward to this since, oh, about six o’clock this morning,” Addison said with a smile. “I’ve been looking forward to it since about that time, too,” I said, smiling back. “Deuce got tired of me talking about jumping off the high dive and playing Marco Polo.” She crossed her arms, one eyebrow raised, looking skeptical. “Really?” “Really. He’s been driving me crazy all week talking about how awesome his swimmers are. I figured I could return the favor and keep telling him how awesome this swimmer is,” I said, pointing a thumb back at myself. She just shook her head at me and smiled as Jaxon came running back. “I’m ready!” He grunted as he grabbed the beach bag, which was about twice his size. “Why don’t you let me carry that to the car,” I said, grabbing it from him. “Six, right?” I turned to double check with Addison.

“Yep,” she confirmed as she walked us the rest of the way to the door. “That’ll give us time to take a bath and get to bed on time.” “Come on!” Jaxon said impatiently, throwing his hands in the air. “Let’s go already!” “That’s my cue,” I said, following Jaxon out the door. Once we got on the road, Jaxon was a non-stop chatterbox. He talked about everything . . . his birthday presents, the turtle he found in his backyard, the time he woke up when his mom was trying to steal his tooth fairy money from right under his pillow. I found myself surprisingly entertained. I knew I enjoyed Jaxon, but it still surprised me how much he and I clicked. When we got to my apartment complex, we headed straight out to the pool. I figured Jaxon wasn’t going to be patient if we had to go upstairs for me to change, so I was already in my trunks. It was a good guess on my part. He could barely contain himself riding the elevator up from the parking garage. “Whoooa!” he said with wide eyes when we finally made it poolside. I understood where his seven-year-old fascination was coming from. Even as an adult, I knew it was a pretty sweet setup. It was a large L-shaped pool with a beachfront entry in the shallow end complete with those rain shower structures for the smaller kids to play under. The deep end was split into two sections. One side had two different diving boards, each a different height. The other side of the deep end had an awesome slide. It was at least fifteen feet up and was shaped like a corkscrew. I had never been on it before, but had a feeling I would be today. “Can we go now?” he asked, bouncing up and down. “Let’s grab a couple chairs for our stuff first and put on some sunscreen, ok?” We found a place to drop our bag and towels and I started slathering him down. I tried to make sure I didn’t miss any spots, but it wasn’t easy with Jaxon

wiggling around the whole time. “Hey there, handsome,” a sultry voice said behind me. Jax and I both turned to see a bikini-clad redhead standing next to us, eyeing me up and down. “Hey, Danielle.” I didn’t need more than a glance before getting back to the task at hand. Danielle lived a couple floors below mine. With her husband. I learned pretty quickly that having a ring on a woman’s finger doesn’t always mean she is off the market. Especially when that woman is twenty-five years old and married to her fifty-sevenyear-old former computer science professor, who also happens to be a highly sought-out consultant for some of the biggest companies in the world. Apparently traveling three weeks out of the month doesn’t always make for a happy marriage. “Who is this handsome little man?” she cooed at Jaxon, putting her hands on her knees and bending over, giving us a both an eyeful of cleavage as she practically fell out of her top. As soon as I realized what she was doing, I looked back at Jaxon, whose eyes kept shifting from her chest to her eyes and back again. I kind of wanted to high-five Jaxon for keeping his cool as much as he did with that much boob in his face. It’s not an easy thing for any man to do. Even the ones in elementary school. “My . . . my name is Jaxon,” he stammered. “I’m Jason’s friend.” “Well hi there, Jaxon. My name is Danielle. I’m a friend of Jason’s, too.” I grimaced momentarily, but caught myself before she saw. I wouldn’t classify her as a friend at all. More like a gold digger. And a dangerous one at that. I could spot them a mile away. “I haven’t seen you around lately, Jason,” she said, picking up the bottle of sunscreen and squirting some on her fingers. “Yeah . . . I’ve been working a lot,” I said nonchalantly. “Ok, Jax, I think you’re done. Let me get some sunscreen on, too, and we’ll go swimming.”

“Yeah!” he yelled and jumped up in the air. “Here,” Danielle said, walking toward me seductively. “Let me get your back.” Before she touched me, I grabbed her wrist. “Why don’t you use the spray sunscreen instead? It doesn’t have to be rubbed in.” Her smile faltered for just a second, but I caught it. “Sure, Jason,” she said, picking up the bottle. “Whatever you want.” I didn’t really want her anywhere near me, not even to spray sunscreen on me. But my other option was having Jaxon do it and frankly, the last thing I needed was to have to wear pads over a major sunburn. So I let it slide this time. Once she was done, I took over the rest as Jaxon waited impatiently for me to be finished. “Ok, thanks Danielle,” I said, trying to dismiss her. “I’ll see you around.” “Oh, I’ll be around,” she said. “You know where to find me if you need anything from me.” I wasn’t sure if her innuendo made me want to grimace or roll my eyes. I didn’t need a woman like that near me. She was dangerous in so many ways and I knew it. “Ok Jax, let’s go!” I yelled, racing to the deep end and cannonballing in. Jax didn’t even hesitate. He kept up and followed me right into the water. At first I was nervous about him being in the deep end. But it turns out he’s a really good swimmer, which made it really fun. We spent hours jumping off both diving boards and seeing who could make the biggest splash. It wasn’t much of a contest but he had fun trying to beat me. I got a nice arm workout in when he realized how far I could throw him across the pool. I did that over and over and over. Despite looking fun, the slide wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. It was fully enclosed and not much bigger around than I am. I honestly thought I was gonna get stuck on the way down. I didn’t, but I could feel the entire thing moving as I slid my way down and I knew the rest of the swimmers could hear the creaks of the plastic. It was more fun watching Jaxon go down than it was worrying I was going to get stuck

face down on the inside and drown. So I opted to sit that one out the rest of the day. Danielle didn’t leave the entire time we were there. She didn’t even try to hide the fact that she had her eyes glued to me the whole time. So as we were drying off, getting ready to head out, it didn’t surprise me at all when she approached again. “Are you having a good time, Jaxon?” she asked sweetly. Out popped the cleavage again when she bent over. “It was awesome,” Jaxon said, a little less enthusiastically than normal. Hopefully I had worn him out. “Can we come back again, Jason?” I smiled at him, trying my best to ignore Danielle. “Sure, buddy. We’ll have to talk to your mom but I’m sure we’ll come back soon.” “So, Jason,” Danielle said, putting her hands on her hips and shifting her attention to me, “what do you have planned for the evening?” I started packing up our stuff, refusing to make eye contact. “Oh, ya know . . . I’m dropping Jaxon off and then heading back to my place. I’ve got a game tomorrow night so I need to rest up.” “I can come over and cook for you,” she said. “A man your size needs to get a good meal in him to keep his strength up on the field.” “That’s a nice offer,” I said, not quite sure how to brush her off politely. “But I don’t know how long I’ll be gone. Thanks, though.” I slung the beach bag over my shoulder. “See ya. Come on, Jaxon.” He waved goodbye to Danielle and grabbed my hand. As we strolled to the parking lot he asked, “Is she your girlfriend?” I snorted. “Not even close, buddy.” “Why not?” he asked. “Well, there are three different kinds of women,” I told him as he clamored into the backseat of my car. “The kind you date, the kind you marry, and the kind you stay far, far away from.” “Which one is she?” Jaxon asked innocently. “The kind you don’t touch with a ten-foot pole,” I

answered, shutting the door and walking around to climb inside the driver’s seat. Jaxon talked non-stop for all of five minutes. Then it got quiet. I snuck a peek in the back to find him passed out cold . . . head back, mouth open. Just like a true little man. I chuckled and focused on the road ahead of me, enjoying the silence. When we drove up into his driveway, I expected to have to carry him inside. But in true Jaxon fashion, he woke up like a shot and bounded out of the car. “Mom!” he yelled as we walked in the door. Addison came walking around the corner from the kitchen. “You’re home,” she said with a smile. “Did you have a good time?” “Yeah! There was two diving boards and a slide and Jason threw me across the pool, just picked me up and threw me!” he said, mimicking all the motions like he was playing charades. “Oh!” Addison said. “That sounds fun!” “Yeah, it was. Can me and Jason go swimming again, Mom? Pretty please?” he begged, looking at her with puppy dog eyes. “Not tonight,” she started. “But we’ll talk about doing it another day, ok?” “Yeah!” Jaxon said, throwing his arm in the air. “Why don’t you take the beach bag in the other room and start unloading it while I talk to Jason, ok? “Ok,” he said, dragging the bag behind him. She turned to look directly at me. “So, how was he?” “Exhausting,” I said truthfully. “I have not played that hard in a pool in years.” She giggled. “I should have warned you that even the water doesn’t slow him down.” “Yes, you should have,” I agreed. “I might have asked you to give him a dose of Benadryl before we left. He sounded a little sniffly, ya know.” “I bet,” she said with amusement. “But just so you know, Benadryl makes him even more hyper, if that’s possible.”

“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me. Did you enjoy having a few hours to yourself?” “Yeah, it was nice,” she said, flipping her hair back from her shoulder and putting her hands in her back pockets. “I cleaned up a little and then sat down and read a book,” she emphasized the word “book.” “Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve been able to do that?” “Mmmm,” I said, bobbling my head back and forth, “Maybe seven years or so.” “Yeah,” she laughed. “I bet you guys are hungry now. Would you like to stay for dinner?” Nothing could shock me more than the invitation she had just extended. Except for the little tornado that blew in right at that moment. “He can’t, Mom,” Jax answered for me. “Danielle is cooking Jason dinner at his place. She said he could have anything he wanted.” My eyes widened as Addison’s head whipped up to glare at me. “Who is Danielle?” she asked through narrowed eyes. Once again, Jax answered before I could even put my thoughts together. “She’s this lady at the pool. She’s really pretty, Mom. She had on this green bathing suit that did this,” he cupped his pecks like he was holding up breasts. At that point, I couldn’t look anymore. I just rubbed my hand over my face, praying he would stop. But he didn’t. “And she helped Jason put sunscreen on his back because he couldn’t do it and watched us the whoooole time we played! She was really nice.” The silence after his revelation was deafening. When I finally pulled together the nerve to look up at Addison, I almost looked away. I could see the fury in her eyes. “You brought a date when you took my son swimming?” “She wasn’t a date,” I defended. “She’s a woman who lives in my building.” The look on her face indicated that I may have just made things worse. “So you brought a booty call when you took my son swimming?”

“Uh, no,” I said. “I ran into a woman who lives in my building when we got there. I ignored her except for the two times she approached us.” “Uh huh,” she said. “Hey Jax, since you didn’t change yet, go grab your clothes out of the bag and put them on, ok? I want you dressed for dinner.” “Ok,” he agreed and took off again, leaving me alone with his mother. Normally I would’ve liked being left alone with her. But not right now. “Listen, Addison, he made it sound a lot worse than it was,” I started. “Really,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “My son is making gestures about her chest. You call that innocent?” “Well, I can’t exactly help it that she had her,” I paused, “assets on display. We were at the pool, ya know.” She threw her hands up in the air. “I can’t believe you, Jason! I trusted you to take care of my son! Not to give him an introduction to the birds and the bees!” “Addison, that’s not what happened! Listen, can we talk about this outside?” I gestured toward the door. “That little tornado could walk in any moment and I wanna explain myself. I haven’t done anything wrong here.” She paused for a minute, lips pursed. “Fine,” she said. “But only because I’m curious about the company you keep before letting you take him somewhere again.” She walked out the door in front of me and I closed it behind us. That’s as far as we got before she really started laying into me. “I can’t believe you let my son hang out with one of your . . . floozies!” she practically yelled. “Floozy?” I asked. “What generation do you live in?” She pointed her finger right into my chest. “Don’t change the subject, Jason. Why would you do that?” “Listen,” I said, hands up defensively. “She’s a sad, pathetic woman who lives in my building. She’s a sad, pathetic, married woman.”

“That’s supposed to make me feel better?” “No, but it should give you an idea of what I couldn’t say in front of Jaxon. She’s a whore, Addison.” Her mouth dropped open. “No, not my whore. Just in general. Every time her husband goes out of town, which is often, all the men in the building know it. She hits on all of them. Me included.” I took a step toward her. “She happened to be at the pool today and approached us. I politely turned her down and tried to avoid her. But she’s really stubborn and doesn’t give up easily.” “So you accepted her invitation for anything you want,” she said matter-of-factly. I scoffed. “Hardly. I have never gone there and never will. She’s not the first gold digger to sniff in my direction. And she won’t be the last. But I’m smarter than that. I’ve seen the damage they do once they chew you up and spit you back out.” “You let her rub sunscreen all over you,” she said quietly, looking me square in the eye. “No, I prevented her from rubbing anything on me,” I said. “I made her use the spray. And I only let her do it because protective gear on the field and sunburns don’t mix.” Addison was looking at the ground, a little on the defeated side when a thought occurred to me. “Addison,” I said, bending over to look her in the eye. “Are you . . . jealous?” Her head whipped up. “What? No way! I’m just worried about my son.” I barked a laugh. “I don’t think so. You’re jealous!” “I am not!” Her arms dangled at her side in fists. She was getting feisty and starting to flush a little. It was a side of her I didn’t know she had. “Yes you are,” I said with a smile. “So forget all this crap. Go out with me.” “I am not going out with you!” she said incredulously. “Why not? I know you think I’m hot.” If I was

gonna push her buttons, I might as well go all the way. “I do not think you’re hot, Jason Hart!” “There ya go, lying again. I know you think I’m hot because I think you’re hot right back.” “You . . . ,” she stammered, her feistiness deflating. “You think I’m hot?” she asked. I smiled at her. “Not only do I think you’re hot, I think you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met. And I like talking to you and hanging out with you.” “Oh,” she said, looking stunned. “I know it’s only been six months, and I know you’re still grieving over losing your husband . . .” “I stopped grieving over that bastard a month before he died,” she interrupted. As soon as she said it, her eyes went wide like she had just mistakenly revealed some big secret. I paused and cocked my head, trying to figure out what she was trying to say. “I’m sorry . . . what?” “No . . . nothing,” she said nervously. “Just forget I even said it.” “Um . . . that’s not gonna happen,” I said slowly. “The only way I know of that you can grieve someone before they die is if . . . you know they’re going to die.” She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. “Ohmygod, Jason, you need to stop watching so many cop dramas. I didn’t kill Austin.” “Then can you explain what you mean, please? Because that was weird.” She sighed and shook her head. “I don’t like talking about it because it’s personal.” “Yeah, well you already started, so you might as well finish the story,” I said. She looked down and paused. It took her a few seconds to think about her words, but I gave her time. I felt like what she was about to tell me was important. “About a year before Austin died, we got a bill in the mail from some credit card company. I knew we didn’t have a card with this company so I

started doing some digging. I was determined to figure out if someone had stolen our identity or what was going on. Instead, I found out that Austin had opened the account. So I started looking more closely at the charges. Hotels, florists, jewelry stores . . .” “He was cheating on you,” I interrupted. She shrugged. “When I confronted him, he swore he would end it. That it had been a mistake and he loved me. And I stupidly believed him.” “He didn’t stop the affair?” I asked, already starting to feel angry that her husband could just toss her aside for another woman. “Of course not. She had just graduated from college when he met her at work,” she said, sitting down on the steps. “She was young and beautiful. I wasn’t old. I’m only 31. But I was a mom with a mom’s body. And I did mom things like take care of his son. For two years he had been seeing her. Two years.” Her elbows were on her knees, her hands clasped in front of her. I sat down next to her. “When I confronted him the second time, he told me he wasn’t going to stop seeing her. Said he had fallen in love with her. That she was his best friend.” “What did you do?” I asked. “That’s the thing,” she said, still staring at her fingers. “I didn’t know what to do. I could take Jaxon and leave him, but I hadn’t worked in six years. Technology changes faster than that. I didn’t have any real marketable skills. How would I take care of us? And then I had to take Jaxon into consideration. Do I leave and uproot his whole word? Put him in daycare every day? Only let him see his dad, whom he worshipped, every other weekend? I was stuck in an impossible situation.” I looked out to the road in front of us. “And then he died.” She looked over at me. “You know he was headed to work from marriage counseling when he was killed? He had left a little early to get to some big meeting, supposedly. Once he left, the counselor had told me that I really needed to sit down and weigh my

options. That there was no indication he was going to divorce me because he was getting the best of both worlds.” She snickered sadly. “Before I could even start making a list of pros and cons, fate stepped in and made the decision for me.” “Wow,” I said, not sure what else to say. “I’m really sorry he put you through all that. He sounds like a real jerk.” She smirked. “I didn’t think so when I married him. Turns out I wasn’t the best judge of character.” I cleared my throat. “You’re not a bad judge of character. He just made some really douche moves.” “I agree.” “But Addison, I’m not him,” I said, turning my whole body to face her. “I have never, ever cheated on a girlfriend and I certainly wouldn’t start now.” “Jason,” she said softly, “I’m not turning you down because I think you would cheat on me.” “You’re not?” I asked, confused. “No, Jason, I know you would eventually cheat on me. That Danielle woman is a good representation of your life when it comes to women,” she said, waving her hands around as she talked. “Eventually some young, glamourous, successful woman would come along and we’d be forgotten.” I started to speak, but she put her hand on my forearm, stopping me. “Let’s say you and I were to try this,” she said. “When you date a mother, you date the whole family, right?” I nodded. “Fast forward to when it didn’t work out. You’d stop coming around as much. You wouldn’t call as often. Not only would I be heartbroken, but Jaxon would be, too.” She sat back and looked at me. “I’ve watched my little boy lose one hero. I’m not willing to watch it happen again. Not even for a really hot guy.” She stood up to walk inside. “Hey, Addison,” I said, looking up at her, “If I had met you first, would you have gone out with me? And

maybe left Jaxon out of it until you trusted me more?” She smiled. “Probably. But the thing is, you didn’t meet me first. And him being able to count on a hero is more important than me being able to date.” With that, she turned around and walked in the house, gently closing the door behind her. I sat on the steps thinking for a good ten minutes after she went inside, trying to come up with a way to make it all work. But I couldn’t. So as much as I didn’t want to, I got in my car and went home.

I didn’t sleep worth a shit that night, which wasn’t good, considering I had a game to play the next day. My mind kept going over the conversation Addison and I had had. I wasn’t just pissed off at how Austin had treated her. I was also pissed off that he had wounded her so deeply, she was too scared to put herself out there again. It wasn’t fair to any of us . . . me, her or Jaxon. At five-thirty I jumped in the car and headed to the weight room. Since we had a game, Deuce wasn’t meeting me. But I couldn’t sleep anyway, so I might as well find a few things to do on the machines by myself. Whatever it took to work off this negative energy I couldn’t get rid of. “Incoming call from Mom,” my hands-free set said through the speakers. I pressed the button on the steering wheel to answer. “Hey, Ma! When did you get back? Shouldn’t you be sleeping?” My mom and her new husband, Rick, had been on a month-long cruise of the Mediterranean and a few other places. “Hi, honey! We got back last night. This jet lag is killing me. My body feels like I should be getting ready for lunch. I figured if anyone was up this early and would be willing to chat with me, it would be you.” “Ah, the dreaded jet lag. It’s the curse of traveling

to the other side of the globe for an extended vacation,” I chided. “Did you guys have fun?” “Oh, it was wonderful!” she said. “The country, well, I guess countries, we went to were just beautiful. And the food is just amazing. You really need to go there on your honeymoon.” “Still not getting married, ma.” “Oh, I know,” she sighed. “But someday it’ll happen. So just keep it in mind.” “Yes, ma’am,” I said sarcastically. “Like I have kept in mind that beautiful venue you found at Rick’s Christmas party a few months ago. And the perfect non-denominational church you tried out at Easter. Oh . . . and that great DJ from Kimmie Sunandrum’s wedding last year. Yes . . . I remember it all.” “I’m so glad to know you’re actually listening to me when I talk these days,” she ribbed. “You were such a little twerp in high school.” “I know, Ma,” I laughed. “Speaking of high school, guess who I’ve been spending some time with?” “Who?” “Lindsay Miller.” “Lindsay, who?” “Miller. But you might remember her as Lindsay Nabours.” “Oh! Little Lindsay Nabours?” she asked excitedly. “How is she? Is she still single? I always wanted you to date that girl!” “Gross. That would be like dating my sister.” She scoffed. “Besides, she’s married and has a five-yearold daughter.” “She does? Oh, that’s wonderful! When did you see her?” “I’ve seen her a couple times, actually,” I told her. “She hasn’t changed a bit. Still her same sarcastic, witty self. And her daughter is exactly the same. It’s hilarious.” “I’m so glad.” I paused for a second. I had always been close to my mom, but I was nervous about broaching the next

topic. “Hey Ma, can I ask you a question about when dad died?” She paused. “Well, that’s kind of unexpected. But sure, sweetie. You can ask me anything about him.” “Maybe it’s less about him and more about you.” “Okay,” she said. “Is everything ok?” “Yeah . . . I’m just wondering about some things.” I ran my hand over the top of my head, a little nervous about starting the conversation. “How come you didn’t date much after dad died?” “Well, there are a couple reasons,” she started. “The big one is I just didn’t find anyone all that interesting until Rick came along. I went on a date here or there, but that was about it.” “Were you ever worried about, ya know, me getting too attached to someone or anything like that?” “Um, I think it may have crossed my mind,” she said. “But honestly, I don’t think I was interested enough in anyone to actually worry about it. Can I ask where these questions are coming from?” “Ummmmm,” I tried dragging out my answer until I could come up with something good. She wasn’t having it. “Don’t ‘ummmmm’ me, Jason Hart,” she reprimanded. “What’s up?” I sighed. “I think I met someone.” “Ok,” she said. “I’m remaining calm because I think there may be more to this story and I don’t wanna get my hopes up for grandbabies.” I snickered. “Her husband died in a car accident about six months ago.” “Oh, Jay,” she breathed. “I know, but there are some seriously different circumstances than when dad died. At least I hope they are,” I muttered. “Ok.” “And she has a seven-year-old son.” “Ah. Now I’m starting to see. And she’s concerned about her son getting attached to you.”

“It’s a little more complicated than that, but basically, yeah.” “Well, let me ask you a question,” she said. “How did you feel when I went out on dates?” I had to think about the answer. I really wasn’t sure. But as I thought, I realized it never really fazed me at all. I didn’t want anyone to replace my dad. But I never really thought too much about it when my mom went out. Even when I was old enough to realize what dates actually entail. “I think,” she continued, “she probably likes you a lot more than she expected. And she’s probably scared of getting hurt.” “What does that have to do with Jaxon?” “Oh, you know his name,” she said. I just smiled. I didn’t have enough time to get into the rest of the story. “Sounds like you’re leaving some things out. But we’ll talk about that later. Anyway, as a mother, there is nothing you worry about more than your child. Nothing. Not your job, not your health, not your own love life. Do you already know this little boy pretty well?” “Yeah, I do,” I admitted. “Then it sounds like her concern is not whether or not she’s interested in you. It’s whether or not you’re going to stay interested in him if it doesn’t work out with her.” I took a deep breath. “Ma, have I ever told you what a genius you are?” She laughed. “Never. I think you should say it again.” “You’re a genius!” I said with a smile. “Thanks for the chat, Mom, but I’m almost at the gym and I have one more phone call to make.” “Ok. I’ll go wake Rick up and have him take me to breakfast. Jet lag doesn’t seem to affect him at all. Lucky bastard.” I chuckled. “Do you have a game tonight, honey? We’ve been gone for so long, I can’t remember your schedule.” “Yeah. Kickoff is at seven-thirty. Do you want tickets? I can leave my regular seats at will call.”

“Oh no,” she said. “Not this time. By seven tonight, I’ll feel like I should have been asleep for several hours.” “Yeah, maybe you should get over the jet lag first,” I agreed. “Well, enjoy your breakfast. Make him take you somewhere nice.” “I will. Oh! One more thing,” she said. “This girl you’ve met?” “Addison, yeah.” “She’s not one of those football groupies, is she?” I laughed. “Mom, I don’t think Addison could tell the different between a tackle and a high school wrestling match.” “Good,” she said. “I like her already!” “Me too. I’ll talk to you soon.” “Ok sweetie. Have a nice workout and good luck tonight. I love you.” “Love you, too, ma.” I hung up and immediately pressed the hands-free button on my steering wheel again. “Jason’s phone,” it said. “Call Adam.” “Calling Adam.” He finally answered after three rings, sounding groggy. I knew I was gonna wake him up, but I didn’t care. He made a good enough salary to answer an early morning call every once in a while. “Jason? What’s up? Is everything ok?” he asked. “Yeah. Quick question.” “At five-forty-five in the morning I’m not sure my brain is working quick, but hit me,” he said with a yawn. “Didn’t you say Santana was gonna be in town this week some time?” I asked as I pulled into the parking lot. “Uh, hold on . . . yeah, I think they’re coming in town Thursday. It’s at Southside Ballroom if I remember correctly.” “Perfect. Do you think you could get me two tickets to that? I need it set up with security, too, so we can slip in the back door and kind of stay hidden

from the crowd.” “I don’t see why that should be a problem,” he answered, sounding more awake now. “You want to have dinner before the show?” “Check on what time it starts and if there’s an opening act first. It’s gonna take about forty minutes to get there so we may not have time to eat until afterwards.” “Ok,” he said. I could hear his pen scribbling in the background. “I’ll check and make reservations somewhere good for either before or after the show, depending on the times. You got a hot date or something?” I pulled into my parking space and put the gear into park. “I’m not sure yet. Keep your fingers crossed. Gotta go. I’m hitting the weights.” “Later,” he said and the hands-free set beeped as it disconnected. Before I got out of the car, I grabbed my phone and sent a text. Me: Heading into practice but I’m giving you a heads up. I’m calling you after the game tonight about something important. We need to talk. I spent the next fourteen hours concentrating on my job. Weights, running plays on the field, lunch with the coach, interviews, game. One of the nice things about being a guy is I can compartmentalize my brain, so I didn’t think about my pending phone call much. Don’t get me wrong, Addison was never far from my brain. And she snuck in easily during some down time. No one caught on that anything was different with me. No one except Deuce, that is. I finished showering after weight training when he approached me at the lockers and quietly chided me . . . grabbing his nuts and making a lewd gesture while saying, “She’s got you by the balls man! I can see it!” I smacked him in the junk for that. Not hard, but hard enough that he crouched over, holding himself and said, “Don’t mess with my baby-makers,” without taking a breath.

The game was the easiest part of the day. There’s a lot of distraction and virtually no down time. There were always plays to review, fans waving things around, and of course tackling people. And we did it well. More than well. Blew out the Texans, 31-21. It was ugly. Well, not for me. For me it was awesome. But once the game was over, there wasn’t much else for me to do except think about what I was going to say. I knew Jaxon would be asleep by the time I got home. But that last hour or so before I could get out of the stadium, past all the reporters and fans, were a killer. I didn’t have a choice, though. I needed to wait until we had no interruptions before having this conversation. Before I knew it, I was home and it was late enough that I could call. I sat down on the couch, took a deep breath and dialed. “I was starting to wonder if you ditched me,” she said when she picked up the phone. I smiled at the sound of her voice. “Nah. I had a game so I didn’t get home until just now. And I wanted to make sure Jax was in bed before I took all your attention away.” “That was really nice of you. It was a good game.” “You guys watched it?” I asked, surprised. “You think Jaxon would miss it?” she joked. “Yeah . . . I guess he is the world’s biggest fan.” We both paused for a few seconds. I was trying to get my nerves a little more under control. “So, I wanted to talk to you a little more about our conversation last night.” “Jason,” she started, sounding like she was pleading. “There’s nothing else to talk about.” “Just hear me out, please?” She sighed. “Ok. I’m listening.” I smiled. This was my chance. “I know you’re worried about Jaxon. I know you’re worried because he and I are getting close and you’re afraid if you and I don’t work out, he’ll be the one to suffer. Am I right?” “That’s exactly it,” she confirmed. “It doesn’t

matter how attractive I find you. My first priority is my son. Over everything else.” “I get that,” I said. “Because I was Jaxon. I was exactly where he’s at right now. My father was gone and I was left with just my mom. I’m so glad my Uncle Davis stepped in and took on that father figure role. But if he had left or changed his mind, I would have been devastated.” I stopped for a minute and let that sink in while carefully coming up with my next words. “Addison,” I said gently, “I’m not the guy who is gonna change his mind. I can’t guarantee that you and I will work out. Hell, maybe we’ll go on one date and decide we hate each other.” She snickered softly. “But meeting Jaxon first means something. My friendship with him doesn’t have anything to do with whatever is going on between me and you.” “Jason,” she said quietly, “If you and I don’t work out . . . I just . . . I can’t watch him lose another man he idolizes. I just can’t.” “I don’t want to see that either,” I said. “So I have an idea.” “Ok,” she said. “Still listening.” “What if we keep the two relationships separate?” I asked hopefully. I knew this was a good idea. I just had to convince Addison it was. “How?” “Easy. When you and I go on dates, he doesn’t know. We either meet up, or I don’t come to the door, or whatever. I still have my one-on-one time with Jax, that won’t change,” I stood up and started pacing the room. I was talking fast, but I couldn’t seem to slow down. “And when I call, I’m either calling for Jaxon or for you, not both. If I talk to him, when I’m done, I hang up and call you later when you’re not busy. We don’t lie to him. If he asks, we tell him the truth. But we don’t make it out to be this big deal. We just kind of . . . downplay it in front of him. Until we both feel confident in where this is headed.” I stopped walking and held my breath.

“I . . . ,” she stammered, “I . . . I’m just so scared, Jason.” “I know,” I said, dropping back down onto the couch. “I’m kind of scared, too.” “What are you afraid of?” “Well,” I said, rubbing my hand across my head, “If we try this and it doesn’t work, not only do I lose you, I run the risk of losing him, too.” I paused, holding my breath, waiting for her to say something. Anything. “That was one of the sexiest things I’ve ever heard a man say,” she said. I started laughing. “Well thank you. I wasn’t going for sexy, though. I was going for honesty, I promise.” “I know,” she said. “What do we do if there are things that overlap?” “Like what?” “I don’t know, like recitals or plays or something?” “What, are you putting him in ballet or something girly like that?” I asked. “You’re not gonna make him wear a tutu or anything, right? I mean. . . unless he wants to wear a tutu. Then I’ll, uh, be totally on board.” “Shut up,” she said jokingly. “I’m just throwing out examples. I can’t think of anything right now.” “I think we just take it as it comes. We do our best to not go on ‘family dates’ or whatever you want to call them. But I’m not gonna tell you not to come to Emma’s next birthday party or something. We can make decisions on a case-by-case basis.” She took a deep breath. “I think,” she said, “If you can promise me, guarantee Jaxon won’t be affected by fluctuations in our . . . ‘relationship’, or whatever it’s called . . . I think I might like to go out on a date with you.” A wide smile crossed my face. “Really?” I asked. I had heard her just fine. I just wanted to give her one last chance to back out of it. “Really,” she said, sounding much more confident

than she had even a few seconds before. I punched my fist in the air in victory quietly so she wouldn’t hear and flopped back on the couch. “Good. Because I actually have tickets to see Santana on Thursday night and I was hoping you’d go with me.” “How did you know I liked Santana?” she asked. “I didn’t,” I said. “But that man is a legacy. We can’t miss seeing him while he’s in town! Who knows how many shows he has left?” “That sounds fun. But,” she said. My heart dropped when I heard that last word. “I mean, I’m a little worried about going out in public with you. You know how I feel about having the spotlight on us right now.” I relaxed when I heard her concerns. Adam had already taken care of that for me. “Don’t even worry about that. My manager always contacts security when I go to things like this. They already have it planned for us to slide on in through the back door and sit in a more secluded area. I can’t guarantee no one will recognize me, but it cuts down a lot on being seen.” “Wow. You’ve got it all worked out, don’t you,” she said. I smiled. “I’ve done this once or twice before. I’ve learned how to be stealth.” “Well, in that case,” she said, “let’s do it.” I couldn’t stop smiling as we worked out the details. In the course of a few short weeks, what I thought could be the perfect woman had fallen into my lap and now she had finally agreed to go out with me. It was time to put aside my self-imposed bachelorhood and see where this was about to go.

Three days isn’t really a long period of time, but waiting three days for my first date with Addison seemed a lot longer. I felt like such a pansy, but I was really excited about spending some time alone with her. When I thought about it, we really had only seen each other a couple times. The most time we’d spent talking was on the phone and by text. Except at Jaxon’s birthday party. I really, really hoped I could get a repeat of that kiss. Minus her freaking out, of course. I decided to get a car and driver for the night. It would be a heck of a lot easier for a driver to drop us off in the back of the venue than it would for me to try to figure out where to park. Plus, the driver could go to the door to pick her up, meaning neither Jaxon nor the babysitter would see me. As a bonus, I could stare at Addison the whole drive there without crashing the car. I gave the driver final directions through the neighborhood. When we pulled up in front of her house and he got out, I started feeling my stomach get that nervous excitement. It was the same feeling I got before every game. Learning how to channel it had made me a better player. I had no idea how to channel it for a date. I’d never been nervous on a date before. I watched as the door opened and Addison walked out. Damn, she was beautiful. She was wearing a red sleeveless shirt that scooped down in the front, not too low, and had some lacy shit on the back. On

bottom was a fitted black skirt that stopped just above her knee. And some black sandals. I think they were called wedges. The skirt combined with shoes highlighted those thick, curvy legs. Those sexy, sexy legs. I was in so much trouble. “Hey, Jason,” she said as she climbed in the back with me. “Nice ride. Trying to make a good impression on me?” “Always,” I laughed. “But actually, I figured we’d probably have a few drinks tonight and I would rather not try to hail a cab in downtown Dallas after the concert.” “Ah, smart man,” she said, smiling at me. That smile took my breath away once again. I smiled back. “So, what did you tell Jaxon, anyway?” I asked. “Since we’re being stealth and all, I wanna make sure we have our stories straight.” “Actually, I didn’t tell him much. He’s still at that self-absorbed age where he doesn’t really notice what’s going on in my life. As long as I’m still making his dinner and giving him lots of love, he doesn’t really pay attention to what happens around me.” “Well, that makes it easy.” “Sorry,” she said, patting my leg. “I know how much you were looking forward to being stealth.” I really wanted to hold her hand and keep it on my leg. But it took three weeks to get a date. That’s three weeks longer than I’ve ever waited before. I didn’t want to mess it up. “He keeps asking me when he’s going swimming at your house again,” she added. “So be prepared. You’ll probably be getting a phone call from him soon.” “He can call me any time,” I said. “We had so much fun that day. He wore me out.” “He’ll do that to ya.” “You know,” I started reaching my arm around the back of the seat. Yeah, it was an eighth grade move

but I didn’t care. “You could always come with us next time.” She looked at me like she knew what I was up to. “Jason, that’s not exactly keeping things separate.” “I know, I know,” I conceded. “You can’t blame me for trying. I think you’d have fun. Plus, it would be nice to have a female buffer from Danielle.” I made a face when I said her name. “Have you seen her since then?” she asked nonchalantly. I was glad the topic didn’t piss her off this time. “I ran into her once in the lobby. She was with her husband, who is apparently in town for a couple weeks. I wanted to hug the man for being there to keep her off the rest of us.” Addison giggled. “Is she really that bad?” I looked at her with wide eyes. “Worse. She picks out the rich guys to target. That’s the only way I can describe it. Doesn’t matter if they’re married or single.” “Seriously? Ugh. I hate women like that,” Addison remarked with a grimace. “I know. Me too,” I answered. “One of the married guys in our building ended up having an affair with her. It was awful. Not only did she seduce him into the affair, or so he claims, but whenever she would run into him in the lobby she would approach him and make remarks about it. Even when he was with his wife.” “What?” “Yeah, I know. So obviously his wife found out and she was pissed. Really pissed. They fought all the time. And not just in their apartment . . . on the balcony, in the hallway, in the community rooms. It didn’t help that Danielle just kept poking the bear,” I said, poking my finger in front of me in imitation. “Every time she saw them. It got so bad, they were finally kicked out of the complex.” “Ohmygod, that poor wife,” Addison said, fully engaged in the story. “I know. I didn’t feel bad for Jim - that’s the

husband - at first, because, well, he made his bed. But after watching Danielle just continually try to make his life a living hell, even when he was trying to rectify what he had done,” I shook my head, “it just showed me that she wasn’t out for companionship or just a little fun. She was truly out to just play with someone’s life. And when she set her sights on him, the poor bastard didn’t stand a chance.” “Women like that really piss me off,” Addison said, her eyes narrowed as she stared straight ahead. “You know I called the woman Austin was having an affair with?” “You did?” I asked. For a second I felt bad I had brought up Danielle’s prowess around the complex, but I quickly realized Addison wasn’t all that fazed by the topic. I’m not sure if I was relieved or pissed that she dealt with her douchebag of a dead husband for so long that talking about marital affairs with me didn’t bother her. “Yep. I called her, introduced myself and let her know I was aware she was sleeping with my husband. You know what that bitch said to me?” she asked, looking me in the eyes. I shook my head. “She had the nerve to say, ‘Well if you kept him happier at home, he wouldn’t be coming to me.’” My jaw dropped open. “She actually said that?” “Oh yeah,” she shook her head. “Here I was, thinking I was being nice by letting her know that he didn’t just screw me over. He screwed her over, too. But karma ended up biting her in the ass in the end.” “How so?” “See, that’s the funny thing about a mistress. They think they have all the benefits that the married woman doesn’t have. But they’re wrong,” her lips quirked in a slightly menacing smile. “When Austin died, we were in marriage counseling, but we weren’t even legally separated. So as much as the entire situation sucked, after the shock wore off and the funeral was over, I got all the life insurance money and she got . . .” “Nothing,” I answered for her.

“Not even recognition that she had been part of his life for almost three years,” she continued. “At that point, I was so pissed off at her and Austin both, I made sure she wasn’t allowed access into the funeral home. She didn’t get to come to the wake or the funeral to say goodbye. “Wow,” I said with a smile. “I didn’t know you had it in you to be such a bitch.” “I’ve got no sympathy. If you’ve been duped into an affair without knowing a man is married, I can feel for you. But if you knowingly have an affair with a married man, you deserve what you get. Especially after you’ve been caught and have a chance to make it right,” she said with a wave of her hand like the woman was right here and she was dismissing her. “Anyway, this is depressing. Let’s talk about something else. When did your mom get remarried?” I smiled at her change of topic. “Only a couple of years ago, actually.” “Really?” she asked, her eyebrows raised. “That recently?” “Yeah, I asked her about that, actually,” I said, looking out the front window as we made our way down the highway. “She said she just never met anyone that interested her until Rick came along.” “Wow,” Addison said. “What’s Rick like?” I looked back over at her. “He writes fiction books of some sort. I guess he’s got some best sellers on the New York Times list, or something like that. I don’t read a lot, so I don’t know much about it.” “So he’s famous,” she added. “Yeah. It was kind of funny the first time I met him. I’m always really leery when I meet people because I just don’t know what people’s intentions are, and if you’re involved with my mom, I’m especially careful,” I shrugged. “Turns out, he has the same problem. Book nerds can apparently get pretty crazy. But he’s a good guy. I’m glad she found him.” We talked more about our families as we drove. I found out that she has a sister and two nieces who live in Kansas near her parents. She found out about my

unnatural obsession with the show “Outlander”, despite it being a “chick show.” I found out she’d been in two fistfights in her life, more than me . . . one over a box of Girl Scout cookies she and another little girl both claimed to have sold. The other when she broke an exboyfriend’s nose after he dumped her at prom. She found out I’d only been in one fistfight . . . in sixth grade when Darrin Schneider called Lindsay a brace face and made her cry. We never seemed to run out of topics and the conversation was really easy. She only looked at her phone one time and it was when she thought she felt it vibrate and was worried it was Jaxon. It wasn’t. We got to Southside Ballroom at eight-oh-five on the dot. We timed it so most everyone would already be in their seats. Musicians always ran late, so I wasn’t worried about missing much of the show. Once security verified that we were in the right place and gave us some VIP lanyards to wear so we didn’t run into any trouble, the driver came around and opened the door for us. When I stepped out, I used the opportunity to grab Addison’s hand and help her out. And then I just kept holding onto her hand. See? Stealth. We followed security inside and only stopped to grab a couple drinks from the VIP bar. By the time we made it to our seats, Santana was on stage and they were well into their first song. Our seats were on the side, right next to the stage, sort of in the area where security hung out watching for über fans. We were hidden from the people around us by a heavy black curtain. I guess we were sitting in private seats the venue had put together just for us. The people across the way could see us if they looked. But for the most part, no one was looking anywhere but the stage. Carlos Santana and his band rocked the stage for over two hours without stopping. It was incredible. Especially when you take his age into consideration. He could still totally jam. Addison and I danced and

sang, but sometimes we sat and just held hands, enjoying the show. It was fantastic. There’s just something about a rock star that gives away guitar picks while he’s playing and accepts gifts from fans during the show that made him so much cooler than just a guy who plays guitar on stage. He was a fan of his fans. It was the kind of guy I wanted to be to my fans. We didn’t jump up to leave as soon as the show was over. Instead, we sat and watched the roadies tear down and drunken people file through the doors. “Did you have a good time?” I asked. I hoped I wasn’t yelling even though my ears were still ringing. “I did,” she said, looking at me with the giant smile I liked so much. “Can you believe he actually stopped the show to have everyone sing happy birthday to his singer?” “I know,” I agreed. “I’ve been to a lot of concerts but I have never seen one where a birthday cake, complete with lit candles was brought on stage.” She continued to smile as she looked around. “Oh, look!” she said, pointing to the front of the stage. “All the musicians are signing autographs now! How cool is that?” I watched her as she continued enjoying everything going on around us. She was so easy to be with. So easy to talk to. Never had I thought I would be taking a girl on a date to something other than a charity function during the season. Never. I wasn’t sure what to make of it quite yet. But I was certainly enjoying myself. After about ten more minutes, she finally said she was ready to go. We made our way back the way we came. We only ran into a few people. A couple of them seemed to recognize me, but no one bothered us. Once we got back into the car, I put my arm around her, not on the back of the seat but actually around her, and pulled her to me. When she snuggled in, I could feel my face break out into a grin. “Can you take us to a Whataburger?” I asked the driver.

“Yes, sir,” he answered, glancing up in the rearview mirror. Addison looked up at me. “Why are we going to Whataburger?” “Adam couldn’t find any decent restaurants that are open this late on a Thursday night,” I explained. “And I am starving. The one bad thing about Dallas is that not a whole lot is open twenty-four hours except for fast food.” She started giggling. “There are a couple things open. Just nothing around this part of Dallas.” “Nothing that can give us any kind of privacy from the public, anyway,” I said and I kissed her on top of her head. We stayed that way until we went through the drive-thru and got our food. Then we broke apart so we could eat on our way. Miraculously, I remembered to order my food without onions. Just in case. When we got to her place, I asked the driver to wait while I walked her to her door. “I had so much fun tonight, Jason,” she said as we walked up the walkway. “I’m so glad I finally agreed to go out with you.” “Me too. I like you, Addison,” I said. “I’d like to take you out again. And again. And again. Until you’re sick of me.” She smiled shyly as she pulled her keys from her small bag. “I’d like that.” I watched as she unlocked the door and pushed it open. “Um, do you wanna come in for just a minute? I get kind of nervous walking into an empty house.” “Empty? Isn’t there a babysitter here with Jaxon?” She smirked and bit her bottom lip like she was nervous. “Um . . . no. School is out tomorrow for a teacher workday or something, so he spent the night at Mick’s house.” My eyebrows raised up. I wasn’t expecting this turn of events. “Uh . . . yeah. Ok. I’ll make sure you get in safely.” “Thanks,” she said and I followed her through the door.

I flipped on a few lights and looked around. Mostly I was wasting time, trying to get those nerves under control. We both knew what the end of a date meant. And we both knew Jaxon being gone changed things a lot. After ensuring there were no monsters in the closets or burglars in the living room, I made my way back to the front room where she was standing. She was looking at me nervously, twisting her fingers in her hands. “How is that cut on your thumb, anyway?” I asked. She looked down at it. “Oh, um, it’s actually a lot better. Just a little line now, see?” She lifted her hand up to show me, and that’s when my nerves made way for resolve. I grabbed her hand and walked toward her quickly, dropping my mouth to hers and kissing her with no hesitation. When her hands came up to my shoulders, I knew she wanted it as much as I did. And it didn’t disappoint. Her lips parted and I slipped my tongue inside her mouth. Her tongue was as soft and perfect as I remembered. Her breath still turned me on. She was just . . . perfect. I moved my hands so one was on the back of her neck, the other on the small of her back, pulling her closer. When her arms wrapped around my neck, I swear I felt my knees start to weaken. She was sweet and salty and soft and hard all at once. I really, really wanted to move my hand down to her ass, but I knew I would have a much harder time slowing down if I did. We alternated between kissing slowly and kissing passionately for several minutes. But we never moved away from that front room. I think we both knew what would happen if we did. And she wasn’t ready. I was ready. I mean, damn, she was sucking face with me and Jaxon was gone. Of course I was ready. But I wasn’t going to go there. Not yet. After a few more minutes and a few times of me sucking on her bottom lip, which, by the way, tasted

delicious, I finally pulled back enough to rest my forehead on hers. “I need to go,” I said, my eyes still closed. “Yeah, you do,” she agreed, nodding. “If I don’t go now, I’m never leaving,” I said, not making any movement to let her go. “What if I didn’t want you to leave?” she asked. “Then I’d stay,” I said. “But I think . . . ,” I started, opening my eyes and pulling away just enough to look into hers, “I think deep down, you really don’t want me to stay. It’s too soon.” “And I’d say,” she smirked, “that you are smarter than you look.” I threw my head back and barked out a laugh. “Thanks. That is the nicest thing anyone has said to me all day.” She smiled. So I bent down and kissed her softly one last time. Then I let her go. “I’ll call you tomorrow,” I said as I made my way to the door. “Ok.” “Thanks again for saying yes.” “Thanks again for showing me why I should.” I glanced at her one last time before walking out the door. I smiled the whole drive home. And when I got home. And when I laid in bed. It was official for me. That perfect woman I had not been looking for had indeed fallen right into my lap.

Six a.m. came early the next morning, but I didn’t even feel tired. I was still on a high from my date with Addison. I couldn’t wait to see her again. I just had to figure out where we could go and what we could do. She was so squeamish about the press that I didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. Sure, it was inevitable that we’d eventually be outed, but that doesn’t mean it needed to be any time soon. Deuce asked me all his normal questions during our weight training . . . “Did you stay at her place?” “Did she stay at your place?” “You did get laid, right?” He was disappointed when I told him that no, no one spent the night at anyone’s place and no one got laid on my date. Apparently Vanessa was having some morning sickness now so she wasn’t as frisky as normal, and he was trying to live vicariously through me. I was starting to get curious how he was going to swear off sex for a few weeks after the baby was born. Knowing she would be giving birth when the season was over, I was really curious how he was gonna make it through the off-season with no practices and no sex. God help us all. We headed into practice and started tossing the ball back and forth when Shawn Robinson, one of our wide receivers and a cocky son of a bitch, walked up. “Hey, Hart, I’m surprised to see you so chipper this morning,” he said, tossing another football up in

the air and catching it. “I would have figured you’d be a little low on energy after that hot date last night.” I knew I hadn’t told him about Addison, but it’s not like the locker room had a whole lot of secrets. Still, I played dumb. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” “You really gonna play like none of us know?” he chided. “She’s good-looking, man. Looks like you’re really into her, holding hands and dancing and shit.” I caught the ball and turned to face him. “What the fuck do you know about what I did last night?” I asked, not liking where this conversation was headed. He held his hands up defensively as Deuce came jogging over. “Relax, man. I didn’t do anything. I can’t help that your picture was all over the internet last night.” I looked over at Deuce who just shook his head. “FUCK!” I yelled, spiking the ball on the ground and starting to pace, hands stuck to my hips. I wanted to find out exactly what was being said. What kind of pictures had they gotten? Did they know who Addison was yet? Was she getting phone calls from the media yet? Would she ever speak to me again after this? Before I could even start to process what to do, the coach called us in to huddle up. It was, by far, the longest practice ever. I couldn’t keep my head in the game. I did fine with the drills. They were a no-brainer. But during the scrimmage I missed several easy tackles. I couldn’t compartmentalize my thoughts. And frankly, I was just plain pissed. Everyone knew something was off with me, but no one questioned it. Not even the coaches. They knew my work ethic better than anyone, so I guess they just let it slide this time. When we finally broke for lunch, I raced to the locker room, not bothering to talk to anyone on the way. As soon as I could, I grabbed my phone. Sure enough, I had three missed texts. Lindsay: See? Time is all she needed. And yes, I think it’s a great time to say I told you so.

Mom: Is this the girl you were talking about the other day? She’s very pretty. Have a great day, honey. Love you! Adam: Dude, calm down. I’m on damage control. So far, they don’t know who she is. Call me so I can fill you in. I walked out of the locker room and into the hall, dialing Adam as I went. I didn’t even bother to strip off my pads first. And forget lunch. This needed to be taken care of and it needed to be taken care of now. Thankfully he answered on the first ring. “Relax. It was just a couple pictures and they aren’t all that good anyway,” he said, getting right to the point. “How the fuck did this happen?” I asked. “She’s so skittish with publicity. This isn’t good, Adam.” “It appears our good friend Ms. Gill was there last night.” I groaned. Of course she was. Most of the reporting she did was about the local entertainment scene. “She spotted you and . . . well, you know the rest.” “That’s just fabulous. So what are you saying publicly?” “The usual stuff,” he said, sounding like he was chewing. I may be too wired to eat right now, but Adam never skipped a meal. “Just that you enjoyed the concert with a friend last night and that there is nothing more to report.” “Are they buying that?” I asked, pacing up and down the hall. “I guess so,” he said nonchalantly. “I mean, there’s really nothing to report right now, right? Because if you’re officially off the market, I need to be prepared for a huge onslaught of calls.” I sighed. “No, there’s nothing really to report right now. It was a date. I like her, but it was just a date.” “So stop worrying then. It’ll blow over in a couple days. It always does.” “Yeah,” I said, leaning against the wall. “Thanks Adam.” “No problem,” he said, chewing again. “I’ll let

you know if it looks like we’re in for more.” “Ok. Enjoy your lunch.” “Later.” I knew I needed to make another phone call, but I was wasn’t sure she would even answer. I took a deep breath and dialed. “Hello?” she said softly. “Hey. You ok?” “Yeah. Why?” She sounded surprised by my question. “I just got off the phone with Adam,” I said. “I’m so sorry someone took pictures of us last night.” “Oh. That,” she said. “I know you didn’t do it on purpose. I just don’t see what’s so interesting about watching someone watch a concert.” “Yeah, I gave up trying to figure out the fascination a while ago.” I paused, tapping my fist against the wall. “So, has anyone tried contacting you yet? I mean, Adam said that the media doesn’t seem to know who you are. I just want to make sure you aren’t getting any harassing phone calls or anything.” “No one I didn’t already know. I mean, a few friends have sent me texts. Samantha asked some pretty inappropriate questions, of course.” I chuckled. “And I’ve had more people come talk to me at work than normal. But it hasn’t been too bad.” “Is this, um . . . ,” I stammered. “This isn’t gonna change your mind about going out with me again, is it?” “I thought a lot about it this morning. But I don’t think so.” I exhaled the breath I’d been holding in. “I mean, I don’t really like the idea of my life being on public display or anything. But I guess there could be worse things. And we don’t have to answer any personal questions or anything, right? I smiled. “You never ever have to answer anything you don’t want to answer.” “Besides,” she said, “people will get bored when they don’t catch anything exciting happening.” “Can I at least give you Adam’s number?” I asked. “If you do start getting calls from the media or

anything, he can help you out. Talk you through what to do.” “That’s really sweet of you. Thank you,” she said. I gave her Adam’s number and we spoke for a few more minutes. She reassured me again that this glitch didn’t change the way she felt. When we hung up, I felt a whole lot better. I headed back into the locker room for a quick shower. My appetite was finally coming back. “She ok?” Deuce asked as I walked up to the lockers. He had already dressed after his shower. “Yeah,” I said, still feeling kind of surprised. “She took it really well. I mean, she’s still pretty anonymous, so that helps. I think we’re gonna go out again some time next week. I just have to figure out where.” “Good,” he said, patting my shoulder as he headed toward the door. “I already have one emotional woman to deal with at home. I don’t need to deal with your pansy-ass, too.” I peeled off my sweaty shirt and threw it at him, smiling as I did it.

“Why did you decide on football as a career?” Addison asked me while picking up a rock and trying to skip it in the lake. She failed miserably at it, but it was a solid effort. Addison had a random day off of work a couple weeks after our first date, so I decided to take her on a picnic on the beach at Lake Grapevine. It wasn’t a swimming adventure. It was too cold for that, but hanging out near the water in the middle of October made for a really nice day. “I’m not sure I really chose it as much as it chose me,” I replied, picking up my own rock and chucking it. “When I started playing in sixth grade, I just liked it. It wasn’t until high school that I realized I could get a scholarship to college. Once I got to college, my coaches kept telling me I was shooting for the pros. So here I am.” “Your mom must be really proud of you,” she remarked, taking her shoes and socks off. “Are you gonna stick your feet in that cold water?” I asked. She smiled at me. “Of course! It’s a beautiful day! The water won’t be that cold.” She shoved her socks inside her shoes and dropped them on the sand before heading toward the water. “Are you coming?” she asked me over her shoulder. I really didn’t want to, but what could I do? Addison wanted to put her feet in the water, so I was

taking off my shoes because we were going to put our feet in the water. “It feels good,” she called toward me, already in ankle deep. “Come on!” I shook my head and grinned as I headed toward the water. “Aren’t you in a little bit too deep? What if there’s an alligator or something?” I asked as I stepped in. “Holy mother of all that is holy! That is cold!” “It’s not that cold,” she said with amusement. “I think you’re just more worried about the alligators.” “Are there really alligators in this lake?” I asked nervously. “Did you see one?” She looked at me . . . and started laughing. “You’re not really afraid of alligators.” “Don’t judge me,” I answered seriously. “Alligators kill people. I like being alive.” “You’re right,” she said, holding her hands up in front of her. “I shouldn’t make fun of your totally irrational fear.” “Thank you for your sincerity,” I said sarcastically. We continued walking in the surf and talking, enjoying each other’s company. “What about you?” I asked. “What made you decide on social work?” She picked a small twig up out of the water. It still had a few leaves on it, so she started ripping them off mindlessly as she spoke. “Um, I think it was always a no-brainer for me to take that career path.” “How come?” “Ever since I was little, it’s what my mom would do. She doesn’t have a degree in it or anything. But there’s not a person or creature out there my mom wouldn’t help if they needed it.” I stuck my hands in my pockets and looked at her as she spoke. “I remember after my dad’s company had bought out a smaller one, all of these people started being transferred to Kansas City, where we lived. They

weren’t given a whole lot of time to find housing. So my parents would just bring them in and they’d live in our basement while they got themselves settled in town.” “Really?” I asked. “Complete strangers?” “They were strangers to me. But now that you say that, my dad probably knew them at least a little bit from work. One time, an entire family lived with us for about three months. The girl was my age. It was kind of cool having a live-in playmate.” She shrugged. “That’s just the way I was raised, ya know? If you have extra and someone needs help to get on their feet, you give that extra to them. Social work just seemed like a natural fit, I guess.” “Wow,” I said, eyeing what I hoped was a piece of floating wood that had caught my eye. It made me nervous, but it was just a log. I was sure it was just a log. “Your parents sound pretty amazing.” “Oh, they are,” she agreed. “They are just about the only thing I miss about Kansas. And my sister and her family, of course.” “Of course,” I said, smiling at her. “Did you like your job?” She thought for a second before answering. “I did. But the hard thing about social work is that a lot of people are perfectly content being in the ‘system,’” she said, making air-quotes. “It’s hard not to become jaded when seventy-five percent of your clients don’t really want to make a better life for themselves and their children. You know, as a fresh college-grad, I was out to change the world. Then I found out, it’s not that easy to do.” “Then why did you do it?” “Honestly,” she said with a wistful smile, “for the other twenty-five percent. My favorite clients were those ones that had been knocked down, but refused to give up. Seeing the pride on their faces when they could come to me and say, ‘Thank you for your help, but we’re back on track and don’t need you anymore.’ That was the best feeling in the world.” We stopped walking and turned toward the lake,

just watching the ripples in the water. “So why don’t you do that part anymore?” I asked, genuinely curious why she wanted to be in the background at her job now instead of on the front lines. She sighed. “I got knocked down. I found out that it’s not as easy to get back up as I thought.” I gazed down at her as she got lost in her thoughts. I hoped I could help her get back up. She had so much love and kindness to give. I wanted her to find her way back to it. “I’m getting kind of hungry,” I said, snapping us out of the moment. “Wanna head back toward our picnic?” “Sure,” she said, smiling up at me. “Are you still close with that family?” I asked as we walked back the way we came. “The one that lived with you?” “Oh yeah! Tracy is my best friend.” “Wait, did I meet her at Jaxon’s birthday party?” I asked, trying to remember meeting someone with that name. “No, she lives in Nebraska with her husband, Aaron,” she said. “Their son Ryder is about Jaxon’s age. A little younger. I haven’t seen her in, gosh, probably a year. But we still talk on the phone every day.” “Really,” I said with amusement in my voice. “What do you guys talk about? Do you talk about this hot guy you’re seeing?” She smirked. “I don’t know. What do you and Deuce talk about every day?” I snorted. “Don’t even compare Deuce with a normal best friend. I love the guy and all, but Deuce is not normal.” She laughed. I, on the other hand, started growing nervous again as we started getting closer to that damn floating log. Addison didn’t seem to notice my mood change. “How can you say that about your best friend?” she asked and then stopped as her eye caught the

attention of something. “Hey, what’s this?” She bent down to pick something up out of the water before she jumped back and started screaming, “Alligator!” “WHERE? WHERE IS IT?” I yelled as I darted for the safety of the sand. Then I looked up and saw Addison laughing. No, not laughing. Full on holding her stomach, no sound coming out of her mouth, roaring with laughter. “What’s so funny?” I asked with my eyes narrowed on hers. “Ohmygod,” she finally said, trying to catch her breath. “You really are afraid of alligators!” At this point, tears were streaming down her face. “I thought you were, you know, afraid of them. But I had no idea you would run screaming like a little girl and leave me behind to be eaten!” “You did that on purpose,” I said, finally catching on to her little joke. She nodded and started laughing again. “Oh you are gonna be sooooo sorry you did that,” I said with a menacing tone and started walking toward her. She immediately perked up. “What are you doing, Jason?” she asked nervously and started walking backwards toward the picnic blanket, never taking her eyes off of me. I stalked toward her until she turned around and started running, screaming with laughter. It took me no time to catch her, but I didn’t have a plan on what I’d do when I caught her so I just grabbed her and spun her around once before putting her back down. I kept my arms around her, though. “That wasn’t funny,” I said as I kissed the top of her head. “Oh it was so funny,” she answered, still catching her breath. We walked back over to the blanket and plopped down. Very quickly, we learned that sand and food don’t mix. Our sandwiches weren’t edible by the time the wind kicked up a notch. I also realized something very important.

With her humor, her heart, her kindness - Addison was, in fact, my perfect woman. And she was making it really easy to fall in love with her.

Over the next few weeks, my life consisted of three major things . . . football, Addison and Jaxon. I had no idea how the two of them became constants in my life so quickly, especially since Addison was determined to keep the relationships separate, but they did. Addison and I went out several more times. The longer we dated without her name making it into the papers, the more confident I felt that when it finally did, she’d be ready. I still tried to keep our relationship low-key. But there are so many things to do in Dallas, I needed Adam to help us stay behind the scenes a little bit. The Texas Rangers were having a pretty good year so we were able to get a private box for one of the Divisional Playoff games. It was fun. Deuce and Vanessa met us there and we all enjoyed talking probably more than we enjoyed watching the game. Addison and Vanessa talked all about Vanessa’s pregnancy and even Jaxon’s birth. The look on Deuce’s face during that conversation was priceless. I made sure Vanessa knew she needed to take pictures in the delivery room. Not of the baby, but of Deuce’s reaction. I was wagering that he was going to pass out at some point. Another time, Deuce and I rented out a private dining room at Abacus. It was fun seeing Addison get all dolled up and in a nice, fitted, sexy dress. It’s a

good thing Deuce and Vanessa were there because I was seriously having trouble keeping my hands off of my date. I couldn’t help it. Heels show off those legs. Every date got better, but it always ended the same way . . . with me kissing the hell out of her in her front room, trying to stay quiet so Jaxon didn’t wake up. And trying even harder to keep my hands in appropriate locations, knowing if they traveled south, I wasn’t leaving. I took a lot of cold showers. That part sucked. But I knew it would be worth it in the end. Jaxon, on the other hand, came to all my home games with Mick. If I was out of town, he’d call me as soon as the game was over. Talking to him was, if nothing else, entertaining. I thought he could talk a lot about past football games. That was nothing compared to his short-term memory. And it appeared my little buddy was not just a fair-weather fan. He was the real deal. Even when we got pummeled in St. Louis. . . 27 – 10. I would like to blame the sucky weather we had during that game. But the truth of it was, I was off my game. I missed several key tackles that kept letting the Rams get the first down. I have no idea why and I probably never will. It’s just one of those things that happen sometimes. And it sucked. The locker room was relatively quiet after that game. No one really has much to say after a loss. I picked up my phone and saw that I had a message. It was kind of unusual. Everyone who had my phone number knew I was on the field. Hell, they were probably watching. So it concerned me a bit that whatever was going on was important enough to leave a message. I didn’t bother stripping my uniform off before typing in my password to get the voicemail. “Hi Jason! It’s Jaxon. My mom and I were watching the game and it was AWESOME! When you jumped up and knocked that ball out of the way . . . you blocked the extra point! It was so cool! So, my mom says I can’t stay on the phone, but I wanted to

tell you I watched it wearing my jersey and my mom even let me have a hot dog because Pee-paw gets them for me at the stadium so we needed to eat them when we watch TV games, too . . . I’ll see you at the next game! I love you! Bye!” Leave it to my little buddy to not see all the missed tackles, but to see the one bright side of my game tonight. Is it possible to fall in love with a kid? Not in a creepy way. But in a he-is-so-awesome kind of way? Because I did with that voicemail. That was it. If there was a question about me ever losing interest in him, the answer was, “Not gonna happen.” I showered, did my required interviews and sat down next to Deuce on the bus that was taking us back to the airport. Once settled in, I was finally able to call Addison. “Hello,” she said in a groggy voice. “I didn’t wake you, did I?” I asked, suddenly realizing it was after eleven in Texas. She yawned. “I was just dozing off a little. I didn’t want to miss your phone call.” “I missed Jaxon, though, didn’t I?” She laughed softly. “Honey, he’s been in bed for hours. He jumped up and down so much during the game, I’m almost surprised he didn’t pass out earlier than he did.” “I wish he would have fallen asleep during the game,” I said, still feeling the sting of our loss. “It was a terrible game.” “It wasn’t that bad,” she said. “You only missed a few tackles.” “Addison Bryant,” I exclaimed with a grin on my face, “don’t tell me you’re learning how to follow a football game!” She snorted. “I kind of have to. You see, there’s this really hot guy I know who plays defense. I figured I needed to know exactly what that meant if I was gonna keep him around for a while.” “Well, I’m impressed,” I joked. “I think I need to get you a cheerleader costume for Halloween now that you’re such a fan.”

“I am not wearing that tiny little outfit when I take my son trick-or-treating,” she argued. “Halloween is scary enough without me showing off all that skin!” “Hey now,” I said sternly while watching St. Louis pass by out the window of the bus, “don’t talk about my woman that way. I happen to think she’s kind of hot.” “You’re sweet,” she said through a smile. “Speaking of Halloween, you’re still coming trick-ortreating with us next week, aren’t you? “Of course,” I said. “This is the first time in years I get to go begging for candy without people looking at me funny.” “You are so weird,” she said without missing a beat. “I asked Jax what he wants to dress up as. You’ll never guess what he decided.” “Ummmmmm, a ninja,” I guessed. “What? No.” “Hey, you told me to guess, so I did,” I argued. “Let me try again.” “Fine. Try again.” “Ok. A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.” “Jason,” she laughed, “that’s still a ninja.” “It is not! It’s a hero in a half shell!” “Ohmygod,” she said, belly-laughing now. “You’re such a dork!” I smiled. “Yeah, but that’s why you love me.” She stopped laughing abruptly. The silence lasted for quite a few seconds. “Um, that’s . . . uh . . . ,” I stammered. “Jason,” she said. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just make this a very awkward conversation. Because I know what you meant.” I exhaled. “Thanks. That was . . . sorry about that.” “Stop worrying about it. Besides, we have more important things to discuss. Jaxon wants to be you for Halloween.” “Me?” I asked incredulously. “Did you really forget that you are his hero?” she asked me. “No, I mean, I knew that,” I answered. “I guess I

just assumed he knew me well enough now to kind of be, I don’t know . . . over it, I guess.” “Oh, Jason,” she laughed, “how many times did you meet Emmett Smith as a kid and how many times did you dress up as him for Halloween?” “Good point,” I conceded. “But now that I know that he wants to be me, can I please get his costume? I can get little football pants and a little helmet. Oh! And I can get us costumes, too! I know exactly what to do!” “I’m not wearing a cheerleader outfit,” she reminded me. “Not even once we get back from trick-ortreating?” I asked playfully. “Just for me?” “Uh, no,” she said. I sighed loudly. “Ok fine. But I’ve got another idea. Can you trust me to get us the perfect costumes that will keep me incognito on the street?” “I suppose,” she agreed hesitantly. “But this is your one chance, Hart. Don’t screw it up.” “Yes, ma’am,” I said. “I promise you’ll love it.” “Whatever you say.” As our conversation came to a close, the bus came rumbling to a stop. “We just rolled up to the airport, baby,” I said. “I’ve gotta go.” “Ok,” she said with another yawn. “Call me tomorrow. Fly safe.” “Thanks, babe. Sleep well.” With that, she was gone. And I had some planning to do.

I had barely finished knocking when the door flew open and Jaxon was hugging me tight. “Jason! You’re here!” he yelled. “You did so good at the game on Sunday. You hit that ball so hard! And when Deuce knocked that guy down and he got a flag for it I was so mad! He didn’t do anything wrong! I

saw the replay! Are you going trick-or-treating with me?” I looked over at Addison who was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and a smirk on her face. “Did you give him a bunch of candy already?” I asked her, wondering how he could be even more hyper than normal. “I didn’t,” she said. “But I am assuming the school did. He came home like this.” “Hmm . . . ,” I said, looking Jaxon in the eye. “Let’s see . . . thank you for the compliment. I agree Deuce got screwwww . . . shafted. And yes, as soon as we’re all dressed we’re going trick-or-treating.” He wiggled down to the floor and started jumping up and down. “Did you bring my costume? Did you bring me a helmet?” I picked up one of the bags that was still sitting on the front porch. “It’s all in here,” I said, handing it to him as he continued to jump. “Go put it on so we can get ready to go.” “Ok!” he yelled and took off down the hallway. When I heard him banging things around his room, I stalked over to Addison and backed her against the wall, pressing my whole body to hers and kissing her with everything in me. She reciprocated for a really amazing few seconds before pushing me away. “He got really quiet in there, Jason,” she said, still catching her breath. “That means he’s gonna come tearing around that corner any minute.” “That little stinker is ruining all my fun,” I joked, walking back over to the door to grab the remaining bags. Sure enough, he came racing into the room before I even got to the doorway. “Why aren’t you ready to go yet?” he asked excitedly, his helmet leaning to one side, just slightly too big for him. “What were you doing while I was getting dressed?” “We were talking about a game plan for tonight,” I said, winking over my shoulder. Addison rolled her eyes and smiled.

“Why do we need a game plan?” he asked. “Well, we want to get the most candy we can, right?” I said with a smile. He nodded. “Then we need a game plan of all the best houses with all the best candy. We have to maximize our trick-or-treating.” “Ok!” he agreed. “Oh! I need our pillowcases! Mom let me decorate some for tonight!” And off he ran again. I looked at Addison. “We’re gonna have to keep him on a leash tonight.” “Probably,” she agreed. “Ok, I’m dying to see what my costume is. It better be good.” I handed her a bag with a smile. “Don’t look until you get to your room and have the door closed,” I said. “I’m gonna change in the hall bathroom.” She narrowed her eyes and cocked her head, obviously trying to read my expression. “Ok,” she finally said. “I’ll be back in a few.” She turned around and walked back to her bedroom while I headed to the half bath. It took me more than a few minutes to get my costume on. I could hear Addison trying to keep Jaxon from climbing the walls while they waited for me. But it’s not easy getting this big body in form-fitting costumes and makeup. Once I was finally done, I opened the door to see Addison waiting for the big reveal. I guess Jaxon had taken off somewhere. As soon as she spotted me, she threw her head back and laughed a giant belly laugh. “A banana?” she asked between breaths. “You’re going as a banana?” “It’s symbolic. It’s because I’m bananas for you, baby,” I said, waggling my eyebrows up and down. “You’re making me go as a monkey and you’re a banana?” she asked, still laughing. “Cause we belong together,” I said, still playing it up. “No,” she argued. “It’s because you’re gonna make all kinds of inappropriate comments to me tonight.” My mouth dropped open and my eyes widened in

fake shock. “You have such a dirty mind! I would never think of such things!” “Uh huh. Then tell me, why did you get a costume that is so tight on me?” “It’s not tight. It’s fitted,” I clarified. “And you’re a girl monkey. So you had to be a sexy monkey.” She rolled her eyes at me and kept chuckling as she went to pick up the pillowcases. Just then, Jaxon came barreling through the room, stopping dead in his tracks when he saw me. His eyes looked back and forth between Addison and me a few times before he spoke. “Why are you dressed like a banana?” he asked, eyes still wild from his sugar high. “Um, because your mother is dressed like a monkey,” I said, trying to gauge his reaction. “Oh,” he said, pausing momentarily. Then he yelled, “Come on, let’s go!” And out the door we went. As we walked down the sidewalk, Lindsay and Sam pulled up with Emma. We had a terrible time trying to get Jaxon to stay put while we waited for Emma to get her Princess costume situated. I finally appeased him for a few minutes by letting him get down in a squat position, pretend he was going into a play and then ram into me like he was tackling me. For a little squirt, he was pretty good. Almost knocked me over a few times. However, he did have an advantage, being that I was wearing bright yellow tights and all. “Why are you dressed as a phallic symbol?” Lindsay asked as she walked over to us, holding Emma’s hand. Addison burst out laughing again. “I am a banana,” I defended. “I’m sweet. I’m good for you. And hopefully by the end of the night, a sexy monkey will eat me.” “Ohmygod we haven’t even left yet,” Addison said, still cracking up while Lindsay made gagging sounds. “Why do I ask these things?” Lindsay said under her breath.

“Because you never learn,” Sam answered, shaking his head. “Mommy, I want to eat a banana,” Emma remarked, throwing Addison into another fit of giggles. She was laughing a lot tonight. I liked seeing her so happy. “Don’t say things like that,” Lindsay remarked. “It’s disgusting.” Emma just looked at her like she was nuts and then took off running to catch up with Jaxon. “I swear to you, Addison,” Lindsay started, “she is only inappropriate when she’s around Jason. She gets it from him.” “Oh no you don’t!” I said defensively. “She is exactly like you! Don’t blame her sense of humor on me!” “Whatever,” she said, rolling her eyes. “But really, what is this costume about?” “I’m incognito,” I said, eliciting another eye roll. “You’re incognito dressed as a giant piece of fruit?” she said. “You stick out like a sore thumb.” “Maybe. But the shape of the costume hides my size. The top of the banana hides my head. And the yellow makeup hides my face,” I justified. “By the time we get close enough for anyone to recognize me, they’ll be too distracted by candy anyway to pay attention. See? It’s not just beauty up here. Its brains, too,” I said, tapping my temple with my finger, causing Addison burst out laughing again, making me start to wonder if she was on a sugar high, too. Lindsay just smacked her palm to her face. The four of us continued to banter back and forth as we followed the kids from house to house. We spent a good two hours trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. Several times, Jaxon conned me into knocking on the door with him. I kept my head down and begged for candy along with everyone else. It was actually really fun. One of the neighbors was giving out full-sized candy bars. We tried to go back more than once, humiliating Addison, especially when the neighbor caught onto us and turned us away.

By the time the kids were done with the fun, Emma was knocked out and being carried by Sam, so they didn’t stick around. After we all said our goodbyes and they left, Addison, Jaxon and I headed into the house where Jaxon and I dumped all our candy on the floor and dug through it. We made three piles . . . all the good stuff, the stuff we’ll eat at some point, and the really bad candy to sell back to the dentist the next day. Yes, his dentist spends the day after Halloween weighing bags of candy and buying it from kids for a dollar per pound. So that’s where all the strawberry Tootsie Rolls and Pixie Sticks were headed. All the full-sized candy bars were going in my pocket once Jax went to bed. “Come on, Jaxon, it’s time to get some jammies on and brush your teeth,” Addison said. “Ok,” he said with a yawn, meandering down the hall to his room. He must have really worn himself out because I had never seen him so willingly stop what he was doing to get ready to sleep. Addison turned to me saying, “I’ll be right back. I’m going to change into something way more comfortable than this.” “Really,” I said, raising an eyebrow. “Shut up,” she laughed. “I’m putting on yoga pants.” “Yoga pants,” I said, raising both eyebrows this time. “I like yoga pants!” She swatted my arm playfully. “Well I don’t have any in your size, so you’ll have to put on your own clothes. Unless you wanna stay dressed like a banana the rest of the night.” “No way. I have no idea how you women wear tights and pantyhose all the time,” I said, standing up. “These are the most uncomfortable things I’ve ever worn in my life.” “Which is why all women have multiple pairs of yoga pants,” she said while walking away from me. I grabbed my clothes to change and headed toward the bathroom. If I thought getting the costume on was hard, getting it off was even worse. But my legs had

never felt so free once those tights were finally in a pile on the floor and not suctioned to me. The tights were easier to get off than the makeup. Apparently, regular soap doesn’t get costume make up off all the way. Lesson learned. “Is he already asleep?” I asked Addison when I walked out of the bathroom. She was bagging up our pile of “to be sold” candy. “He’s brushing his teeth,” she said. “He was hoping you would tuck him in, actually.” “Really?” She shrugged and smiled at me. “Only if you’re comfortable with it.” “Sure,” I said. “Wow. That’s . . . wow. I’m really flattered.” As if on cue, Jaxon came walking down the hall right then. “Jason, will you put me in bed?” “Sure, buddy,” I answered, still feeling a little shocked. “Why don’t you give your mom a kiss goodnight.” Addison stopped what she doing and knelt down as Jaxon walked over to her. “Night, Mom,” he said, wrapping his arms around her neck. “Goodnight buddy,” she said, closing her eyes and hugging him tightly. “Do you know how much I love you?” “To the moon and back,” he mumbled in her hair. “Oh, it’s so much more than that,” she said. “No it’s not,” he said, pulling away from her. “It says right there on that picture, see?” I looked over and sure enough, hanging on the wall was a large picture frame with three cut outs. All three had pictures of Jaxon in them and on the bottom was a placard that read, “To the Moon and Back”. “Huh,” she said, looking at the frame. “So it does. Well, that’s a whole lot.” “I know,” he said, turning away. I followed him as he drug himself down the hallway to his room. As many times as I’d been in this house, I’d never been in any of the bedrooms before. Jaxon’s room was painted a nice grey-blue. The walls were covered

in football memorabilia and posters. Some of them were posters of me, which was kind of cool. On his bed was a Cowboys comforter with a matching pillow. Yep, he certainly wasn’t a fair-weather fan. Right next to his bed, sitting on top of the nightstand, was a picture of Jaxon with a man that I assume was Austin. They had the same brown hair and the same brown eyes. Jaxon had to have been about four in the picture and they both looked so happy. It was obvious Austin just adored his son. It was a weird feeling . . . I was still so pissed at Austin for how much he wounded Addison. But at the same time, I respected how much he deeply loved his son. I could fault him for being a douchey husband, but I appreciated him for being a good dad. Talk about conflicting feelings. “Did you have fun tonight, buddy?” I asked as he climbed into bed and crawled under the sheets. “Yes,” he said, yawning. “It was the most fun Halloween ever.” “Really,” I said, tucking the sheets in around him. “What made it so fun?” “You dressed up like a banana,” he said with a giggle. “My dad never dressed up for trick-ortreating.” “He didn’t?” I asked, kneeling down next to the bed. “No. He got home from work when we were already trick-or-treating, so he met us on the sidewalk. But he always carried my pillow case full of candy and he never stole any of it!” Dang. Maybe I should rethink swiping those fullsized bars, I thought to myself. “Sounds like he was a really good dad.” “He was,” he said with a yawn. “But this year was better,” he said sleepily. I chuckled as I watched him start to fall asleep. “I’m glad you had fun, buddy,” I said as I bent over to kiss him on the forehead. “I love you. Sleep well.” As Jaxon drifted off, he said, “I love you, too, Daddy.”

My eyes widened and I froze, looking down at Jaxon in disbelief. He just called me daddy. I mean, I knew he was falling asleep and we had just been talking about his dad, but, whoa. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. But . . . I think it didn’t feel . . . bad. It actually felt kind of good. All of a sudden, that one little sleepy mistake made think about the future. My future. Did I have a future with Addison long term? Because Jaxon would be part of it if I did. And that would, in fact, kind of make me Jaxon’s dad. It was a scary thought. And yet, not that scary at all. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t racing out to buy an engagement ring or anything. But it did cause me to pause momentarily and think about the path I was on. Frankly, it felt good. And it helped me make a decision I had been toying with. At that moment, I knew I was ready. When I rounded the corner back into the living room, Addison was sitting on the couch, her head back and eyes closed. When she felt me sit down next to her, she lifted her head and opened her eyes. I picked one of her feet up and placed it on my lap, rubbing the arch. “Mmmm . . . that feels good,” she said, turning her whole body toward me and laying back against the armrest. “Are you tired, baby?” I asked. “I can leave if you need to get some sleep.” “No, don’t leave yet,” she said. “Is Jax asleep?” “He barely made it under the covers before he was out. I was toying with coming out here and stealing all his giant chocolate bars,” I said, looking around the room. “But he guilted me out of it when he said Austin never used to steal any of his candy.” She giggled. “He actually did steal some candy. But I think the kind he stole is in your ‘to be sold’ pile.” “Ew. I can see why you were thinking of leaving him. How could you ever respect a man who likes strawberry Tootsie Rolls?” I asked with a grimace. She rolled her eyes. “You say some of the

weirdest things. It’s a good thing you’re hot.” She laid her head back on the armrest as I rubbed the pads of her toes with my thumbs. “So, I’ve been thinking about something,” I started. “Mmm-hmmm,” she said, not bothering to lift her head up or open her eyes. “Every year I go to this giant fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. It’s a real high-class event. Black tie, formal dinner, silent auction, the works,” I put her foot down and picked up the other one to work on it. “I was wondering if you’d want to go with me.” “Will Deuce and Vanessa be there?” she asked. “Probably,” I said. “But don’t answer yet. There’s more you need to know.” She lifted her head and looked at me, eyebrows furrowed as she listened to what I had to say. “It’s always treated as a red carpet event.” “So I’d really need to go get a new dress and get my hair done and stuff.” “Well yes,” I said. “But I’ll pay for all that so don’t even worry about that part. It’s the other part of a red carpet experience I’m asking about.” She cocked her head in question. “What part are you talking about?” I took a deep breath. “The press,” I said, locking eyes with her. “We would be expected to walk down a real red carpet when we got there, take some pictures together, do some interviews. Real public relations stuff.” I stopped the foot rub to watch her reaction. “So you’re not just wanting to take me to a fancy gala,” she said. “You’re wanting to take me out in public.” I nodded. “Jason Hart,” she said playfully, sitting up and crisscrossing her legs. “Are you asking me to come out of hiding?” I smiled. “I’m kind of asking if you would go public . . . as my girlfriend.” She smiled so wide it about lit up the room.

“Really?” “Yeah,” I said. “I like you, Addison. A lot. And I want everyone to know.” She bit her lip before crawling over to me and climbing onto my lap, straddling me and putting her arms around my neck. “I think,” she started, “that as much as I love being anonymous, I would be honored to go out in public as your girlfriend. I’m ready.” She kissed me with so much passion that I thought I would combust. As I slid my tongue against hers I ran my hands down her back and cupped her ass, pulling her harder against me. When our bodies met, I couldn’t help but grab her hips and rock her against the bulge in my jeans a few times. Her breath caught and she moaned just slightly. I pulled my mouth away from hers as I stopped moving her hips. “Addison,” I said quietly. “Yeah?” “If I don’t leave right now, I’m not sure I’ll be able to.” We didn’t move from that position, but our eyes opened, looking at each other, trying to assess what the other person wanted. When neither of us moved one way or the other for a few seconds and we just kept panting, I knew there was still too much internal struggle for it to be right just yet. So I did what any man in my position would do. I grabbed her thighs, stood up and tossed her back onto the couch, making her squeal. “Sorry, baby,” I said as I bent down and pecked her on the lips one last time before backing away. “You’ve got me really, really hot and bothered. I’ve gotta go.” She giggled as I walked away. “Hey Jason,” she called after me. I turned around to see her lounging on her back on the couch. It took everything in me not to jump on top of her and take her right there. “The night of the gala . . .” “Uh huh?”

“Make sure your apartment is clean.” I cocked my head, not quite understanding. “I’m sure I can get Mick to watch Jaxon overnight. And I want you to take me on a tour of your place. Starting and ending in the bedroom.” My eyes widened and my jaw dropped open. She rolled over on her stomach waving her feet in the air and letting her hair drape around her shoulders in front of her. “You don’t mind if I spend the night, do you?” she flirted. I just shook my head, my eyes and jaw still stuck in the open position. She smirked at me while she bit her lip. “N-n-no, that’s fine,” I said. “Um . . . ,” I started, finally getting my wits about me. “I gotta go.” With that, I turned quickly and walked out the door, closing it behind me. I couldn’t be sure, but I swear I heard her laughing through the door. I’m glad she found her seduction funny. Because it would be another cold shower for me tonight. And I highly doubted it would give me any relief.

“Incoming call from Sara.” I was on my way home after practice when the hands-free system alerted me of the call. The further we got into the season, the less intense practices were. We did a lot of drills and ran through a bunch of plays. But it wasn’t the same hard-core practice we had done back in August. We had more than found our groove at this point and risking a serious injury wasn’t worth it anymore. I pressed the hands-free button to answer the call. “Hey, beautiful!” I said. “How is New York treating you?” “Hey, sexy,” she answered in her sultry voice. One of Sara’s best features was her voice. It didn’t hurt to sound like that when you were trying to make it in Hollywood. While she hadn’t had a huge break on the big screen yet, she did alright playing supporting characters. And she was highly sought after for voiceover work, so she did just fine. “New York is full of just as many voluptuous women with low standards as always. New York has missed you. So have I.” “I’ve missed you, too, baby doll,” I said with a grin. “We’re playing the Giants, uh, next month I think. I was gonna call you before we got in. See if you wanted to hook up.” “It’s funny you should say that,” she responded. “I’ve been looking at your schedule and it appears kick-off is at one. I have a movie premiere that night

at eight. Think you could stick around overnight and go with me?” “You have a premiere? That’s great! Big part?” “It’s still a supporting role,” she said with excitement. “But Jay, it was so much bigger than American Ambiance was! The cast has bigger names and the role was of the best friend. It was the biggest on-screen part I’ve ever done! I’m really excited and nervous. I need you there holding my hand!” I was genuinely excited for her. “That’s so great, Sara! Didn’t I tell you it would come? You are too talented and too sexy to not be a huge star!” “Aw, Jay. You’re too sweet to me.” “I’m just telling you the truth, darling,” I said. “I don’t see why going to the premiere would be a problem. Can you have your publicist call mine and coordinate everything? You know I’ll forget by then.” She chuckled huskily. “I know. I’ve already put my publicist on standby. I wanted to clear it with you first, but yes, I know you will forget. You always seem to forget about me when you’re not here.” “That’s not true,” I argued. “You still come up in conversation with Deuce.” She snorted. “That’s because Deuce is a giant perv who still wants to get in my pants.” “No, Deuce is a married man who is whipped now with a baby on the way.” “No!” she said. “That’s so great! Tell him I said congratulations!” “I will.” “I know you are super busy, so I won’t keep you,” she said, “but Jason, don’t you dare reserve a hotel room for that night in New York. You are all mine when you come here. And don’t you forget it!” “Yes, ma’am,” I agreed. Sara was certainly a bossy little thing. But we understood each other. That’s why our relationship had lasted as long as it had. “Ok, well I have a zillion things to do now so I’ll see you next month.” “Looking forward to it, baby cakes,” I said with a

smile. “See ya later, sexy,” she said and hung up with me still smiling and looking forward to spending some time with her in the Big Apple.

The night of the gala, I rented a limo. Not one of those tacky prom limos. But a really nice sleek black limo with comfortable leather seating and some champagne in the back. I knew this was gonna be a night to remember and I wanted it to be as special as it could be for Addison. I was decked out in my tux. I owned it, but got an updated cumber bun and tie when some stylist Adam hired informed me that mine was out of style. I had no idea any part of a tux went out of style, but I just rolled with it. When the driver and I got to the house, I was surprised to find Mick and Jaxon still there. “Well, don’t you look like a million bucks,” Mick said as he walked toward me from his truck. “Thanks,” I said. “What do you think of the tie? Is it too, I don’t know, trendy?” Mick looked at me like a deer in headlights. “Uhhhh . . . aren’t all tuxedo ties the same?” “That’s what I said,” I answered, wondering for the umpteenth time if the stylist had duped me into buying something I already had. “What are you guys doing after the gala?” Mick asked innocently as we walked up the walkway together. I should have recovered better than I did, but his question threw me off guard. “Um, we’re uh, I mean . . . ,” I stammered. Mick turned to look at me and saw me struggling.

“Ooooh,” he said with his eyebrows raised. ‘Well, um . . . good for you,” he said, patting me on the shoulder. The conversation had turned very awkward, very fast. Fortunately for us, Jaxon had seen us both coming and threw the door open. “Jason! Pee-paw!” he yelled, lunging at both of us. He got to Mick first and hugged him, then somehow wiggled out of Mick’s arms into mine without ever touching the ground. “Hey, Mick!” I heard Addison yell down the hallway. “Thank goodness you’re here! Can you come help me for a minute?” He looked at me and I shrugged. “You’re the married one. I don’t know what women do in there.” He tousled Jaxon’s hair and walked down the hall, leaving Jaxon and me alone. “Are you taking my mom on a date?” Jaxon asked with a serious expression on his face. “I would like to,” I said, pulling out a chair in the small dining room on the right and sitting down. “But I need to ask your permission first, I suppose.” “How come?” he asked, his brows furrowed. “Well,” I said, rubbing my chin, “when a man likes a woman and wants to take her on a date, he should always ask her father first. Do you know who your mom’s father is?” “Yeah,” Jaxon said excitedly. “He’s my grandpa. He lives in Kansas. Did you know it snows in Kansas?” “I did know that,” I said. “Kansas is really far away so I can’t ask your grandpa if I can take your mom on a date. But you’re here and you’re the man of the house. So I’m asking you instead. Jaxon,” I said with a serious look on my face, “may I please have permission to take your mom on a date?” Jax looked like he was thinking really hard about his answer. “Are you gonna kiss her?” I laughed. “I probably will. But I will make sure she says it’s ok before I do it.” “Ok, Jason,” he said. “You can take my mom on a date.”

I smiled. “Thanks buddy.” Mick came back into the room carrying a small overnight bag. “I think I’m supposed to give this to you,” he said. “Why do you have a smirk on your face?” I asked. “You think I embarrassed you outside,” he said, “you should have seen Addison’s face when she found out you were here and I offered to put her overnight bag in your car.” “I’m glad you are enjoying this so much,” I said sarcastically as he made his way out the door. As it shut behind him, Addison turned the corner from the hallway. And my jaw hit the floor. “I . . . I . . . You . . . ,” I stammered as I took her in. “You like it?” she asked shyly, turning in a slow circle. She was breathtaking. Her dress was a shade of royal blue, floor length. It was fitted from the top all the way to the middle of her thighs where it flared out just slightly, showing off all her curves. It was sleeveless and the front went all the way up to her collarbone, and there was a triangular cutout on her chest that showed off just a hint of cleavage. Her hair was pulled up into a messy ponytail. It was all wavy down her back and poufy in the right places. She was perfect. “Mommy, you look beauuuuuutiful,” Jaxon said with his eyes wide. “Uh huh,” I agreed, still staring and trying to figure out what words were and how to use them. “Well,” she said, “it helped that the lady at Lord and Taylor had your credit card number.” “It was the best money I’ve ever spent,” I said, figuring out how to speak again as I stood up and walked toward her. “You are . . . wow.” It seemed like the best sentiment. Addison giggled. “So it’s ok for tonight?” she asked as Mick walked in the door. “It’s perfect,” I said, grabbing her hand in mine. “You are perfect. I kind of want to skip the gala now.”

“None of that, now,” Mick said. “Jaxon and I haven’t left yet. Keep it clean.” I smirked. “Hey Mick, would you take our picture?” I asked, handing him my phone. I looked at Addison. “It kind of seems fitting to have a real picture taken before the vultures strike, don’t ya think?” She smiled up at me while I was still smirking down at her when I heard the first click of the camera. I’d have to text that one to my mom. She’d be happy to see a candid shot of me with someone I really liked. We took a few more pictures before grabbing her small purse, getting in the limo and driving away. Before I leaned over to kiss her, I asked. “Is it ok if I kiss you?” She looked at me questioningly. “Of course it is. Why are you asking?” I shrugged. “I promised Jaxon that I would only kiss you if I asked you first and you agreed. That was the deal if he was gonna give his permission for me to take you on a date.” She smiled as she leaned over and kissed me on the lips. “That was really sweet of you. Thank you for making sure he was comfortable with this.” I smiled and kissed her again. Once again, we fell into comfortable conversation as we headed toward the Museum of Fine Arts. She told me about a coworker she was having difficulties with at work and I told her about my mom’s latest endeavor into the world of oil painting. Before we knew it, we could see the lights and all the pandemonium that went with it. “Whoa,” Addison said, looking out the window. “I’ve seen stuff like this on TV, but this is just wild.” “You ready to do this?” I asked, trying to give her an out. I knew this wasn’t the most comfortable thing for her and I wanted to make sure she was totally ready. “We can wait if you want. We don’t have to do this tonight.” She took a deep breath as the limo got in line

behind a couple of other cars who were also dropping off at the event. “No,” she said, looking me in the eye. “I’m ready. Just please don’t leave me, ok?” I smiled at her. “And run the risk of another man hitting on the most beautiful woman there? I don’t think so.” She smiled wide in response. When it was finally our turn to make an entrance, the door opened and I stepped out, looking around. I recognized most of the reporters and knew which ones to avoid. As Addison’s foot came out to the curb, I smiled and reached my hand out to help her. She kept her eyes locked on mine until she was standing and took a deep breath. There were already flashes going off everywhere. But when Addison took her gaze from mine and started to look around, I swear the number of flashes tripled. I knew everyone was wondering who this gorgeous woman was and where I had found her. I was so proud to have her with me. We made our way up the steps to the staging area where we posed for pictures. I didn’t stop touching her the entire time . . . either my hand was on her back or I was holding her hand. She handled the entire thing like a pro, even following instructions and taking some individual pictures when she was asked. When we got to the media staging area, I bypassed April Gill and went to the next available reporter. April could still pick up my answers on her mic since she was right next to us. But as long as I was in the next reporter’s staging area, she couldn’t ask me anything. “Jason Hart,” Yvette Rodriguez from Channel 13 said, “who is this beautiful woman you have brought with you tonight?” “She is beautiful, isn’t she?” I said, smiling down at Addison. “This is my girlfriend, Addison Bryant.” “Girlfriend?” Yvette asked. “Is this a recent development?” I was glad Adam and I had anticipated some of these questions. I already had some answers ready.

“I wouldn’t call it recent. We’ve been dating for a while. We’ve just been keeping it really low key,” I answered. “Addison, can I ask you a few questions?” Yvette asked. I appreciated that she asked Addison before she just assumed my date was as comfortable in front of a camera as I was. Addison looked up at me, seemingly a little shocked. But she recovered quickly. “Um . . . sure,” she said with that beautiful shy look on her face. “Jason has been known as a self-proclaimed bachelor for a while,” she started. “But what is he like as a boyfriend?” Addison looked up at me and smiled. “He’s a really great boyfriend. He’s so generous and caring. So easy to talk to. And he loves my . . . my family so much. I feel so blessed that even with all the gorgeous women he comes into contact with every day, he chose me.” “Well, who wouldn’t?” Yvette questioned. “Girl, you are stunning. Can I see the back of your dress?” Addison beamed as Yvette chatted with her a little longer about her dress and shoes. Things I knew nothing about. We answered a few more questions from other reporters we passed on our way in, everyone wanting to know more about Addison. They weren’t the only ones. I knew I had to pay attention to the event. But in the back of my mind, I couldn’t help but remember that I was going to get to know her really well tonight. We wandered around the gala for about an hour, looking at the silent auction items and introducing Addison to people I knew. Everyone looked surprised when I introduced her as my girlfriend. I had never brought one of those before, but she seemed to get along with just about everyone. Except for one, of course. “Well hello, neighbor,” a voice said behind us. Addison and I turned around to see Danielle with her husband, Luke. I should have known they would be

coming to an event like this. It was one of the most sought after events in Dallas for women like Danielle to attend. “Danielle, Luke,” I said, nodding their direction. I glanced at Addison and noticed her eyebrows were slightly raised. Probably in recognition of the name. “Nice to see you again, Jason,” Luke said kindly, reaching his hand out to shake mine. Then he reached for Addison. “I don’t believe we’ve met. Luke Green.” “Oh, um,” she said nervously, returning his shake, “I’m Addison Bryant. Nice to meet you.” “I didn’t realize you’d have a date with you this year, Jason,” Danielle said with just a bit of snark in her voice. “Oh, I’m not just his date,” Addison said, her confidence returning quickly as I snaked my arm around her waist and pulled her close to me. “I’m his girlfriend.” Danielle’s eyebrows shot to the sky. “Good for you, Jason,” Luke stated strongly. “It’s about time you found yourself a good woman. Life is so much better with a strong partner by your side. Take it from me. I have the best woman in my life.” He leaned over and nuzzled into Danielle’s neck. She didn’t seem to even notice. She was too busy keeping her narrowed eyes on Addison. I didn’t like that look at all. It made me wonder what she was up to. I was really hoping she didn’t turn the flirting up a notch now that I was in a serious relationship. I liked Luke. And I didn’t want to have conflict with him if I had to call the cops on his wife. Fortunately, we got the signal to head to the ballroom for dinner before the conversation started to get any more uncomfortable. “Well, it was nice to see you,” I said. “I’m sure I’ll run into you in the lobby.” We said our goodbyes and turned away. “So that’s her, huh?” Addison said quietly in my direction. “Yeah,” I replied. “See what I mean?”

“Ohmygod, yes! Did you see the daggers she was throwing in my direction? How does her husband not pick up on that?” “You know, I honestly thought he knew and just ignored it,” I said as we walked through the ballroom door. “But after seeing that, I’m starting to wonder if he’s just another clueless bastard she’s snowed.” “Poor guy,” she agreed. We found our table and place cards. We were sitting with the president of a local bank and the general manager of a local TV station. Both appeared to be in their fifties and both of them had their wives with them. Deuce and Vanessa were also at our table, which made both Addison and me happy. It was really nice that my best friend’s wife got along so well with my girlfriend. We had a great meal of Caesar salad, smoked salmon, asparagus covered with hollandaise sauce, and sautéed zucchini and squash. For dessert, we had chocolate cake. It was good, but it wasn’t even close to being enough food for me. Fortunately, Addison was stuffed by the time she took two bites of her cake. It’s not hard to guess who ate the rest. Two hours after we sat down, we had finally finished our meal and enjoyed the results of the silent auction. I had won a four-day trip to an exclusive ski resort in Colorado, including lift tickets, ski rentals, and a private condo on the mountain. And by “won” I mean I had just bought myself a really expensive trip. I figured I could talk to Addison about taking Jaxon this ski season since he seemed to like the idea of snow so much. When the gala finally started wrapping up, we booked it to the limo. We’d had fun, but we both were anxious to start the rest of our evening. “Did you have a good time?” I asked as we settled into the back of the car. “I did,” she said with a smile on her face. “I was worried that I wouldn’t fit in, but everyone was so nice.” “It helps that they were all so taken with you,” I said, leaning over to kiss her. “You looked absolutely

radiant tonight.” “You looked pretty good yourself, Hart,” she answered, putting her hand on my cheek and drawing me to her mouth. Now that I didn’t have to worry about wrinkling her dress or smearing her makeup, all bets were off in the kissing department. We made out the entire ride back to my place. By the time we pulled up in front of my complex, I knew my hair must have been sticking up all over the place and my clothes were all disheveled. But I didn’t care. I was about to have Addison in my apartment. I carried her bag in one hand and held her hand in my other. As we walked in, the concierge greeted us with a smile. “George,” I said to the concierge, “this is Ms. Addison Bryant, my girlfriend.” “Oh, how wonderful!” he exclaimed, clapping his hands together once. “It’s lovely to meet you, Ms. Bryant. Would you like me to add her to your list of approved guests?” he asked, turning to me. “Yes, please,” I answered. “Day or night, she is authorized to have access to my apartment. Even if I’m not here and she needs a key.” “Of course, sir,” he replied. “It was lovely to meet you, Ms. Bryant,” he said as we turned toward the elevators. “You, too,” Addison said, looking back over her shoulder. She giggled as we stood on the elevator, riding it to the top floor. “What?” I asked, looking down at her. She shook her head. “I’ve just never seen you so impatient before.” I smiled. “I am this close to having you in my apartment, Addison. I wasn’t trying to be rude to George. But I swear I’m about to lose all my selfcontrol.” The doors of the elevator opened and we made our way to my front door. When I opened it up, I ushered her in first. The lights under the cabinets in the

kitchen were still on, so there was enough light for us to not trip over anything. And it kept with the ambiance. “Whoa,” she said, making her way to the wall of floor-to-ceiling windows. “It’s so beautiful.” The view of the city skyline in the distance, especially at night, was my favorite part of my apartment. Several of the buildings used different colored lights to outline the architecture. The effect from this unobstructed angle was stunning. “And I see why Jaxon had so much fun swimming,” she said, looking down. The pool lights were on so we could see the outline of it as well as all the extras Jax enjoyed so much. I chuckled. “See why you need to come with us next time?” “Maybe I will,” she said, still looking out the window. The fact that she was considering spending more time with Jax and me together made my heart feel like it was expanding. “Would you like a tour of the place?” I asked her. She nodded and tore her gaze away from the skyline, looking at me and smiling shyly. There wasn’t much to show. It was a bachelor pad. We walked through the living room to the open kitchen. It wasn’t huge, but it was all top-of-the-line appliances and cabinetry. You know, for when I didn’t cook. Thank goodness my mom liked to come make casseroles and freeze them for me sometimes or else it would never get any use. We walked down the hall to the two extra bedrooms. One was used as a guest room. The other I had turned into a media room, complete with giant leather recliners, a one-hundred-inch screen and a real popcorn maker. Addison got a kick out of that. We made our way to the other side of the apartment and into the master suite. That’s when the air in the room changed. It got tenser. Like the anticipation of what was about to happen was physically tangible. Addison walked over to my king-sized bed. It was

just a standard bed. Nothing fancy. No four-poster frame or anything like that. Just a plain headboard. I didn’t even have a footboard. I was too tall. She put her hands on the bed and stroked the blue and brown blocked comforter. I waited for her to say something, but she didn’t say a word. “Addison,” I said, walking up behind her and wrapping my arms around her. “We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do,” I said, trying to reassure her. “I’m ok if all we do is snuggle or sleep or watch a movie. Just having you here is enough.” She sighed. “It’s not that I don’t want to. I’m just . . . nervous.” “How come?” I asked, turning her around and wiping some hair off her forehead to look into her eyes. She quirked her mouth to the side and squeezed her eyes shut. “I . . . um . . . I sort of googled you.” My eyebrows furrowed, not quite understanding where she was going with this. “All those women you dated were so beautiful and so perfect.” I nodded in understanding, knowing where this was headed. “I’m just . . . I’m just a mom, Jason,” she said. “My boobs aren’t perky. My stomach isn’t flat. I’m just . . . just . . .” “You’re just you, Addison,” I said, lifting her chin to look into my eyes. “I have been dying to get my hands on your mom body since the day I met you.” She didn’t look convinced. “Let me show you something,” I said, pulling away from her and taking my shoes and socks off. “What are you doing?” she asked as I yanked off my tie and cumber bun, throwing them to the side. The jacket had been lost somewhere in the living room during our tour. “You’re worried about your body not being perfect, right?” I asked her, unbuttoning my shirt and cufflinks. She bit her bottom lip and nodded, blushing slightly. I lost the shirt and yanked my undershirt over my head.

“Look at me,” I said. She looked right in my eyes. I smiled. “Not my eyes, babe. Look at my body.” She smirked as her gaze ran down my chest to my stomach and everything in between. “What do you see?” I asked her. “Um . . . I see a really sexy man,” she said, looking back in my eyes. “Uh huh . . . but what about me is sexy?” I asked, trying to make a point. “Your arms really turn me on,” she admitted. “And your shoulders. And probably your back even though I haven’t seen it yet.” I smiled at that. “But do you see any washboard abs like those male models have?” She looked at my stomach but didn’t say anything. “Do you see that ‘V’ that women talk about? You know . . . the one on a guy’s hips that supposedly point to the goods?” She cracked a smile but didn’t say anything. “I don’t have any of that. My body isn’t made that way. I work out every single day and I’m probably stronger than most of the guys in those pictures. But my body isn’t built to look like that,” I said. “I’m more like . . . a square. Like Spongebob Squarepants.” A smile crossed her lips. “You’re sexy to me,” she said shyly. I nodded. “Exactly.” I walked toward her and cupped her face in my hands. “You are the sexiest, most beautiful woman I have ever met in my life. Just knowing you are standing here in my bedroom is the biggest turn-on.” She reached up on her tiptoes and kissed me. I put one hand on the back of her neck to pull her mouth closer to mine and used the other to find the zipper on the back of her dress and pull it down. When my hands pulled the dress forward so it could fall off of her onto the floor, I finally broke away from the kiss to have my first look at this beautiful woman’s body. It was not what I expected. “What the hell is that?” I asked, looking down and around her.

She giggled. “It’s my Spanx. It uh . . . smoothed out all my bumps since the dress was so fitted.” I groaned into her neck. “It is taking me way too long to get you naked.” She laughed and put her arms around me. “Trust me, it is taking way too long to get naked. You thought yellow banana tights were bad. These suckers might be a necessity for fashion, but they are torture to wear.” I pulled back, newly invigorated by her challenge. “So let’s get them off you.” I tried to gently move the straps to the side of her shoulders and down her arms. But I found out the hard way, there is no gentle way to get someone out of these things. “How did you get these things on?” I grunted as I helped her lay down on the bed so I could get some good leverage to yank them off. “It took about twenty minutes. That’s why I was running late when you got there,” she said, lifting her hips to try and help me, but it was still slow going. “Once they’re on, they’re on, so hurry up. I haven’t been able to use the bathroom all night.” I laughed as I tried for one last big tug. The Spanx finally slid down her thighs and I held them up. I swear, once they were off, they shrunk to the size of something only a baby could fit into. “Why in the hell would women do this to themselves?” I asked myself out loud. Addison just laughed and jumped off the bed, heading toward the bathroom. “It’s all in the name of fashion and attracting a man,” she said through the closed door. “Honestly, babe,” I said as I chucked my pants to the side, leaving me only in my boxer briefs, and climbed on the bed to lay on my side, “they are a total mood killer when you are trying to peel your woman out of a dress.” I heard the toilet flush and Addison laugh. “I’ll remember that for next time,” she said as the water turned on in the sink.

I waited for a few more seconds, but Addison never came out. Instead, I heard the shower turn on. “Are you taking a shower, babe?” I called, getting anxious to see her now that I could, you know, actually see her. “Just a quick one,” she yelled through the door. “My entire body feels like it was squished inside one leg of a pair of panty hose. I just need to rinse the grimy feeling off of me.” I chuckled as I stared at the ceiling. Leave it to Addison to be flowery fresh for our first time. A few minutes had passed when the door finally cracked open. “I’m back to being kind of nervous again,” she admitted, walking slowly through the door wrapped in one my fluffy white bath towels. My lips quirked up at her nervousness. She was so damn sexy when she was unsure of herself. It was one of the things that intrigued me about her from the beginning. “Your hair is still dry.” She shrugged. “I didn’t want to mess with all that tonight.” She glanced up at me and started biting her lip again. “Babe, come here,” I said, reaching my hand to her. She walked over to the bed and climbed on, crawling over to me and laying on her side, looking at me. I put my hand on her cheek and slowly ran my hand down her shoulder, arm, side, hip, thigh, never taking my eyes off of her. And then I kissed her. It was slow and sensual. The kiss you give when you’re trying desperately to keep things moving at a slow pace so you can prolong the experience. My hand moved up to her breast and I gently stroked my thumb over her through the towel. Her breath hitched, making me pull back and look in her eyes. “You’re so beautiful,” I said quietly as I continued stroking her. Her eyes dilated just a bit. “You’re not disappointed?” she asked softly. “Oh, babe,” I said. “You’re even better than I imagined.” I ran my hand around her neck and down her collarbone, undoing the towel. I pushed it aside,

freeing her breasts. She was right. They weren’t perky and they didn’t stand at attention now that the bra was off. But damn . . . they were so beautiful. I lifted one of them with my hand and then I lowered my head and grabbed her nipple between my lips, sucking and licking and nibbling. When she groaned quietly, it took everything in me to remain in control. I had dreamt of this night for so long. I wanted to do it right for her. I wanted to show her how I felt. That everything I felt for her was real and permanent. I was so madly in love with her, but she was too skittish for me to tell her that just yet. The only thing I could do was show her. When she ran her fingers through my hair, I gently rolled her onto her back and kissed my way between her breasts, down to her stomach, paying special attention to the faint stretch marks around her waist. “Why are you kissing my stretch marks?” she asked quietly, still stroking my hair. I broke away from kissing her to look up at her. “Because I know they’re from Jaxon. And that makes them beautiful to me.” A small smile crossed her lips as I continued my trek downward. I grabbed the towel that had somehow bunched around her legs and peeled it away from her body slowly, leaving her completely naked. My lips and tongue followed the same path as I kissed and nibbled my way down her left leg. When I got to her foot and the towel was finally on the floor where it belonged, my mouth took an identical path back up her right leg . . . foot to calf to knee to thigh to inner thigh. I could smell her arousal, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t turn me on. “You smell so good,” I said as I kissed her soft curls while making my way back up her body to the breast I hadn’t tasted yet. As much as I wanted to taste her between her legs, I wasn’t going to. Not tonight. Yes, tonight was going to be about pleasure. But more importantly, I wanted it to be about the connection. No bells and whistles. No tricks. There was time for all of that later.

Tonight, I just wanted us to experience the most intimate connection a man and woman could have. And I didn’t want any other part of my body inside of her until after that moment. As I brought my mouth to hers and nipped her bottom lip, she pushed on me, so I rolled over and lay down on my back. She sat up and touched me everywhere . . . my shoulders, my biceps, my pecs and my abs. Her hands drifted lower, skipping the bulge in my briefs, and running her hand down my thighs and calves. I watched her as she explored my body, taking her time to get to know me. Her eyes flickered up to mine when she finally grabbed the waistband of my briefs. I lifted my hips to help her, her eyes never leaving mine. She finally bit her lip and looked down, quickly looking back up to my eyes. And down again. And up again. I crossed my arms behind my head and smiled at her. “What?” I asked. “Expecting something bigger?” I joked, one eyebrow quirked up. “No,” she said. “That wasn’t what I was thinking at all.” “Then what were you thinking?” I asked, curious now. She looked back down and grabbed on, stroking me slowly . . . up and down. Up and down. I momentarily forgot what we were talking about. “I was thinking,” she said, “that you are so beautiful. Not like I have a lot to compare it to. But . . . you just are.” She softly rubbed her thumb over my tip, causing me to inhale sharply. “Now you know how I feel about you,” I said. She continued stroking me as I handed her a condom. She rolled it down my length and then leaned over to kiss me again. I couldn’t help myself when I grabbed both her hands and rolled her onto her back, pinning her arms above her head as I kissed her neck and her collarbone and that sensitive skin underneath her arm. She moaned and squeaked every

once in a while when I accidentally found a ticklish spot. I finally nudged my knee between her legs, silently asking her to open them for me. She did. Once I was settled between her legs, our eye contact never broke away. I could feel my tip nudging her entrance, but I wouldn’t move until she gave me the go-ahead. “Addison,” I said softly between kisses. “Are you ready?” She nodded. “I’m ready for anything,” she said as I pushed inside her, never taking my eyes off hers. “And everything,” she said with a gasp. It took two thrusts until my hips were flush with hers, all the way deep inside her. “You ok?” I asked, making slow gentle thrusts. She nodded and smiled. “Are you ok? Does it feel ok?” “Oh, babe,” I said, my eyes rolling into the back of my head as I let the sensation wash over me before concentrating on her again. “You have no idea how good you feel. This is what I’ve been waiting for all my life. You are what I’ve been waiting for all my life.” She smiled and grabbed my cheeks, pulling me to her. I kissed her with everything in me while I continued to work myself in and out of her at a slow, methodical pace. After a few minutes, her breathing hitched and I knew she was close. I pushed up and repositioned my arms so I could see her. I grabbed her right leg and wrapped it around my waist, leaving the other leg bent at the knee but still on the bed. The hand that wasn’t next to her thigh was by her head, giving me the leverage I needed. I didn’t just use my hips. I used my whole body for long, deep thrusts. The more she grabbed and scratched at my back, the longer and harder I pushed until she began to spasm around me. She threw back her head and let out a cross between a groan and a scream. It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. As the aftershocks continued inside her I felt my balls tighten, and then the familiar tingle started at

the base of my spine and raced up my back until it exploded in the back of my brain. I threw my head back and released into her with a deep guttural moan of pleasure. When I finally came back down from the high, I gently dropped my body on top of hers. I grabbed the edge of the comforter to throw it over us, since we never actually made it under the covers. “Thank you, Jason,” Addison said quietly a few minutes later, as she leisurely ran her fingers through my hair. “For what?” I asked, suddenly feeling really sleepy. “For making me feel beautiful.” I moved my head on her shoulder so I could look her in the eyes. “You’re more than just beautiful, Addison,” I said. “You are everything to me. Don’t ever doubt that.” I reached over and kissed her softly and rolled us over until she was on my chest. She snuggled in and we fell asleep.

“Did you finally get laid?” Deuce asked when I answered the phone the next morning. “What?” I asked. “I just woke up. Why are you calling so early?” My phone had been left in the living room overnight, but I still heard it ring from my bed. I didn’t want to get up. I was perfectly comfortable with my arms and legs wrapped around a naked Addison. But instead of leaving a message, Deuce thought it would be fun to call me over and over and over until I finally tore myself away from her to answer the phone. “It’s not early. It’s after eight. I don’t care that there was a gala last night. Last year, you would’ve woken my ass up at six to go work out no matter what,” he said. “So I repeat . . . did . . . you . . . get . . . laid?” “I’m not having this conversation with you, douchebag,” I quipped, heading toward the coffeemaker. “He got laid, Vanessa!” I could hear him yelling through the phone. “He finally got a piece of ass . . . oh . . . shit . . . stop twisting my nipple, woman! I can be happy my man finally got off somewhere besides his hand!” I shook my head as I listened to strange noises that could only indicate they were fighting over control of the phone.

“Jason,” Vanessa finally said through the line. I guess she won that scuffle. “Don’t answer any of my husband’s perverted questions.” “Just keeping it real!” Deuce yelled in the background. “Michael!” she yelled. “Be quiet! As I was saying, Addison is a really nice woman. I like her a lot. Don’t answer anything you don’t want to answer. No matter what kind of inappropriate details about our sex life he thinks are great locker room talk. Yeah, I know about that. And if he doesn’t quit, I’ll make sure to tell you the truth about that thing he thinks he does so well . . .” “None of that, woman!” he yelled in the background, cutting her off mid-sentence. “Is nothing sacred?” “That’s what I thought,” she said. “You guys have a nice day. We’ll talk to you later.” Before she could hang up, I heard Deuce one last time yelling, “He got some puuuuuss . . .” Click. Fucking Deuce. Now I was wide-awake. And curious about the media’s reaction to Addison. So I grabbed my laptop and started searching.

The headlines about us pretty much all said the same thing . . . I was a taken man. Swooped off the

market at the hands of a beautiful damsel named Addison. Ok, so that’s not exactly what it said. But all the articles did have kind of an unrealistic, fairy tale quality about them. Young, rich, single man falls for beautiful young, single woman. For the most part, the articles were really nice about Addison, talking about how charming and kind she was. Complimenting how beautiful she looked. The pictures were really nice, too. I made a mental note to ask Adam if he could get ahold of some of them. Until I got to April Gill’s story. It was obvious she had done some digging.

I was pissed. Not only was there detailed information about Addison and Jaxon in the article, but many of the comments below the article were brutal.

I slammed the laptop closed and leaned back in my chair, having seen enough. I sat there with my hand over my mouth, trying to figure out how to warn Addison off the internet. I was used to the negative press. When you were in the public eye, there was always someone willing to try and tear you down. Addison would probably get used to having her character attacked. Neither one of us would like it, but she would get used to it. However, giving out information on Jaxon was not ok. It would never be ok to force a child into the spotlight like that. And I wasn’t sure how to fix it. Without thinking about it, I texted Lindsay. Me: Did you see the newest articles yet? Lindsay: Yep. You clean up nice, you stud, you! Me: HA! Thanks. But we have a potential problem. Did you see April Gill’s article yet? Lindsay: Nope. Hang on. Let me check. A minute later, she texted me again. Lindsay: Oh shit. That’s not good. Me: Nope. No it’s not. Lindsay: How is she taking it? Me: She’s not even awake yet. I’m working on how to tell her. Can you do me a favor? Lindsay: Only if you answer my question first. Me: Sure. Shoot.

Lindsay: SHE SPENT THE NIGHT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! I laughed. Leave it to Lindsay to make me laugh in the middle of my freak out. Me: Yes. She spent the night. Yes. It was an awesome night. No. I will not give you details. Now about my favor . . . Lindsay: Ew. I didn’t ask for details, you perv. I think I just threw up a little bit in my mouth. What favor? Me: Can you text your principal? I’m worried about security now that Gill told everyone where Jax goes to school. Lindsay: Good idea. I’ll let her know what’s going on just in case. Me: Tell her I’ll pay for extra security at the school if you need it for Jax or at the front door or anything. Lindsay: I will. Don’t worry so much. We’re teachers. We’d stand in front of a bullet for these kids. Me: It’s not the bullet I’m worried about at this point. It’s the paparazzi. That’s worse. Lindsay: I know. I’ll take care of it. Me: Thanks. I owe you one. Lindsay: Yep. I think a rousing duet with my daughter of “Let it Go” in your old choir costume might do the trick. Me: And risk that being put on YouTube? Lindsay: Hell no! TMZ. A girl’s gotta make a living. I laughed and threw my phone on the table as Addison came traipsing through the room toward me. She was wearing one of my old practice jerseys, which was hot as hell. But the rest of her looked . . . well . . . liked she had just woken up. “Good morning,” I said with a smile as she walked over and climbed onto my lap, snuggling into my chest. “I take it you’re not quite awake yet?” “I haven’t had coffee yet,” she mumbled into my chest.

“I can tell,” I said, kissing the top of her head and getting poked in the lip. “Ow. What was that?” She reached up and felt around. “Oh,” she said. “Sorry. I guess I forgot to pull all the bobby pins out of my hair last night.” We started pulling all the pins out. Every time I thought we were done, one of us would find another section of hair we had missed. “Good god, woman. How many of these things did you use?” I asked, running my fingers through her hair again, making sure we had gotten them all. “You can’t achieve true beauty without at least a couple dozen bobby pins securing an updo,” she said, shaking her hair out. “That feels so much better,” she said. “It looks better, too,” I teased. “Not so . . . Lion King,” I said, waving my hands around her head. She swatted my arm and giggled. “Did you have a good time last night?” I asked her as she snuggled into me again. “Which part? The gala or the . . . after-party?” I snorted a laugh. “Either, I guess. But I wanna know about the after-party.” She looked up at me with raccoon eyes from her leftover makeup. I didn’t say anything because I preferred her on my lap to being in my bathroom washing her face. “Last night was . . . is it weird to say it was one of the most magical nights of my life?” she asked. I smiled. “That’s not weird at all. It was magical for me, too, babe,” I said and kissed her. Then I stood up with her in my arms. “What are you doing?” she squealed as I carried her into the kitchen. “Getting my woman coffee,” I said, placing her on the counter. “That sounds great.” She stretched her arms over her head, making the jersey ride up enough for me to see she had put little white panties on before coming out of the bedroom. Well that sucked. “Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked

when she caught me staring at her thighs. “Because your legs turn me on.” She laughed. “Are you kidding me? These thunder thighs?” she asked, gesturing toward her legs. “Uh, excuse me,” I interrupted, forgetting about the coffee and walking over to stand between her legs. “These are not thunder thighs. I love these sexy thighs.” I leaned down and bit her gently where her hip met her leg. “That tickles,” she giggled, pulling away. “Who knew cellulite would be such a turn on to you?” she said breathily as I started kissing behind her ear, her hands diving into my hair. My hands grabbed her hips and I scooted her toward me. “My mother used to say cellulite is really the fingerprints of God. Which means,” I started nibbling down her neck, “it’s God’s way of saying, ‘Here, Jason. Look what I made just for you.’” I grabbed her legs, hitching them around my waist as I kissed her hard, tangling my tongue with hers. She wrapped her arms around my neck and rocked her hips against me as I rocked back into her. “I wanna take you on the counter, right now,” I said. “But I think there might not be enough room in front of those cabinets for what I have in mind.” I looked around the room, eyes zeroing in on the table we were just sitting at. I looked back at her. “What about the table?” She smiled shyly and a slight blush crept up her neck. Without saying a word, I knew she’d never had sex on a table before. Oh, this was gonna be fun. I grabbed onto her thighs and picked her up, carrying her to the table where I laid her down gently. Since I worked my way down last night, I figured today I would shake things up a bit and work my way up. But before I got too worked up, I needed some supplies. “I need to go grab a condom, babe,” I said as I kissed her. “I’m on the pill and I got tested after I found out Austin was cheating on me,” she said quickly. “So.

We’re good.” “That’s good to know,” I said, standing straight so I could look her up and down. “I would love to go bareback. I’ve never done that before. Are you comfortable with that?” She nodded and bit her lip. That’s all the confirmation I needed. I started kissing her ankle and worked my way up her calf to her knee, stopping only to glance in those beautiful brown eyes. I smirked and continued my path, licking her inner thigh at a slow, leisurely pace. When I got to the apex, I placed a gentle kiss on the crotch of her panties. She gasped. I looked up at her and smiled. “I take it it’s been a while for this?” “I got a bikini wax just in case,” she said, the words rushing out of her mouth, laced with desire. I chuckled. “Well, in that case,” I grabbed the waistband of her panties and started pulling them down her thighs, “I need to inspect what kind of job they did.” I kept my eyes locked on hers as I pulled her panties off, then put them up to my nose and inhaled her scent. I didn’t care if it seemed weird because it just flat out turned me on. I promptly threw her panties over my shoulder, making her laugh. She gasped when I put my hands on her knees and spread her open to my gaze. Damn. That was a beautiful sight. She was just perfect and I couldn’t resist any longer. I leaned over and kissed her there like I would kiss her mouth . . . deeply and with a lot of tongue. And little nibbles here and there. Her hands immediately grabbed my hair. Between her taste, the noises she made, and her scratching my head with her nails, I thought I was gonna come before I even got inside her. Before she could orgasm, I pulled away and slid two fingers inside her. Oral sex got her close, but I wasn’t going to miss out on seeing the look on her face when she finally came. I found the soft ridges inside her and began stroking them gently. When I

moved my thumb to brush her clit, she started to spasm around my fingers. Her entire body arched off the table as she threw her head back and yelled my name, riding out the pleasure I had just given her. I continued stroking her gently, being careful not to overdo it, knowing she was probably sensitive after the intensity of that orgasm. It took a minute, but her body finally relaxed and she looked down at me. “That was incredible,” she said with a dazed look on her face. “And it’s not over yet,” I answered, pulling my fingers out from inside her and sticking them in my mouth to suck them dry. She tasted just as good as I knew she would. I quickly dropped my boxer briefs to the floor and sprung free. “Wait!” she yelled, sitting up suddenly. “Don’t you want . . . you know,” she said shyly as she licked her lips and grabbed my shaft. A half-hiss, half-chuckle left my mouth as I reached for the hem of my jersey, lifted it over her head, leaving her naked and sitting on my table. Naked. And sitting on my table. Holy shit, I loved my life. “Baby, look at me,” I said, reaching my hands up to cup her cheeks. “If you really want to do that, you can. But I really, really wanna take you on this table. I’m afraid if you start to suck on me, I’m not gonna make it that far. But it’s up to you. I want every part of this to be about you.” I kissed her softly to drive my point home. This wasn’t a mindless fuck for me. This was the woman I loved and me . . . expressing our feelings for each other. And then Addison did something that shocked me. She pulled away from me, laid down and grabbed the edge of the table above her head. She spread her legs wide and said, in the sultriest voice I had ever heard, “So then fuck me like you mean it.” Holy. Shit. If I wasn’t so desperate to be inside her at that

moment, I would have dropped to my knees in thanksgiving because this was my heaven. Instead, I grabbed her by the hips and pulled her to the edge of the table. I grabbed my shaft and placed it at her entrance, locking eyes with her the whole time. “You ready?” I asked, knowing her answer would be yes. But I wanted to enjoy the anticipation just a little bit longer. “I’m always ready for you,” she said with a smirk. In one quick thrust, I was back inside of her and we groaned simultaneously. I watched her breasts sway as I thrust in and out of her, feeling her warmth envelop me. Nothing had ever felt like this before. Sex was one thing. But sex with the woman you love, there was nothing that could possibly compare. “Jason,” she said, still holding on to the table above her. “Fuck me harder.” I smiled as I grabbed her hips, thrusting into her at a furious pace. I could feel myself getting close, so I grabbed her hips one more time and lifted her ass off the table by about two inches, hitting her g-spot. It worked. She tensed and began to spasm around me again, causing me to follow closely behind. I didn’t think I could have an orgasm as intense as the one I had last night. Apparently, I was wrong. I was quickly learning that it wasn’t the moment that had done it to me. It was the woman. I laid my body over hers gently for several minutes as we both caught our breath. She ran her fingers through my hair and down my back. I could get used to this. “Jason.” “Mmmm,” I said sleepily. I could use a nap now. “You realize we’re gonna have to disinfect your table now, right?” she asked, breaking up the moment. I took a deep breath and pushed myself off of her. “Yeah. But it was so worth it.” She giggled as she grabbed my hand so I could pull her up to her feet. “Yes it was.” I pulled her to me and kissed her, grabbing her ass

in the process. “What time is it anyway?” she asked, looking around for a clock. “Too early to ask me what time it is,” I answered, kissing down her neck again and rubbing my hands over her back. I couldn’t believe that I was up for another round already. “We still have to have sex in the shower . . .” “Really,” she answered, putting her arms around my neck again. “Um hmm. On a chair . . .” “A chair?” she asked, leaning her head back to give me easier access to her throat. “And the bed again.” “That’s a whole lot of sex,” she said with a sigh. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to walk tomorrow.” “That’s ok,” I mumbled into her neck. “We’ll just stay in bed all day so you won’t have to worry about walking.” “Mmmm. As nice as that sounds,” she said, pulling away, finally finding the clock over my stove, “Mick is supposed to meet me at the house at ten. If I’m gonna be there on time, we need to leave in about forty-five minutes.” “Fine,” I sighed as I grabbed her hand to lead us to the bathroom. Let’s get you all soaped up before we have to go.” We probably got more dirty in the shower than we got clean after all the hot sex we had in there. It was only one more time but it was amazing. Once she realized my body was raring to go again, Addison just turned around and bent over at the waist, willing me to take her from behind. I was the luckiest guy ever. Three times we’d had sex so far. All three times were in different positions. All three times were amazing. She was way more than I had even dreamed of when I was getting myself off thinking about her for the last couple of months. She was shy, which made me feel like an alpha male. But she wasn’t reserved at all which was sexy as hell. Once she got over the hump of being nervous

about her body, it seemed to make her happy how much I wanted to look at her. And I did. It was impossible, but I wanted to look and touch and kiss every inch of her body all at the same time. It was frustrating because I couldn’t do everything at once. What a great frustration to have. By the time we made it to my car, we didn’t have time to stop and eat. Addison promised she’d make me brunch when we got to her place, so I figured I could wait. “How many models and actresses have you dated, anyway?” she asked as we sped up the highway. Traffic was thin with it being a Sunday morning, so we were making great time. “Do you mean, dated dated?” I asked. “Or just sex?” I was trying to be honest but was also holding my breath that I hadn’t just said the wrong thing. “I knew better than to ask that question,” she said, shaking her head. “Never mind. I don’t think I want to know.” “Why are you so worried about how many famous people I’ve dated?” I asked, glancing back and forth from her to the road in front of me. “I’m just curious,” she said nonchalantly. I looked at her like I didn’t believe her. “No really. This is not an ‘emotional mess’ sort of question. It’s an honest to goodness ‘curiosity’ question.” “Ok then.” I quirked my mouth to the side, thinking about it. “I’ve only really dated Sara Perez and Darcey Janes.” “You dated Darcey Janes?” she yelled, turning her entire body toward me. “She’s so beautiful!” I shrugged. “No more beautiful than anyone else.” Darcey was a runway model who did most of her work in New York. She had quite a few famous spreads in different magazines. She’s was also an extremely high-maintenance diva. Not my style at all. “How can you say that? She’s one of the most beautiful women in America.” “Babe,” I said seriously. “She’s no different than any other woman. Believe me, I’ve seen her without

all her make up on and her hair done up. Sure, she’s pretty. But she doesn’t look the same as in the magazines.” “I don’t believe you,” she said crossing her arms. I smirked at the fact that she kept arguing with me. “I’m serious. There are only two differences between a runway model and an everyday woman.” “Go on.” “A real woman actually eats.” She chuckled at that statement. “And a real woman doesn’t have daily access to a hair stylist, makeup artist, manicurist, clothing stylist, personal trainer, personal chef and maid. Because that’s how many people it takes to create the image that is Darcey Janes.” “Must be nice to have all those people at your beck and call,” she muttered under her breath. “Maybe,” I shrugged. “But it’s also a lot of work having those people around all the time. When people are constantly in and out, there is no privacy. It’s one of the huge reasons she and I only dated a short time.” “Really?” “Yep. Different priorities. I wanted a simple life and she wanted the glamour,” I shrugged. “It is what it is, I guess.” “So then why not just pick up women at . . . I don’t know . . . the grocery store or something?” she asked, waving her hand my direction. “And what?” I said with a chuckle. “Spout off lines like, ‘Can I squeeze your melons?’“ “Shut up,” she said with a laugh. “That’s not what I meant.” I thought for a minute and chose my words carefully. “I think what was . . . was,” I said, making sure she understood clearly that we were talking past tense, “so appealing about dating a celebrity was they didn’t care about the fame because they already had it.” I shrugged. “So I never worried if a conversation we had was going to be sold to the highest bidder. I never woke up wondering if whomever I was dating was going to do an interview behind my back, telling the whole world that I fart in my sleep or something.”

“You don’t fart in your sleep,” she interrupted. “Good to know. My point is,” I said, glancing at her with a grin, “in the past, there was some safety in the fact that she, whoever she was at the time, didn’t want intimate details released to the public any more than I did. Celebrities typically keep their mouths shut about other celebrities.” I glanced over my shoulder as I changed lanes, catching a glimpse of her looking deep in thought. “What?” I asked her. “Why did you get quiet?” “I was just thinking,” she said. “So how do you know I’m not going to sell some sleazy story about you to the highest bidder?” I grinned and looked over at her. “I don’t. But if you’re just with me because you want to sell me out, the last thing I’d be worrying about is my reputation. I’d be too busy nursing a broken heart.” She snorted. “You’re such a charmer.” I reached over and grabbed her thigh, squeezing it softly. “Only for you, babe. Only for you.” We drove in a comfortable silence until we got into Addison’s neighborhood, when we were greeted by news crews parked everywhere. “Oh shit,” I muttered under my breath. “What the hell is this, Jason?” she asked. I could hear the panic in her voice as she leaned forward in her seat, looking more closely. Before we made it close enough for anyone to realize it was us, I hung a left to make a giant u-turn around the neighborhood. “Babe, do you have a key to the back door?” I asked calmly, knowing she was about this close to freaking out. “Yes,” she answered. “But what’s going on? Is this because of the gala? Is this . . . why are they interested in us so much?” “Ok, so apparently one of the reporters did some digging on you last night and figured all of us out.” “Who is all of us?” she asked, her voice starting to raise as she got more hyped up. “Jaxon? Did they figure out about Jaxon?”

“They figured out all of it. You, me, Jaxon, Austin . . . everything.” Her head fell into her hands. “No, no, no . . . this is what I didn’t want to happen.” “I know, baby,” I said, rubbing her back as I drove with the other hand. “I was trying to avoid this, too. I really didn’t expect them to put it all together. We’ll get it worked out. I promise.” “I’m not worried about me, Jason,” she said, looking up. Tears filled her eyes. “I didn’t want this for Jaxon. It’s . . . it’s too much.” “Babe . . . ,” I said gently, “Jaxon will be fine. He’ll get a kick out of seeing the lights and the cameras. You know he will. It’s you I’m worried about. Just breathe, ok? This will blow over once something interesting happens to someone else, I promise.” I finished the circle I had been driving in and made my way back to her street. “When we get there,” I said, “I’m pulling up as far as I can in the driveway and we’re going in the back door. They can get as many pictures as they want if they are standing on public property. But they can’t step foot up on that curb. If they do, we call the cops for trespassing.” I saw her nod in response out of the corner of my eye. When I turned into the driveway, I looked in the rearview mirror and saw the cameras coming in our direction. They were smart, though. None of them stepped on her property. But I knew they were filming. I pulled up right behind Mick, as far as I could. “The cameras are rolling so don’t say anything,” I instructed as I put the car into park. “Don’t look at them. Don’t answer any questions. Just keep your head down and walk into the house.” She nodded again and adjusted her sunglasses on her face, digging for her keys in her purse. I grabbed her bag from the back seat so I wouldn’t have to get it once we got out.

“Ok, let’s go.” We opened our car doors at the same time and made our way to her house. We could hear the reporters yelling questions in our direction, but they were far enough down the driveway, we couldn’t make out what they were saying. Within seconds we were inside the house and face-to-face with Mick. “What the hell is going on out there?” he asked. He had his hands on his hips and a truly confused look on his face. “We drove up and didn’t even get out of the car before all these people started shouting questions at us. Jaxon was so entertained I could hardly get him in the door.” On cue, I heard Jaxon yell from the front of the house, “Mom! Jason! Come look at all the news vans! One of them has a big satellite on top of it!” I turned to Addison and smirked hopefully. “See? I told you he’d be fine with it.” She rolled her eyes and made her way over to the refrigerator, grabbing a carton of eggs. I guess all the media attention didn’t deter from her plans to make us brunch. “How long is this going to last, Jason?” she asked as she cracked eggs into a bowl. She was moving frantically. I knew she was anxious about all this and I wanted to ease her concerns. It wasn’t that she was afraid for her safety. Or worried that Jaxon would be traumatized. She just didn’t do well being the center of attention. It made her nervous and uncomfortable. The gala was one thing . . . she had mentally prepared for it. But there was no way to mentally prepare for people to stake out your house. “I don’t know,” I answered honestly. “I’m assuming people are curious right now because of you being a single mom, a widow at that.” Mick sat down at the kitchen barstool, watching Addison work. “So what does she do in the meantime?” Mick asked. “She can’t exactly take Jaxon out of the house with all those people out front.”

“Honestly, I’m not sure what the protocol is for this. I’ve lived in an apartment with good security since I could afford it, and only dated people who could afford security, too.” “Do we need to get security?” Mick asked with concern written all over his face. “I don’t think so,” I said. “But I’ve already offered it to the school since that’s public property.” I jumped when Addison slammed the frying pan onto the stove and began mixing the eggs furiously. I walked up behind her and grabbed her hands, stopping her from mixing and taking the bowl away from her. Once I had put it on the counter, I laced my fingers through hers and wrapped my arms around her. “Tell me what part of this is freaking you out so much,” I said quietly in her ear. “I know all of it . . . but what specifically?” “I don’t know, Jason,” she said, leaning her head back on my shoulder for support. “I don’t know. I don’t like the attention. I don’t want the looks of pity. Or even looks of contempt because I know those are coming, too. I don’t want to worry that every move we make will end up on the news. I’m just . . . I like living a quiet life. I’ve had too much drama.” She sighed deeply. “I just don’t want any more drama.” “Ok. I get it,” I said, rubbing my hands up and down her arms. “Let’s make this as drama-free as we can, ok?” “How?” she asked, slowly starting to relax in my arms. I reached over and turned the stove off. “I think the first thing we should do is get Adam and Judy on the phone.” “Who’s Judy?” she asked quietly as her body finally settled down. “Judy is the team publicist,” I said. “Any time there is a crisis or big event happening with the team, she’s the one who puts out all the press releases and statements. She figures out what we’re going to say to the media and the best way for it to be said.” “Can she figure out a nice way to say, ‘Get the hell off my lawn’?”

I chuckled. “Probably. Come on,” I said, leading her over to the living room and sitting her on the couch. “I’ll put the call on speaker phone so you can be involved in the whole thing.” “You guys get that taken care of,” Mick said, getting up off the barstool. “I’ll hang out with Jax and make sure he doesn’t interrupt. I’ll feel better, too, once we know how to handle all this.” Adam answered after the first ring and was able to conference Judy into the call. Both of them had already anticipated the media frenzy, but neither of them had expected the information about Addison and Jaxon to come out the way it did. We spent the next forty-five minutes coming up with a statement and a plan of action that made everyone happy. The press release would be sent out by Judy’s office within a couple of hours and would include one of the pictures we had taken at last night’s gala. It would state that Addison and I had met a few months ago after a pep rally at her son’s school and we had been seeing each other since. With Mick’s permission, we also included a quote from me saying, “You’ve probably seen Addison’s father-inlaw at some of my games. He’s a great guy. We have a lot of fun together.” It was a little manipulative. But we were hoping that statement would show that we had Austin’s family’s blessings, despite how recent his passing was. In the meantime, Jaxon would have to miss a couple days of school. We couldn’t guarantee the paparazzi wasn’t going to stake out his school and until we knew for sure, none of us felt comfortable letting him go. Same thing went for Addison’s work. We needed a couple days to assess exactly how strong all the interest in our story was before we could send everyone on their merry way. I was the only one of us that would continue with my schedule as normal. I didn’t like the idea of leaving them at the house alone, but Mick agreed to stay over for a few days, which made me feel better. And Adam reminded me that as long as I was here, there was a story. The

sooner I left, the sooner the reporters did, too. Finally, since everyone was clamoring to get to know her and Jaxon a little better, we’d let them. In a very, very controlled fashion. That meant Addison and Jaxon would be coming to my next home game . . . tomorrow night. At first, Addison resisted the idea. But Judy reminded her that she wasn’t the average “new girlfriend of a player.” She was a recent widow, which made our relationship a “sensational” news story. It also meant the more mysterious she was, the more people would speculate what she was really like. And speculation just led to more curiosity. By attending the game, people could take as many pictures as they wanted of her and Jaxon. They could see she was just a normal mom raising a normal son. Yes, they would still analyze her hair and her clothes and what that look on her face meant. But analyzing from across the stadium was much different than analyzing from outside her front door. Adam promised Addison he would send a car to pick her and Jaxon up and that security would walk them all the way to their seats and back. Any time Jaxon had to use the bathroom, security would go with them. Get hungry? Security goes with them. Want to leave early? Security goes with them. Addison reluctantly agreed when Jax overheard and came running into the room, excited about going to a game on a school night. So the plan of action was set in motion and I hoped it would make Addison feel more confident in her new role of “football player’s girlfriend”. As I got ready to leave, I tried to reassure her one more time that everyone would leave her alone soon. And that once they found out she was just as “boring” as she kept saying she was (her word, not mine), things would get back to normal. She tried smiling at me, but I could see she was still uncomfortable. Jaxon merely waved over his shoulder when I went to head out the back door, still too excited by all the chaos outside. I was starting to wonder what kind

of video they had of this little boy peeking out his front window for hours on end. As I closed the back door behind me, I made my way down the driveway, past my car and straight to the reporters. Judy had given me the ok to answer a few questions about football. It was part of my job. But I was also hoping once they talked to me, it would help satisfy their appetite for a story. “Jason, is it true Addison Bryant’s husband was killed in a mysterious car accident?” “How do you get along with her son?” “Jason, when are you going to pop the question?” Man. They had no conscience about the questions they asked, did they? “Hey guys,” I started, trying to stay calmer than I felt on the inside. “I see you figured out where Addison lives.” There were a few chuckles from my audience. “We’re so flattered you guys find our story interesting. That’s really nice. But I am asking, as a personal favor to me, that you be respectful of the fact that a child lives here.” “We know. He’s been peeking through that window all day,” someone replied. I chuckled. “Yeah. That sounds about right. He is quite intrigued by all your equipment. I don’t know whose satellite truck that is, but he thinks that is the coolest thing ever.” “Jason, there has been some speculation that you and Addison began dating before her husband died. What is your response to that?” That is exactly the kind of rumor Addison was worried about. As much as I wanted to deck the bignosed dude that asked me the question, I stayed cool. I didn’t want to make things worse. “I would say that is a ridiculous speculation since we only met a couple months ago. You guys can expect a press release soon with a little more information. In the meantime, we have a game coming up tomorrow night if you have any questions about football.” I was only asked a couple questions about the

game, which is exactly what I expected. No one was here because they thought I would be. But it still seemed like a nice compromise . . . give the reporters a little and they back off a little. At this point, I’d take what I could get.

Me: How’s it going so far today? I hit send on my text to Addison and sat on the bench of the locker room, waiting for a response. I had stayed up late last night watching all the news reports and internet updates to see if any more intrusive stories popped up. So far, with the exception of the one article and the media in the street, things were pretty quiet. But I still wanted to make sure. Addison: There are still a couple people out there. Mostly it’s before the news starts when they are doing a live shot. Me: Good. I’ve been worried. Addison: ;) You’re sweet. I’m really glad Judy put that picture in the press release. I looked hot! I chuckled. Me: Yes, yes you were. And yes you are. Gotta go, babe. Pre-game meetings and interviews. See you at the game? Addison: I’ll be wearing your number. I smiled at the thought as I turned off my phone, put it in my locker and shut the door, ready to go to work. Two hours later, we were on the field warming up and getting revved up for the game. Deuce was always really energetic before we played. Ran around like a fool talking to people, cracking jokes, meeting fans. Me? I had to get in the zone. Block everything else out. I didn’t think about anything or anyone

except football. Tonight was a small exception. It was the first time Addison was going to be here in the stadium during one of my games and I’d be lying if I said that didn’t excite me a little bit. So while I stayed in my football zone, I allowed myself to glance at the reserved seating area every once in a while. Just to see if they were here yet. I knew they’d probably come in a little late to avoid the crowd, but I was still anxious to see my girl, and my buddy, wearing my jersey and cheering me on. “You ready for tonight?” Deuce asked as he jogged over to me with his normal pre-game bounce. “Monday Night Football, baby!” “Yep,” I answered shortly, tossing the ball back to Dean McKenna, one of our practice team members. “Hey, check it out man,” Deuce gestured toward the stands. “I got Judy to get me a reserved seating ticket at the last minute. My little preggo mamacita is feeling better, so we thought Addison might enjoy the company.” Sure enough, as I looked over I saw Vanessa taking a seat right next to the ones we had for Addison and Jaxon. When she saw us looking, she blew a kiss at Deuce who pretended to catch it, kiss it, spike it like a football and dance around like he’d scored. Well, she was pregnant so I guess technically he had scored. “Thanks, man,” I said once he finally stopped dancing. “I really appreciate it.” He smiled and started bouncing again. “Don’t worry about it. Anything for Addison,” he said as he jogged away. McKenna and I kept tossing the ball around until it was time to head back in the locker room and suit up. Once we went through the normal pep talks and started heading toward the tunnel in all our pads and uniforms, the mood changed. As we came charging through the tunnel, the sound of the crowd was deafening. You could feel the excitement in the air. It was almost electric. Football fans were hard-core.

Everywhere I looked there was blue and silver. Blue and silver pom-poms. Blue and silver foam fingers. Blue and silver face paint. There’s nothing like knowing that ninety-five percent of the people in a building this size were rooting you on, believing in you, counting on you. It was unreal. As we ran across the field, I looked over at the reserved seats again. And there they were. My girl and my buddy. Cheering me on. With an excited smile on my face, I smacked the top of my helmet twice and pointed at them. I have no idea why I did that. It just sort of happened. But Jax pointed back at me, so I didn’t care if I looked like a lovesick idiot. We made it halfway through the third quarter without a hitch. Their offense was good, but our defense was better. By the time the third quarter was winding down, we were ahead of the 49ers, 14 - 7. And that’s when it happened. We were getting set up at the line of scrimmage when Brandon Gonzales, the linebacker I was supposed to get around, started talking shit about Addison. “Did that fine piece of ass make it to the game, Hart?” he taunted as we got in position. “I saw all those pictures in the paper. I bet she’s a really good lay, isn’t she?” “Shut up and play football, punk ass,” I said through gritted teeth. “Single moms are the best.” I tried to stay focused on the plays being called around me but almost lost it when he said, “They’re so desperate, they suck cock like a fucking hoover.” Thankfully, their quarterback yelled “hike” at that exact moment because I lost it. I lunged for that douchebag and threw him to the side like a ragdoll. Then I went after the quarterback in a rage. He saw me coming and kept moving backwards, trying to find someone who was open. But he waited just a second too long. He launched the ball out of his hands and I reached up. The rest seemed like slow motion. The ball tipped

off my fingers and popped straight up in the air a couple of feet. Somehow, someway, it came down right in my arms. So I ran for the end zone. The entire stadium erupted as the team cleared the bench and ran down the sidelines next to me. I looked around to make sure I wasn’t about to be tackled, but all I could see were a few of my teammates blocking for me as I ran. Thirty-seven yards later, the ref’s arms went up and I heard him yell, “TOUCHDOWN!” The stadium erupted once again. “YEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH,” I threw my head back and yelled as loud as I could in celebration. I started getting pounded on the back and head by my teammates whooping and hollering in congratulations. I was a defensive player. I wasn’t ever supposed to touch the ball. But while my girl and my buddy were watching, I made a touchdown. Unreal. So I did what any good player would do. I locked eyes with Addison, smacked my helmet twice and pointed at her. She pointed back. As the offensive players made their way onto the field for the extra point, I happened to walk right past Gonzales. “Talking shit about my girl,” I said, glaring at him as I pulled my helmet off my head. “How’d that work out for you?” I taunted with a smile on my face, turning away and running off the field before he could respond.

“It was so awesome, Jason!” Jaxon was jumping up and down when I got out of the elevator at the restaurant upstairs. “You smacked that ball and caught it and ran so fast and made a touchdown!” Like always, he was imitating all the motions as he said them, eliciting a smirk from the hostess. “It was awesome,” I agreed. “I’ve never done that before! Can you believe it?”

His eyes widened as he looked at me. “Never?” “Never.” He turned to Addison, still bouncing. “Mom, did you hear that? That was Jason’s first touchdown!” “I heard,” she said, smiling at him and then looking over to smile at me. “It was a really amazing play.” “Thanks.” I stood there awkwardly. I really wanted to kiss her hello but I couldn’t with Jaxon standing right there. I wasn’t quite sure what do to. She decided for me when she reached up on her toes and kissed me on the cheek. “It seems those extra workouts overnight did the trick,” she whispered seductively in my ear. I leaned back to look her in the eyes and smiled. “I’ll have to schedule a few more of those. You know, for football.” She tried not to grin at me by biting her lip. But I wasn’t fooled. Addison was obviously a lot more relaxed since I left her house yesterday. And she was in a playful mood. I liked seeing this side of her. “Come on. Let’s go eat. I’m starving,” I said, grabbing her hand. I wasn’t sure how she would react to my touch, but at this point, I was willing to take my chances. I needed my hands on her, Jaxon or no Jaxon. Once we were seated and the waitress took our drink order, Jaxon took off for the lobster aquarium, just like I knew he would. “So?” I asked, taking a drink of my water. “What did you think of watching the game from the stands?” “It’s much more exciting watching it in the stadium than it is watching on TV,” she said with a smile on her face. “There’s so much to see. I had a lot of fun.” “Now you know why I’ve been bugging you to come. The experience is totally different.” “I’m glad Vanessa came,” she said while looking at the menu. I didn’t need to look. I already knew it by heart. And today was buffet day. “I was nervous about having all the cameras there, but she’s so

relaxed. It made it a lot easier.” “Yeah, she’s a pro at being a football wife,” I agreed. “I don’t know how she puts up with Deuce. But she really knows how to balance the fame from reality.” “She really does.” She put the menu down and leaned forward on her elbows. “Ok, so tell me something. What is that thing you do where you smack your helmet and point at us?” I sat back and laughed. “I honestly don’t know,” I said. “I guess I just got excited when I saw you guys sitting there and it just sort of . . . happened.” She smirked at me. “Well, whatever it was, it was really sweet.” We sat there just looking in each other’s eyes and having a moment when Jaxon came running up. “Jason, there’s a buffet here. Can we eat the buffet? I’m starving!” “How are you starving?” Addison asked incredulously. “You had a hot dog and popcorn during the game.” “Leave him alone,” I joked. “He’s turning into a man! He needs his food.” She just rolled her eyes as Jaxon and I wandered over to the buffet, filling up several plates. I even brought one back for her. As we ate, we chatted more about the game and Jaxon talked about school. “Mom, is Jason your boyfriend?” Addison and I froze. I looked over and saw her looking at me. The question had come out of nowhere and I honestly didn’t know how she wanted us to respond. I leaned back and finished chewing the bite I had just taken. “What makes you ask that, buddy?” I asked slowly while wiping off my mouth with a napkin. He shrugged. “One of those people outside our house yelled, ‘How does it feel to have Jason Hart as your boyfriend,’ when you were there yesterday. I heard them.” He turned to look at Addison. “So is he?

Is Jason your boyfriend?” She took a deep breath before answering. “Well. I mean . . . uh, yes. Yes, Jason is my boyfriend. Is that ok with you?” I could see she was really nervous about his pending answer. But in true Jaxon fashion, he didn’t disappoint. “Well, yeah, duh,” he said, rolling his eyes. “I gave him permission to take you on dates.” I stifled a laugh and tried to sound commanding when I reprimanded him. “Don’t roll your eyes at your mom, Jax. It’s disrespectful.” “Sorry,” he said and continued on. “Is that why all those people keep coming to our house?” I smirked at the fact that none of this really fazed him at all. I had known Addison was worried for nothing. But I wasn’t about to tell her that. She needed to process all of this in her own way. She was a worrier by nature and I wasn’t about to try and change who she was. “You know how there are lots of cameras at the football games, Jax, and how I have to do lots of interviews and stuff?” I asked. Trying to explain the fascination with celebrity to a seven-year-old wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. “Yeah . . . cause you’re famous,” he said matterof-factly. Ok, so maybe he understood better than I thought. “Right,” I continued. “So sometimes when someone who is famous starts dating, it makes people really, really curious about the girlfriend.” “So people wanna know things about my mom?” he asked, trying to understand what I was getting at. I nodded. “That’s pretty much it in a nutshell.” “Oh,” he looked at his plate and picked up his fork again, spearing some mac and cheese. “Ok.” “That’s it?” Addison asked. “You don’t have any more questions?” I think she was surprised that he didn’t freak out over this new revelation. Jaxon shrugged and changed topics, telling me all about some guy who had apparently painted the entire

front of his body for the game, and danced around the stands like a fool. I looked at Addison and smirked. She shook her head and continued on with her meal. The entire conversation took only a small amount of time. But to me, it felt like a huge boulder had been moved out of the way of my relationship with Addison. More than anything in the world, she was worried about Jaxon. And if he was ok with this, it meant she didn’t have to sneak around anymore. Or make up excuses when we spent time together. Yes, we would still keep our time spent together separate. But I knew it also meant I would be incorporated into their lives more. And that was an awesome feeling. Even better than making my first touchdown.

Having Addison at the game seemed to do the trick. By the next morning, news crews stopped showing up at the house and Adam stopped getting inquires about our relationship. By Wednesday, Jaxon was able to go back to school and Addison went back to work. Just as predicted, something interesting happened to another local celebrity, so we were old news. And it was perfectly fine with us. “Did you know, when a woman is pregnant, her entire areola and nipple gets bigger and darker on her breast?” Deuce asked as we were showering after practice. “Like it’s turning into a big target for the baby’s mouth.” “Are you really talking to me about your wife’s nipples while we’re in the shower?” I asked as I rinsed the shampoo out of my hair and off my body. “I was talking about pregnancy in general, asshole,” he responded. “I read it in my pregnancy book last night.” I just shook my head. He had been reading at least one chapter in that book every day for the past week and the next day I always got to hear about some new, random bit of information I never wanted to know. “Although, when she was saving a horse and riding this cowboy last night, her nipple was a giant target for my mouth.” “And I’m out,” I said, shutting off the water and grabbing a towel to leave as fast as I could. “I don’t

need to know this stuff,” I said over my shoulder. “It’s a beautiful and natural part of marriage,” he yelled after me, laughing at my exit. “Fucking Deuce,” I muttered with a chuckle as I opened my locker and started getting dressed. I glanced down at my phone and saw the blue light flashing, indicating I had a missed text. And three missed calls. All from Addison. Addison: Call me as soon as you can. That’s all the text said. I didn’t bother listening to the voice messages, I just called her back. “Jason,” she said after answering on the first ring, “are you done with practice for the day?” “We just got done,” I said, grabbing my clothes and yanking my boxer briefs over my hips. “What’s wrong? Are you ok?” “Yeah. There was just . . . I don’t know . . . some sort of incident at the school,” she said, sounding worried. My blood ran cold as all the possibilities ran through my mind. “What kind of incident? Is Jax ok?” “As far as I know,” she said softly. “He was in a fight.” “What?” I asked, stopping dead in my tracks. My body relaxed, but I still didn’t believe what I was hearing. “Jaxon . . . our Jaxon . . . was in a fight?” I heard Deuce snicker next to me. I hadn’t heard him walk up. “What happened?” She sighed. “I don’t know. All I know is he was in a fight at lunch with another little boy and now he has to be taken home for the day.” “Ok.” “But I can’t take off another day of work, I just got back,” she said. “And Mick is just as far behind on work as I am.” She paused. “Can you possibly pick him up?” I pulled my jeans up as I talked, grabbing my wallet and shoving it in my back pocket. “Of course I can. We’re done for the day. Did you let the school

know I’m coming for him?” “Yeah. I gave them authorization over the phone.” She sounded like the entire situation made her uncomfortable when she said, “I’m so sorry to put this on you, Jason. I just don’t know what else to do.” “Babe,” I said quietly, “this is what you’re supposed to do. You’re supposed to call me when things like this happen so I can help.” “I know,” she said. I could hear the small smile in her voice. “This is just all new to me. I’ll get used to it.” “I know you will. Listen, I need to finish getting dressed and then I’m headed in that direction. Shouldn’t take me longer than forty-five minutes to get there.” “Ok. Thanks Jason. I so, so appreciate you.” “Any time, babe. I’ll talk to you soon.” “Ok, bye.” We hung up and I put the phone down long enough to pull my t-shirt over my head and grab my shoes. “Jaxon’s already getting in schoolyard fights?” Deuce asked as I put my socks and shoes on. “Did he win?” “I hope so,” I answered with a smile. “But before I pat him on the back, I need to figure out what started the fight in the first place.” I grabbed my keys and slammed my locker door, heading toward the exit. “Later,” I said to Deuce over my shoulder. “See ya. And tell the little Mike Tyson I said hi.” It took me thirty-five minutes to get there, doorto-door. From the look on the receptionist’s face as I signed in, they were expecting me. When the principal, Mrs. Teske, came to escort me into the building, I could tell they weren’t nearly as happy to see me as they were last time I was here. But I guess they wouldn’t be since I was here to take a rabblerouser off their hands. She led me through the office and around the corner to a small hallway with an “Employees Only”

placard on the wall. We passed a door on the left before she led me through the second door into what I assumed was her office. On the right was a circular table and a few chairs. And there was Jaxon sitting in one of those chairs. “Have a seat, Mr. Hart,” Mrs. Teske said. I grabbed the chair next to Jaxon and pulled it around so I was sitting in front of him. “Thanks,” I said to Mrs. Teske and then turned my attention to Jaxon. “Hey Jax.” “Hi,” he mumbled, arms crossed over his chest, feet dangling off the chair. “Where’s my mom.” He didn’t say it like a question. It was more of a statement. A statement that meant whatever was going on made him really angry and I wasn’t the person he wanted to see right now. “She’s at work, buddy,” I said gently, wishing he would make eye contact with me. “And so’s your Peepaw. She called and asked if I would come pick you up since I was finished with practice for the day. Is that ok with you?” He paused briefly before he nodded once. “You wanna tell me what happened?” I asked, leaning my elbows on my knees and clasping my hands in front of me. “No,” he mumbled into his chest. His brows were furrowed and he wouldn’t look up at me. I’d never seen Jaxon like this before. And frankly, I wasn’t sure how to handle his defiance. Fortunately, Mrs. Teske dealt with kids all the time and had no problem jumping in. “Well, Mr. Hart, Jaxon and another student got in a fight during lunch,” she said, pausing to give Jaxon a chance to say something. He didn’t. “Is that true, Jaxon?” I knew the answer, but I wanted him to tell me what was going on. When he didn’t respond, Mrs. Teske kept on with her version of the story. “From what the other little boy says, he was just sitting there eating lunch when Jaxon attacked him for no reason.”

Jaxon whipped his head up in disbelief. “Nuh uh! That meany buttholehead Vincent Parker said Jason was my mom’s boyfriend!” I cocked my head and looked at Mrs. Teske, not quite sure how to proceed. “Ok, Jax,” she said, putting a hand gently on his arm. “I know you’re angry, but we need to not call people names, ok?” He slumped back down in his chair in defeat. “Jax,” I said, clearing my throat. “Buddy, I am your mom’s boyfriend. We talked about this the other day. You said you were ok with it. I’m not understanding what changed.” We sat silently, waiting for him to tell us more, but he didn’t. “Mr. Hart,” Mrs. Teske said gently, “I’m not sure what happened between the boys. I suspect there’s more going on than what Jaxon will tell us. But he knocked the other boy’s front tooth out. He’s on the way to the dentist now.” I looked back over at Jaxon, still sitting with his arms over his chest. “Jax,” I said, “I don’t care what this kid said about your mom and me. You can’t go around punching people when they do it. Words are just words, buddy. And people are gonna say mean things.” “But he said you and mom were gonna . . . ,” he started and then stopped abruptly. That’s when the tears started. “Me and your mom were gonna what, buddy?” He sniffled and wiped his eyes with the heels of his hands. “He said you and mom were gonna get married and that you would be my dad from now on. And my other dad wouldn’t be my dad anymore.” He looked up at me with the saddest look I’d ever seen on his face. “He said I’d have to take down all my pictures of my dad and . . . and . . . I don’t want my other dad to not be my dad anymore. I love him and I don’t want you to make him not be my dad anymore.” My heart broke as I saw the tears running down his face. That feeling, that horrible feeling of missing

a parent and desperately wanting him to come back . . . I had never forgotten that feeling. It was like being punched in the gut, run over by a car and having your insides ripped out, all at the same time. Multiplied by a million. It was awful. It was grief. Here I was, watching this boy that I loved so deeply feeling what I had felt all those years ago. And there wasn’t anything I could do to make it better for him. I looked at Mrs. Teske who appeared almost as heartbroken as I felt. “Mrs. Teske, is it ok if Jaxon and I just call it a day?” I was ready to get him out of here and give him some time to process through all the emotions he was feeling. “I think that’s a great idea,” she said, standing up. “Jaxon, I want you to go do something fun this afternoon, ok? We’ll come back tomorrow, start over fresh and have a great day. How does that sound?” He nodded and we both stood up. I grabbed Jaxon by the shoulder and pulled him toward me, not enough for a hug, but just enough for him to know he wasn’t alone in this. I thanked Mrs. Teske as we walked out of her office and headed for the front door. On our way, we passed Lindsay, who was greeting a couple dozen kids that were in a single file line, headed toward her classroom. She gave me a sympathetic smile and a pat on the arm as we walked by. Obviously fist fights weren’t a well-kept secret around here. After signing him out at the front desk and climbing in my car, I texted Addison to let her know I had him with me and everything was fine. That’s when he finally started talking again. “Where are we going?” He still sounded sad, but he wasn’t crying anymore. “Well, your mom isn’t home and I don’t have a key to the house,” I said, glancing over at him. He was just staring out the window as we drove. “So we’re gonna go to the one place I know of that is open to me any time I want.” A few minutes later, we drove into the driveway

of a modest one-story home. The flowerbeds in the front were free of weeds and full of purple and orange pansies. All recently planted. A middle-aged woman in a floppy hat stood up from the mulch and started walking toward us, pulling off her gardening gloves. “Jason! What a nice surprise! What are you doing here?” she asked, wrapping her arms around my waist and squeezing tightly. “Hi, ma,” I said, kissing her on top of her head. “I was in town and thought I’d stop by. I brought a friend with me.” I turned around as Jaxon climbed over the front seat and hopped out of the driver’s side. “Ma, this is my friend, Jaxon.” She looked at me in surprise, then looked down at Jaxon and held out her hand to shake his. “Well, hello, Jaxon. I’ve heard so much about you.” “You have?” Jaxon asked, shaking her hand politely. “Oh yes,” she said. “I hear you are quite the football fan.” His eyes brightened immediately and he smiled at her. “I love football! I go to all of Jason’s games!” “Is that right? Well, you are a fan!” She winked at me as she headed toward the front door. “I bet you boys are hungry, being that it’s lunch time and all.” I put my hand on Jaxon’s shoulder, squeezing gently, guiding him to follow behind my mom. “We sure are,” I said. “Jaxon’s lunch was interrupted and I didn’t have any yet. I hope you have enough food for us growing boys!” She chuckled as we all walked through the living room to the kitchen, sitting down at the barstools. “I’ve got all the fixings for turkey sandwiches. Will that work?” she asked. “I like turkey sandwiches,” Jaxon answered, watching my mom closely as she pulled out all the ingredients. I stood up to grab plates and napkins but was quickly shooed out of her work area and back to a barstool.

My mom practically ignored me as she chatted with Jaxon, asking him about school and his teacher and what his favorite subject was. I wasn’t surprised to find out he liked PE and recess the most. “Who is that in that picture?” Jaxon asked as we ate, gesturing to the refrigerator. There were half a dozen pictures of my mom and Rick on their wedding day, in the Mediterranean, on a trip to Napa. But none of those was the picture he was looking at. “The one of me when I was little?” I asked, tossing my last chip in my mouth. He nodded. “That’s me and my dad. It was taken, what, a week before he died? Is that right, ma?” She looked at the ceiling like she was thinking. “Umm . . . yeah, I think it was just about a week before the accident. It was the last picture you guys took together. And one of the best.” It might seem weird to other people that my mom had a twenty-year-old picture hanging on her fridge. But I loved that she never took it down. Sure, the fridge had changed several times over. Heck, she didn’t even live in the same house anymore. But she knew it was important to me that my dad was still recognized as an important part of my life. I had to appreciate that she understood and respected that. “I have a picture of me and my dad in my room,” Jaxon told my mom. “It’s on my nightstand.” His face fell a little as he said it. Mom glanced over at me with her eyebrows furrowed slightly in question. I gave her a slight nod, answering the question I knew she was silently asking me. I could see the puzzle pieces come together as to why we were here in the middle of a school day. She’d been through it before with me. And she didn’t miss a beat. “Well, I think you should always have that picture on your nightstand, Jaxon,” she said. “It’s important for a boy to always remember how much his daddy loved him.” She gathered our plates and turned toward the sink. She didn’t think I caught it, but I saw the tears in her eyes as she turned away from us.

“So Jax, I’m pretty sure I have an extra football in the other room. Wanna go toss the ball around for a while?” I asked. We still had a few hours until Addison got home. The least I could do was try and run his energy out. “Sure,” he said with a shrug. It worried me that he was still moping around. Hopefully a little fresh air would help with that. And it was still pretty mild out for November, so why not take advantage of it? After grabbing an old ball out of the spare bedroom, we headed out the back door and down the patio steps into the grass. I’m not sure how long we tossed the ball around, but it was a good while. Most of the conversation revolved around football, of course. Turns out, he was very opinionated about my teammates and their performance. He was pretty critical of certain plays that had gone bad and could nail down exactly where it went wrong. It was kind of amazing hearing his take on everything. If he kept it up, I could see him becoming a pretty good coach someday. “Hey, Jason. Haven’t seen you in a while. How’s everything going?” Rick asked as he stepped through the back door and onto the patio. “Hey, Rick!” I answered, hanging onto the football and turning toward him. “I thought for sure you’d be off doing some book tour or something.” “Without your mother?” he scoffed. “Like I could leave her behind if I wanted to. You know how much she loves to travel.” “That she does,” I agreed. “Hey Rick, I’d like you to meet my friend, Jaxon. Jaxon,” I said, looking at Jax but gesturing toward Rick, “this is my stepdad, Rick.” Rick’s eyebrows raised. I had never referred to him as my stepdad before. I was an adult living my own life when they had gotten married, so he was always just my mom’s husband. But Jaxon was struggling with the relationships in his life. I hoped my own situation could help him sort some of it out. Jaxon looked back and forth between Rick and me

a few times like he was trying to wrap his brain around everything. “Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Jaxon,” Rick said politely with a nod. “Would you guys like to come up for some lemonade? Your mom just made a pitcher.” “Sure,” Jaxon said, shrugging and heading toward the steps. Rick went back inside to grab the lemonade and some glasses while Jax and I sat down at the patio table. “He doesn’t get mad that you have a picture of your dad on the fridge?” Jaxon asked quietly, like it was a big secret we couldn’t let Rick in on. “Why would he?” I asked, crossing my arms and resting them on the table in front of me. “Well . . . cause it . . . cause he . . . cause it’s your dad and your dad is dead so he’s your dad now,” Jaxon finally said in a single breath like he had to get it all out before Rick came back outside. I smiled at him. “Jax, my dad will always be my dad. It doesn’t matter that he died. He’s still my dad and no one can take that away. Not even Rick.” I reached over and grabbed Jaxon’s hand, causing him to look up at me. “And Jax, no one will ever take the place of your dad either.” “If you marry my mom, are you gonna make me take down my picture of my dad?” he asked quietly. I think my heart broke again right then. I wanted to go back to the school and punch that meany buttholehead Vincent Parker myself for putting these thoughts in Jaxon’s head. “I would never, ever make you take down your picture. I don’t ever want you to forget how special he was because he loved you so, so much. I never want you to forget him. No matter what happens with me and your mom.” “Really?” “Really.” He launched himself at me and threw his arms around my neck, hugging me tight.

“Is anyone ready for some lemonade?” Rick asked as he came out the sliding glass door toward us. “Yeah!” Jaxon exclaimed as Rick poured a glass for each of us. He was back. My buddy had been so afraid of losing the only little part of his dad that he had left. I understood that feeling and was so grateful that I could help him get through it. I only hoped my own dad was watching and was proud of what he was seeing.

Away games never used to bother me. And I guess the out of town part still didn’t. But playing football wasn’t as fun when Jaxon and Addison weren’t in the stands. It was funny how last season, I wouldn’t even think twice about getting on a chartered plane to head out of town. But now I had a twinge of disappointment every time it happened because I missed them. I knew I had only known them a short amount of time, but I was quickly coming to grips with the fact that I was in this for the long haul. With the exception of my mother, I had never felt that way about anyone before. It still freaked me out. But again, I was coming to grips with it. It didn’t help that the New York Giants had completely kicked our asses. We started out just fine. In fact, we were up 14 - 0 at halftime. But then it all fell apart. By the end of the game, we hadn’t just lost. We had been slaughtered 30 - 17. Ouch. We strolled into the locker room as a team, none of us in a hurry to participate in the mandatory press conferences. But what can you do? Talking to the press was part of our job, even after a loss like this one. I quickly changed out of my uniform and headed to the stage where all the microphones were attached to a podium. I always wondered how that thing didn’t just topple off the stage with all the mics sitting right

on top. While I waited for my turn in front of the cameras, I checked my messages. Sure enough, Jaxon had left his regular message of encouragement. “Hi, Jason! It’s Jaxon. My mom said I can’t stay on the phone very long cause we’re at my Pee-paw’s house, but I wanted to tell you what a great game that was! You had so many sacks, I couldn’t even count them all! And I missed one of them when I had to go to the bathroom, but mom says I shouldn’t tell you that part ‘cause it’s gross. Anyway, I know you lost. But you’re still my favorite player, Jason. You did awesome! I’ll see you later . . . bye!” I smiled. That kid could always put me in a better mood. Answering questions for a few dozen reporters wasn’t so hard after that. Once I finished with my obligations in front of the camera, I made my way back over to the locker room. I tried calling Addison but she didn’t answer. She was at some anniversary party for Mick and Angela, so I’d just have to try again later. When I got back to the locker room, I looked over at my locker and groaned when I saw the suit hanging up. This wasn’t just a suit, it was Armani. What the hell was this for? On cue, my phone beeped, alerting me of a text. Adam: I’m assuming you forgot. You’re having dinner with Sara Perez and escorting her to a red carpet event for her next movie. When you’re ready to go, security will take you to the front where there is a car waiting. Your flight is booked for two tomorrow afternoon so you can sleep in. All cleared with coaches and administration. I groaned. “Where are you headed?” Deuce asked as he threw some clothes on. Somehow, he had gotten out of doing a press conference tonight so he was already showered and ready to go home. “I forgot about this red carpet event I told Sara I’d go to,” I said, stripping myself of my sweaty clothes. “Did you tell Addison about it?” “Of course not. I forgot about it myself,” I

answered as I headed toward the showers. “I guess I’ll see you at home, brother. Looks like tomorrow’s weight lifting session is out since I won’t be home until about four-thirty.” “No worries,” he called after me. “I’m sure my little nesting doll will have me moving furniture all over the house anyway.” “Ok, be safe,” I yelled as I stepped into the steaming water. It’s not that I minded hanging out with Sara tonight. I hadn’t seen her for a long time so it would be good to catch up. We had been friends for several years and we were just comfortable with each other. We could just be ourselves and let our hair down. It took me less than twenty minutes to get showered, dressed, and ready for a night out. As security walked me through the stadium and to my waiting car and driver, I tried calling Addison again. I assumed she didn’t hear her phone ring over the party when it went to voicemail again. They could be a rowdy bunch. Me: Hey. I have to stay in NY overnight. Flight lands at around four-thirty. I’ll stop by for a bit when I get home. I pressed send as I got in the car and slid to the middle of the back seat. Hopefully I’d catch her before she went to bed, but with the time difference and me being with Sara all night, I had a suspicion I would probably miss her. I put the thoughts out of my mind when we pulled up to the curb a few blocks away. We were eating at Peter’s, or Pedro’s, or Piedro’s. Hell if I knew. I didn’t make the reservation, I was just along for the ride, supporting Sara on her big night. As I got out of the car, I saw her. Sara Perez was probably one of the most gorgeous women in America. At roughly 5’ 8”, she was what many considered to be the perfect height. She had light skin for a Hispanic woman, like she had a perfect summer tan all year long. Her long chocolate brown hair fell in waves almost to her rear. And she

was curvy in all the right places. On top of all that, she was one of the sweetest people I knew. “Jason,” she squealed as she threw her arms around my neck and kissed me square on the lips, Hollywood style. “I’m so glad to see you! How are you, my friend?” I hugged her back tightly before putting her at arm’s length and looking her up and down. “Look at you! You look beautiful! I see the movie industry is treating you well.” She blushed and wrapped her arm around mine as we strolled into the restaurant. “It really is,” she said. The hostess didn’t even wait for us to speak when we got to the stand. She took us straight over to our table in the back. “Oh Jason, I can’t wait for you to see this film. It’s so unlike anything I’ve ever done. I’m so nervous! And so excited!” “I’m sure you are brilliant in it,” I said as I pulled out her chair for her to sit and pushed it back in. “Your big break is coming. These parts just keep getting better and better for you.” “I know,” she said with a deep breath. “It’s surreal how fast the ball seems to be rolling now. I’m already lined up for two more movies this year and a few directors have called my agent asking me to audition. Can you believe it?” We chatted more about the projects she was working on and she poked fun at me about the game. I didn’t let most people heckle me about football, especially after a loss. But Sara wasn’t a hard-core fan at all. In fact, she didn’t even live in New York full time. I was just impressed she knew there was a game at all, let alone what the score was. After the waiter took our orders, we relaxed into our conversation more. “So, where’s Elaine?” I asked, taking a sip of my water. “She’s back at the house. There are a zillion things to coordinate for my schedule right now, so as much as she wanted to come to dinner with us, you know

how it goes. When a manager has to choose between fun and organizing a project, they always go with the project.” I grinned. It was true. Elaine had been Sara’s manager for a long time and kept her as organized as she could. Sometimes her OCD was a bit out of control. But hey, I was OCD about my job, too. So I wasn’t judging. “So,” she said, leaning forward on the table, smiling sweetly. “I’ve seen it all over the internet. Tell me about this woman you’re seeing.” I leaned back in my chair and smiled. “Addison? She’s great. What do you want to know?” “Well, how did you meet her?” I chuckled. “That’s actually kind of funny. I met her son first, at a pep rally at a local elementary school. He and I sort of hit it off. I met Addison when I invited him to come tour the stadium with me. And that was it.” She cocked her head to the side and furrowed her brow. “That was it? What does that mean?” I took a deep breath and thought for a minute. “I just don’t have any interest in anyone else, Sara. You know me. I’m so wrapped up in football that no woman has ever kept my attention for long.” Sara raised an eyebrow at me and cleared her throat. “Don’t go pretending to be all offended,” I joked. “You know you’re different.” She smiled at me as I continued. “But with Addison . . . I just can’t get her out of my head, ya know?” I leaned forward on the table so she could hear me without the people at other tables being privy to our conversation. “I just . . . I don’t know, Sara. I think she’s it for me.” Sara’s eyes got wide and her mouth dropped open, right before she squealed and grabbed my hand. “You’re in love with her, aren’t you!” I laughed and squeezed her hand back. “I so, so am. Can you believe it?” She pulled her hand away and started clapping her

hands excitedly. “I knew it!” she said, trying to keep her excitement somewhat contained. She liked her privacy as much as I did and didn’t like making scenes in public. “I told Elaine, I said, ‘Jason is never seen with a woman more than once. And he certainly has never called one his girlfriend. He’s in love, Elaine!’ I did! I said it! You can ask her!” My smile widened as she spoke. “So I take it you’re happy for me?” She leaned forward and grabbed my hand again. “So, so happy for you, Jay. You are a wonderful man. You deserve this.” I kissed her knuckles in appreciation as the waiter came over to deliver our appetizers. I hadn’t had anything to eat since before the game, so I ordered several to tide me over until our meal came. Sara and I continued to talk about anything and everything. It really was nice to be around her again. She was one of the few people that seemed to stay genuine despite her fame. I honestly couldn’t wait for Addison to meet her. I knew they’d get along just great. On our way to the movie theater, I realized Addison had responded to my text. Addison: I’m kind of disappointed you won’t be home tonight, not that we would have seen you until tomorrow anyway. Hope everything is ok. I tried calling her again but still didn’t have any luck. Me: Yeah, it’s fine. Just some publicity stuff I forgot about. “Everything ok?” Sara asked as she reapplied her lipstick. “Yeah, I just forgot I was staying here tonight,” I said, locking my phone and shoving it in my pocket. “Addison and I are playing phone tag about it now. No biggie.” She closed her lipstick and put it in her small purse, while chastising me. “It’s a good thing you have Adam to keep you straight. You would never remember anything without him. I hope you gave him

Addison’s birthday so he can remind you to get a present. My eyes widened. “Oh, shit. I don’t know when her birthday is!” Sara just laughed as we pulled up to the curb. We could see the flashes of all the cameras through the dark tint of the car. “Told ya. You may want to get on that when you get back, stud,” she said condescendingly as the driver opened the door. “Get that look off your face. It’s show time.” As soon as she exited the car, questions started being shouted her direction, which she handled like a champ. She was a pro after all. For the next several hours, I played the role of perfect escort. I guided her to all the staging areas of the red carpet for all her pictures. I smiled for the cameras. I even held her purse when she took individual shots for all the fashion critics to judge tomorrow. When one of the reporters started asking me questions, I politely declined to answer, reminding him that this was Sara’s night, not mine. Yes, she and I had done this more than once, which is why I was her go-to man whenever she needed a date for something like this. After the movie was over, we hobnobbed for a while. Sara had to make conversation with her director and producer, as well as all her co-stars. They always say, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know,” and that couldn’t be truer in Sara’s chosen field. So I let her talk to anyone and everyone she wanted to without complaint, even though I was exhausted. Game days were tiring, anyway. Not just from the physical exertion, but from the adrenaline as well. You can run high on that stuff for several hours. But once the game is over, your body crashes and crashes hard. She must have recognized that I didn’t have as much energy as normal because she tore herself away from someone important, an executive or businessman or something—I don’t know, they all kind of look alike to me—and she made her way to

my side. “You look bored,” she whispered in my ear as she threaded her arm through mine. I smiled down at her. “Nah, just really wiped after the game. But I’m good. How many more people do you need to talk to?” She looked around the room. “Um . . . I think I hit up everyone I needed. Shall we go? We’ve got a private party to get started at my place.” She waggled her eyebrows at me. I chuckled. “You’re a mess. Let’s go.” We said our goodbyes and made our way over to the waiting car. Once we got settled in, I pulled out my phone again. This time, there was no response from Addison. So I tried calling her again. “Still no answer?” Sara asked after the phone rang twice on Addison’s end and went to voicemail. “Is everything ok?” “Yeah,” I said, feeling a little deflated. “She and Jax are at her father-in-law’s anniversary party. I guess they’re just partying a little harder than I realized. I’m sure it’s fine.” “You really like her kid, don’t you?” she asked with a look of understanding on her face. A small smile played on my lips as I thought about the message Jaxon had left me earlier. “Yeah. He’s a great kid. No matter what’s going on he always brightens my day. I really just love him as much as I love Addison. In a totally non-creepy way, of course.” “You love him like a dad,” she said. “I . . . I wouldn’t . . . I mean,” I stumbled over my words. “I don’t mean you’re trying to be his dad, Jason. Don’t get flustered. I just mean, you love him like a dad would love his child. That kind of love. Not the creepy kind.” “Oh,” I said, relaxing a little. “Yeah. I guess that’s about right.” “It’s normal. I mean, you’re gonna be his stepdad so it stands to reason you would love him like that.” My head whipped in her direction to look at her.

“Whoa there, Sara. It’s a little too early to be talking about me becoming his stepdad. I mean, I’ve only been dating his mom a couple months. It’s too early to pop the question.” As we pulled up to her building, she turned and looked me dead in the eyes. “Is it? She’s the one, Jason. You said it yourself. So I’m not sure it’s too early for anything.” With that, she opened the door of the car and stepped out, only to find more paparazzi standing on the sidewalk talking pictures. I climbed out after her, still a little stunned by her words. Was it too early to be thinking about marrying Addison? Could I really have her as my wife so soon? I mean, my mom had always told me that she and my dad were married within nine months of meeting. But I always chalked it up to it being a different era back then. Huh, I thought to myself. Maybe Sara’s right. I was jolted out of my thoughts when the elevator doors opened to one of the three penthouses in this building. Sara had told me at dinner that since her next two shoots were both set in New York, it made sense for her to buy something here and build the equity. It was a nice place. Huge open floor plan with a living room, dining room and kitchen overlooking some great views. It was definitely bigger than my place, but cost a whole lot more, too. “Well, look who finally came for a visit.” I looked over to the left to see Elaine coming down a hallway that I assumed led to the bedrooms. “Hey, girl! How the hell are you?” I asked as she kissed me on both cheeks, European style, and pulled her in for a tight squeeze. “Busy,” she replied, squeezing me back before pulling away and waving us to follow her into the kitchen. “This one has been keeping me on my toes,” she said, pointing her thumb at Sara. “I swear, every time I think I’ve got her calendar organized, her fan sites sorted out and her shoots scheduled, she goes and finds another project to throw into the mix. How was the movie, anyway?”

“It was great,” Sara said, plopping down on a bar stool and tossing her purse on the counter. “Jason was a great date, as always.” “She really did a great job in it,” I said as I pulled my tie loose. “Did you know she was gonna go all psycho on her best friend at the end? I didn’t see that coming!” Elaine chuckled. “It’s great, right? Best ending to a chick flick I’ve ever seen.” “I hope you make it through our private party, Jay,” Sara said as she took her shoes off and dropped them to the floor under the stool. “He’s looking awfully peaked. I’m not sure he’s gonna last.” “Don’t you dare bail on us, Jason,” Elaine said sternly. “I got popcorn and chocolate chip cookie dough and those nasty Pico de Gallo chips you like so much.” “Hey . . . don’t make fun of the chips,” I joked, unbuttoning my shirt. I was about done with this monkey suit. “And don’t worry about me. Now that I can just sit on the couch, I will be just fine for a while longer. What are we watching, anyway?” “Oh!” Sara said excitedly. Elaine and I exchanged a knowing glance. “There’s this new Nicholas Sparks movie out . . .” “NO!” Elaine and I said in unison. Sara crinkled her nose and her jaw dropped open in shock. Although, she shouldn’t have been too shocked. We had this conversation every time. “You guys are just mean! How come we never watch what I want to watch?” “Because you always fall asleep during the movie,” Elaine replied without missing a beat. “Seriously, how did you get into the movie business when you can’t even stay awake during one?” I asked her. Sara stood up and stomped off toward the hallway, grumbling the whole time about why she was even friends with us, and other such injustices. “You already got a movie, didn’t you,” I asked Elaine.

She snorted like it was a ridiculous question. “Of course I did. You think I’m gonna sit through some crappy movie while she sleeps?” “What’d you get?” “Did you see that new action flick yet? That one with those alien-looking things?” “Nope. It was on my list.” “Perfect,” she said, opening a box of popcorn. “I put your stuff in the first bedroom on the left. She’s been using it as an office, but there’s a queen-sized bed in there so you should be ok. You’ll have to sleep at an angle though, unless you don’t mind your feet dangling off.” “Thanks, Elaine,” I said as I made my way to the bedroom to change. Thankfully, I had an extra pair of running shorts and a t-shirt with me since I hadn’t planned to stay an extra day. By the time I was changed and back out in the living room, the girls had already settled themselves on the couch and were munching on popcorn. I plopped down on the couch next to Sara and grabbed a handful while Elaine lifted the remote and pressed play. This is what we did whenever we got together. We lounged around and ate a bunch of junk food. Years ago, some dumb reporter had mentioned the three of us having a “private party” and speculated about what kinds of things were really going on. We all got a good laugh about it so the phrase kind of stuck. Now, whenever one of us mentioned getting together to “party,” we knew it was time to break out the cookie dough and Sara’s footie pajamas. No, it wasn’t terribly manly. But I didn’t see them very often so it was nice to just hang out and relax. Besides, Elaine and I had the same taste in movies and two against one meant we always had the majority vote. Thirty minutes into the world of guns and explosions and I looked down to see Sara asleep, her head on Elaine’s lap, her feet on mine. I looked over at Elaine who apparently had just noticed Sleeping Beauty as well.

“Every time,” I said with a smirk. “Every time,” she repeated in agreement, taking another handful of popcorn and turning back to the movie.

I had wanted to try to reach Addison again last night, but by the time the movie was over it was two o’clock in the morning. That’s one a.m. at home. On a work night. So I figured I’d call her when I woke up. As I peeled my eyes open, I could see some light flurries outside the window. Gotta love the first day of December in NYC. I rolled over to glance at the clock. 10:00. Time to get up and at ‘em if I was gonna make my flight. No telling how long it would take to get to La Guardia if the snow got any thicker. I grabbed my phone, hoping I could catch Addison on her way to work. Instead, I found twelve missed calls and three text messages. I darted up in bed and started reading. Mom: Jason, honey, I don’t know what’s going on. But I hope it’s not what it looks like. Call me when you can. I love you. What? What’s she talking about? Lindsay: Jay, I love you. But you are SUCH a fucking douchebag! I have NEVER been so disappointed in you. I’ll stop leaving you nasty messages when you call me back so I can say it directly to you! Oh shit. What happened now? Adam: Relax. I’m on it. Once I read Adam’s text, I knew I was in deep

shit. Something was going on and I needed to find out what. I threw the covers back and stood up, pulling up the internet on my phone as I headed out toward the kitchen. Before I even made it out the bedroom door, the first picture from my google search popped up. It was of me and Sara. And her kissing me on the lips as I grabbed her. The second was from the restaurant. We were both leaning over the table toward each other, smiling and holding hands. And then, of course, a picture of me kissing her knuckles at the table. Fuck. I dialed Addison’s number, frantic to reach her, but it went straight to voicemail. No ring. Just voicemail. “Sara! Elaine!” I yelled toward the kitchen as I made my way down the hall. They were both sitting at the breakfast bar working on their laptops. Sara was sipping on a cup of coffee. Elaine was typing away at a rapid pace. “Good morning, Sunshine,” Sara cooed at me. I ignored her. “Did you see this?” I asked, holding up my phone so she could see the photo collage someone had made of us with all the pictures from last night. She squinted her eyes until she recognized what she was looking at. “Oh yeah. The paps are still downstairs,” she shrugged. “What?” I said, running toward the window. Sure enough, there were about a dozen photographers milled about. “FUCK!” “Jason, this happens every time,” Elaine said in her no-nonsense manager voice. I have no idea how she and Adam could stay calm when things like this happened. “Adam and I already put out our usual generic statements. Why are you freaking out?” I sighed, trying to calm myself down. After a few deep breaths, I looked up at Elaine. “I forgot about meeting up with Sara until after

the game yesterday,” I started, putting my hands on my hips. “I’ve been trying to reach Addison since yesterday but haven’t been able to. So she has no idea what’s going on or why I’m here. Except for what she’s probably seen all over the internet by now.” Elaine’s eyebrows shot to the ceiling. “You didn’t tell your girlfriend you had a fake date with a famous actress?” “I didn’t mean to,” I said, rubbing my hands down my face. “You know how I am with remembering this kind of thing, Elaine. But I know her. And I know she is freaking out right now, thinking I cheated on her.” My phone beeped again. I ignored it as I walked over and dropped down on the couch. I wasn’t in the mood to get bitched out by Lindsay or my mom again. “So just call her, Jay,” Sara said. “You can even put me on the phone. I’ll tell her there’s nothing going on.” I rested my elbows on my knees, face in my palms. “I already tried, Sara. It went straight to voicemail. This is really, really bad.” The blue flashing light of my phone caught my attention again so I decided to suck it up and look at the message. It was Addison. Addison: I get it, Jason. I really do. She’s beautiful and talented. You guys look great together. I’m not mad, just hurt. Just, do me a favor and stick to your promise. You promised that no matter what happened between us, you would always be Jaxon’s friend. Please, please don’t go back on that promise. He can’t lose you, too, just because I wasn’t what you needed. I’ll have Mick or Samantha take him to you whenever you want until I feel strong enough to see you again. And thank you, Jason, for making me feel special. I’ll never forget that. I stood up from the couch abruptly, staring at the screen. This couldn’t be happening. I had just found them. I couldn’t lose them over a stupid misunderstanding created by a bunch of low-life

picture-takers. “What’s wrong?” Elaine demanded. I walked briskly to her and handed her my phone. She read the text while I paced, then handed the phone to Sara and went back to typing. “Please, Sara, please come with me to straighten this out,” I begged as I paced. “You gotta talk to her. Please. You know how I feel about her. About them.” She looked up at Elaine and took a deep breath. “You need to go, Sara,” she encouraged. “You don’t have anything on the schedule today or tomorrow and I can clear Wednesday if I need to. But you need to do this for him.” “Can I even get a flight?” “We’re actually in luck,” Elaine said, looking down at her computer again. “My mad computer skills have already found you a first class flight that leaves half an hour earlier than your original flight, Jason. And since the paparazzi has been out there all morning waiting to get a ‘morning after’ shot, I can book two extra seats for security if you want them.” I whipped my head back to Sara, silently begging her to agree. She nodded once. “Ok. Book it. I still don’t get all this drama. But if it were me, I’d expect the same from you, Jason.” I let out a deep sigh of relief. “Oh, thank you, Sara. Thank you.” “Stop thanking her and go get packed,” Elaine said, still typing. “You need to leave here in about forty-five minutes if you’re gonna make it on time and I have to coordinate security and cars with Adam.” Thirty minutes later, I was anxiously waiting in the living room for Sara to finish getting ready. I was trying desperately not to pace, but there was nothing else to do. I sent both my mom and Lindsay a text telling them not to believe what they see on the internet and that I’d explain everything later. And by later, I meant after I sorted things out with my girlfriend. Because this relationship was not over.

Not by a long shot. When Sara was finally ready to go and she and Elaine had said all their goodbyes, we made our way to the elevator. “You ready?” she asked as we waited to get on the first floor. We were flanked by security on each side. “I keep calling her and she won’t answer,” I said, my throat tight. “I know what she’s thinking and there’s nothing I can do to set her straight right now. Of course I’m ready.” “I was talking about the paparazzi,” she replied dryly. As soon as the doors opened, we could see that the crowd had grown. I made the mistake of reading an article earlier speculating on why I had spent the night. Apparently someone I had hooked up with years ago came forward and gave an interview on what kind of night Sara probably had. I literally almost puked when I read that. And then I immediately started praying Addison had missed that one. The part of this whole thing that made me the angriest is why it was being blown up into a big thing. Sara wasn’t even an A-lister. She did well, don’t get me wrong, but she wasn’t in the news every day like Angelina Jolie or Jennifer Lawrence. And I was just a football player. The only reason these people were here is because of the sensationalism they could create. They had Addison painted as the poor defenseless widow, Sara as a home-wrecking whore and me as a heartless bastard that messes with the hearts of vulnerable women and their kids for sport. It pissed me off because by creating this scenario and passing it off as “truth,” I was about to lose the two things that had become the most precious to me. “How long have you two being seeing each other?” “Jason, have you spoken to Addison this morning to break the news?” “How do you think Jaxon is gonna react to finding

out you cheated on his mom?” I almost punched someone after that last question. Fortunately, security was able to hustle us into the waiting SUV before I could react. “Relax, Jason,” Sara said, patting my knee. “We’re gonna fix this.” Once again, I tried calling Addison. Once again, it went to voicemail. So I tried texting. No response. This went on every ten minutes until we got settled on the plane and the flight attendant made me put my phone away. That’s when the fidgeting began. A couple of hours into the flight, Sara had finally had enough. “Jason,” she said sleepily without opening her eyes or moving the rest of her body. “You have to stop shaking your knee. I swear you are making the entire plane move.” “Sorry,” I muttered and squirmed in my seat. Looked at my watch. Ran my hands over my head. Shook my knee. “Ok,” Sara said abruptly, sitting up and putting her chair in the upright position. “You’re making me crazy.” “I’m sorry. I just . . . can’t this plane go any faster? I’m going crazy here.” “I can tell. And that makes me nervous, Jason.” “How come? You have nothing to be nervous about.” “I’m nervous about this relationship. Not that we won’t be able to sort this out. But what about the next time? And the time after that? And the one after that? Jay,” she said, putting her hand on my arm and turning to face me. “You’ve been dating for a couple of months and she already can’t handle the pressure of having a famous boyfriend?” “That’s not what’s happening here,” I said, leaning my head back against the headrest and closing my eyes. I felt so defeated. And even the distraction of this conversation couldn’t take that away. “Then explain it to me,” she said. “Because I’m worried that you are getting so involved with

someone that won’t be able to hack it in the end, that you’ll lose more than just her and her son. You’ll lose yourself and your career, too.” “No. Sara, none of this is about dating a celebrity. It’s all about me fucking up and not giving her a heads up.” “Jay, you’re really gonna take the blame . . .” “Sara,” I cut her off. “I’m serious.” I took a deep breath and looked around, making sure no one was paying attention to our conversation. This was not information I wanted leaked to the public. When I was satisfied that there were no prying ears, I leaned in closer to her. “Before Addison’s husband died, he was having an affair.” Her eyes widened. “Yeah. And not just any affair. Several years long, refuses-toleave-the-mistress-to-save-his-marriage, kind of affair.” “Oh god.” “Right,” I said, nodding. “When I first met her, she refused to go out with me. Kept saying I would get bored because she wasn’t pretty enough or skinny enough. Some shit like that. I don’t remember the exact words. Now, you’ve known me a long time. How do I like my women?” “Meaty,” she said with a shrug. “Thank you,” I said with a small smirk. “I keep trying to convince her but her husband did a number on her and she still struggles with self-confidence. Anyway, I finally got her to go out with me and slowly, but surely, she’s learned to trust me. But now. . . ,” I trailed off, shaking my head, not wanting to say the words. “Now she thinks you’re pulling the same shit her husband pulled,” Sara finished for me. “I know this isn’t just about me, Sara. I know most of this is still old wounds from her husband.” I shook my head. “But I’m not gonna be the guy who just lets his woman feel like crap because it’s not about me. The internet rumors triggered it. But I have to do what I can to fix it. Does that make sense?” She put her hand on my cheek and pulled me in to

kiss the other cheek. “You are a good, good man, Jason Hart,” she said while looking in my eyes. “We’re gonna fix this, ok? Not just for today, but for the future, ok?” I nodded, feeling hopeful that it was gonna work out. But still very, very afraid. After what felt like an eternity, we landed in Dallas and began the drive to Addison’s house. Sara and I looked up every picture we had seen of last night and tried to figure out what exactly we were doing at the time the shot was taken. I didn’t want to come off rehearsed, but I also didn’t want to just say I didn’t know what I was doing at the time. The articles were more brutal. With my volatile state of mind, I decided to let Sara read through the articles. Lucky for her, she still found most of them humorous. Most of the time, I would too. But not this time. When we pulled onto Addison’s street, I was surprised to see only one camera in front of the house. That was gonna make it a lot less stressful once we got to the door. It was also going to make that one cameraman’s day when he was the only one in the country to get a shot of Sara and me entering Addison’s house together. After pulling in the driveway, I took a deep breath and pulled on the car handle. “Let’s go.” Sara followed behind me quickly, keeping her sunglasses on and her head low. Not that it would have made much of a difference right now. I knocked and waited. No answer. So I knocked again. “Addison, open the door. It’s me.” No answer again. I knocked a third time. “Addison, I know you’re here, ok? Your car is parked in the driveway. Open the door, babe. I need to explain. It’s not what you think.” Still no answer. I was about to beat the door harder when it flew open and Jaxon yelled my name. “Jason!” he said,

jumping into my arms. As soon as his arms wrapped around my neck, I felt my breath hitch and tears start to form behind my eyelids as I held him tight. I loved this little boy so much and the thought of losing him broke me. “What are you doing here?” a calm voice asked from across the room. I looked up to see Mick glaring at me and clenching his hands into fists. To say he was pissed would be an understatement. “Hey, Mick,” I said, not letting Jaxon go. “I didn’t see your car outside.” “That’s because it’s at my house,” he said dryly. “I had to drive her home after the party last night when some of our guests started seeing pictures of you in some compromising positions with your lady friend here.” His head nodded toward Sara. If it were possible for him to be even madder, when he realized Sara was the woman in the pictures, that threw him over the edge. “My mom’s been crying all day,” Jaxon said to me. I squeezed my eyes shut when he said that so he wouldn’t see my guilt. And so I wouldn’t see his accusing stare. In all actuality, he probably didn’t even realize what was going on. But I just couldn’t look at him. “She didn’t even cry this much when my dad died.” And I was officially gutted. “I know, bud,” I said softly, finally opening my eyes to look at him. “But I’m gonna fix it, ok? Your mom thinks some things happened, but they didn’t. And I’m here to make sure she knows it and isn’t sad anymore, ok?” “I don’t know what you think you need to say, Jason,” Addison said softly, standing next to Mick. “I get it, ok? It hurts, but I get it. I just don’t get why you had to bring her here.” She gestured toward Sara. “It’s hard enough seeing you right now. Did you really have to bring her to twist the knife in my heart more?” Addison looked awful. It was painfully obvious that she had been crying for hours. Her eyes were red and puffy and her face was splotchy. She was wearing

sweatpants and, ironically, one of my old practice jerseys. I don’t think I had ever loved her more than in this moment, when she was wearing her broken heart on her sleeve. She swiped away a few tears from her face as she tried to control her breathing. “See, Jason?” Jax said in my ear. “I’ve never seen her this sad.” I gave him a half-hearted smile and put him down while Sara closed the door behind us. “Hey bud, I really need to talk to your mom about some grown-up stuff so we can get this worked out, ok?” I said, bending at the waist and resting my hands on my knees. He nodded. “You can really help us out if you go hang out in your room and play until we come to get you. That way no one has to worry about ya. Can you do that for me?” “Ok.” I ruffled his hair as he walked past Mick and Addison and down the hall. “Babe, I need you to listen to me,” I said, taking a step forward. She took a step back. “It’s not what it looks like. It’s not the same thing.” I wanted to rush toward her but part of me was afraid she’d just run away. The other part of me was afraid Mick would make good on his promise to kick my ass if I ever hurt her. “Answer me one question,” she said quietly. “Anything, babe,” I said desperately. “Ask me anything and I’ll tell you the truth.” “Did you spend the night at her house last night?” I didn’t hesitate. “Well yes, but . . .” “There’s no but. That’s all I needed to know,” she said, turning toward the hallway. Mick or no Mick, I took off after her this time. “Wait, Addison,” I said, grabbing her by the shoulders and stopping her in motion. “Ask me if I had sex with her last night.” “Jason,” she cried, her head hanging down in front of her, shoulders shaking as she cried. “Ask me,” I pleaded. “Ask me if I did anything remotely sexual with her last night. Please just ask me.”

She took a deep breath, trying to control the shudders that wracked her body. I moved in closer and wrapped my arms around her shoulders. She tensed, but she didn’t shove me away. “Because the answer is unequivocally, irrefutably, no.” She took a deep breath before saying quietly, “You kissed her.” “Actually, that part would be my fault,” Sara said behind us. “He didn’t kiss me. I kissed him. I kiss most people on the lips. Jason has told me for years that I’ve lived in Hollywood for too long since I kiss like one of those crotchety old SAG members.” “Please, babe,” I begged. “Please come hear what we have to say. I can’t lose you over some stupid fabricated story that was designed to entertain the masses. Please.” “Addison,” Mick said. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think maybe you ought to hear the man out.” She looked over at him quietly for a moment before nodding. She pulled out of my embrace and walked over to the couch, making sure Mick was sitting next to her so I couldn’t. Sara and I grabbed the recliners directly across from them. I cleared my throat. “I know you saw the pictures, baby. I saw them, too. But every single one of them was taken out of context. They look bad because you didn’t see the overall picture. You just saw what they wanted you to see.” “Why did you have to stay in New York?” she asked quietly, looking at the floor. I leaned in and rested my elbows on my knees, clasping my hands together. I would answer every single one of her questions if it took all night. “Sara called me last month to ask if I would take her to this red carpet function for her new movie. I’m kind of her default date. We’ve been friends for a long time, so I didn’t think twice about saying yes. After the game, we went to dinner and then the movie. Then we went back to her place and she fell

asleep while I watched a movie with her . . . manager, Elaine.” Addison’s eyes whipped up. “So you had a slumber party with two women? How is this supposed to make me feel better?” “Jason, stop,” Sara interrupted. Addison glared back and forth between us as Sara spoke. “She’s not gonna understand what’s really going on until I give her the whole truth. That’s what I’m here for, right?” I nodded and hung my head down, silently praying that Sara could take the sting out of the last eight hours. Sara shifted her legs so she was sitting on one of them before turning her attention to Addison. “Before you fully believe me, I need to tell you the whole story. From the beginning. You know Jason and I dated a few years ago, right?” Addison nodded. She was listening, but I could tell she wasn’t fully engaged quite yet. “We had a really nice relationship. We clicked, ya know? Good conversation. Lots of humor. We got along great. The intimacy was ok, too.” “Ohmygod,” I said, rubbing my hands down my face. “That is not helping, Sara.” She waved me off with a flick of her hand. “Just let me get to the point,” she said. “Anyway . . . the intimacy was ok, but it wasn’t . . . I don’t know . . . anything more than just sort of mechanical. On my end, anyway.” “Why are you telling me this?” Addison asked. She didn’t sound defeated yet. She was starting to sound pissed. “Because when Jason broke up with me, and yes, he broke up with me,” she emphasized, “I was pretty ticked off. He told me he still wanted to be friends, which is the kiss of death right there, but that it just wasn’t . . . right for us to be together. I knew he couldn’t put a finger on it, but he tried to reassure me that it wasn’t me he didn’t like. Just that our relationship wasn’t meant to be in that kind of capacity.

“After a couple of months of stewing, I realized he was right. Dating him wasn’t right. Our friendship was great but anything more than that was just . . . off. I couldn’t quite figure out why. And then I met Elaine.” We sat in silence as I waited for everyone to catch on to what Sara was saying. “Addison, I’m gay.” Addison looked up at Sara quickly, with a stunned look on her face. Mick’s jaw just dropped wide open. Sara didn’t seem to notice and continued. “Elaine isn’t just my manager and best friend. She’s my girlfriend. We’ve been together for almost two years,” she smiled a wide grin. “She is everything I ever wanted and didn’t know I was looking for. And I’m so, so happy with her. Jason didn’t stay over at our place to have sex with anyone. He stayed over as our guest because he’s our friend.” “I don’t . . . I don’t understand,” Addison said softly. I could tell she was starting to realize that maybe I wasn’t a lying, cheating bastard after all. “Why didn’t you tell me this, Jason? We’ve talked about Sara before. I don’t . . . get it.” I looked at her. “Do you remember that conversation we had in the car after the gala? You asked why celebrities date celebrities.” Realization crossed her face. “Because celebrities keep their mouths shut about each other.” I shrugged. “It’s not my secret to tell.” “Which I’m normally thankful for,” Sara said. “But right now Elaine and I both want to kick his ass for not telling you this sooner.” Addison turned to look at Sara. “But why is it such a big secret?” Sara sighed. “Two reasons, actually. The first has to do with my public image. My publicist and agent and everyone know. We’ve had discussions and decided that if I’m going to have a sexy bombshell image, we need to let people see that public image. It kind of sucks, but with Elaine being my manager, she still gets to travel with me and we live together.

We’ve learned to deal with it. We look at it as the same kind of situation a rock star might be in . . . sure he may be married with kids and on the PTA. But when he’s on stage, he’s a flirt who drips of sex appeal and makes everyone want him. Same thing.” “What’s the second reason?” Mick asked. “That one is not as easy to answer,” she said with a sigh. “I grew up in an extremely judgmental, religious home. Not like Elaine’s,” she said with a smile. “Elaine’s family loves Jesus and goes to all kinds of Bible studies. But there is not a judgmental bone in their bodies. They don’t necessarily agree with us, but they love Elaine and me for who we are. Truth be told, it makes me like their Jesus, too,” she said with a smile. That smile faded quickly. “But my family . . . if they knew I was living with a woman, the very strained relationship I already have with my parents would be severed. My mom has been sick in recent years and I just don’t feel comfortable coming out of the closet knowing I might not have enough time left to fix it if our relationship went wrong.” She shrugged. “Again, it sucks, but Elaine gets it. And she’s ok with it.” Addison nodded. I could see the wheels turning in her brain as she processed all this new information. We all sat quietly, watching her sort through it all. Finally, she closed her eyes as she prepared what she wanted to say. This had shaken her to her core. I wasn’t about to push her to explain how she felt. “I get it. I do,” she said. “I understand why you couldn’t tell me the truth about Sara. That’s her story to tell and there’s a lot at stake if word got out.” I nodded in agreement. “But why didn’t you tell me you had to stay in New York? Why didn’t you tell me you were going out on a publicity date before I had to find out about it from Samantha?” The tears started flowing down her cheeks again. “Do you know how that felt? Like . . . like . . .” “Like it was happening all over again?” I said, finishing her thought for her. “Exactly,” she said. “Like it was happening all

over again. And I kept thinking, what did I do to deserve this? Why did it have to happen? Twice?” She was full-on crying now and I couldn’t keep myself away any longer. I swiftly moved off my chair and kneeled between her legs, cupping her face in my hands so she would look me in the eyes. “Do you know I have been beside myself all day, knowing that my stupidity made you feel that way? Ask Sara . . . I’ve been driving her crazy.” I wiped some of her tears away with my thumbs. “I never, ever wanted to make you feel like you weren’t the most important thing in my life. Addison,” I said, scooting a little closer and wiping her hair off her face. “I am so fully, completely in love with you. I didn’t want to tell you that in front of an audience, but you need to know the truth. I have been in love with you, well, probably since the day you first walked into that stadium. I never, ever want to make you feel like he did.” She was sobbing now as her body collapsed forward into my chest. I wrapped my arms around her, around this woman I loved so much, and just let her cry it out. When she calmed down enough, she pulled away and looked around for something. Sara apparently anticipated this move and quickly handed her a tissue. “I feel so stupid, being all dramatic about something that didn’t actually happen,” Addison said with a grimace. “I don’t think that’s the only thing you’re crying about,” I said, rubbing my hands down her arms. “What do you mean?” she asked, wiping her nose again as she sniffled. “I know things were bad with Austin toward the end. Really bad. But babe, it hasn’t even been a year since he died.” Her shoulders slumped as I talked. “I know you don’t miss the guy he was when he died. But I think you’ve spent a lot of time avoiding grieving over the man he was when you married him.” “He’s right, Addison,” Mick said, causing us to

look over at him. “I know you think I didn’t know what he was up to, but I knew the whole time. In fact, the last conversation we ever had was me telling him I was disappointed in the way he was treating you. It may be the biggest regret of my life that it was the last time I ever spoke to him, but it was the truth.” “Why didn’t you say anything?” Addison asked. He shrugged. “We were all struggling with our own demons after he died. What was the point in bringing it up? But I think Jason is right. I never saw you break down and grieve over what was lost. Not after the affair. Not after the accident. Not after any of it. I think some of what you’re feeling right now is all that old stuff finally coming up.” She nodded as she started sniffling again. “When I saw those pictures on the internet, I wanted to call Austin so bad,” she said to me as the tears started to roll. “Not the guy from a year ago. But the guy I met in college. The guy who was my best friend. The guy who couldn’t wait to propose and yelled ‘I’m getting laid!’ through the roof of the limo after our wedding. I miss him so much.” She fell into my chest again. The crying wasn’t as hard this time. It was more like she was leaning on me for support. “I know, babe. And it’s ok with me if you miss him. As much as I wanna punch him in the nuts for what he did to you, I think he was probably a really good guy deep down. And I’m not gonna take that away from you.” She nodded, her breath still hitching from all the crying. It was gonna take a while for her to finally calm down. “I’m sorry for being a drama queen,” she said, quietly avoiding my eyes. “I’m sorry for being a dumbass who can’t remember his own schedule,” I said, causing her to look up and give me a half-hearted smile. “I’m sorry I believed the stupid internet before talking to you about it.” “I’m sorry I waited until we had a room full of nosy nellies to tell you how much I love you.” A smile crossed her face and she wiped her nose again.

“I’m sorry I didn’t say it back,” she said quietly. “Addison,” I said, inching closer to her. “Yeah,” she said, looking right in my eyes. “I love you so much.” She smiled. “I love you so much, too.” And I kissed her. I kissed her until she pulled away because she couldn’t breathe, which wasn’t long considering how long she’d been crying. And then I picked her up, spun around and sat down on the couch with her in my lap, wrapping my arms around her, just soaking up everything that had gone down in the last twelve hours. “Well, I think my work here is done,” Sara said, standing up quickly. “Mick, would you mind giving me a lift to the airport?” “I would,” Mick said with his usual southern drawl, “but I don’t have a car here, remember?” “And you don’t even have a plane ticket to get home yet,” I added. “Maybe you should call your girlfriend and have her hurry up and book you a flight.” “Hmm. Good point,” she said with her hands on her hips. “Well, how about, Mick, you and I head into Jaxon’s room and play Legos for a bit so these two lovebirds can regroup.” “That actually sounds like a good idea,” he said as he stood up and walked toward her. “You can tell me about that Leo DiCaprio fella. You ever work with him?” His voice faded away as they made their way down the hall. “How are you feeling?” I asked after several minutes of silence. She was just snuggled into me as I rubbed her back and kissed the top of her head. “Better, actually,” she said, pulling away and looking up at me. “I guess I didn’t realize how much all of that was taking me back to a bad place with Austin. I’m not even sure how much of that was about you. It’s kind of a weird feeling. Like I freaked out over nothing.” “It wasn’t nothing, baby,” I reassured, still rubbing her arms and legs. I didn’t want to stop

touching her. I had gotten too close to losing her. “I think it was a long time coming. And my dumbassery was just the catalyst of it all.” “Dumb-assery?” she giggled. “What kind of word is that?” “It is the kind that perfectly describes how badly my ideas go wrong sometimes.” “I have another phrase that describes you sometimes.” “You do?” I asked, moving my hand behind her neck. “What’s that?” “Sweet fuckery,” she said seductively. “Addison Bryant!” I said as I feigned offense. “Are you making a comment about my sweet skills in the bedroom?” She grinned as I leaned closer to her. “Maybe. We’ll have to do some research a little later so I can see how sweet those skills really are.” I looked into her eyes, so bright and, what was the word I used when I first met her? Oh, yeah—joyful— and I fell in love with her all over again. Now that I had told her, there’s wasn’t gonna be a day that went by without me making sure she knew, knew how I felt. I’d make sure of it. “I love you, Addison.” “I love you, too, Jason,” she said, cupping my cheek with her hand. “Now shut up and kiss me.” So I did.

Sara and Mick left a little while later after Elaine coordinated a car to take Sara to the airport and drop Mick off at home. The two of them got along ridiculously well. So much so that Mick invited her to bring Elaine down for New Year’s Eve. Apparently, Mick’s entire street loaded up on fireworks every December and they shot them off until the surrounding neighbors finally called the cops on them. It was a sight I was looking forward to seeing. After they left, I excused myself to the spare bedroom so I could call my mom and Lindsay. As I suspected, I got a nice-sized ass chewing from my mom and was called quite a few choice words by Lindsay. I was looking forward to hearing how Emma used those same words the next day at school, since Lindsay always seemed to forget her child’s ears were more powerful than a freaking sonar. The biggest relief, however, was Jaxon. He came out of his room with Mick and Sara looking a little hesitant about what to expect. But when he saw his mom laughing at something dumb I’d just said, his eyes got bright and he gave me a big thumbs up. Then he asked me to make hot dogs on the grill for dinner. How could I say no to that? I helped Jaxon with his homework while Addison cleaned up after dinner. I wouldn’t call second grade math hard. But they definitely don’t teach it the way they did when I was a kid. I had no idea what all these

number lines and block graphs were for. He probably helped me more than I helped him. The entire evening felt very . . . domestic. And I loved every second of it. I spent the night for the first time that night. It had been such an emotional day that I didn’t want to leave Addison, even for the night. She seemed to agree with that, so I stayed. Despite our earlier banter, when I slid under the covers and wrapped my arms around her, there were no thoughts of sex. Just sleeping next to the woman I loved. It was kind of a revelation. For the first time in my life, I was starting to understand what true intimacy was all about.

“‘Carter, what do you want to grow up to be?’” The next morning, Jaxon was reading out loud while I got in some pushups. “Carter thought for a moment, while he chewed his peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Then his face brightened and he said, ‘I know what I want to be—I want to be a kangaroo!” “Good morning,” I heard Addison say as she padded into the room with a yawn. And then she stopped. “Ummmm . . . what are you doing?” “Reading ‘Carter Kangaroo,’” Jaxon said. “Jason said I needed to get a jump on my reading log for school ‘cause Christmas is coming and we want Santa to know I’m studying really hard.” “Okaaaay,” she said slowly. “Jason, what are you doing?” “Push-ups,” I grunted as I kept count in my head. “I can see that,” she said. “Why are you doing push-ups while Jax is sitting on your back, reading?” “Forty-nine, fifty.” I slowly lowered myself to the floor. “Ok, bud, you can get off now.” Jaxon rolled off me and sat next to me. “I canceled my workout with Deuce so I could take you guys to work and school this morning. So I thought Jaxon could help me get a few reps in before practice.” “Isn’t it hard to do push-ups that way, though?”

she asked, still looking confused. “Isn’t he heavy?” “Not really. I’ve had bigger people sit on me while I push-up,” I said, waggling my eyebrows at her. “Ohmygod,” she said with a laugh. “You are such a dork.” I smiled at her as she headed toward the coffeemaker. “That’s a fresh pot in there.” “Wow,” she said over her shoulder as she poured a cup. “I could get used to this.” “It’s nice, isn’t it?” I agreed. She turned and looked at me, taking a sip of her java. “You know what would be even nicer?” I asked her as I stood up to give her a good morning kiss. “What’s that?” “For you to hurry up and get dressed so I can take my two favorite people to breakfast.” I slapped her on the ass and she squealed. “Hurry up, Mom!” Jaxon cried. “I wanna have some pancakes before school!” So she did. And we did. Have pancakes that is. Then I got in line behind all the other parents dropping their kids off for school and let Jaxon out right at the front door of the building. It was apparently Lindsay’s day to help the kids through the car line. When she saw me driving up, she caught my eye, and I just smiled as she shook her head and rolled her eyes at me in amusement. Dropping Addison off took a little longer. Her goodbye kisses and “I love you’s” weren’t nearly as quick. She finally pulled herself away from me when she saw her boss drive up and got nervous that we’d be caught making out in the front seat like teenagers. I let her, but only after she agreed to let me pick her up again after she was done. I spent the rest of the day with a goofy grin on my face. No one said anything about it except Deuce, of course, who would never miss an opportunity to razz me. I shut him up real quick when I asked if he had poked his baby in the head yet when he had sex. I couldn’t help myself. I knew he was gonna be running

home to scour through that damn baby book to make sure he wasn’t going to inflict any brain damage on the kid. As I hit the road to head back north to Addison’s house, I couldn’t help but realize how full circle it had all come for me. I had grown up in that town. One of my best friends lived there. And now, the woman I loved lived there with her son, whom I also loved. Never in my life did I expect to fall in love with something or someone more than I was in love with football. But here I was, goofy grin still hanging on. And for the first time ever, I could honestly say I had never been happier.

9 months later It was the first game of the season and we were pumped. The rookies were finally starting to gel with the veterans on the team and I knew we had a fighting chance at making the Super Bowl this year. Of course, I said that every year and it hadn’t happened yet. So what did I know? “I know you’re tired, baby,” Deuce said gently into the phone. “I won’t screw around after the game is over. I’ll come straight home, I promise.” Deuce had calmed down a lot since little Michael Johnson the Third had been born a few months ago. The baby was cute, but apparently he was colicky so neither Deuce nor Vanessa were getting much sleep. I had no idea what all that entailed, but I knew it wasn’t good so I tried not to poke fun at him too much about his sad lack of a sex life. As I suited up, my phone beeped. I picked it up and checked the text. Addison: We’re here and wearing your jersey. Have a great game. We love you! She ended the text with a selfie of her and Jax in their seats wearing my number. Damn, I loved that woman. “Well, look who’s still hanging out in Dallas, being his big bad self.” I turned around to find my favorite reporter, Catherine Hernandez, standing

across the room with her hands on her hips. “Hey!” I said, walking over to give her a hug. “What are you doing in a nasty-ass football locker room? Aren’t you supposed to be hobnobbing with all those pussies you call football players in San Diego?” She smiled. “Yeah, but I was sent here to cover a story about a drug ring that has a connection in both our cities. So the bosses had me stop by and get some footage while I’m here. Anyway, how the hell are you?” “I’m great,” I said with a smile, lacing up my cleats and grabbing my gloves. “I really can’t complain.” “Not even about Gill?” she chided. I groaned. “Don’t remind me. She’s like a boil on my ass and she just won’t go away.” Catherine laughed. “Yeah, I’m not sad about leaving that one behind.” She looked over at Deuce who was still on the phone. “What’s the matter with him? He’s not as . . . hyper as he used to be.” “He became a daddy to a baby with colic,” I said, patting him on the shoulder. He flipped me the bird, not even bothering to turn around in the process. I just laughed. “That explains it. How about you, Hart?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. “I hear you’ve gotten pretty serious about some woman since I’ve been gone.” I broke out into a wide grin. “Addison, yeah. She’s amazing.” “I’m glad,” she said, patting me on the arm. “I always wondered when the right woman would come along and snatch you up. You’re too good of a catch to be single the rest of your life.” “Well, speaking of that,” I said with a devious grin on my face. “Can I ask for your help with something?” “Sure,” she said. “Am I gonna get a scoop to go along with it?” “Oh, you’ll get a scoop alright.” She sat down next to me on the bench and I filled her in on my plan.

Just as I had said, the team was gelling well and the game went off exactly as planned. Well, exactly as our team planned. I had four sacks and several pretty significant blocks. You could say I was burning off nervous energy. It worked. We won 24 - 14. As the team started heading toward the tunnel to make their way to the locker room, I headed to the fifty-yard line and the seats reserved for family members. As I passed our head trainer, he intercepted me and completed his one and only hand-off on the field. Then I glanced over at Catherine Hernandez who was in position and ready to roll. When I got to Addison and Jaxon, I noticed she was in the middle of a lively discussion with someone I didn’t recognize. Probably one of the new girlfriends. They were always rotating in and out. Jaxon noticed me, however, and was doing a bang up job of trying to contain his excitement. I stepped up on a leftover water cooler and hauled myself over the railing, wrapping my arms around her waist from behind. “Oh!” she said in surprise before realizing it was me. “Jason, you scared me. What are you doing up here?” Just then, Catherine and her cameraman came walking up to us, making sure to capture every moment. “Well,” I started, “when we first started dating we had the worst trouble with publicity. So I’m here to make sure it doesn’t happen again by making my own public statement right here, right now.” I pulled the black velvet box out of the waistband of my pants and dropped to one knee. The stands weren’t even close to being empty yet and Catherine had worked it out for this moment to not only be broadcast on all the monitors in the building, but on TV as well. So it came as no surprise when I heard a

collective gasp coming from around the stadium. But the loudest gasp I heard was from the woman right in front of me. “Jason, what are you doing?” she whispered, her eyes wide with disbelief. “What does it look like I’m doing?” I said with a smile. “I’m proposing. Now hush so I can get it right.” I cleared my throat before continuing. “Addison Bryant, I will never forget the day you dropped into my life. I was perfectly content living for my career. But then you showed up with your bright eyes and your big, joyful smile and I was a goner. I’ve heard people talk about how love just bowls you over when it shows up, but I never expected it to feel like this. You’re all I ever think about. You’re all I dream about. You are the single most important thing to me. I love your humor. I love the way you stumble over your words when you get nervous. I love your strength. I love the way you love Jaxon. I love you so much, I feel like our souls were just waiting to find each other. And now I feel like a total wuss for saying all this mushy stuff in front of all these people. But here’s the gist of it,” I opened the box to reveal a nearly flawless three-carat round diamond solitaire set in platinum with gleaming pave-set diamonds along the band. I only knew all that because I picked it out myself. I was pretty proud of that fact. “I love you. I want you to be my wife. I want to be your husband. And I want us to be a family. Will you please do me the honor of marrying me?” Her hands were covering her mouth and tears were streaming down her face. When the shock finally wore off a few seconds later, she wiped her face and turned to Jaxon. “Well, what do you think, buddy? Do you think I should say yes?” Jaxon just rolled his eyes and threw his hands in the air in exasperation. “Just say yes already, Mom! I already told him it was ok for him to marry you!” She turned back to me quickly with an amused look on her face. “What is he talking about?”

“What?” I shrugged. “I had to get permission from the man of the house before popping the question. It’s practically a requirement before proposing.” She threw her head back and laughed. “Well in that case,” she said with a smile on her face, “since you already have Jaxon’s permission . . . yes,” she said softly. “Yes, I will marry you.” Jaxon started jumping up and down and the stadium erupted in cheers while I stood up, slid the ring onto her finger and kissed her like I meant it. The rest of the night was a blur of congratulations, camera flashes and phone calls from family members. By the time we got back to Addison’s place, we were exhausted and fell into a deep sleep. The next morning, I was the first one up. As much as I wanted to stay in bed snuggled next to my fiancée, yes, I said it . . . fiancée. Wow. Anyway, as much as I wanted to stay in bed snuggled next to her, the season had just started so I couldn’t start slacking off quite yet. I cracked open my laptop as I sipped on my first cup of coffee, anxious to see what was being said. All of the articles talked about how we met and the unlikely relationship that all started with Jaxon. But one article in particular caught my attention. The article itself was pretty standard, but the title and picture are what caught my eye.

Below it was a picture someone had taken after I

had proposed. Addison and I were standing next to each other, arms wrapped around each other and somehow Jaxon was standing behind us, maybe on top of a chair or something, I wasn’t sure. He had one of his arms around each of our shoulders, with the widest grin I’d ever seen on his face. It was a fantastic picture of all of us. The caption below it said it all . . .

Yes, yes they did. And I never wanted it back.

I stood looking at myself in the full-length mirror by the window, admiring my appearance. It had taken a long time to feel confident in myself again. Confident in the way I look. Confident in the way I’m built. Confident in who I am. But Jason did that. Jason came into my life completely unexpectedly and showed me a love that I had never felt. Not even at the beginning of my marriage to Austin. There was a quiet knock on the door and I turned to look as it opened and my best friend Tracy’s head peeked in. “Are you almost ready?” she asked. I turned back to look in the mirror one last time. I couldn’t get over how beautiful I looked. My dress had a fitted bodice with delicate spaghetti straps. The entire top was covered in shiny little jewels making me shimmer in the light. The bottom flowed out like a dress Cinderella would have worn but not as poufy. My hair was pulled into a loose bun at the nape of my neck with tiny strands of Baby’s Breath weaved into it. Being that this was to be my second marriage, Jason and I had talked about whether or not we wanted the wedding to be a huge ordeal. I had already done the two-hundred-fifty guest reception with a four-tiered cake and live band. I wasn’t all that

excited about being the center of that much attention again. So we decided to head across the pond and have the ceremony is Scotland. It was a gorgeous country. It sounded so cliché, but there really were lots of mountain landscapes and green, rolling valleys. The first day we were there, we were stopped in the middle of the road for about thirty minutes while we waited for a herd of sheep to cross the road. All of our closest friends and family members, and managers of course, came with us. We spent the first few days getting over jet lag and doing some general sightseeing. It was a wonderful vacation. And the only pictures taken of us were taken by us. That was a nice bonus. Jason had rented a beautiful villa that sat on top of a rock quarry overlooking the ocean. It had enough rooms to sleep all twenty-eight of us and a giant gazebo to hold the ceremony. We were bringing in caterers and a local DJ for the party afterwards. I took a deep breath. “Yeah, I’m ready,” I said to Tracy as I walked toward the door. “Good,” she giggled, “because that man of yours is getting impatient! He wants to marry you so bad!” A wide grin spread across my face. “I wanna marry him so bad, too.” We walked down the stairs to the foyer that led out to the garden where the gazebo was. “You look so beautiful,” my sister Natalie said, blotting a tear from the corner of her eye before it could fall. My four-year-old niece, Shannon, stood in front of me, eyeing me up and down. “Are you a Princess?” she asked with wide, fantasy-filled eyes. “Today she is, Munchkin,” Samantha said as she did some last minute adjustments to my hair and handed me my bouquet. Samantha, Natalie and Tracy were all in red dresses of different styles. I didn’t really care what the dress looked like as long as they were all the same

color and they were flattering on each person. The three of them would stand up with me as my bridesmaids. Shannon and her big sister, seven-yearold Christina, were the flower girls. We thought about making Jaxon the ring bearer, but we decided we really didn’t need one. Besides, Jason had another role for Jaxon to play . . . the role of best man. That’s right. The two loves of my life were going to be standing side-by-side as we made this commitment in front of God and our families to create a family together. Deuce and Lindsay were also standing with him as his groomspeople. It was perfect. As the Wedding March began to play, I watched the bridesmaids start the trek from the foyer, through the garden and to the gazebo. It was a longer walk than most traditional wedding aisles. But it gave me time to think over the past eighteen months of my life. I was such a mess when Jason came into our lives and I didn’t even know it. I was numb to any form of love outside my inner circle. And truth be told, I didn’t believe I was worth it. When your own husband doesn’t think you’re worth it, well, that does some deep, deep damage. But Jason came along and taught me that all my flaws, those aren’t really flaws. They’re just part of who I am. They’re part of what makes me, me. And he showed me that I am worth it. He spends every day making sure I’m comfortable with his job and the publicity that goes with it. He makes sure to tell me how attractive I am, even when I got walking pneumonia last year and gained fifteen pounds due to some steroids I had to be put on. He makes sure that I know just how important I am to him. And he does the same thing for my son. Our son. Shortly after our engagement, Jason approached me about adopting Jaxon. At first, I was hesitant, but the more I thought about it, the more I remembered that anything can happen in an instant. If something

were to happen to me, I didn’t want there to be any question about where Jaxon would end up. I never wanted Jaxon to be without any parents. If Jason adopted him, they would always have each other no matter what. So just two weeks from today, we’ll be standing in front of a judge in a courthouse saying a different kind of “I do” and committing our family to each other. Maybe the most important thing Jason did was let me grieve. I didn’t realize how much I had been holding inside until that first day when I met Sara. All my emotions were bottled up so tight, that once the top came off, the waterworks came frequently. Jason was so understanding. He would just hold me while I cried and let me babble about specific memories that still hurt. It took a little time, but eventually the tears dried up. I will always miss Austin. Cheating bastard or not, I loved him once. And he loved me. He gave me the greatest gift of my life when he gave me Jaxon and for that I would always be grateful. But today, we were all moving on. Today, we were starting a new life. Today, we were getting married. As I followed my bridesmaids and finally made it to the gazebo, I saw my big boy standing up there all proud in his little tuxedo. Jax looked so happy I was afraid he was going to start hopping up and down with excitement. But he didn’t. He just looked at me as I walked with a big smile on his face. And then I looked up and there he was. As I looked into the eyes of my love I couldn’t help but want to run straight into his arms. Jason was everything I had ever wanted wrapped up in a six foot five, two hundred and thirty-pound package. His classic black tuxedo was tailored to perfection, making my heart race a little faster. He was everything to me. My lover. My best friend. My hero.

My Hart.

First, let me warn you, I love acknowledgements. I read them after every single book, so mine may be lengthy! But these people each deserve to be recognized individually. So here we go. To the “real” Lindsay: you got tired of seeing me stuck in my head with a story running through it like a movie reel and said, “Just write it down”. So I did. Thank you for being annoyed enough with me to encourage me to write it down so I could come back to the land of the living. Because I never, EVER thought I could do this. You may suck as a beta reader, but you’re an awesome KWBFF. Thanks, Ballsack. Brenda Rothert, sending you the first three chapters was one of the scariest moments of my entire life. And when you emailed back with “Duuuuuuuude…..I really like it”, it was one of the most exhilarating. This has been such an exhausting process, but I so, so appreciate you allowing me to ask questions and vent frustrations and small milestones. (Hey reader…if you haven’t checked out her Fire on Ice series, it’s awesome. And Bound is free, so GET IT!! No…get them all. You won’t regret it.) Murphy, my editor, my friend, my fake sister. Someday, we’re going to road trip to your real sister’s house where we will relax and refresh, talking religion and my lack of musical knowledge in a non judgy way, while Heath makes us hot dogs and Colleen reads to us out of her latest release, all while Griffin serenades us with a song written about us. Then we’ll head over to Georgia and hang out at Phillip Phillips aunt’s house while we wait for him to show up at a family reunion. Put it on your calendar.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Not just for editing, but for saying “I’m so glad it doesn’t suck because now I don’t have to lie to you!!” I’m so glad you decided you wanted to be my friend. I like you, too. Julie Titus from JT Formatting, your work is amazing. I understand why you are so highly recommended. Thank you for squeezing me in and answer my barrage of questions! You’ve made this whole process so easy and I’m so grateful for that. Stacey Grice, you said, “SEND IT TO ME DAMMIT!” So I did. And I was terrified. But you have been such a force throughout this. From encouragement to random details that I never caught, I so appreciate you. Thank you for making sure Addison was always flowery fresh. Because, fine, you were right. But I hate Spanx so I wouldn’t even know that. *shrug* (And reader…read her book Totaled. Freaking awesome) Megan Kapusta, girl, we have had some knockdown fights while beta reading together because we don’t see eye to eye at all! But damn girl…that’s exactly what I needed and you rose to the challenge. I’m so appreciative of your eye for detail and your honesty when you don’t like something. I love fighting with you while beta reading together!! Because it only makes things better in the end. Thank you my friend! Dawn L Chiletz, I feel like you and I have gone through half of this process together and have learned so much just by sharing information! I’m so grateful for the support you have given me through this. Here’s to more stories and late nights trying to get the damn formatting to work!!! (She wrote “The Contest” y’all! You will love the characters!) Jennifer Stiltner, thank you for checking all my Dallas facts. It’s hard living in a different city than the one you’re writing about! You are so much more fun to talk to than an online map! Next time I’m in Dallas, its hot tub night! Get ready! Alabama, you eased my mind so many times during this process. Yes, I know I’m a freakazoid. But

you were so kind to help me relax and make me not feel so crazy. This was scary!!! Thank you, girl. You will always be “that little slut, Shelly Collins” to me. (Yes, dear reader, she’s THAT little slut Shelly Collins from Tara Sivec’s book.) Kaci Blue, I get you girl. And you need to know, you started this whole thing. You accepted my friend request, got to know me, and opened up a whole WORLD to me! This wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t called Colleen a hooker for the world to see. I love you, dearly!! Speaking of Colleen Hoover, I have no idea why you decided you like me, but I’m so proud that I am one of your 47, 345, 386 friends! Thank you for your amazing feedback. If you didn’t hate random acts of affection so much I would kiss all over your sweet little cheeks! I might do it anyway just to see how long it takes you to punch me. We’ll see. (I would tell you to read her books, reader, but if you haven’t already, we can’t be friends. GO GET THEM THEY ARE LITERARY GENIUS!) Kathryn Perez, I love you so much. You, YOU….when you love someone you love them HARD. And it is so, so special that I’m one of the people that you love hard. I love you hard, too! Your wealth of knowledge, criticism where things needed to be different, arguing over the word penis, all of it was so, so beneficial. You, my friend, are a true gem. I heart you hard! (Dude, her book THERAPY….I cannot recommend it enough. It’s just brilliant) A.E. Woodward, you were that person on the sidelines just waiting to be called onto the field. You were like Rudy. And just like Rudy, you didn’t disappoint me. Your feedback was critical in a critical moment. Thank you for being ready at a moment’s notice and feeding my ego even while you critiqued. I don’t think you even realize how importantl your feedback was. So thank you. (Reader…Kismet and Working Girl…read them. Just trust me.) Kristin Delcambre and Megan Gunter…thank you for quintuple checking in the last seconds. I’m so glad

you are fast readers and nit-picky!! You guys are the best! To all the authors that have let me beta read for them: Beth Ehemann, Colleen Hoover, Kathryn Perez, Dawn L. Chiletz, Stacey Grice, Michelle Pace, LG Pace III, Brenda Rothert, Oh I hope I’m not forgetting someone…from the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU! Whether I read for you once, or a dozen times, you taught me SO much about how the creative process works. You taught me the way author’s think. The way feedback can be helpful or not. The way a story starts in someone’s head and ends up on paper. I so hope I can continue working with each of you. You are some of my favorites and it is an honor to assist you as you write. Finally, my husband and kids. I know you have no idea what is going on half the time when I get going and “disappear” for a while. But I hope that you see what I’ve done and are proud. You guys are my life. Even when I’m moody and stuck in my head or stuck on the computer or working hard for no money. I know I’m not perfect and I hope you can see past my flaws. Because my life would be nothing without you guys. You are my world. I love you more than life itself. Reader, thank you for giving me a shot. Whether you liked it or not, you gave me a chance and I’m so grateful. For those that liked “Change of Hart”, there’s a sequel rolling around in my brain. We’ll see if it ever falls out of my head onto paper! Oh! And “Carter Kangaroo”, the book Jaxon was reading while Jason was doing push ups. . .that was written by my mom!! She’s still working on getting it published. But keep an eye out for it. Your kids will love it! Love, M.E.

M.E. Carter didn’t set out to write a book. She just had a random story rolling around in her head after working with her local PTA. Then one day, it became all-consuming and had to be written down. This should come as no big surprise since she has always had random stories rolling around in her head and even wrote an episode of CHiPS at age 11. (She was the guest star, of course.) She lives in Texas with her husband and three children, Mary, Elizabeth and Carter. Get it? ;) You can follow her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/authorMECarter, on Twitter at https://twitter.com/AuthorMECarter, or email her at [email protected].