“Okay. I think you’re lying about the LA win, but you do you.”
“Cade,” Dad warns. “She gave her answer and we have to respect that. Remember when you were convinced that New York was going to beat Philadelphia in the Super Bowl, and we all thought you were crazy, but chose never to tease you about it?”
“You’re teasing me about it now.”
“Afterthe fact is fine. Feel free to call Blair tomorrow and gloat.”
“Thanks, Dad. I appreciate the support.”
“Any time, Princess. So, next is Washington versus Minnesota. What are you thinking?”
We move quickly through the rest of the games, but by the time they hang up, I’m running late. And I can’t be late. Nathan hates that.
Skipping lunch, I book an Uber, my heart trapped in my throat until it finally arrives.
By some miracle, we’re blessed by the traffic gods and I settle my ass in my seat just as the San Francisco players run out on the field, ready for their warmup.
And damn. I wish I’d been later.
It takes all of ten seconds for my eyes to lock on Zane, and my heart jolts. I’ve seen him play over the years, but seeing him this close…
He smirks to his teammate, and my mind drifts to the cocky smile he used to bestow when he’d wink at me in the stands, the memory so vivid it makes my pulse spike.
It’s like nothing has changed, and yet as he said when I first saw him in the hospital,everything has.
Still, it’s hard to look away.
Even in a warmup, he owns the ground he walks on. He was always like that. Always had a presence. Always destined for greatness.
Unlike my dad and brother, I’ve tried hardnotto keep up with Zane’s career since he left home. Unless I was being slapped in the face with news about him and his career, then I was none the wiser. And I was okay with that.
But when he was lying in that hospital bed, looking more innocent than I’deverseen him, I admit I was worried. Especially when news broke of the possible charges against him.
It broke my heart to think this moment may never come. That he’d never have the chance to play again.
But he’s back, and I can’t help but be a little happy for him.
I’ll never say this out loud, but I’m ninety-nine percent sure that Storm is going to win. And I hate to admit it, but I kind of hope that they do.
God, I’m a horrible person.
CHAPTER TEN
Blair
FLASHBACK BLAIR 17 / ZANE ALMOST 19
Ishift on my towel as Zane finishes his drink and wipes below his lip, catching the last drop with his finger before licking it dry. My mind drifts, imagining what else he could do with that tongue, and my toes curl into the sand.
As I’m watching him, a sharp pain shoots through my lip and I silently gasp, releasing the flesh from where it’s trapped between my teeth, glancing away before Zane notices.
They weren’t kidding when they said absence makes the heart grow fonder. Or in my case, it’s made the lust grow stronger because I have never wanted Zane more than I do right now. And my mind is drifting into dangerous territory.
Especially with my brother sitting a few feet away.
“Any idea where your teammate Bianci will go in the draft?” Cade asks Zane, and my eyes bounce between them.
Zane purses his lips before his mouth lifts into a smirk. “How much?”
