Matteo leaned forward and gave Haddie a conspiratorial grin. “I find it’s best not to question the things she says and just chalk it up to Emma being Emma.”
“Someone you both love dearly and trust implicitly, no matterwhat she says,” Emma added.
Haddie glanced down at the T-shirt still sitting in her lap. A short burst of wind was enough to make her quickly turn the garment inside out and pull it over her head. As the neckline passed over her face, she breathed in Levi’s scent, momentarily intoxicated by the memory of rolling over in bed that morning to bury her face in his neck. To breathe him in.
They’d switched to her bed last night, not only changing up the room but also the side of the bed where both of them finally drifted off to sleep. It was complete and utter chaos for someone whose life had felt very much compartmentalized up until the past month. Yet somehow, chaos with Levi felt like a puzzle piece finally snapping into place.
“I saw that,” Emma said, bumping her elbow against Haddie’s.
“Saw what?” Haddie replied, fidgeting under her friend’s stare.
Emma leaned closer and whispered in Haddie’s ear. “The sniff.” Then she straightened in her seat.
Haddie’s cheeks flamed, and Emma’s mouth fell open. “I knew it!” she whispered, albeit loud enough that the people in the row behind them could probably hear. “There is something between you two that is more than just a Haddie Martin fling.”
Haddie winced. “It sounds really shitty when you brand my love life like that.”
Matteo popped his head back into the conversation. “Are we confirming that I lost the bet?”
“There was abet?” Haddie shouted under her breath, thankfulfor the already rowdy fans.
Matteo nodded and Emma shrugged, not even bothering to look guilty.
“I said there was no way anyone could live with my brother and actually want to date him when his dirty laundry always made our entire upstairs smell like a locker room.”
“AndIsaid,” Emma interjected, “that the Levi that Matteo lived with was a gross, teenage boy and that he’s now a hot grown-ass man living with my hot grown-ass friend and that once you two lived together, there would be no way sparks wouldn’t fly.” Emma touched Haddie’s arm with her index finger and feigned getting shocked. “See? So. Many. Sparks!”
Haddie rolled her eyes. “What happened to you worrying that I would break his heart?”
Emma sighed. “So maybe that was a little harsh, but it’s only because I know that you’re afraid of relationships. If I said something and you still went through with…” She motioned between Haddie and where Levi now stood facing the field as he coached his players through warm-ups. “Whatever it is you’re going through with, then I figured it might actually be the real deal. And judging by the sniff, I think I was right.”
Haddie groaned and buried her head in her hands.
“I don’t even know who I am anymore,” she admitted when she lifted her head again.
“Hey, Haddie…” Tommy was now leaning past Matteo to greet her.
“Hey, Tommy,” Haddie replied with a wave.
He put his arm around the blond woman next to him and gave her a gentle squeeze as the woman met Haddie’s gaze. “This is Juliana. Jules, this is Levi’s roommate, Haddie.” Jules’s eyes widened, and she stretched a manicured hand across everyone’s laps to shake Haddie’s hand.
“It’s nice to meet you, Haddie. Roommate, huh? Levi had quite the reputation for being a heartbreaker in high school. It’s so nice to see him maturing enough to live with someone without trying to get her into bed.”
Haddie pulled her hand away, and Tommy blanched at his wife’s words. “Jules,” he responded. “Not cool.”
Jules laughed that mean-girl sort of laugh you knew meant she was judging not just you but everyone else in her orbit. And ugh. Sweet Tommy was orbiting her hard.
“Sorry,” Jules called with a smile and then turned her attention back to whatever was going on on the field.
“Don’t listen to her,” Emma told her. “We ran in different circles in high school, and now we just tolerate her for Tommy.”
Haddie forced a laugh. “Did Levi date—?”
“Ohmygod, no!” Emma exclaimed, leaning in close to whisper the next part. “I think she had a crush on him, but Levi never even acknowledged it because he knew Tommy had a thing for her. She only finally acknowledged Tommy after he came back from college with quite the glow up.” Emma raised her brows and nodded back toward where Levi’s very good-looking, very charming friend sat with his arm around a woman Haddie hoped was deserving of him.
“It’s none of my business who Levi was before he and I met,” shereasoned. “We already established that my relationship track record is hardly anything to write home about, right? Why else would you have been afraid of me breaking his heart?”
But Haddie didn’t like the knot of unfounded jealousy and uncertainty growing in her belly, so she stood, straightened Levi’s too-big shirt over her skirt, and let loose a long breath.
