And for the first time in her life, in a small town she never would have known existed were it not for the woman by her side, Haddie Martin finally felt like she had a home.
Chapter 25
Not running into the stands and kissing the hell out of Haddieafter that final goal had made Levi feel like he was going to explode. Never before, not even when he was a player on the field, had he wanted to share a victory like this with someone other than his family.
Even now as they pulled out of the school parking lot, he wasn’t sure how he was keeping it together, especially when she looked at him like that.
“You need to stop,” he told her, unable to contain his grin.
“Stop what?” she asked innocently, pulling his free hand over to her lap and threading her fingers through hers. “Being so freaking proud of you, impressed by you, maybe even awed by you that I might burst? I can’t turn it off, Rourke. So you’re just going to have to deal.”
He groaned. “Yes. That,” he confirmed. “Stop smiling at me and making me want to kiss you and do other unspeakable things to you when I have to somehow navigate this tin box on wheels down the road and safely into a parking spot before I can do any of it.”
Once on the road, she pulled his hand to her lips and presseda soft kiss to his knuckles.
His heart was a jackhammer in his chest, his ribs a concrete cage. Tonight would have been amazing on its own, but handing Middleton their asses was nothing compared to Haddie’s praise. His team could have shit the bed once again, yet if Haddie would have told him he and the team looked great on the field despite the fictional loss, he’d have believed her.
“You still haven’t told me how you got McMannus on the field,” she said, lips still resting against his skin.
Levi smiled. “I listened to you and let Billy tell me his story. Turns out his dad skipped town and his mom took on a second job to make ends meet, which left Billy in charge of his little brother, Henry.”
Haddie gasped. “Henry’s in my class! He’s totally thriving, so I didn’t even think there’d be a connection between him and Billy’s issues with keeping up with his classes.”
Levi nodded. “He’s doing everything from grocery shopping and cooking for himself and Henry to carting Henry around to his after-school activities when Billy doesn’t have soccer practice…and even sometimes when he does.” Levi swore under his breath. “I wish he’d just told me why he was late a few times so I didn’t chew him out in front of his teammates.”
“He’s probably embarrassed,” Haddie told him. “Think about how hard it was for you to even show up at that group meeting and say something vulnerable about yourself. Now think about having to do it when you were seventeen.”
Levi sighed. “Shit. You’re right. I’m just glad I know now. He’sbeen burning the candle at both ends, keeping up with some classes but not all, and English is one that kind of fell by the wayside, especially since he already failed the exact same class last year.”
“What’s the point?” Billy had asked him. “It’s not like we have money for me to go to college anyway. I might as well just accept the fact that I’m going to be a wage worker like my mom and let the cycle continue.”
Levi knew that there was nobility in doing what you had to in order to support your family. But if Billy could go to college, he might be able to better lessen the load for all of them rather than simply bearing some of the weight. He had never talked to any of his football players about the life he left behind in Summertown. Hell, Haddie was right. He hadn’t even made it through the entire hour of his first mandated counseling session, but something made him want to open up to Billy.
“Money was tight with my family too when I was your age,” he’d admitted. “Even with health insurance, my mom’s medical bills really took a toll on the family. And there is nothing wrong with working for an hourly wage. For some, it’s what they want. For others it’s a necessity. Football gave me a chance at a future I didn’t think I had. One where I could get us out from under the debt we were accumulating.” He shrugged. “I’m just saying that if you want to have a choice, it’s not too late for that. You are an excellent athlete, Billy. And even if it’s not something you want to do for the rest of your life, it can pave the way for you to figure out what the rest of your life might be.”
Levi glanced at Haddie as he pulled his truck into a street spotin front of their building.
“I talked to Tommy,” he told her, putting the truck in park. “We made a deal to get McMannus on the field tonight, and moving forward, I told Billy that we’re going to sit down and map out a schedule for all of his responsibilities. I think that might lessen the anxiety about all he has to do if I can show him that it’s manageable.” He shrugged. “And I took him grocery shopping for the next two weeks so he can cross that off his list.”
Haddie’s breath hitched, and her eyes went glassy. But she sniffed back what Levi guessed might have been tears and exhaled a shaky breath.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
Levi let out a nervous laugh. “Not exactly the reaction I was expecting to getting my star player back on the team and pushing him toward a scholarship.”
Haddie laughed too, her voice thick. “I’m sorry I ever for a second accused you of not caring about the program or your team. I was wrong.” She pulled the cuffs of her sleeves over the heels of her hands, and even though Levi knew it was a fidget, he warmed at the thought of Haddie finding comfort in his clothes. “About a lot of things.”
He unbuckled his seat belt and leaned over the center console, cupping her cheek with his palm.
“Not us, though, right? You’re not having second thoughts, are you?”
She cupped a palm over his and pressed her cheek into his hand.
“No, Mr. Tux. I am not having second thoughts about us. It’smore like…first thoughts? Like, I’ve never thought the things I’m thinking about anyone else before.”
A smile bloomed across his face, and Levi let out a relieved breath. He leaned forward, his lips a breath away from hers, but then paused. “Wait…the things you’re thinking are good things to think, right?”
Haddie snorted. “Just kiss me already!”
