“Can we stop fucking talking about Ellie?” I mutter. It’s the same argument Piper made, and I don’t appreciate it any more now. “I pay you to train me, not to psychoanalyze my life choices.” Never mind we’ve been together since I got drafted. He’s been with me through the highs and lows of my career and my personal life, always grounding me in addition to kicking my ass.
Tyler moves forward to spot me as I position myself on the bench.
“I throw in the psychobabble free of charge.”
“Save it for somebody who gives a shit.”
He grins and adds extra weight to each side of the bar. But he could load it up with every plate in this gym at this point. I’ve got enough—let’s call it energy versus emotion—pulsing through me to bench-press an elephant right now.
“Easy there, old-timer,” he says as I heft the bar with more force than is necessary or smart.
“Screw you,” I answer.
“Right. So since you’re not interested in Piper beyond her nanny skills, you wouldn’t mind if I ask her out?”
The bar nearly slips from my grip as I bite back a growl. “Why the fuck would you want to do that?”
“Why not? She’s beautiful, fun, and gives you shit like a pro. That’s a winning trifecta in my book.”
The incessant drumbeat pounds through me again.Mine.
But I know what he’s doing. This is some reverse psychology bullshit.
“Go for it. You two would be fucking adorbs. Shout me out as your matchmaker when you go Instagram official.” Given his success with the ladies, I could too easily see it happening.
Tyler’s grin widens. “Will do.”
I know he’s bluffing. Tyler has a type: dark-haired and girl-next-door sweet. And while Piper might be the literal girl next door to my bedroom at the moment, anybody who makes the mistake of calling her sweet would end up gargling their nuts.
“What nights does she have off?”
“She works every day that ends in a Y.” The words escape before I can stop them.
“That’s what I figured.” His smile widens.
“Shut up and spot me.”
Ty and I are friends, but I also respect the hell out of his training methods and pay him good money to whip my ass. And the old-timer comment might have been a joke, but I’m not as young as I used to be. I give him a lot of credit for keeping me competitive in the league this long.
I give him more credit than my former quarterback and backstabbing friend, that’s for damn sure.
We go hard for another forty-five minutes, then I hit the sauna Ian installed next to the weight room. By the time I head upstairs, I’ve sweated out most of my pent-up frustration. Or so I thought.
I have a reputation around the league as a man who loves women. And I do. All shapes and sizes. And grandma nanny notwithstanding, I rarely discriminate on age either. But since having my heart trampled for a barely believable third time last summer, I’ve put a moratorium on dating. And more specifically, on fucking. A ban I’ve only ignored once.
With Piper.
Voices drift from the family room, and I’m annoyed to realize one of them belongs to Tyler, who should be long gone by now. My jaw clenches. Unless he was serious about wanting to date her.
Damn it, I don’t care. Ty and Piper can date and do whatever else to their hearts’ content.
And no, I’m not gritting my teeth so hard it feels like I’m going to crack a molar when I find the two of them cozied up in the family room. Tyler stands behind the couch while Piper sits on thefloor with Ellie, who’s gnawing on a block instead of stacking it. They look comfortable together. Too comfortable.
“Fee!” Ellie shouts, spotting me. Her face lights up as she waves the soggy block and lifts her hands into the air.
Yeah, the kid is damn cute.
I try to ignore the sharp pinch in my heart at the thought of that attorney calling and telling me he found a family member willing to adopt her.
