Sophie scoffed. “Because, Colton, you’re completely obsessed with Dean!”
Colton huffed, appalled, totally blindsided by her statement.
“What?! I am not! He’s my best friend.”
Sophie tilted her head and tucked her chin. “Colton, c’mon…how long have we known each other? I could tell all the way back at that first show. You couldn’t keep your eyes off him. You barely looked at me once that whole night. Not that I blame you, that man is fucking sexy! And at Bayside Grooves, I thought you were gonna rip Wyatt’s arm off just because he was gushing over Dean. Why do you think I wasn’t upset when you broke up with me? I already knew what was going on.”
“Sophie, that’s crazy!” Colton retorted a little too loudly, looking at the neighboring tables apologetically, feeling slightly embarrassed that his feelings about Wyatt had been that obvious.
“Colton, I follow your socials. You’re either posting pics of you and Dean or liking and sharing Dean’s posts. You two are always together. And when you’re not together, you’re talking about him constantly. You really don’t see that?”
“We do spend a lot of time together. But we’re best friends. What’s wrong with that?”
“I didn’t say anything was wrong with it.” Sophie leveled him with a glare. “I am simply stating a fact. It’s great that you’re spending so much time together.”
“Do you think I’m gay?” Colton nervously sipped his beer, afraid to hear her answer.
“No, I don’t think you’re gay, necessarily. I feel like…you connect with another person’s heart and soul; it doesn’t matter if it’s a man or a woman.” Sophie shifted in her chair and took a sip of tea. “I think you two are soulmates. I could see it when you were together backstage after the show. Hell, I think everyone could! It was like a gravitational pull between the two of you.”
Colton thought back to that night. He knew that gravitational pull Sophie was talking about, but he had no idea it was so obvious to everyone else.
“And you are absolutely perfect for one another. You’re both good guys, kind and loyal. You have similar lifestyles, you’re both world famous, you’re both disgustingly hot,andhe’s your same size, so you’ve doubled your wardrobe!” Sophie teased and waggled her eyebrows.
Colton barked out a laugh. “The man does have nice clothes! I do feel a deep connection with Dean. I’ve never really thought about it before. I have no idea what a soul mate is. Does it haveto be romantic to be considered a soul mate? Can soul mates be best friends?”
Sophie pursed her lips to ponder, tilting her head side to side. “I guess youcouldbe best friends with your soulmate, and that’s all. I don’t see why not.”
“Do you think Dean feels that way about me?”
“I can’t say. But I’ve seen the way he looks at you. He looks at you like you hung the moon. It seems to me that he’s just as smitten with you as you are with him. And, c’mon, why wouldn’t he be? You’re a fucking catch!”
Colton blushed and smiled, but the wheels were turning in Colton’s brain. He felt like a cartoon character with smoke billowing out of his ears.
Sophie leaned forward in her chair. “Look. I’m not trying to upset you. I’m just telling you what is pretty obvious to me. If you disagree, that’s totally fine.”
Colton slumped back into his chair, analyzing what he’d just heard.
“Just promise me you’ll think this through. You deserve to be happy. You deserve someone fantastic like Dean. Who gives a shit what the world will think of you? Fuck them! Please, just take the time to think it through, weigh it all out, and make the decision that’s best for you, not what’s best for your team, the league, or your parents.”
Colton thought back, processing. His heart warmed at the thought of Dean and all the time they had spent together over the last few months. The dinners, workouts, outings, competitive matches of golf, tennis, racquetball, even ping pong.
He sneered a little and looked off into the distance. “Well, I certainly didn’t expectthistopic of conversation at lunch today.”
Sophie smiled and reached over the table, taking his hand. “I love you, Colton. All I want is for you to be happy. It’s obvious to me that Dean makes you happy. I see the twinkle in youreyes when you’re talking about him, I see the joy in your entire body when you’re around him. I hope you take some time to figure this out. It’s very rare in this world to actually find your soulmate. You two are so fucking lucky! If you’re only interested in being friends with him, great.” She leveled him with a serious stare. “But you’d better be damn sure. Because if you love him, and you let him get away, you’ll never forgive yourself. Just promise me you’ll think about it?”
“Okay, I promise I’ll think about it.” Colton rolled his eyes. “Let’s get the check before you start planning our wedding!”
Sophie smacked his hand with a smile and reached over to give him a hug.
Chapter 24
BREAKING NEWS: DJ DVLN injured, suffers concussion. Earlier today, electronic dance music superstar DJ DVLN suffered an injury while rehearsing for an upcoming show. During the rehearsal, DVLN slipped and fell, hitting his head on the stage. Doctors confirm he has a moderate concussion, which caused DVLN to cancel three shows. DVLN took to his social media to apologize to his fans for the cancellations: “You all mean the world to me, and I’m deeply sorry that I must cancel these shows. But a head injury is no joke, and I need adequate time to heal and recover. I promise, I will make it up to all of you.” DVLN’s fans, who call themselves “Little Devils”, quickly flooded DVLN’s social media with thoughts and well wishes. DVLN was released from the hospital this afternoon, and is recovering at his home in San Francisco.
Colton
The weight room at the practice facility was immense, with every type of exercise apparatus imaginable. It was separated into sections; high-tech cutting-edge machinery in one section; a wide array of cardio equipment in another section; recovery, relaxation, and injury prevention pieces in another area; and plate-loaded strength training equipment and dumbbells in the rear. Colton preferred the basics, a good old barbell and some weight plates tucked in the corner of the facility.
It was leg day, which was not Colton’s favorite, but since power and speed were paramount for a running back, he couldn’t skip it.
