Dylan glances at me. “Colt came to Colorado with his parents shortly before that.”
“Oh. Shit.” I turn to Colton. “This must be hard for you.”
He shrugs. “It is what it is. Right? I’m just going to try to make him proud in the pros.”
“I know you will,” I tell him. “I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet him.”
“He was the best,” Dylan says. “I wouldn’t be here either if it weren’t for him. He loved football as much as we did.”
“You’ll just have to show him one hell of a season then,” I say to them both. “I’m sure he’ll be watching.”
“Your mom will be too,” Colton says to me. “We’ve all got people who we wish were here. But they’re still with us.”
Yes, I believe that. And I want to make sure I can take care of the family I still have here, too. That would make my mom the most proud—to know that my dad and brothers were also all okay.
We all fall silent.
“Let’s go for a lighter topic,” Colton says.
“I’ve got one. Your traveling companion’s got the hots for you,” Dylan says casually.
I shoot him a death look. “I wish we were on a football field right now so I could kill you.”
Unperturbed, Dylan just grins. “You’re sleeping together, aren’t you?”
I suck in a breath and don’t answer him.
“So that’s a yes,” he says. “You’re shit at hiding things, Mav.”
“I’m not trying to hide anything,” I say.
“What’s the big deal?” Colton swallows his bite of burrito. “You like her. She likes you. You’re already fucking. So keep doing it. End of story.”
“It’s not like that,” I say. “We have an expiration date. The moment our trip ends, so does whatever we have.”
“Why?” Colton asks.
“Because Hannah is getting out of a long-term relationship, and she isn’t ready for something serious.”
Dylan and Colton both raise their eyebrows at me like I’m pathetic.
“Pretty sure you’re the one who’s not ready,” Colton says. “The fact that she’s a runaway bride is a convenient way to pretend you’re not running away yourself.”
* * *
“Did you have an okay time tonight?” I ask Hannah after we say goodnight to Dylan and Colton and head for our room.
“I had a great time,” she says, looping her arm through mine as we exit the elevator and walk down the hall. “Your friends are really nice.”
“You’re nicer.” I hold the keycard up to our suite door.
As soon as we’re inside, I shut the door and Hannah goes to check on Lucky. She feeds her a can of food and we wait while she uses the litter box. Then, I clean it up and Hannah plays with Lucky until she’s ready for bed.
Once she has the kitten settled on her blanket on the couch for the night, she finds me flipping the security bolt on the door.
“Lucky’s asleep,” she says softly.
“That’s good.” I take Hannah in my arms and back her up against the door. “Because I’ve been waiting to do this all evening,” I tell her as I untie the sash on her top.
