I nod at Ford’s compliment towards my dad and Chase.
“And an incredible woman.”
A single tear falls from my eye and Ford wipes it with the pad of his thumb before helping me to my feet. Standing in front of him, he wraps his arms around me and we watch the sun fade into the water. I silently say goodnight to my dad as I do every time I’m watching a sunset over the ocean and give Ford a playful nudge to his chest with the back of my head. He turns my face towards him, places his hand on my jaw and kisses me, deeply as the sun officially goes down and we stand in the afterglow.
Abby
Sorry about the game. Nice TD though!
I see Abby’s text once I’m back in the locker room. We lost our third game of the season and the second one in a row. My patience is running thin, there’s no excuse for it, we’re just playing like shit. We’re more than halfway through the season, and this isn’t the time to lose our fucking momentum. I’m just ready to get on the damn plane and fly the hell home.
“Care to explain what that was about?” Nate gets a little too mouthy with me while we’re getting changed, and I’m in no mood for his bullshit temper tantrum right now.
“What are you talking about?” I ask, throwing my shit in the bag beside me.
“You should have made that catch, Ford. You’ve run that play a fuck ton of times in practice.” Truthfully, he’s right. I’ve made that catch every other time, shit I could make it in my sleep. So why’d I miss the catch that would’ve given us a first down? Who the fuck knows?
“Fuck off,” I say. It's all I can muster up right now, and Nate shakes his head and walks away.
“Head up, man. It’s alright. We have a home game coming up. Thanksgiving, the big show. You’ll bounce back, we all will.” I appreciated Chase’s positivity, but I don’t have it in me to reply. I’m feeling too defeated right now, too exhausted, too angry.
As soon as the plane lands, my eyes fly open. It’s rare that I ever fall asleep on flights, but I don’t even remember the take off. It’s late, but I text Abby back knowing she’ll probably see it in the morning. After everything she told me a couple weeks ago about her dad, it makes me feel like I understand her more. Hell, it makes me feel like I understand Chase even more and he doesn’t even know everything I’ve learned. This thing with Abby is feeling a lot more likesomethingvsnothinglately, and I’m not sure what to think of it. Chase walks by me on the tarmac and heads to his car while I’m heading in the opposite direction towards mine, but he calls out to me before I’m too far.
“Ford. Let’s grab a beer, you and me, this week.” Suspicion sets in, but I don’t let it show. I wave my hand and nod my head before getting in my truck and driving away. No idea what that’s about, but I don’t have the energy to try and figure it out right now.
The next morning, we don’t have practice, thankfully and since Abby is on Thanksgiving break from school, I’m surprised to see a message from her so early.
Abby
Want to go for a run with me?
Do I want to go for a run today? Not particularly, but getting to see her? Sure.
What time and where are we running?
Abby
Can you be here by 9? Chase isn’t home so you can come right up.
See you then.
Yeah, I know Chase isn’t home because he’s at a volunteer event today and I’m scheduled to be at one tomorrow.
It’s still hot as hell outside here so there’s no need to grab a jacket or long sleeves for the run, a navy blue t-shirt and gray shorts will do just fine.
I knock on Abby’s door and hear her yell “come in,” from the inside, so I press the door open and I’m hit with the most delicious smell. Maple syrup and bacon fill my senses and I’m practically running to the kitchen to see what’s going on. To my surprise, Abby isn’t in workout clothes at all, she’s in baggy sweatpants and a tank top with her hair on top of her head in a bun, a bunch of loose strands falling out. I’m pretty sure there’s some kind of batter on her forehead when I get close enough.
“Okay, so I’m not really the best cook.” She laughs and my lips land on hers, they taste like syrup and I’m ready to go back in for seconds.
“What have we got here?” I grab the pancake box that’s fallen over on the counter and open the oven to see bacon inside. It looks like she made eggs, bacon and some pancakes.
“I realized that you probably got home late last night and a run didn’t sound as fun, if you were exhausted. Also, you know, I need to eat breakfast and you need to eat too.” She shrugs her shoulders and pulls the bacon out of the oven and turns off the griddle with the pancakes.
“Everything smells fucking amazing.” I kiss her one more time. “And tastes even better. I’m starving,” I say, backing her into the kitchen island.
“A growing boy needs to eat, Ford.”
She teases me with a flutter of her lashes and licks her lips and it’s impossible for me to control myself when I’m alone with her. I lift her up on the counter and spread her legs so I’m standing between them and plant a kiss on her maple flavored lips.
