“Those ribs smell fucking good,” he says, pointing up ahead to the food truck.
“I thought the same,” I admit, shyly tucking a piece of hair behind my ear. “Messy food seems to always taste better.”
“Agree.” He chuckles before he stops walking.
Without realizing it, we’re already back at the tent. He stands just on the outside as if he’s dropping me off at work or something.
“Save some good questions for me.” He runs a hand in his hair, and it slicks back with all the sweat.
“Oh, that’s right. You’re my final interview today.”
“Stop. I know you didn’t forget.” His smirk pulls me a fraction of a step toward him.
“Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t.” I shrug as he walks backward to the field, still facing me. “Guess we’ll never know,” I shout out to him as he turns.
I’m shocked at my own decision to be playful with him. If I were in this situation even a month ago, I wouldn’t even entertain him.
As I’m standing with the crew watching them practice, I see the offense huddle together. Liam stands out amongst the players and not just due to his bright red no-contact jersey either.
He commands them in a way that requires so much respect. The usual playful tone Liam brings to conversations is sharper on the field, even in just a practice. He’s intense, while still throwing out a joke or two to his linemen.
I hear his series of play calls before he yells “hut” and a wide receiver runs down the field to catch the pass that’s already in the air.
Liam’s release time is incredible. It’s probably why his sack rate has been so low over the last few seasons. Although a lot of that is credit to his offensive line. He doesn’t feel pressure in the pocket because of them, not a lot of quarterbacks in this league can say the same.
He’s so good at scanning the field too, looking at all his options in what has to be record timing before he chooses theroute he believes will have the best outcome. I’ve actually started thinking that the way he studies a defense should be taught to all rookies.
Not to say he doesn’t go for the big moments, because he has his fair share of those. But great quarterbacks are smart. They know when to use their arms and when to take the yards. And Liam’s one of the smartest in the league right now.
It’s time for Liam’s interview, and I do a quick look at my phone camera and flatten out one of the stray pieces of hair going rogue in this heat.
“Saved the best for last.” Liam comes up behind me.
I see him in the camera of my phone as it’s still forward facing.
He grins from ear to ear and secures a baseball hat on his head, checking himself out in my camera before I close it.
When I turn around, I get a good look—and whiff—of him. It’s clearly been a tough day out there. I brush my hands off as I finish taking a bite of my mozzarella stick.
“Glad to see you eating before your interviews this time,” he says as he takes a seat in the chair.
“For the record, I didn’t purposely not eat last time. I had no time. Trust me, I love to eat.” I sway my free hand in front of my body in a proud display. I love food. And I love my body.
“What’s—” He imitates my motion.
“Does this look like someone who doesn’t like food?”
His shoulders shake with a chuckle. “Oh, Dem,” he says, leaning closer to me. “It looks like a lot of things I can’t say if I want you to still think of me as a gentleman.”
My eyes roll slowly. “You sure like to play with the line, though, don’t you? You get pretty close to crossing it almost every time we talk.” I place my notebook on the small table beside my chair and adjust my skirt before I take a seat.
When I thought an athletic skirt would be best for today, I didn’t consider that they were made with slits and not the most suitable for women with thicker thighs or someone who is going to be alternating between standing and sitting all day.
“All I’m hearing is that you remember our conversations,” he says in a hushed voice.
I give him major side-eye and don’t miss the wicked grin on his face as we sit beside each other waiting for a post-practice interview to begin.
The interview itself lasts a total of three minutes as Liam is quick to answer the questions, and I don’t waste time with any other side questions or off topic remarks. He’s the last of the afternoon for me, and I can tell he’s tired too. His eyes look heavy. Maybe even like he didn’t sleep great last night either, but I brush that thought off. He’s probably just exhausted. But he still speaks with excitement and charisma and makes sure to include the entire team in every answer he gives.
