“Oh. I guess that wasn’t so bad.” I step out and grab the towel he’s holding out for me.
“Told you.” He winks, and I roll my eyes.
Glad to see we’re both in our usual form.
Liam lends me a pair of his shorts and a T-shirt to change into and as I’m stepping out of his bathroom, I quickly apologize.
“Oh shit, I’m sorry I didn’t even think about you needing to change.”
He’s standing in his bedroom, completely naked, as if it’s the most normal thing.
“Nothing to be sorry about.” He pulls on his boxers and shorts, but opts to stay shirtless, and I’m internally cursing him while also loving the view.
“So, about dinner,” he says. “Tell me what you want. Anything and it’s yours.”
My eyes linger on his chest and my mind wants to say,you.
Take-out containers occupy much of my counter space as Demi sits on a barstool and I stand across from her, leaning against the counter. A rack of baby back ribs is not what I thought she’d want for a celebratory dinner, but I’m not complaining.
I watch as she not so delicately tears apart the half rack on her plate, and I catch myself smiling as my eyes are on her.
“What?” she asks, wiping the corner of her mouth with a napkin.
Shaking my head, I stand up straight. “You’re just beautiful. I can’t stop looking at you.” Casually, I walk around the island to where she’s seated.
She turns to look at me, and I take her face in my hand, gripping gently, but leaving no room for guessing my next move.
My lips land on her. It’s quick, but powerful. She tastes like sweet barbeque sauce and I loved every second of it.
“I’ve wanted to do that since you got here. Sorry it took me so long.”
Demi licks her lips and pink coats her cheeks as she tries to hide a smile. “Forgiven.”
Birdie starts yapping by Demi’s ankles, and I half expect her to just ignore her completely, but to my surprise she doesn’t.
“Can I give her a little piece of this?” She holds up some of the meat, and I shrug.
“Can cats have pork?”
“Well, they’re carnivores by nature, right?” She pulls out her phone and does a quick search. “It says in moderation. So, here you go, Birdie.” She takes a few small pieces from her plate and puts them on the floor.
“Great, now she’s going to expect table scraps,” I tease.
“Nothing wrong with letting her indulge in the good stuff every now and then,” she says to me, but she’s knelt down next to Birdie as she’s breaking up a few more pieces.
My phone vibrates next to me on the counter, and I see it’s an email from my agent. Only the subject and a quick preview shows, but it’s definitely about my upcoming contract negotiations and I feel my stomach drop. I don’t want to look at that right now.
This season has felt different. Not in a bad way, just uncertain, I suppose. It almost makes me wonder if there might not be a contract extension offer to even discuss, making me a free agent after this season. Although, I feel confident in my relationship with Coach Aarons, so we’ll just have to see what happens. I’ve said time and again that playing anywhere else sounds absurd to me, but in reality, it happens all the fucking time. Great quarterbacks play for one team for a good chunk of their career before seasons shift and opportunities change.
At the end of the day, this league is a business. I’d love to stay in Tampa, but I do think I need to become okay with the idea of leaving.
“Want to try and finish that puzzle?” Demi’s voice stirs me out of my daze.
She floats across my living room, wearing my shorts and T-shirt as she does and takes a seat on the floor in front of the coffee table. I really can’t believe this puzzle still isn’t done after all this time, but I’m milking every fucking second I have with her.
“Question for you,” I say, taking a seat behind her on the couch, palming her shoulder as I squeeze.
“Go ahead.” Demi grabs a couple pieces and attempts to work them together while I sit behind her, massaging her shoulders.
