“Blair…”
She blushes and lets go of me, sliding her arms between us. When she glances around, I realize we’re standing here, in the middle of the bleachers, while curious eyes turn our way. I don’t think any of them have recognized me, but if I want to keep it that way, I’ll have to stop drawing attention.
Letting her go is harder than it should be, and it takes all my self-control not to pull her into my lap.
“Fuck,” I whisper as we settle back down on the cold metal bench seat. Blair shivers, and I don’t know if it’s from the cold, or if her skin is tingling the same way mine is, but I don’t really care. It’s all the excuse I need to wrap an arm around her waist and hold her as the game winds down. The Southwest Junior High Meteors win by three points.
Reed is all smiles when he finds us after the game, and that smile only grows when he finds me with his sister.
“Logan! Hey, man, I didn’t realize you were coming today.”
“Good game, bro,” I say, giving him a fist bump. “That touchdown was badass.”
“Thanks,” he says, the tips of his ears going red. He turns to his sister and lets her pull him into a tight hug. He does theteenage grumbling thing that makes it sound like he’s annoyed by the show of affection, but the smile making his lips twitch higher and higher reveals the truth. And when he wraps his arms around her and squeezes in return, I hear him say a quiet, “Hey Blair-Bear.”
Not for the first time since spending time with these two, I wish I had a sibling or two. I bet they would have made life better when everything felt like shit.
“You did good, Reed,” Blair says proudly. She puts her arm around her little brother’s shoulder and shakes her head. “Dang, kid. I’m not going to be able to do this much longer. Stop growing.”
That makes Reed’s ears burn even hotter, but he laughs anyway. “I can’t help it if you’re short.”
“Short? I’m five-nine.”
Reed turns to me. “You think she’s short, right?”
Chuckling, I shrug. “Most people are short compared to me. You’re not taller than her, yet. Does that make you short too?”
“Yeah, but I’m only thirteen,” he says, his chest puffing out as he smirks. “She’s twenty-five. She’s done growing and I’m not.”
“You’re such a little shit.” Blair reaches up and ruffles her brother’s curls until he playfully swats her away.
“Come on, you two,” I say. “Let’s go. We can stop for hot chocolate on the way home. My treat.”
We walk together through the throngs of families to my car, Blair in between Reed and me, and it seems so easy and familiar, even though it’s anything but. My teammates are my family. They’re like brothers. But I’ve never felt the protective instincts that ride me with Blair and Reed. Never felt like my boys needed me. And I know Blair and Reed don’tneedme, but maybe they could, if they give me a chance to prove I’m worthy of their trust.
And maybe, for the first time, I want to be needed.
twenty-nine
BLAIR
“Hey, Blair. Happy hump day.”Bryson grins at me as he parks his ass on the corner of my desk. “Brought you a coffee.”
Grateful, I take the cup from my coworker and inhale the sharp scent before taking a sip. It’s not sweet enough, but it’ll perk me up, and that’s all that matters. “Thanks. I made the mistake of sitting down and checking my emails as soon as I got in and got so bogged down, I haven’t had time to make myself one. I didn’t realize how much I needed this.”
“What are friends for?” Bryse sips his own coffee as he looks over my work. We’re deep in the trenches of last-minute prep work to ensure all our Thanksgiving food donations go off without a hitch. He motions to my computer and grins. “Speaking of Thanksgiving, Adrienne and I wanted to invite you and Reed. We’re having a huge thing at her family’s house. It’ll probably be loud, chaotic, and completely overwhelming, but it’s always a good time.”
My heart gives a little squeeze that they thought of us. Then that pleasant sensation of acceptance twists into a twinge of worry. What will Bryson say if he finds out I’m going to dinnerwith some of the players? Will he tell Tess? Would they tell me I shouldn’t go? I don’t want to be the second person in this position to lose my job because ofinappropriate relationships with the players.
“Oh, um, thanks, Bryson. That’s really sweet of you both, but we actually have plans.”
My coworker’s brows rise, and my stomach flips again.
“Really? What are you two doing?”
“Uh, well, I’ve made a few friends, and they invited me to their dinner.” Not a lie, just not the whole truth. The girlsdidinvite me, but so did Logan. And that’s the part I can’t reveal.
“Oh, that’s great, Blair. I’m glad you’re making some friends and finding your place here. If things fall through or you change your mind, you have an open invitation. Adrienne will be bummed, and so will Eddie, but you’re probably dodging a chaos bullet.” Bryson grins, rubbing the back of his neck. “I love the hell out of that woman and her family, but they can be a lot if you don’t come from a big family.”
