Before I could comment, she added, “Although, so is the ball-to-hand ratio, so I guess one can never tell.”
“You are always busting my ass,” I said.
“I just speak the truth,” she said with a smirk and a shrug.
“Turn around and let me take the cat out of the bag, asshole.”
“Okay, but be prepared for him to run off,” she said. “Have those butterfingers at the ready.”
I cautiously unzipped the backpack and reached my hands in, letting Dale sniff me and rub his face against my hand. I then took him out of the carrier without a problem, giving Duffy alook as the little guy immediately settled against me like we were old friends.
He is so fucking cute, holy shit.Dale was fluffy as hell, just a little gray puff.
“I think my butterfingers have it under control,” I said lightly.
“He’s such a traitor,” she said with an eye roll. “He lets me take care of him every day and spends all his time in my room, but the second my dad or my brothers—and now you—are around, he’s like ‘Later, girlfriend,’ and treats you like one of his bros. You’re a dick, Dale,” she said, scratching his head.
“Don’t insult my bro.”
“You’re a dick, too,” she said, sticking her tongue out at me as she stood. “Well, come on, then—let’s get him to his appointment.”
I don’t think she even realized it when she stepped closer to me to pet the cat. It was a little jarring, to be honest, how natural it was with her. She walked beside me, petting the cat curled against my chest, and something about the moment kind of tripped me up.
I cleared my throat and powered through it, because what the fuck was with this girl? She made me feel so out of sorts, like I couldn’t function properly.
And I saw the moment she realized, too.
She glanced up at me, almost guiltily, and she dropped her hand away from the cat. I wished I could read her mind.
“So,” she said, clearing her throat as we exited the coffee shop. “What does a Tuesday morning look like for a football player?”
She gestured for us to cross to the right, apparently in the direction of a certified cat chiropractor.
“Most weeks it’s our off day,” I said. “But today we’re having a quick meeting to go through some new installations.”
“I can’t imagine the stadium being my place of work. My whole life, walking into that place is the equivalent of a holiday or an amusement park. Well, until the whole Carl thing, that is.”
“I have to ask—did people seriously throw hot dogs at you? Literally?” I asked, remembering what she’d said on the show. “I cannot imagine hurling such an overpriced snack.”
“And so much beer,” she huffed, and smiled sardonically. “Coyotes fans are desperate for a good season, so your girl jinxing them was a very big deal. My dad’s best friends still give me a lot of grief.”
“You seem okay about it now, though,” I said, scratching Dale’s head as we strolled down the sidewalk. “Are you? You know, okay?”
She glanced at me with a small but genuine smile. “Yes, thanks for asking. I’m fine, but it’s because they’re finally getting over it,” she said. “Apparently being seen with the beloved tight end is all it takes.”
“There did seem to be a positive reaction to our date, didn’t there?”
She shook her head like she couldn’t believe it. “Suddenly I’mone of their ownwhen they think I’m with you. My brother said he saw an article about us out on the town, and it included an old picture of my hockey team from when I was five.”
“Well, I’m sorry about that,” I said as we went around a woman letting her dog take a break. “About the whole public thing.”
“Don’t worry about it. As it turns out, I hate it a lot less when people aren’t being mean to me. I probably owe you an apology because our little outing seems to havehelpedmy reputation.”
“It did, did it?” I said, smiling even though I probably shouldn’t.
“Oh yeah. People think we’recutenow. A few weeks ago I was ‘Football Karen,’ but now we’re just freaking adorable.”
Football Karen.People could be such assholes. I glanced over at her and said, “Imagine if we went out again. You might become the patron saint of Coyote football.”
