I press my hand to her cheek, stroking her warm skin gently with my thumb. “I haven’t gone a day without thinking about you. I’m crazy jealous of that Ryan guy because he’s gotten all this time with you. And if I don’t find out what your lips feel like right the fuck now, I’m going to lose my goddamn mind.”
Adeline’s smile falls and her eyes rove over my face. “What?”
I inch closer. So close her breath mingles with mine. “Guess the lie, Angles.”
“Um—” Her voice wobbles and I swear she stops breathing.
My heart races. Does she want this as much as I do? Has she wondered what would happen if we threw caution to the wind? Does she hate the air between us, and the distance too?
“Maybe I should just show you,” I murmur, my mouth ghosting over hers.
“Addie, we gotta go.”
Adeline jumps back, her eyes going wide. “Oh, shit.” She glances at Ryan, who’s standing just outside the restaurant. “Can you, um, just give me one minute?”
I don’t look away from her. Every muscle in my body is rigid. Why the fuck didn’t I just kiss her the moment she walked outside?
“Hey,” she says, slightly breathless. “Can we—can we talk about this when the Olympics are over?”
I nod, my mouth dry.
She throws her arms around my neck and squeezes me tight. “Mine were all true too,” she whispers. “Wish me luck.”
I hold her close, inhaling her scent. “You don’t need luck, Angles. You’re going to kick ass.” I press a kiss to her shoulder and then let her go. When I turn around, Beckett is standing a few feet away, attention locked on us.
“Run in and say goodbye to your mom.”
Adeline takes a step forward, then pauses and glances back at me.With one final smile, she steps into the restaurant with Ryan on her heels.
Beckett doesn’t move. “It’s hard being away from her,” he says.
I’m not sure if he’s talking about how I feel or how he feels, but I nod anyway. “Yeah.”
“Did you know I met Liv before she met Adeline’s biological father?”
Frowning, I study him. He’s watching me just as closely, this serious look on his face, like he’s about to impart wisdom.
With a sharp inhale, I shake my head. “I didn’t know that.”
“Only a few seconds before, really. We got on the elevator and struck up a conversation. Drake got on a floor or two up.” Beckett shakes his head. “My point is, I saw her first. I was immediately intrigued by her, yet he asked her out before I got the chance. Seconds, JJ. That’s all it took. I hesitated for mere seconds, and I lost a decade with the woman who makes my life worth living.”
I slip my hands into my pocket, a weight tugging at my gut. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Time isn’t guaranteed. I’d hate to see you standing on the outside like I was while Adeline finds her forever with someone else. All because you waited a few seconds—or years—too long to speak up.”
A strangled chuckle works its way out of me. “And you’d be okay with me—” I duck my head, my face going hot. “With me saying something?”
Beckett wraps an arm around me and guides me toward the restaurant. “Son, nothing would make me happier.”
TWENTY-THREE
JJ
“I don’t carewhat you have to do. I want this done by the end of the month.”
Annoyed, I hit the End button on my cell. It’s not nearly as satisfying as slamming down a phone, but it’s something. At least I’m headed to work out next.
We’ve made it through two weeks of preseason games and we’re set for our season opener in five days. Though there’s no practice on the schedule today, I never take a day off in season.
