Page 164 of Hard Pass

“I know.”

“This should be an easy win,” he says. “But that doesn’t mean shit if we walk in thinking it is.”

“Agreed.”

“A win keeps our playoff hopes alive.” His eyes flick down toward my hand before coming back up. Has he picked up on the tremble too? “Body feeling good?”

“Yes, sir.”

Now is not the time for my hand to tremble, but it does. Thank fuck it’s hidden behind the chair.

“Good. Good. The team needs you to lead today. There’s a lot of outside noise right now and I need the guys focused. I’m counting on you to bring them together and get the job done.”

“Will do.”

“Now, go get ready for the game.”

I move out of his office and glance at the large countdown clock on the other side of the room. The guys will be here by now. I’ll stop by and see them real quick before I lock it all down and focus completely on the game.

As is our routine. They’ve certainly loved the perks of their friend being in the NFL. Better snacks . . . apparently.

I chuckle. Idiots.

The hallway to the lounge is quiet but not empty. Staff moves through it—equipment guys, trainers, front office staff, a janitor pushing a cart at a snail’s pace as he quietly looks around.

It could be any of these people that put my life in a tailspin. How fucking weird is that?

And why am I thinking about it now?

Because I want my life back to normal. Back to the days when I didn’t wonder when the next shoe would drop. GIA’s new investigators are nice and all, but their microscope feels so different from Dublin’s.

But if your life is back to normal, Valor, that means Dublin’s back at her place.

The lounge is loud when I enter, and I welcome the distraction. The familiar chaos.

Malachi’s already talking shit with one of my wide receivers. Jaxon is showing Tristan a picture on his phone. On the other side of the room, my linebacker, Jamal, is arguing with his brother over a penalty he received last game that’s clearly still a sore spot.

In other words, it’s normal.

I drop onto the couch beside Malachi with a sigh.

“Look who finally made it,” Jaxon says and leans forward to fist bump me. The other two do the same.

“Had to take the call,” I say.

“Sorry, dude,” Tristan says. They know better than to ask why I pick up.

“A routine is a routine,” Malachi jokes. “I guess there’s that.”

I bark out a laugh. “Yes, there is definitely that.”

“You feeling good about today?” Tristan asks.

“Without a doubt,” I say. “They’ve got a shit record, but you know how that goes.”

“Don’t count your chickens before they hatch,” Jaxon says.

We all look at him like he’s crazy.