Page 98 of Verdict

Ava.

Late nights taking care of a sick child together. More trail rides I had no business being on. Loud dinners with the James family, where everyone talked over each other, and somehow it still worked. Ava sitting across from me at the counter, rolling her eyes at something ridiculous I said. Ellie growing up. All of her firsts I could potentially miss. Her first steps. Her first words. Her first day of school. I would still see her, of course. We would make it work, we had the resources—private jets, flexible schedules, and long weekends. But it wouldn’t be the same. I would still miss things. Little things that probably didn’t seem important to anyone else, but they mattered to me.

And then I realized. Boston may have seemed like the smart decision, but it wasn’t safety; it was distance. It was control. Distance from the life that had slowly taken root here. Distance from the woman who had somehow become the center of it.

And maybe the real reason I hadn’t talked to Ava about the contract yet was because I already knew what I wanted… I just hadn’t been ready to admit it out loud.

Drake's words resurfaced.

Choose the life you actually want to live. Not the one that looks best on paper.

He was right. It wasn’t about what contract made the most sense. It was about the life I actually wanted to live.

I shifted to my side, shoving my pillow underneath my head. My eyes found the framed picture sitting on my nightstand. The picture I had given Ava for Christmas of the three of us, because obviously I had my own copy. The way we were looking at each other said it all, completely in our own world, wrapped up in each other. And the only word that came to mind?

Family.

The truth settled in fast and without question.

I loved Ava.

Somewhere between pizza ten years ago at Walker's penthouse and a newborn crying at three in the morning, it had happened.

I loved her.

Ava and Ellie were my family.

I knew what my decision was. Despite the late hour, I grabbed my phone and called Scott.

Chapter 28

Cohen

Almost 10 years ago

“Yeah, he said his little sister is staying over with her friend,” Drake said as we rode up in the elevator that would dump us out into Walker’s penthouse.

After tonight’s game, I decided to go to Walker’s with Drake for a low-key pizza night instead of going out with the rest of the guys. I was still new to the team and I felt the most comfortable around them. They reminded me of a few of my buddies back home.

The elevator chimed, the doors slid open, and we stepped off into the foyer. We followed the voices echoing from the kitchen and that’s when I saw her—head tipped back in laughter, dark waves cascaded down her back, dark blue eyes bright.

I swallowed.

Whoever she was, she was beautiful.

“Guys, this is my sister Ava.” Walker gestured toward the girl I couldn’t seem to take my eyes off of.

And just like that, I was fucked.

“And her friend Aria,” he said, motioning toward the blonde sitting next to his sister. After introductions, I settled onto the stool next to Ava, because I couldn’t fucking help myself. She flashed me a smile that made my heart seize. I was a pretty smooth guy when it came to girls, but I couldn’t for the life of me seem to form a goddamn sentence.

Luckily Ava took over. “That was a pretty amazing double play you pulled off.” She took a bite of her pizza, eyes watching me.

“Thanks.” My gaze dropped to the slice of pizza on my plate; I was finding it hard to look directly at her.

"Though I think you got lucky."

I blinked. "Lucky?"