Catching Summer (Second Chances, #6)(30)

“Oh my God, don’t you dare have sex in my restaurant.”

“Correction, it’s our restaurant. And how do you know we haven’t already?” he said with a sly smile.

Lara snorted and smacked him on the head. “I heard that. Summer doesn’t need to know everything, dumbass.”

I stood there with my mouth gaping as they both smiled smugly at me. “Ugh, you two are going to drive me insane. I’ll be back in a little bit.” My purse was in the office, so I scurried off to fetch it and opened the back door.

“Take your time,” Grayson called.

“All right, if you don’t see me until eight o’clock don’t get mad.” I wouldn’t do that to him, but it was obvious he didn’t care because I didn’t get a response. I wasn’t about to go back into the restaurant for fear of what I would see.

—

On the way to the practice facility, I called Kate and told her I was making a surprise visit. She met me at the door and let me in so I could sneak onto the field unnoticed. The team was split, all of them doing various exercises. Evan was on the far end with Gavin, just like he said he would be. It was hot outside, and I could feel the sweat beading down my back and soaking the white sundress I wore. I didn’t care. I could go inside and watch through the window, but it was completely different being able to see Evan up close, the way he handled the ball and helped Gavin. Gavin was an exceptional player, but he wasn’t as fast as Evan. If coaching was what Evan wanted to do after he retired, he’d be amazing at it.

“You do realize you haven’t moved from that spot in two hours,” Kate said sometime later. The other players started to disperse, but Evan remained on the field.

Without turning to look at her, I smiled. “What can I say? I couldn’t take my eyes off of him.”

“He should be done soon. Cooper and I are going to go home. I’ve been having some of those Braxton-Hicks contractions and it’s driving me crazy.”

This time I faced her, excitement bubbling inside of me. “It means your baby will be here soon. Just hold out until after next Wednesday. Grayson and I are having a private party at the restaurant. I want you to be there.”

She rubbed her stomach. “If this little tyke holds out, we’ll definitely be there. Lara told me about the magazine contacting you. What an honor!”

“Thanks. We’re excited about it.”

About that time, Cooper ran up and gave her a sweaty kiss before racing off toward the back, laughing the entire way. With her nose scrunched, she wiped off her face. “Do you see what you have to look forward to?”

“Yes,” I said, laughing.

“All right, well, I guess I better go. See you tomorrow?”

I nodded. “I’ll be here.” She smiled and made her way inside. Evan was still out on the field, but Gavin had packed up his things and was headed my way. He took off his helmet and smiled, his face streaked with dirt.

“Summer, right?”

“That’s me. How long is he going to be out there?”

He glanced over his shoulder at Evan. “He should be coming right along. He asked me to meet him tonight at the tavern for drinks.”

“Ah, that’s nice. I guess I’ll see you there then.”

“Yep. See ya.”

As soon as he turned to leave, I ventured out onto the field, my heart pounding the entire way. “I have to say, you’re a dedicated player,” I called out.

With a surprised grin on his face, he turned around. “What are you doing here? Didn’t I already see you this morning?”

I was almost to him. “You did, but I couldn’t wait any longer to see you.” Once the distance was closed, I wrapped my arms around his neck and he captured me. His arms were dirty and covered in sweat, but I didn’t care.

“I’m going to ruin your dress, sunshine.”

“I don’t care. I just wanted you to know that I’m ready. For whatever it is we’re doing with each other. I’m ready to see where it goes, to take the next step.”

He kissed me hard and held me tight in his arms. “Are you sure? If we do this, there’s no turning back.”

I looked into his soft gray eyes, and every doubt, every fear, just vanished. “I know,” I murmured against his lips. “I don’t plan on ever looking back.”





Chapter 15


Summer


The first step to opening up was joining Evan and the team at their away game. I hadn’t flown in a plane since returning from Vegas after I was released from the hospital. That was one place I’d vowed never to go back to. Now we were headed to Arizona. “Have you ever flown first-class before?” Evan asked as we took our seats on the plane. They were much wider than the ones I was used to and definitely more comfortable.

“No, Austin and I always flew coach. I didn’t mind it. But now I’m starting to think we should have upgraded. Though we didn’t need the space like you and the others do.” Evan was a tall guy, very muscular with long legs. He needed the extra room.

“How tall was Austin?” he asked, perfectly interested. We’d been getting to know each other the past couple of days and it was nice to be able to talk to him without holding back. He was comfortable with hearing stories about my life with Austin. It actually helped me feel better to be able to talk to him about my past.