Page 34 of The Player

I’m in. I’ll push the Uber button after I eat with Julie and her son. Did you know she had a son?

B

Yeah man. You’ve been out of it dude. We’ll talk when I see you.

“Hi,” Lennox says as I put my phone onto the charger.

Looking at him is like looking at myself. “What’s up?”

“Mom says it’s time to eat if you’d like to join us.” He bounces from one foot to another. I laugh and nod.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t miss her food for the world. She’s the best cook I know.”

“Awesome!” Lennox comes over to me, takes my hand, and pulls me into the kitchen.

My heart rapidly beats, and the tingles I get from him holding my hand aren’t the bad kind. Fuck, it feels like home.

“Is that…” I trail off when I see the heaping serving of bacon, pound cake, scrambled eggs with cheesy goodness.

Julie looks at me and smiles. “Lennox loves all this for dinner, and since you are here, I figured you’d not mind it.”

I sit down next to Lennox, who is already grabbing a plate full of food. “Not at all. Thank you, Julie.”

That blush I’ve missed is back on her cheeks. “No problem.”

The kid likes the same foods I do. I have an urgent need to know if I’m his father, but I’m not ready to expose that I am the man she slept with all those years ago. What if she ends up hating me? Or worse, won’t let me spend time with the kiddo?

* * *

When Bryson and I get to the bar, I’m shocked to see it’s still the same ole bar. Nothing has changed in this town except that new therapy center. Hell, even Dickerson looked the same. My brother dragged me out of the car to keep me from having to relive the “golden days.” Shit, I’m not old enough to relive them yet. I’m still living them, or at least that’s what I like to think.

We get into the place and sit in the back, far away from the dance floor. I’m not in the mood to dance. “Saw you and Angelica broke up.” At the mention of my ex-girlfriend’s name, I flinch. The woman was a goddamn psycho. Of course, Bryson wouldn’t come out with the simple questions. No, he has to go for the gut, like always.

“It was for media purposes. I only ever saw her three times.” I fiddle with the neck of my beer.

“Looks like she was not happy.” Bryson takes a sip of his whiskey.

“Yup, she was a goddamn psycho who wanted to get married, and I’m not the settling down type. Hell, I barely even knew her, and she was showing me pictures of rings and dresses.” Taking a swig of my beer, I look at my brother. He’s never been one to date or to get attached. He understands exactly how I am.

“Yeah, that marriage crap is not in our cards.” He sounds almost bitter.

“Did you want to marry someone?” That question sounds odd to me as it leaves my mouth. My brother…marry?

“Nope. Now, tell me why you aren’t out there playing football anymore.” Fuck, I hoped he wouldn’t ask that question. I shot my knee to shit. That’s why. How do I tell him I haven’t been following the training schedule because I’m in too much pain?

“Eh, it was a terrible tear in my knee, Bryson.” Yeah, let’s lie to him. The injury shouldn’t have ended my career. It was the cocky ass bastard of a doctor that ruined it in surgery. Despite that, I sulked and was a baby about the whole thing. Instead of working hard, I gained fifteen pounds and refused to listen to half of the physical therapists.

“I think you are sulking.”

“Damn, bro, you are supposed to be on my side.” A bit of pride slides away at the fact he’s calling me out.

“Nah, I’m not on your side when I know you should be out on the field. I might have been the soldier, but you were America’s favorite boy. Don’t you miss it?”

Do I? “Of course.” I mumble as I take another swig of my beer. The truth is, I don’t. I hated being in the limelight and couldn’t stand people watching twenty-four-seven who I was with and what I did every single fucking day.

“Are you still getting a paycheck from that scumbag doctor?” Wait, how did he know?

“You know about that?” He looks at me like I’ve grown two heads.

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