Page 160 of Interference

“Nah. But I have resources, and if I can help, then I want to.”

“Like I said”—he kissed me softly—“amazing.”

I chuckled and let another kiss linger.

Not twenty minutes ago, I’d been sure my whole career and my life was in limbo. Any second, I was going to get the call that I was being shipped off to another team. Everything had been up in the air.

Now I was staying in Seattle. Wyatt and I were staying here. I would absolutely be pushing for a no-move clause going forward, both because I loved this place and this team, and because I wanted Wyatt to have a chance to build something. I didn’t know what that would look like—what kind of organization or effort he had in mind—but he knew more than anyone I could think of what someone in that situation needed. Whatever money he needed, whatever support, I was happy to give it to him so he could help others living through what he had.

In the meantime, he and Lily would never have to worry about that again. Anything they needed. Anything they wanted. As long as I had anything to say about it, they would be safe, housed, fed, and loved.

As for me, I was finally free from the man who didn’t want me anyway. I had a future with the Seattle Bobcats. I had a future with Wyatt.

And I couldn’t wait to see where that future took us.

Epilogue

Wyatt

Two years later

I stared at myself in the hotel’s full-length mirror as I tugged on the jacket of my dress uniform. It had been a long time since I’d put this on. A long time since I’d wanted to. But tonight, it had felt like the right thing to wear, even if it felt alien now.

I scrutinized the man looking back at me from the mirror. I was cleanshaven now—uniform regs still applied even though I wasn’t active duty—and my hair was shorter, though it wasn’t high and tight. I could see the old me from my early Army days, the new me who’d found peace, and the man in between—the one who’d lived the nightmares I still had to this day. Sometimes it was mind-blowing to imagine ever being that young and idealistic, with no concept of how badly I’d be chewed up and spit out by my time in the military. Other times, it was surreal to think of how much I’d survived, and I often caught myself marveling that I’d made it.

And I’ll never get my head around the fact that I made it to today.

But I had. I was here. My life was amazing now, and I’d been looking forward to tonight for months.

Satisfied my ribbons were straight and I hadn’t missed a spot shaving, I rolled my shoulders under the jacket and blew out a breath.

Okay. Here we go.

Lily sat beside me, tail thumping on the floor.

I smiled at her. “You ready, kiddo?”

She cocked her head, tail still wagging.

I laughed and tousled her ears. I’d promised her a long time ago that once we were on our feet, she’d be the most spoiled dog in the world, and I was so damn happy I’d been able to keep that promise. After Anthony and Simon sold the place in Medina, we’d moved into a smaller house with a bigger yard. Now Lily had space to run around outside, and there was still plenty of room for her and Bear to zoom around indoors, too. The absolute mountain of toys she had hopefully made up for the ones we’d lost when the cops had stolen our stuff, and she had a giant, plush bed for nights when ours was too crowded for her. She’d even made friends with some other dogs in the neighborhood, so she had regular playdates to socialize and just be a dog.

I was grateful for the life I had with Anthony for thousands of reasons, and easily in the top three was that my dog was now as happy and spoiled as she deserved to be.

“Time to go to a party,” I told her as I put on her vest. She usually wore a red-and-blue one. Tonight, it was camouflage. I clipped on her brand-new leash, and we were ready to go.

All I needed now was my date.

A moment later, Anthony came into the hotel room, and he halted, looking me up and down. “Okay, that is a sexy look.”

“Uh-huh.” I grinned. “Says the man who looks like James Bond.”

He rolled his eyes and blushed. “Yeah, you can put a tux on a hockey player, but it won’t make him look like James Bond.”

“Hey. Don’t ruin my fantasies.”

He chuckled and leaned over Lily to kiss me lightly. “You ready?”

“When you are.”

---