Page 59 of Gridlocked on the Gridiron

Once Maya seemed more like herself again, he agreed to leave her side. He went to the kitchen to help Jenna put up some of the casserole dishes and place pieces of pie on paper plates for those who were staying for football and trivia, when Jenna said, “Tell me you’re staying for trivia this year.”

He hadn’t thought much of it, but Lucia had been enjoying herself so much, he wondered if she’d want to stay. “If Lucia and Maya want to stay, I’ll be glad to.”

Jenna’s smile was wide as she set the last casserole dish in the sink. “You like her a lot.”

“Maya? Well, I’d hope so.”

“Colton.”

He sighed. “Fine, yes. I do. I like her a lot.”

It was hard to admit it out loud. He’d admitted it to himself, and it was difficult enough knowing that she wouldn’t be in his life as much soon, but telling Jenna only made the thought of that harder to digest.

“Do you lo—”

“Do you need any help?”

Colton was glad for the interruption, not sure of the answer to the question Jenna had been about to ask. Though, when he realized it was Lucia doing the interrupting, his heartbeat picked up, worried she’d heard his confession.

“Nope, we’re just finishing up. Thanks, sweetie.”

Colton smiled at Lucia before asking, “Do you want to stay for trivia?”

She blinked at him.

He chuckled. “Think of it as a knockoff of Trivial Pursuit, but all the questions are about the NFL.”

“Oh, absolutely. Get ready to get your ass kicked.”

Jenna snorted beside him. He turned to her solemnly. “She’s not kidding. She’s a four-time fantasy football champion, Jenna. She’s insane.”

Lucia walked out laughing, and Jenna sent him a knowing smile. “Right. Well, we’d better set up trivia in front of one of the thousands of TVs we don’t need in this house.”

Lucia was in the bathroom while they set up the table, and they seemed to be missing a chair for her. He’d just stood to grab another when she walked out. The thought vanished when he saw her hair was down, out of the clutches of the clip she always wore. His heart stuttered, not for the first time that night, taking in the way her long dress hugged her body.

She looked alarmed at the lack of seats, so he sat back down and patted his leg. “Come on, Moretti. I’ve got a perfectly good seat right here.”

He probably shouldn’t have offered, but he’d barely talked to her all day. There had been so many people during the meal, and so many conversations, they’d hardly said more than a few words to each other here and there. Having her close to him, right in his lap, was something he couldn’t deprive himself of. Not when they were so close to January.

She moved closer, a frown marring her beautiful features. “I hardly think your friends are interested in playing trivia with the Disgustingtons.”

Jenna shuffled the cards before placing them and the other pieces out on the board. “We’re your friends too, and we don’t care as long as Colton’s here. He usually leaves early. Actually, he leaves every function before the fun starts, so we don’t care.”

Rudy, Cooper, Chris, and Sam all nodded their heads in agreement, so Lucia perched on his knee tentatively. Colton placed a hand on her torso, his fingers splayed across her abdomen, scooting her closer to his body. She made a noise as she moved up his leg, but their friends were already setting up their pieces on the board and didn’t seem to notice.

“Okay, let’s just do couples as teams,” Jenna announced. “Coop, you and Maya can team up.”

They were already sitting next to each other, so they nodded, not making eye contact with each other. Lucia looked back at Colton questioningly, mirroring his own confusion.

Each team rolled the die, and Lucia rolled a six, allowing them to go first. Jenna read off their first card. “Who was the first player to rush for two thousand yards in a single NFL season, and what team did he play for?”

Lucia didn’t even consult him before she responded, “OJ with the Bills.” She smiled wide, confident in her answer. Jenna nodded, and everybody around the table groaned.

“This doesn’t seem fair. Lucia’s whole job is to know random facts like these.”

Colton glared at Sam. “Don’t be a sore loser. We’re all in the league, we should all know these things.”

Sam continued grumbling but took his turn. Each team continued around the table, and before Maya and Cooper rolled their die, Lucia’s phone lit up in her hand. “Asshole Clark” flashed across the screen, and Colton wasn’t sure whether to laugh at the contact name or be pissed that Clark was still bothering her.

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