Page 35 of Love in Fine Print

For some reason, that news disappointed me.

I should be happy. It was the first week of September. Chen was retiring at the end of February. Which meant I needed to get a ring on my finger, asap.

I looked down at my hand. It was covered in a cast. A cast that had happened during a rom-com worthy meet cute with a very notnothot man. A man who made me believe in arm porn. And a man who had zero interest in me romantically.

So yeah, there was that.

14

BEN

Declan:At the bar. If you don’t show up soon, I’m leaving with the bartender.

I read the text from Declan as the valet at Method Steakhouse took my keys. I shouldn’t be surprised that Dec had chosen the new “it” spot to have dinner while he was in town. Method was a trendy restaurant and it was nearly impossible to get a reservation. That was right up Declan’s alley. He loved a challenge and an “it” spot.

In high school and college, he’d always been the party guy. I’d always been the homebody. When I got drafted to the Marauders, I’d spent a few years going out with the team. But that only lasted until I was about twenty-five. For the last decade I’d played, I was home in bed every night by nine.

I’d never enjoyed being on the scene. I didn’t like strip clubs. And I’d never had any interest in hooking up with random women I met at bars.

There were single women I’d see in certain cities: Kelly in Seattle. Marisol in New York. Angela in Miami. Candace in Dallas. And Lana in Atlanta. They all knew that I was seeingother people. It was casual, no commitment, no strings, no drama.

The guys called it my roster. I never looked at it that way. I cared about the women I spent time with. I’d never been a hit-it-and-quit-it guy. I’d never enjoyed a one-night stand with a nameless woman I knew I would never see again.

I’d known I wasn’t in a place in my life where I could settle down and have a family. The few relationships I had tried during the thirteen years I’d been in the NFL, had failed miserably. All five of the women wanted the same thing, a commitment, a family. A ring on their finger.

The only ring I’d ever been interested in was a Super Bowl ring. I’d gotten two of them.

Yeah, but do those rings keep you warm at night, I heard my Gran’s voice in my head.

Sometimes, I regretted putting football above everything else. But other times, I thought if I’d met the right person, maybe things would have been different.

Over the years, each of the women I’d dated in each of the cities got married and started families. My final year playing, they were all in committed relationships. I was happy for them. Truly, I was.

But this past year was the first time I realized I was also lonely. Losing Gran had really highlighted my loneliness. She’d been the only family I had left. Well, my dad was around, but he spent most of his time at bars with random women. I hadn’t seen him since the last Super Bowl game I played in. He’d gotten thrown out of the stadium for trying to fight a security guard. That was three years ago.

He hadn’t even shown up when Gran was in the hospital or gone to her remembrance service. Thankfully, it had been packed with all of the families that she’d brought together over the years. But it had made me wonder, who would come to myservice? Declan. Charli. Jake. Coach Graham, who I played for my last eight years in Minnesota, and his wife Madeline, and probably some of the guys I’d played with. Oh and Miss B.

But that was it. I wouldn’t have a wife there, no kids, no grandkids. I had a found family, but no blood relatives.

“Hi, welcome to Method.” A bubbly young woman with long braids and a nose ring greeted me from the hostess stand.

“Hi, I’m meeting someone at the bar.”

She smiled and nodded. “Right through there.”

I could feel her gaze remain on me as I walked past her. She was cute, but I had zero interest in her or anyone. Well, except Olivia. All I could think about was Olivia. But she was a client and off-limits. Something I continually had to remind myself of.

Olivia was supposed to be meeting Neil tonight. When I got alerted that she’d filled out her new profile almost immediately after she’d left my office, I decided to go old school and try to find her a match, not using the algorithm. I’d gone through the database myself and he was everything she’d asked for.

She wanted someone who was career oriented. He was a heart surgeon. Check.

She wanted someone between the ages of thirty-five to fifty. He was thirty-eight. Check.

She wanted someone with no legal baggage. He had no criminal history. Check.

She wanted someone who wasn’t afraid of commitment. He was looking for a wife. Check

And bonus, he was tall and attractive. Check, check.

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