Page 4 of Layla Meets Her Match

“Hey, guys.” I drop my bag into a pile with theirs and look around the room.

Presley Tatum, the team physical therapist, walks out of an office in the back of the room. “Hello, Mr. Knight. Thanks for joining us.” She arches an eyebrow.

Busted.

She points to another padded table, and I slip out of my shoes, leaving them next to my bag, to join her. “Sorry,” I mutter.

“Traffic?” she asks. She’s smiling. Presley might be taking out all her pent-up rage on poor pro football players, but she’s a big softie in reality.

I grunt a noncommittal answer. I don’t want to lie, and to be honest, traffic was good for LA today. One of the reasons I was only thirty minutes late and not, like, an hour or more.

“Things were busy at the bakery truck this morning?” Eli calls from his table.

Heat dumps into my cheeks. I lie down on the table, staring at the ceiling as Presley starts stretching my feet and calves. “A little bit,” I mumble.

Anthony, Mark, and Eli all chuckle. Presley looks confused.

“Linc has a daily ritual—” Anthony begins.

“It’s not daily!” I protest.

They all laugh louder, and though she’s still confused, Presley’s grin widens at the teasing.

“His good luck is due to the fact that he’s a regular at Eli’s sister’s bakery truck,” Anthony finishes, smirking.

Presley furrows her eyebrows, glancing between me and the other guys. We’re all usually here at the same time on Tuesdays, so she knows most of the gossip. “I thought Eli’s sister was engaged.”

“Happily so,” Eli says, his voice muffled. “But her best employee is not.”

“Did you ask her out today?” Mark Travis asks. The other PT, Marshall Boyd, is working on his knee, which has been acting up again.

I turn back to the ceiling. “The line was around the block this morning, guys. It wasn’t a good time.”

They all howl with laughter now, and even Presley is silently chuckling.

“There’s no way she’s going to turn you down,” Presley says, in what I’m sure she thinks is an encouraging voice. “You’re a star athlete, you’re handsome, you’re pretty smart …”

“Oh, there’s a way,” Eli says. He turns over so the massage therapist can work on his neck and shoulders. He winces as the therapist pinches into the top of one of his shoulders. “Sorry, Linc,” he says with a commiserating glance at me. “But Layla is committed to the single life. She got burned big time. It’s going to take some work for our boy here to convince her he’s more than his good looks, which she fell for before.”

Presley winces. “I see. Well, I think she’d be crazy to turn you down, Linc.”

I chuckle too, but it’s forced. “Thanks.” I’ve had this discussion with Eli before. My crush on Layla Delaford is anything but secret among these guys. I’ve accepted more invitations than I can count to Eli’s house in hopes of winning Layla over—or I guess, more correctly, working up the courage to win her over.

“If there’s anyone who knows it’s about sticking in there when things seem tough, it’s Eli.” Mark looks up and grimaces as Marshall works his knee. “And I’m not just talking football.”

We all laugh. Eli definitely had to be patient before he ended up with his wife, Court.

“Just stick around, Linc,” Eli says. “That’s what Layla needs to see you can do.”

“Mmm-hmm,” I murmur, tensing against one of Presley’s more intense stretches. As if I could do anything other than stick around. I’m head over heels for Layla, and I don’t see anything changing that in the near future.

CHAPTER 3

LAYLA

By the time Margot and I get back to the food truck on Friday after lunch, everyone inside looks like a frazzled mess and the customers waiting outside are even on the verge of cranky. Listen, that rarely happens with Mila’s customers, even when the lines get long. But I’m guessing that leaving her with Astrid—the new girl—and Landon for over three hours has been backing things up.

“I’m back,” I say cheerfully, and I chuckle when Landon’s whole body sags with visible relief. He stands and reaches for Margot. I pull her out of the wrap I used to anchor her on my hip. I rushed as quickly as I could from the bus stop, knowing things would be hectic.

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