Page 6 of House of Desire

“I doubt she meant in a dating competition show with twenty contestants all fighting for your heart, Park.”

“Why wade in the kiddie pool when I can jump in the deep end?” I joke, trying to hide the apprehension and regret I’m already feeling. But it’s too late. The water is already covering my head and now there’s nothing left to do but push off the bottom and swim for the surface.

Alec’s phone vibrates and he reads the message. His gray eyes lock with mine. “Congratulations, you’re in.”

My glitter shorts wedge themselves so far up my ass as I squeeze past people on my way to my seat, I’m afraid I’ll have a sparkly asshole for the rest of my life. Before I can make it, the crowd jumps to their feet, screaming their love as the football sails over the goal line and into Tank’s waiting hands in the end zone. The guy claiming the chair I’m standing in front of lurches to his feet, causing my balance to become precarious. Without thought, I wrap my arms around the shirtless man, his painted chest pressed against my cheek.

“Woah there, honey, what do you think you’re doing?” he asks, grabbing my arms and unhooking them from around himself.

“Sorry!” I shout, trying to be heard over the crowd. “I thought I was going to fall!”

“Well that doesn’t mean you get to grab onto The Clint, now does it?” He looks down at me with such self-importance, I almost laugh. Instead, I simply apologize again, pull myself from his grip, and continue on to my seat.

“I didn’t think you were going to make it,” Lorelei says into my ear as I kiss her cheek in greeting. Unlike the other players’ wives, she enjoys being in the throng of the crowd.

“Sorry I’m late. My friend at the bank called. Apparently, I’m going to be rejected for the loan to expand. Again. What have I missed?”

As I settle into the space in front of my seat, prepared to stand for the duration as no one seems to be sitting after the last touchdown, I try to discreetly dislodge the shorts from my ass crack.

“Oh, I’m sorry, babe. That sucks. Do you want me to talk to someone?” She claps as the ball soars through the uprights for the extra point.

“No, that’s alright. Thanks, though. I just might need to push back my plan to expand and start teaching classes.”

“You’ll figure it out. You always do.”

Looking around the sideline, I scan the different jerseys I can see, looking for my brother’s. Seeing what I’m doing, Lorelei points over to the left of the group.

“He’s over there,” she says and I feel myself smile as I find Dominic.

“How’s he been playing today?” I ask.

“Two touchdowns so far.”

She laughs as I cheer, belatedly, for my brother’s offensive prowess on the field. I know she understands.

Lorelei is obsessed with Tank, her husband. Her love for him is obvious. It’s so different from some of the other spouses. She doesn’t care about his ranking in the league or how he plays. She simply enjoys supporting her partner in his passion. She is at every game. Every event. Cheering every play and accomplishment. Whatever he needs, she’s there. And he does the same for her during the off season. You can see deep down they are best friends above all else.

As the top ranked tight end in the entire league, Tank could have gone anywhere when his contract was up last year, but instead of following the money he was being thrown, he signed a less lucrative deal to stay here, near Lorelei’s brother.

Selfishly, I’m glad she stayed.

Three years ago was Dom’s rookie season. The quarterback’s wife, Sasha, set up a dinner for the significant others of the entire team so they could all meet the new members of their exclusive club. Being the spouse of a professional athlete is a position that requires you to sacrifice everything for the betterment of a team. Holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, weddings. If it’s not in the off season, it’s like it doesn’t exist.

When asked for a name for this dinner, my single brother gave mine, knowing I’ve been struggling to find a good group of friends. Our family moved here my sophomore year so Dom could play for the best high school football coach in the country. It was worth it for his dream, but I never seemed to click with any of the girls in my class.

Sasha welcomed me at the dinner, but I could tell she was not thrilled at Dominic’s blatant disregard for the nature of her request.

Lorelei Carlston sat next to me that night, and as they say, the rest was history. We quickly bonded over the fact we didn’t feel like we fit in, uncaring of the unspoken ranking of the spouses based on the ranking of their husband on the team. We joked and laughed all night long as we shared stories about Tank and our brothers.

As we watch the game today, we talk of small things. Nothing deep, but I enjoy the conversation all the same.

“No, I’m serious. There was one season Alec’s contestant refused to wear anything except swim trunks as shorts, which is weird but whatever. The problem was they were always light colored and you could almost always see his penis through them!” Lorelei giggles as one of the guys in front of us turns and gives us a dirty look.

We both love watching the games, but we aren’t going to only talk about football the entire game.

“What are you wearing to the benefit next week?” Lore asks at the next break in the action.

The holiday benefit is planned for the bye week after the team’s last home game in December. Private dinners with the players are auctioned off to raise money for whatever cause Sasha has picked out for the year. The guest list is extensive, with friends and family of the team staff, top-tier season ticket holders, and various sponsors.

---