Page 24 of Sidelining the Safety

“Physical therapy,” Lee corrected, heat flooding his cheeks. Again. This was why he didn’t bother to stay in the closet. His facial expressions and lack of filter gave everything away. He tossed his dirty clothes in his bag and hefted it to his shoulder before he turned around and faced the suddenly quiet locker room.

Everyone stared except the punter, Garrett Stevens, who said, “Leave the kid alone. You’re all just jealous he’s scoring.”

Gasps filled the room before Garrett got pelted with rolled socks and smelly jocks. Lee used the distraction to escape, silently thanking Garrett and telling himself to make sure he got the guy some cake or something.

He saluted Tom as he jogged by, slid behind the wheel, gripping it tightly as he faced his next adversary: Austin traffic.

CHAPTER 18

MAC

Drew blew through the front door, wearing a broad smile. His joy was infectious, leaving everyone he greeted with a grin on their faces. Momma, Dad, Katy, Amy. He hugged Mac and smacked a kiss on his cheek.

“It’s a glorious day, Mac. Finals are over. I don’t have to deal with Cain anymore. Dr. Rosie and her staff are awesome. Oh! I met the GM today. Smokin’. Jared Fitz could model for a living if he wanted.” Drew sank onto an empty counter stool, tucked his chin on the shelf he made with his hands, and batted his eyelashes.

“You’re ridiculous,” Mac muttered, gazing at Drew with fondness.

“I am, but you love me anyway.”

“I do. Water?” Mac was moving, knowing his best friend would say yes.

And best friend that he was, he waited until Mac had taken a sip before dropping his next bomb. “Lee’s joining us for dinner.” Drew really should have known better, but thankfully, he still laughed as he wiped the water Mac spewed on his face off with a napkin.

“I hate you. When’s he coming?”

“About an hour. He’d just finished practice and needed to shower.”

Images of hot water cascading down all those muscles invaded Mac’s mind. He discretely slid behind the waist-high counter, hiding his thickening erection. Was it hot in here? Drew smirked as the flush in Mac’s cheeks gave him away.

“I see you’ve got it bad.”

Mac frowned. “Fuck off. I know you want him, too.”

Drew shrugged. “Maybe, but it’s not gonna happen. He told me he needs to focus on football, not boyfriends.”

“Friends, but nothing more? Well, that blows.”

“Or not.” Drew snorted at his ridiculous comeback, and Mac rolled his eyes. “Seriously, though, I get it. I need to focus, too. I need to study up on football injuries and how to treat them, and decide on my capstone project.”

Mac deflated. There wasn’t anything for him to focus on other than the diner and making sure Troy stayed the fuck away from Katy.

With the dinner crowd arriving in droves, Mac jumped in. Even Drew helped, wandering with coffee pots and offering refills because people drank the nectar of the gods by the bucketful, morning, noon, and night.

When Mac finally noticed Lee, he was leaning against the hostess stand, speaking with his dad. They both looked serious, and he wondered what they were discussing. The team probably. Dad was an avid Troopers fan. Mac remembered how his father had been like a kid in a candy store when he learned Austin had won the bid for an expansion team. Before then, he’d been a lifelong Cowboys fan, like most Austin natives. When the Texans came to town, there were plenty of converts, but not his dad. It took getting their own team for him to change his beloved man cave from the fabled blue and silver to the brightest white and glittering gold he could find.

The high cost of season tickets had been well out of their price range, but his dad and his buddies had gotten together and purchased a set that allowed them all to attend at least one home game.

Mac sidled up to Drew. “Do you think it would be bad form for me to ask Lee if he can get my dad tickets to one of the home games?”

Drew shrugged. “I’ve heard some teams give players a number of free tickets to games, but I’m not sure if that’s still true. And I’m pretty sure I read an article that said players' families in the Super Bowl have to buy tickets.” He cocked his head, gazing at Lee and Mac’s dad. “It can’t hurt to ask. I bet, if nothing else, he can get them at face value through the office instead of the inflated resale values we always see online.”

“Oh… Good point. Quick, look casual. Here he comes.”

Drew cracked up, not even trying to look casual. Mac elbowed him before greeting Lee. “Hi! Welcome to The Other Diner. How many for dinner today? Just one, oooh, that’s so sad. Sexy guy like you.” Mac bit on his forefinger and blinked.

Lee stuck out his tongue. “Knock it off. This is a family restaurant. There could be young eyes.” He slowly panned back and forth dramatically before laughing. His stomach chose that moment to make itself known. “Better feed me before this monster escapes.”

Mac put their orders in before waving them over to the family booth. He slid in next to Lee, reminiscent of the first time they’d met, placing clean glasses on the table along with a full pitcher of water. “Did you want coffee?”

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