Page 28 of Chasing Football Dreams

“But you are,” She answered.

“The major leagues are different to University,”

“Zoey, stop. I already know where this is going,” Eliza scolded, sinking her legs back into the water.

“For years you doubted yourself and hid away from following your dreams. It took you this long to finally see your worth. It will be the NFL’s biggest loss not to draft you,”

“I wasn’t going to quit. I was just thinking that a year ago I never thought I would get a chance to live out my dream,” I smiled, feeling the butterflies in my stomach. “Today, I am thinking about who the first team I will be rejecting when I get drafted by the Atlanta Falcons,”

She chuckled, throwing her head back and lifting her hand in the air. “That’s my girl!”

I slapped palms with her, chuckling when she talked about meeting celebrities when she would have access to the VIP box. She was already daydreaming about my job while she forgot about her success.

“What are you two doing?” I looked at the lawn, finding Duncan standing with her clothes in his hands.

“Swimming. What does it look like?” Eliza cheekily remarked kicking her feet.

We looked to our side when we heard footsteps thundering across the dock. We screamed when Andrew jumped into the water, followed by the rest. I dived under the water swimming back to shore. Finding Dunca waiting for me with an arched eyebrow and arms crossed in front of his chest as his dark eyes took me in. “Are you going to lecture me?”

He smiled. “No, why would I want to lecture you when you’re having fun?”

I raised my shoulders. “You just looked mad,”

He chuckled, dropping his arms to his side. “I will never be mad at you for having fun with your best friend,” He closed the space and I expected to find him kissing me but instead he fooled me and threw me over his shoulder.

I laughed when he jogged into the water and fell in, taking us both under. I resurfaced with Duncan finding his way towards me, snaking his arms around me and pulling me into him.

“I absolutely love your house. It’s got a lake. A perfect view. A porch where you can hold parties with your friends,” I watched our friends splashing each other over his shoulder and a smile tugged my lips.

“Then move in with me,” His offer made me freeze up.

I looked at him. I don’t know if I was ready for such a big step. All my life I have been looking for a place to fit into andspending time here with him. It felt like I found a piece of that serenity. I didn’t want to fear the future but neither did I want something to go wrong and I land flat on my ass.

“It’s too sudden,” Duncan noted when I didn’t immediately answer.

I pulled slightly back to stare him in the eyes. “No, I love living here with you. You’ve given me something that I’ve never had. You’ve given me a home. A place where I can be at comfort. I’ve been fighting for survival from four years old and you giving me the keys to a place where I can be all of that,” I kissed him showing how much I adored him, and rested my forehead against his.

“I would love to move in with you but I still want options,”

Duncan nodded his head at me.

I wasn’t planning on running away or leaving. I just want something to fall back on if life happens. I don’t want to believe it will. I love Duncan with all my heart and I know I would like to spend the rest of my life with him. There is no doubt in my mind.

“You know you don’t have to explain anything to me, Zoey. I get you more than you know. You can stay here for as long as you want. You can have your backup plan but I will do my utter best that you will never need it,”

“I know you will,” I kissed him again and screamed when we got tackled by the team.

Duncan got dunked while I was fighting for my life. We spent the next few minutes swimming around making jokes and laughing at the silliest things.

Duncan headed to the house to get some towels for me and Eliza. He even brought me one of his shirts, shielding me when I got out of the water. He wrapped the towel tightly around me, catching my arms next to my sides, and kissed me.

“I have to tell you something,” I muttered against his lips.

He looked at me trying to figure out what was going on in my head. “You can tell me anything,”

“Uhm, ESPN wants to do an interview with me,”

“Zoey, that’s amazing,” He sounded truly happy for me.

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