Page 87 of Playmaker

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“Cameron. Are you kidding me?” Maddie glances out the windshield, seemingly speechless. I put the car in Park in the gravel parking lot, following her open-mouthed stare to the large hot air balloon sitting on the empty field. The sun is just beginning to set, and in ten minutes we should be up in the air. “How the hell did you afford this?”

“It doesn’t matter. I wanted tonight to be special, so I’m making it happen.”

My dad gave me a credit card for emergency purposes, and although this probably isn’t classified as an emergency, I’ll find a way to explain it to him should he catch the charge.

“This is—” She shakes her head in disbelief.

“We enjoyed the view of the canyon, so I figured this would be even better. We can see practically all of Arizona in this.” She still isn’t saying anything, and suddenly, I begin to panic. I know Maddie like the back of my hand, and she never said anything growing up about having a fear of heights, but maybe she does. Maybe I got this all wrong.

“If you don’t want to, we don’t—”

“Are you kidding? This is the coolest thing anyone has ever done for me. Iloveit, Cam.”

“You do?”

I don’t know why I’m surprised considering I could take Maddie to the park for a damn ice cream and she’d be overjoyed. She doesn’t ask for much, and it’s the little things that matter to her, but it’s for that reason that she deserves the fucking world.

“Yes!” she squeals with excitement. The passenger door swings open, and it’s comical since she can’t move as fast as she wants to with the walking boot. She shuffles out of the car, tapping her free foot impatiently.

Hand in hand we head over to our pilot, and I help lift Maddie into the gondola then climb in beside her. We listen to the safety basics before the burners come to life, and since this is a private ride, we have a decent amount of space between us and the pilot when we lift off the ground. Maddie gasps, and I assume it’s because of the foreign feeling, but she’s pointing to a basket on the bottom of the gondola, holding two flutes and a bottle of champagne.

“You really thought of everything,” she muses. Then, when her voice drops lower, she adds, “You know I can’t drink yet, right?”

I raise my eyebrows in challenge. “I won’t tell if you won’t.”

Breaking the rules has never been something she’s comfortable with, but doing so with me seems to make her giddy with adrenaline. She bites on her lower lip and gives a subtle nod, and as we rise farther off the ground, I pour two glasses and hand one to her.

“I expected it to be loud,” she whispers, staring at the ground disappearing below us, “but it’s quiet.Peaceful, even.”

I step up behind her and wrap my arms around her waist, bending down to place my head on top of hers. From up here the world seems so large and full of opportunities. It’sminefor the taking, and yet I still don’t feel like it’s completely mine. Things worked out with Maddie, but my life has been planned out since I was a kid. Arizona is my dad’s favorite team, so I’ve been pushed to get drafted by them. What if I don’t want to live in Arizona, though? What if I’m like my mom and want to live near fresh grass or even the ocean? I’ve allowed myself to follow my dad’s wishes because if I couldn’t make my mom’s dreams come true, at least I could makehiscome true.

“Do you like Arizona?” I find myself asking her.

She takes a few seconds to admire the insanely gorgeous view and says, “Up here? Yes. When we’re at the Grand Canyon? Yes. The landscape here can be stunning, but I like it in Connecticut more. It’s beautiful when it snows, and my school is close to the water too.”

“Would you want to live there someday?”

She twists in my arms to face me, the gentle breeze from the burners keeping us warm. “Maybe. I haven’t really thought that far ahead yet. Why do you ask?”

“I think it’s important to know considering we’re in a relationship now, right?”

She tilts her head to the side. “Would my opinion change anything? You’ve been planning to get drafted by Arizona since high school.”

I wouldn’t have asked the question if her opinion didn’t matter. Maddie being my girlfriend feels like a dream that’s too good to be true. I never imagined we’d gethere—flying in a hot air balloon and speaking about the future—but as our relationship continues to develop, I’ve come to the realization that I can’t see myself playing for Arizona if she’s not next to me. I’ve spent years without her, and the misery that caused is a feeling I never want to experience again.

Knowing where she wants to live one day is going to be a huge factor, and for the first time, it’s one that could sway my decision.

“Your opinion would change everything,” I tell her firmly.

Fears of this going too fast race through my mind, but Maddie was mine long before I made the first move in the closet. We’ve known each other since we were kids, and our feelings developed slowly over time. Now that those feelings are finally out in the open after years of keeping them locked away, I want it all with her.

I just need to get the courage to tell her I’m in love with her. I need to have better self-esteem andbelieveI can be the guy to provide her with everything she’ll ever need.

“I wouldn’t want to live in Arizona,” she says, “but if you were signed to them, I’d manage to find a way to make it work.”

“Manage it how?”

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