Page 11 of Tangled with the Tight End

Do I? The muscles in my back feel like someone’s twisting a knife into them and cranking the wheel. I could’ve made the wedding, should’ve made their wedding, but Sloane wanted to go to the Caribbean instead. She wanted to go somewhere exotic on the bye week. Somewhere to show off her bikini body, and Finn Reid, her current lover, was there with his friends.

That should’ve been a red flag.

And when Angelo was born? I could’ve flown out on Monday to meet him.

“Gabriel, this is Norah, my best friend since school. She runs–”

“Lip & Hips.” I bite my bottom lip and nod. “We’ve met a couple of times already.”

My heart thuds in my chest. When she’s not looking disapprovingly at me, she’s gorgeous. The curve of her jawline sets off her perfect features, and the slender column of her neck makes my fingers and other parts twitch.

What in the fuck is wrong with me? I haven’t wanted a woman in years. I was obsessed with football. Playing my best. Being the best. And Sloane and I were going through the motions.

“Oh, yeah?” Marco asks with an arched eyebrow.

Norah lifts Angelo off the ground and kisses the top of his head. “How’s my favorite, kiddo?” His face lights up as she holds him close. “Yes, we’ve met,” she says against Angelo’s temple while kissing him again. “He was a total….”

Her voice trails off as she glances over at my son, who’s snatching a stuffed rabbit out of the toy box. “He was angry with me because I accidentally ran into him while delivering at the lodge.”

“Angry, how?” Eden taps her toes on the rug.

Great. Now, it’s two against one.

“He was rude.” Norah flushes and wrinkles her nose. “And I was rather rude back, accusing him of being a crappy parent.”

The first time we met and the second, those black lashes hood her crystal blue eyes, which remind me of the nearby lake. I’d apologize again in hopes of seeing her eyes dance but that’s stupid. This is Norah, Eden’s best friend. The woman is unimpressed that I’m a football star. Hell, she’s unimpressed that I’m alive.

Not to mention, she’s a small-town girl. And I’m the big city guy.

Dude, she thinks you’re a loser. She’s not going to have sex with you.

“Nice.” Marco whistles while enjoying the show. “Hit him below the belt. Right at his greatest weakness. It’s always good to see people who don’t kiss my brother’s ass. He deserves it.”

“Daddy?” Gino glances up with a quizzical expression while handing me a rabbit. “Where, rabbit eye?”

five

NORAH

What’s wrong with me?Every time I see this man, I cut him down. Why? It doesn’t make any sense. I don’t know him. I harbored no ill will toward him until I met him. It’s not like I was upset when he didn’t come to the wedding. Or that he missed the birth of his nephew. I was too busy celebrating both events for his absence to register.

As they all walk to the kitchen, I stand back to watch the kids. Gabriel is good-looking, but I’ve seen good-looking guys before. He’s larger than life, but we’re in the mountains. I’ve met lumberjacks. He’s grumpy or was grumpy after I hit him.

After you hit his injured knee. The one that has him forced onto the sidelines.

But Delbert Baxter is the worst grump I’ve ever met, and he growls and grumbles at everyone. It’s not like I let him ruin my day. So why am I tossing out landmines left and right for Gabriel to step on?

“Here.” Gino hands me a storybook, and I drop down to the floor.

“What do we have here?”

“Read.” He climbs into my lap as Angelo crawls over to us.

“Ah. I love stories about animals.” The boy is adorable.

No, it’s because he’s all those things. All those unattainable things. I’m stuck in Evergreen Lake with guys I’ve known forever, and he’s the pretty boy who can get a different woman in each city the team plane sets down in. Not to mention, he’s married. Divorcing but still married.

And…. He’s fucking hot. The total package. The total package I’ll never have.

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