Page 69 of Sack

And then landed right into Linc’s waiting hands.

Perfect throw. Perfect catch. The crowd went wild.

Damn, that felt good.

Still on a high from their latest win, Colt pulled his phone from the locker and called Ivy. It rang four times then went to voicemail. She was probably driving home. He knew she liked to watch their away games with Emerson at her pub. He showered and changed, collected his bag, and got on the bus. He tried Ivy again with the same result. And then again at the airport.

He was starting to worry.

Looking for Oz, he saw him sitting with Linc and made his way over.

“Hey, the man of the hour.” Linc stood and clapped Colt on the back.

“I just threw the ball. You’re the one who caught it for the touchdown.”

“Fine. We’ll share the glory.” Linc’s grin was bright enough to light a night sky.

Moving on to the more pressing issue, Colt asked Oz, “Can you call Emerson? Find out when she last saw Ivy.”

Oz pulled out his phone. “Sure. What’s going on?”

“I’ve been trying to reach her for the last hour, but she’s not answering.”

Oz already had the phone to his ear. He held up a finger. “Hey, Colt’s been trying to get a hold of Ivy. Have you talked to her lately?”

Colt waited for what felt like an eternity while Oz listened to what Emerson said.

“Okay, I’ll let him know. Call you when we land.” Oz hung up. “She said she’s probably sleeping. She talked to her earlier when Ivy called to let her know she wouldn’t be coming to watch the game. Said she wasn’t feeling well.”

“Ivy’s sick?” Colt had talked to her that morning and she hadn’t said anything.

“That’s what Emerson said.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Colt hesitated to call one last time before their flight took off. He didn’t want to wake her if she was resting, but he also needed to hear her voice to know she was okay.

His internal conflict ended up a moot point as she still didn’t answer.

Colt knocked on Ivy’s front door then tried to peer through the curtain covering the side window to check for movement. There was a light on downstairs. He’d played the afternoon game and with travel time, he was hoping it was late enough for Jason to be home. He didn’t want to pull Ivy out of bed if he didn’t have to.

The deadbolt disengaged and the door opened. “Hey, man, good to see you. I about fell out of my chair when you made that sweet pass to win the game. The bar I was at, I swear, we set some kind of sound record. Surprised you didn’t hear us all the way in Dallas.”

“Thanks.” While he appreciated the guy’s enthusiasm, that wasn’t what he was there for. “I’m here to check on Ivy. I heard she’s sick, and she’s not answering her phone.”

Jason opened the door wider, and Colt stepped inside.

“I just got home a half hour ago. Didn’t know she was sick. I haven’t heard a peep from her, so she must be sleeping. Feel free to go up.”

Not wasting time, Colt made for the stairs and took them two at a time. His eyes zeroed in on the bed and while the covers were a mess, Ivy wasn’t in it. The only other place she could be was the bathroom. He turned his head to find her lying on the cold tile.

He rushed over, his long stride eating the distance in a few steps. His eyes fell to her chest and breathed easier seeing it rise and fall. He squatted, brushing a lock of hair off her cheek that had escaped from her bun. Her skin was pale with her lips a light shade of pink and not their usual red.

Her eyes fluttered open, a line forming between them. “What are you—” Her voice cracked and she tried again. “What are you doing here?”

“You weren’t answering your phone. I was worried. Emerson said you were sick.”

She struggled to sit up, and he helped her. “You called Emerson?”

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