Page 12 of Forever Player

“That good, huh?” I groaned too when I took a bite. It was easily the best pizza I’d ever tasted.

She ate the slice fast and licked her lips.

“You’re going to groan so much louder when I eat you,” I said to her because I had to have this woman. She was snarky and beautiful, fun.

She didn’t say anything.

“Are you feeling sober?” I asked.

“I’m still tipsy but I know what I’m doing.”

“My place is across town,” I told her.

“Mine is a couple of blocks from here,” she replied and her tongue darted out. She licked her lips and all I could think about was crashing my lips to hers.

“But you don’t have a key,” I reminded, my gaze fixated on those luscious lips.

“No, I said I don’t have my wallet, the key is right here.” She reached under her sweater and I assumed into her bra. She showed me her key.

“What else do you got in there?” I grinned, peeking at the top of her sweater like I wanted to see what other jewels she was hiding.

She laughed. I liked the sound a little too much. We dug in and ate another slice of pizza. . .

“What is the population of this place?” I ask. It looks like no one lives in this town. We passed a strip of some stores and now it’s a whole lot of land.

“Sugar Meadow is a small farming town,” she explains. “Probably a couple thousand at most. I basically know everyone in town.”

I nod.

“We’ll be home in a few minutes,” she says.

My stomach begins to turn. I’m about to meet my daughter. When I say those words, they don’t feel real. I haven’t had time to process.

Jacob turns onto a dirt road. We pass a barn and I see all kinds of animals off in the distance, but it’s dark so I can’t really tell. All I know is this place is big. We drive up to a main house. Jacob parks the car and we get out, and something tells me not to expect a warm welcome.

CHAPTERTWO

Brett

“I haven’t had a chance to explain our situation to my other brothers.” She sounds like she’s apologizing, which means I likely have three angry Heaton men to deal with.

“It’s fine,” I reply.

Jacob chuckles. I don’t know what that means, but my guess is he wouldn’t mind seeing me get my assed kicked after I grabbed hold of his collar at the game.

We head inside. The house is big and outdated. The lights are off.

“It’s late, Maylee is probably sleeping,” she explains.

“Is there a place for me to stay in town?” I ask her. “I just got time off from Coach, and I plan to spend it with my daughter.”

She freezes.

Jacob gives her a look and then says, “You two have yourself a good night.” He walks off and I mutter thanks.

“You aren’t staying in town. Besides, it’s late. You can stay on the couch. We don’t have an extra room since we converted the extra bedroom into a nursery,” she explains.

“Can I see her? I’ll be quiet.”

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