Page 128 of The Foul Out

“Yes, I did.” She cocked her head to the side.

That couldn’t be right. An hour and a half ago, it still hadn’t been read.

“As soon as I got off the plane.”

She flew in this morning. A weight dropped from my shoulders. “So what does it mean that you’re here?” I wanted to hope, desperately.

“I’m here to talk. To tell you that I understand why you didn’t tell me about your family.” She swallowed.

I tried to beat back the hope bubbling up in my chest, but my heart was racing now, getting ahead of itself. “And?” I held my breath.

“I forgive you.” The words were a whisper. “And I want to try to move past it.”

“Is there a but?” Because if so, she could so easily crush me.

She swallowed thickly. “But I’m not perfect. I’m going to annoy you because I’m going to question things. Even when you don’t deserve my distrust. Not forever, I don’t think. But maybe for a while.”

“Ask as many questions as you want, Crabby. I’ll answer them all.” With a trembling hand, I cupped her cheek, and when she didn’t flinch away from my touch, my heart flipped in my chest. “Neither of us has to be perfect. I’m going to piss you off, I’m sure, when I butt in when you don’t need me or when I give you a hard time just to see how fast I can bring your smile back. Or, you know, when I buy you a car.”

“You’ve never bought me a car.” She tipped her head, her brows pinched in confusion.

Huh. Now that she was here, that plan might have been a bit ill-timed. But I knew better than to hide a truth.

“Well…” I released her so I could scratch the back of my neck.

Her mouth fell open, and her eyes went wide. “You bought me a car?”

I slapped on what I hoped was my cutest grin. “A Cadillac XT4. Really cute silver SUV. Cam is picking it up tomorrow.”

She frowned, searching my face. “I wasn’t even talking to you.”

“Oh, I know. But I figured if a car showed up, you’d call me to yell about it.”

She sighed. “Yeah, I would have.”

“And I wanted to hear your voice.” I shrugged.

“You are ridiculous,” she huffed, but her lips tipped up in a smile.

My heart soared at that simple expression. I lifted up on my toes so I could reach her over the fence and cupped her cheek again. “I’m only ridiculous for you, baby. Like I said, neither of us has to be perfect. We just have to work to build an us together.”

“Forever?” she asked.

My chest expanded, and there was no fighting the smile that split my face. “Forever.” I pulled her head down to mine and kissed her. The second our lips met, I pulled her over the wall and into my arms.

Around us, the field erupted in cheers from both the fans and my teammates.

“I love you, Harper,” I said against her lips.

“I love you too, Kyle.”

I studied the red hair,memorizing its exact shade, as I twirled a soft strand around my finger.

“Ouch,” she mumbled. “I told you to stop.”

But I couldn’t. I hadn’t been able to let go of her for the last twenty-four hours. The Revs had won the game, and as soon as it was over, I’d brought Harper and the kids back to my place. Jace was staying at a hotel nearby, and he planned to take Sam to Legoland tomorrow before they all flew home on Friday.

I hated that they had to leave so soon. But school and work were waiting for them back in Boston. And I’d be home in a few weeks too.

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