Page 9 of Personal Foul

“I try,” she replied. “I couldn’t stand to hear Toby whining so my neighbor lets me dog-walk.”

“Toby isn’t your dog?”

She shook her head. “No, but sometimes I feel like he is. He’s neglected a lot, and I guess he kind of reminds me of myself. Sometimes I wonder if I should just keep him because I bet my neighbor wouldn’t even realize he was gone. I really hate it when people get a pet and then can’t take care of it properly.”

“I agree.” He took a deep sigh. “Listen, I think I need to tell you something because I know you’re going to Google me as soon as you get home.”

“I wasn’t, because I don’t even know your last name.”

He gave her a wry grin. “Demay. My name is Kaiden Demay. And you are?”

“Romilly Pike.” She held out her hand and he reached over to shake it. “Nice to meet you.”

He pulled his hand back and then leaned on his forearms. “This past year I’ve, um, been messing up. A lot, apparently.”

She tilted her head. “From your parents divorcing?”

“Partly. It’s screwed up my head and led me to make some extremely poor choices. I don’t want you to form an opinion about me by the videos you’ll see on the web or on gossip television.”

“What kind of videos am I going to see?”

“You’re going to see a man bombed out of his mind. An asshole. A man who got fucked up so much, it led me to being let go from my football contract.”

That wasn’t at all what she expected to hear. “You were fired?”

“That’s one way to put it. I was sent here to attend a tryout period with the quarterback, to see if we mesh well together. It’s a, well, a last-ditch effort to salvage my career.”

Her heart went out to him. “That has to be scary.”

“Yeah. Growing up, I played football a lot with my father. He was my first coach, really. Was captain through my high school years. All I’ve ever wanted was to play the game. Knowing it might slip through my fingers is…”

As his voice trailed off, his gaze unfocused as he got lost in his head. It broke her heart to see the fear flittering over his features.

“Kaiden,” she said to grab his attention. He blinked, as if coming out of a trance. “We all do things we’re not proud of, and unfortunately you have an untenable position because of who you are. Don’t kick yourself when you’re down. The past is over so don’t let it ruin your future.”

For a long moment, he didn’t say anything, and she thought she might have overstepped. Then he sucked a deep breath into his lungs, as if he hadn’t taken a breath in ages. The tension eased from the lines on his face.

“I start training on Monday. I don’t know what I’m going to do if I don’t make the team.”

“I believe in you.”

He stared at her, his eyes roaming over her face. “You do?”

She nodded. “I may not know you, but I see the passion you have. The love. Iknowyou’re going to rise above whatever is hurting your heart and be the best tight end you can be.”

“Do you even know what a tight end’s job is?”

“Have no clue, but I’m positive you’re gonna be the best.”

He grinned. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Lots of things. This date. The promise of another. You don’t even know me but you believe in me. That’s … humbling.” He leaned forward and took her hand to kiss the back of it. “I think I was extremely lucky I bumped into you.”

“Pretty sure I bumped into you.”

“Promise me you won’t believe everything you read or see about me. Okay? Let me explain whenever you have questions or doubts.”

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