Page 58 of Love Game

This time, her smile came naturally. She pressed a kiss to his chest. “I guess I could have tried to be less awesome,” she said.

“Wouldn’t have worked.” He planted another kiss on the top of her head and subsided into the jumble of pillows once more. “Another unworthy idiot. Boy, you sure can pick ’em, Coach.”

She stirred only enough to stretch her legs, the tips of her toes sliding down his shin. The curve of her arch fit his instep as if they’d been made to match.

“Says the man in my bed,” she teased.

He huffed and shook his head. “The ones who leave it are the morons.” Notching his finger under her chin, he nudged it up until she tipped her head back to look at him. “The man in your bed is the smartest, luckiest guy in the world. I’m not idiot enough to give you up. And if they want to fire a guy for being too smart, that’s their problem. Right?”

She nodded solemnly. “Right.”

Chapter 14

Danny tucked the receiver under his chin and reached for a folder containing recruiting stats as he waited for the call to connect. “Hey, Ma.”

“Danny.”

As always, there was a tremor of relief in his mother’s voice when she greeted him. Like she was afraid she’d never hear from him again, even though he called every Wednesday like clockwork. Eileen McMillan only took calls during the hour between daytime programming and the evening news. Mondays, she caught up with her life-long friend, Grace. She had a standing hair appointment on Tuesdays, just as she had since he was a boy. He was allotted Wednesday, because on Thursday, she checked in on some of the older members of Saint Andrew’s congregation, and Fridays were reserved for her precious whoopsie, his little brother, Tommy.

And heaven help anyone who attempted to deviate from the schedule.

“How are you?”

She inhaled as if she had to brace herself. “I’m just fine, sweetheart. How are you?”

It was only natural that she’d be wary. After all, he’d broken plenty of bad news over these Wednesday afternoon calls. Danny did his best not to let the condescension in her voice piss him off, but he was tired of her acting like he was walking around holding a pair of wire cutters. He’d done what he was supposed to do. Following the longstanding traditions ingrained in college athletic departments and the Mafia, he’d taken the blame and done his time. Now, he wanted a kiss on the forehead and a welcome back home, damn it.

“I’m good, Ma. Great, actually.”

“Oh? You’re settling in okay?”

He caught the hopeful note in her voice and let a smile warm his voice. “Yeah, I’m just fine.”

“Tommy says you’ll have your work cut out for you with that team.”

Just like that, his smile disappeared. Tommy had no right to disparage any part of Danny’s life to their mother. Everything he had, every bit of career success that his younger brother had ever enjoyed, was because of Danny. He had no patience for his brother’s petty disregard. Not when he was the one whose personal life and public reputation were left in tatters. But as always, he did his best to keep their mother out of the middle.

“They need some work, but the administration is primed to rebuild the program.”

“Well, I’m glad to hear that.”

Awkward silence hummed between them. Danny glanced at the time and wondered if they’d even make it to the usual five-minute mark without extra effort on his part.

“So, Ma—” he began.

“Did I tell you—” she started at the same time.

They shared a laugh, then prompted one another to go ahead at the exact same time. That earned them another chuckle followed by Awkward Silence: The Sequel. Finally, Danny decided to break for open ground.

“Ma, I’ve met a woman,” he said, unable to bite back his smile.

“I’m finally going to the podiatrist for that bunion,” she reported, stomping all over his big news.

“You are?”

“You have?” And just like that, the wariness in her tone was back.

He waited a beat, squelching the urge to snap at her. Most mothers would be happy to hear their son say they’d met someone, but not his. The last time he’d said something remotely similar, their family imploded. Rocking back in his chair, he gripped the armrests and dragged in a calming breath.

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