Page 38 of The Long Game

And then I saw him… with her. My heart shattered like it never had before. I let my guard down. I believed we could make it work.

I was wrong.

My fears were solidified in that moment.

He puts his hands in his pockets and nods at me, glances down at the floor quickly, and then walks out of my office.

Tucker

I leave Lexi’s office without a game plan. I never don’t have a game plan. I head back to Tom Benson’s office to finish the conversation we had started before I’d left abruptly to follow his daughter. I spend the time trying to pretend not to be distracted by the daughter down the hall, close enough to touch.

We say our goodbyes and Tom gives me a hug with a pat on the back.

"Sheila and I couldn’t be prouder of you, buddy. A Super Bowl win and honestly, an incredible career this far. Now you and Luca are playing ball this season like old times. I think you’ll be unstoppable. Don’t worry about the knee; it’s all going to work out. You two have unfinished business. To win a Super Bowl together like you two have dreamed of since the peewee days. You’re going to find yourself there, I know it."

"Thanks, Tom. I’ll be helping my dad with my great uncle’s funeral arrangements, but I’ll still be around. We could get lunch before I leave town. Maybe tomorrow?"

"I’d like that, Tucker. Should we invite the whole gang? I think Brielle could use an outing, too. She’s been cooped up since the baby was born. And I suspect you haven’t met the little guy yet, huh?"

"No, I haven’t. That sounds great, Tom."

"Invite Sabrina and your dad, if they're available. I haven’t seen Sabrina since Lexi’s housewarming party, and it would be nice to catch up with your dad too, if he’s up for it. I’m sure the funeral has him busy though."

"Okay, I’ll give them a call after I leave here. I’m just going to say goodbye to Lexi and I’ll text you when I hear back from them."

"Hey Tuck?" Tom slips past me towards the door I’m headed for and looks around before closing it. "You and Lex…is everything okay there?"

"What?" I ask unconvincingly.

"Listen…" He moves closer and he’s using his "soft gloves" voice. As if he’s handling a fragile glass egg and not a 230lb pro athlete.

"I’ve suspected there might be something growing between you two. You know…more than just in a friendly way." I smirk at the idea of something "growing". He isn’t wrong there. Any time I see her or think about her.

I furrow my eyebrows. I’m not going to volunteer anything.

"Come on, Tucker. I’ve noticed the way you look at Lexi since you were about nineteen. Didn’t seem relevant at the time. You were going away to college. But I saw it in your eyes again today when she came by my office. There also seems to be some missing puzzle pieces from the accident in New Orleans but I’m not trying to pry, son."

There’s no point pretending with Tom. He’s the one I would have come to years ago to ask for advice. If the panties I was trying to get in weren’t his daughters.

"I know you two spent some time together in LA, after the Super Bowl, and didn’t want any of us to know about it. Seems like something’s going on there if you ask me."

I don’t know where he got his information but although I won’t offer damning evidence, I’m sure as hell not going to lie to the man.

"She doesn’t exactly make it easy to sweep her off her feet." I laugh, putting my hands in my pocket, trying to hide howuncomfortable it is to admit my feelings about Lexi to anyone else beside her.

"That’s my girl." He laughs. "She’s driven, motivated… focused. Not unlike you. But I’ve seen the way she looks at you too. She’s a little harder to read but there’s a devotion in her eyes that I’ve never seen in them with anyone else. I’m not sure what it means, but there you have it." He shrugs.

"I’ve tried. More than once."

I toss up my hands like a referee made a bad call.

"There’s always an excuse but mostly it seems to boil down to the same thing. She doesn’t want either of us to change a single thing in our lives to make us work. How do I argue that?"

"You don’t argue. You're not a lawyer, Tuck. You're a football player and a damn good one. Use the skills youdohave." He pauses.

"If the defense keeps blocking your play, you don’t just forfeit…you come up with a new game plan. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?"

He takes a second and puts his hand on my shoulder.

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