Page 40 of Love on the Waiver Wire

“Who?” Emmett asks.

“None of your business,” he shoots back.

“Says the one trying to get into everyone’s business,” Leo mutters.

“I’m not saying you guys have to actually date anyone, I just think it would be cool if we all got into relationships and then our girlfriends could hang out.”

“Why the hell would that be any different than now? And what if one of us breaks up with our girl? Then what?”

Cooper thinks for a moment, his nose scrunching in concentration. “Then we deal with it as it happens,” he says finally, sighing. “All I’m saying is that I watch these guys with their wives and they all look so cute. And I think that I’m in a place where I want to settle down,”

“And why are you making that all of our problem?” Dirwin asks, scratching his dark beard.

“Because I love hanging out with all of you. One of us gets tied down and we won’t be talking as much. Women are social creatures. They’ll want to hang and then we get to hang.”

“I’m pretty sure we can just, I don’t know, make an effort to spend time together,” I tell him, pointing my fork at him.

“But how much fun would it be if we were all in the same place in life?”

I shake my head. “That’s never going to happen, man. Sorry.”

“Owen just think about it. Have you ever even touched a woman?” I stop chewing and glare at him, the crease between my eyes deepening every second.

“Yes, I have touched a woman, thank you.”

“Well all I’m saying is it doesn’t seem like it. You’re always holed up in your apartment or at Leo’s. Which, if that’s a thing,” he leans back in his seat, his hands out in front of him. “I’m here for it, I promise. I’d be so here for it, actually. I could see it.”

Leo smacks him on the back of the head.

“I had a girlfriend before I started playing,” I inform him, propping my elbow on the table, my cheek resting on my fist.

“And then?”

“And then she moved. Nothing more to it.”

“Well that’s stupid,” Cooper rolls his eyes. “Anyways, can we start planning our touchdown celebration this weekend?

“No, that’s Andrew’s job.”

“Then I’ll ask him.” Cooper scoots his chair out, getting up to go ask one of our special teams players if he can come up with the touchdown celebration moves for this week. Andrew has enjoyed making them, mostly because he has the best ideas out of us all. He doesn’t get to do them with us, but he likes watching.

“Whatisgoing on with your dating life?” Leo asks, his eyes pinning me with daggers. I freeze, not knowing if he knows something.

“I don’t have anything.”

“You don’t answer texts as fast as you did.”

“I didn’t know there was a timeframe I had to get back to you in.”

“There’s not. I just think something’s up.”

I shake my head. “Nope, nothing is up.” I look down, busying myself with the food in front of me.

“You know you can tell me anything, right?” I nod, but I know that’s not true. There are certain things that I simply can’t tell him, this being one of the biggest. Not yet, anyways. There will come a time, hopefully, when we have to, but I sincerely hope that we can keep it between us for as long as possible.

I love Leo, I do, and I get why he’s concerned, but he shouldn’t be.

“So how did the loser punishment go?” I ask him to change the subject. The person with the lowest fantasy points each week gets a punishment to do. Something that’s definitely much worse than simply watching the real housewives, snuggled up with a beautiful woman.

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