Page 92 of I Blame the Alcohol

I carefully place the plate in its cabinet before turning to face him, “Is this about us?”

“Partly.” Cody meets my stare before going on, “I'm burnt out, Stel. Getting my face bashed in last semester changed my perspective on priorities when it comes to lacrosse. Sooner or later, I'm going to take a hit and I might not be able to get back up again.”

I can only stare as he continues, “And I don’t want to see you once a week for the next three years. It’s not fair to you, it’s not fair to me, and it’s certainly not fair to the development of our relationship.”

“But won’t you miss it? That’s your team, Cody. Those are your players.”

“They are my players, and they are my team, but you are my future.” The raw look in his eyes is one I have never seen before.

“And that is more important than any team or tournament I could compete in.” Cody shakes his head, his eyes glistening, “This last week was terrible. All I could think about was seeing you, and then when I couldn’t be there for you today? I just about killed somebody.”

My heart clenches, adrenalin and fear cursing through my bloodstream.

“I don’t want you to give up something you love and then regret it down the road.”

“Don’t you get it?Youare what I love. You are the only reason I ever want to wake up before 5AM every morning.”

I choke out a laugh, “Karen should be helping with that soon.”

Stepping towards me, Cody tucks a strand of hair behind my ear, “It doesn’t matter if we’re up at the crack of dawn every day for the rest of our lives. As long as we’re together, I’m happy.”

I lean into his touch, smiling against his hand, “It sounds like you’ve already made up your mind. Guess we’ll be seeing a lot of each other next fall, huh?”

“Next fall?” An eyebrow goes up, “You aren’t getting away from me that easily, O’Brien. I’m going to delegate some of my captain duties so I can ravish my girlfriend as much as possible.”

I smirk, “Not sure your back can handle any more ravishing.”

“Guess we’ll have to take turns on who gets to be sore.” Cody grins, grabbing my thighs and hauling me up against him. His shirt I’m wearing rides up in the process, making it obvious I’m already ready for him.

“Are we going to the bedroom this time?” I blink innocently as my legs wrap around his waist, ready to be carried to bed.

“Oh, no. There are a few more rooms you have yet to see.” Cody grins and starts walking us towards the office next door.

Chapter 28

Cody

I pull Wes and Nico aside after our morning practice on Monday.

“What’s up, Cap?” Wes shakes his hair back and forth, sweat flying everywhere. The new cardio elements I’ve incorporated into our training has made Monday mornings public enemy number one.

Stella would be proud.

“Just wanted to have a quick discussion about next year.” I pause, knowing this is the point of no return. “After this spring, I am stepping down from the team.”

I wait for the wave of guilt or remorse to hit me, but it never does.

Wes blinks, “You mean you’re stepping down from captain?”

Nico’s eyebrows pull together, his dark gaze scanning mine. Although the freshman goalie hasn’t said a word, I have a feeling he already knows where I'm going with this.

“No, I'm taking a break from varsity next year.” I sigh, noting the look of horror creeping across Wes’ face. Out of all my players, I knew he was going to take the news the hardest.

“I could give you a list of reasons why I am changing directions, but all you need to know is this is what I want to do. You boys will always be my team, that fact will never change, but it’s about time I stepped back and worked on myself.”

Nico nods, his eyes full of understanding, “You deserve to enjoy the rest of your university experience. Be able to take Stella dancing every weekend without worrying about upcoming tournaments.”

I shoot him a smile, grateful for the support, “I am stupidly excited to have some free time. Speaking of which, with the new assistant coach next year, the next team captain shouldn’t be as burdened as I was this year.”

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