Page 103 of The Future Play

Amanda flashes her a smile. “You’re clearly a badass if you’re rising in the sports industry. Especially since that’s always harder as a woman. You shouldn’t ever have to worry about someone assuming the worst.”

“Thank you. So much better than needing to pull up my social media and prove I’m a lesbian and in a relationship.”

Amanda rests her hand on mine. “Are you okay with this? It’s your call.”

I glance at my agent. His smile says it’s my call, but his eyes tell me my decision better be yes.

“I’m okay with it as long as I have the freedom to set some boundaries. I’m a private, introverted person, so a lot of attentionis a struggle for me. I know that’s already increasing now, which is all the more reason I want to control it where I can.”

Emily nods. “I’ll always respect that. All I ask is that you respect my time in return. If we’ve planned to meet, I expect you to be on time and focused, not late, drinking, or being combative.”

“I can do that.”

“Okay, then. Dave has the contract, but you should read through it as well.” She looks at Dave. “Have it back to me by Friday, so it’ll be ready for his first game?”

“Will do. Thank you, Emily.”

With a nod, she walks out, and I want to sag in my chair. Now the exhaustion is kicking in. Though it’s an honor to have someone wanting to do a profile on me, the thought of having to be on more than I already will be is a touch overwhelming.

Amanda slips her hand into mine, and a bit of peace flows through me. I’m so grateful she’s here with me. It makes handling all the changes and chaos easier.

With the contract sent to my email, we head for our last stop of the day.

“So as you can see,this is a great neighborhood. The building has lots of amenities. It’s very safe, and the apartment is surprisingly spacious.”

It’s also dark, extremely modern, far from the stadium, and doesn’t feel like home the way our apartment in Ida does.

I kept the lease for that because I want Amanda to be able to live there whenever she’s in town and for us to live there together in the off-season. She’ll be heading into her senior year of college in a few months, then after that, we should finally have less distance in our lives. I can’t expect her to travel with me to every game, but hopefully she’ll travel tosome at least. Then we’ll live here during the season. Maybe nothere.

“It’s nice, but…” I trail off, glancing at Amanda, who couldn’t hide the look on her face if she tried, which is why she’s staring out the window. “Not exactly our style.”

“You know, it’s not as easy to find exactly what you want here like it is in a small town. This is a month-to-month lease for a good price. Give it a try. If you hate it, at least you’ll have somewhere to live that’s not a hotel while you find somewhere else. I think you’ll really end up liking this neighborhood, though.”

I glance over at Amanda again and sigh. “Okay. That’s fine.”

“Perfect,” Dave says. “I’ll have the paperwork drawn up. It should be move-in ready by this weekend.”

“Sounds good. Thanks for all your help.” I extend my hand to Dave, and he shakes it.

“No problem. I’m going to go downstairs and speak with the property manager. Come down when you’re ready.”

I nod, and he walks out.

Slowly, I make my way over to Amanda and wrap my arms around her from behind, leaning into her and inhaling her scent.

“What do you think?” I ask, even though I know the answer.

“I hate it,” she says with a laugh, spinning in my arms. “But we’ll figure it out. We’ll find ways to make it ours. And if we don’t… this is a big city.”

“I’m so glad you’re here.”

She wraps her arms tightly around me. “There’s nowhere else I’d be. You told me once that you didn’t see your future, you sawourfuture. I’ll walk through it by your side.”

Gently, I press my lips against hers, getting lost in the comfort and safety that wraps around me. My mind is still blown in the best way. I expected times of going back and forth between AAA and the majors, but this is it. All in. I know I’ve earned it, but it’s still insane. My skin prickles with awareness that this is a moment my life is changing forever.

All but this. I rub my hands up and down Amanda’s back.This is the one thing I know will never change. I’ll always have her. We’ll always have each other, and we’ll find our way through whatever comes next together.

Amanda

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