Page 57 of 7 Days and 7 Nights

“I won’t forget, Dawg.”

She drove through the parking lot to Magnolia, where she took a left and merged into traffic. Even at this time of night, people in Atlanta seemed to be on the run. She flipped the radio on to WTLK, and for a startling moment, Matt Ransom’s voice filled the car. She grimaced, and when Dawg didn’t comment, she turned the radio off. The last thing she wanted to hear right now was whatever stupid thing Ransom might have to say.

She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel. “So. What did you wait so many hours to tell me, Dawg? It’s late, and I’m ready to call it a night.”

“I thought it might be time to talk about marriage.”

JoBeth’s heart slammed into her chest. Was this the conversation she’d been waiting for all this time? She smoothed her hair behind her ears and licked her suddenly dry lips.

“You know, the concept of it and all.”

JoBeth exhaled the breath she’d been holding and felt her shoulders slump. That didn’t sound like the beginning of any marriage proposal she’d ever heard of.

“I’ve never talked too much about my marriage to Suzy. I don’t even like to think about it. But you need to understand why I feel the way I do.”

Dawg kept his eyes on the road in front of them. When she looked over at him, all she could see was the strong beak of a nose with its extra bump, and the careful set of his lips.

“I was just out of college when I got married. I’d made a name for myself at the University of Georgia, and all I could see ahead was a life of football and more millions than a man can count. With a woman who loved me by my side.”

JoBeth heard the hurt in his voice and wondered which loss bothered him more, the woman or the career.

“It all started out great. You know I ended up here in Atlanta with the Falcons. Had a big church wedding. Suzy found us a house and decorated it, gave parties, met up with me on the road. She loved being the wife of a professional football player.”

“And that bothered you?”

“Hell, no. I loved it, too. But you see, I thought she loved me for me, that the NFL career was just kind of icing on the cake, you know?”

JoBeth sat silent, her eyes on the road before her, her attention focused completely on Dawg.

“Then I got my knee stomped on during that game in Miami. I knew it was over even before they carried me off the field.” He shook his head at the memory. “My professional career lasted one year and one week—must be one of the shortest in NFL history. And my marriage didn’t even make it two months more than that.”

“She couldn’t adjust to your change of career?”

“Adjust?” His voice rang with disgust. “She never even tried to adjust. She married a professional athlete, and I wasn’t one anymore. She hung around just long enough for the doctors to confirm I’d never play again, then she hitched her star to another player’s wagon.”

JoBeth reached a hand out to squeeze Dawg’s. She wanted to pull him against her breast and stroke his poor head until he felt better, but she managed to resist.

“I swore then that I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice. I’ve told you that I love you, JoBeth. I’ve told you more times than I’ve ever told any woman. You have to know that it’s true.”

“You have. And I’m not accusing you of lying. But it’s just not enough anymore.”

She pulled up in front of Dawg’s house and put the car in park, letting the engine idle in the early morning darkness. She’d thought she’d spend the rest of her days in this house with Dawg, imagined raising their children there together. She fought back the moisture pressing against her eyelids and drew a long, shaky breath.

When he reached out to take her face in his large capable hands, she tilted her head to rub against one callused palm, reveling in its gentle strength. She’d miss everything about him: his quiet steadfastness, his fierce protectiveness, the way his body completed hers. She was her best self when she was with him, but she wouldn’t settle for scraps any longer.

“I love you, too, Dawg. But I can’t waste any more time or breath trying to convince you that I’m worth marrying. If you can’t tell the difference between me and Suzy, then that’s your loss.”

She tilted her face out of his grasp and turned to look out the windshield, unable to stare into the blue of his eyes a second longer.

He reached out a hand to turn her face back toward his, and she forced herself to shrug it off.

“All right, then, let’s just start fresh,” he said. “Let me take you out tomorrow afternoon. We can go shoot some pool and have a pizza at Mario’s afterward, just like we did on our first date. All I’m asking for is time.”

JoBeth turned to face him then, forcing herself to look him square in the eye, steeling herself against the turbulence that she saw. She summoned all her resources to keep her voice steady, though she couldn’t totally eliminate the quiver of regret. “I’m not available tomorrow, Dawg. I’ve accepted a date with someone else, and I think it would be best if we said our goodbyes now.”

She watched the emotions flit across his face: the surprise followed by outrage and, ultimately, by an almost comical look of disbelief. “You’re going out with someone else?”

“Yes, I am.”

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