Page 22 of His Starr Player

I jumped up. “Let’s fucking go!” I clapped and congratulated my team before I went over to the losers and dapped them up. “Y’all gave us a run for the money for sure. Keep going and build your defensive players up more. Good shit for sure.”

“Congratulations,” their captain spoke to me.

“Thanks. Keep your head up.”

I returned to my team and smiled proudly as we were ushered over to the oversized check with three hundred twenty-five thousand written in black ink. We lined up and took the picture with the dudes from Bowers Brews. The tallest one had a mug on his face, but I assumed it was because this wasn’t his type of scene. I chuckled because regardless, the check would be deposited in my account by the morning.

After the pictures were taken, we thanked them and cleaned up our equipment. By the time we’d loaded our trunks with our stuff, the sun had set, and my stomach was growling.

“Good shit, Son.”

I turned and saw my pops approaching.

“Thanks, old man. I appreciate you coming to support me. I know how much you wanted to be there for Nay.”

“I want to support both of my kids. Luckily, your mom and I were able to show each other y’all’s performances. Teamwork.”

I laughed. “Right.”

“Make sure you get home safely. Don’t do too much celebrating tonight with your friends.”

“I’ll be safe. I’m probably not going to be out too late because I don’t like going out without Ava.”

Dad hummed. “The two of you are getting serious, huh?”

“Yes. I’ve had to catch myself a couple times, man.”

“Catch yourself for what?”

“I’ve been fighting the urge to tell her I love her… She’s the one for me, and my heart and soul are ready to sing it from the mountaintops. However, my head is not on the same accord. I don’t want to say it too soon and scare her off, you know?”

“Don’t worry about any of that. You’ll know when the time is right. You’ll feel it in your heart, mind, and soul. No matter if she’s ready to say it back or not, it’s okay to be the first. Hell, most women usually know after the first date whether they love you or not. They’re just waiting for you to make the first move.”

“I hear you. I’ll probably do something really special for her the night before the season starts.”

“I know it’ll go perfectly. You got this, Son, and I’m so proud of you.”

“Thanks, Pops.”

I gave him a hug before we parted ways. I waited until he was safely in his car before I got into mine. As I got into the car, one thought stayed on my mind:Ava Starr will be my girlfriend before her season starts.

“Where are you taking me?”I asked as I looked out the window. We were headed out of the side of the city I was familiar with. We’d crossed the tracks and headed toward the countryside. Cade’s Cove was a beautiful city with a lot of different types of areas to get lost in.

“I’m positive where we’re headed is somewhere you’ve never been before.”

“I’ve done a lot of things in my life, so I’m curious to see if you’re right or not.”

“I have faith I am.”

I hummed. “We’ll see.”

It would be our second official date that Marcus has planned. Most of the time we were both too tired to go out. However,we had a couple of days to get lost in the world together before opening night. When the season started, I was sure our time together would be more limited. I dreaded it but was also excited to have the season begin. I was optimistic about our championship probability.

“If you’re a serial killer and you plan to hide me in the woods, tell me that now so I can get a head start on my escape route,” I teased as I took in the rustic scenery. There were two off road four wheelers lined up on the dirt path.

“Ava, shut up.” Marcus laughed.

“We’re going mudding?” My eyes lit up.

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