Page 32 of Fumbled Love

“Are you a republican or a democrat?” was what she led with.

I scratched the back of my head, trying to think of a way to deflect or change the direction of this conversation. She couldn’t possibly expect me to answer that, could she? It would be rude to ignore her, and I was reasonably confident she wouldn’t allow me to, even if I tried. Deanne could give those reporters a run for their money. Very rarely did I get tripped up on the first question.

“Uh…” I ran a hand over my mouth and then my chin, stalling for time. I wasn’t sure if I should laugh at the craziness or be scared shitless. What I did know was I needed a damn drink.

“You don’t need to answer that,” Kinley cut in, trying to end this interrogation. Thank God for small miracles. She shot her grandmother a glare, but the old lady just winked.

Deanne pushed her bowl of ice cream aside and unwrapped a piece of butterscotch candy. “I’m not going to judge. I really don’t care which way you vote.” I highly doubted that. “I just want to know what kind of household you’ll be raising my great-grandbaby in.”

Finally, Kinley’s mom interjected. “Mom, stop trying to scare the young man.” She looked at me with a mixture of embarrassment and worry. “She doesn’t mean to be so rude.”

I was certain Deanne didn’t give a crap about how she came across or what came out of her mouth.

“If he can take a tackle from a three-hundred-pound linebacker, he better be able to handle a few questions from an eighty-year-old grandma.”

“Wait.” My head snapped to the side. “Do you watch football?”

She sat up straighter in the chair. “Every Sunday, Monday, and Thursday night.” Well, shit. I ran a hand through my hair. She must have seen the excited look on my face, because she leaned forward and patted my knee. “I’m a Tampa Bay fan. Think you can get me some one-on-one time with Brady?”

“You want to meet Brady?” I asked for clarification. Brady was a rival and a damn good friend. We hung out a few times during the off-season. I’d call his ass up right now if it got me in this woman’s good graces.

She stared at me as if I was slow to catch on. “Just because I’m old don’t mean I’m blind. He looks mighty fine in that uniform they make you boys wear.”

I threw my head back in laughter and glanced at Kinley, who looked like she was ready to crawl into the floor and hide. “I guess the whole tight pants thing runs in the family,” I teased with a wink.

“All right.” Kinley stood. “Maverick has to get going.” She moved toward the front door like she was trying to do whatever she could to get me out of this conversation. “I’m going to walk him out to his truck.”

“I bet you are.” Her grandmother smirked and leaned back in her chair.

After saying a quick goodbye, and a promise to introduce Deanne to a few football players, I followed Kinley outside.

As soon as I closed the door, my chest shook with laughter. “Your grandmother is very…interesting.”

“I love her to death, but she drives me crazy,” she muttered.

“Hey.” I pulled her in by the waist. “Don’t be embarrassed. She’s got a great sense of humor and seems young at heart.” Wisps of her hair blew in the breeze, so I tucked a strand behind her ear. “I hope we’re all like her when we get older.”

She grabbed on to my wrist and stared into my eyes. “Thank you for being such a good sport.”

I eyed her carefully, wishing I could mold my lips against hers and finish where we had left off. But something told me to slow down and not get carried away. Rushing into this wasn’t going to get me what I wanted. But what I wanted and needed were two different things, and I needed her to know that I planned on exploring these feelings. We could take our time and get to know each other in all the ways that mattered.

I pressed a gentle kiss to her temple. “I’ll call you later. Get some rest.”

And with that, I walked back to my truck and forced myself to drive away. The hardest moments in life were sometimes waiting for the right moment, like knowing the exact second to release a pass so the receiver was in their spot to catch it. I waited during those moments, knowing that a herd of men twice my size were rushing toward me. I’d trained my mind to focus and knew when I needed to be quick or slow down. Those traits have served me well and would come in handy as Kinley and I navigate this unexpected path.

And I knew I could wait as long as it took to make her mine.

CHAPTER13

KINLEY

“You’re nervous?”Maverick squeezed my hand as we walked up the steps to his childhood home.

“I don’t feel prepared. I’m not ready,” I whispered, even though we were the only ones within hearing distance. “I feel like I’m going to throw up.”

“My family loves you. Besides, it’s not like you’ve never met them before.”

“I’m still worried about how they’ll react.”

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