Page 66 of Hometown Touchdown
“She wants to keep it quiet. Just for a while. She doesn’t want the moms or the town gossip train interfering.”
“Are you okay with that?”
I pause. “I’m not sure. But I get it. She’s just starting to feel steady again. And if this—us—is going to work, it has to be on her terms too.”
Cam nods. “You’ve always been good at protecting what you care about. Just don’t forget to look out for yourself too.”
I snort. “Getting philosophical now, huh?”
“Don’t act surprised. I contain multitudes.”
“Mostly caffeine and sarcasm.”
He grins. “True. But still.”
There’s a beat of silence, the kind that only happens with people who’ve seen you at your worst.
Then he adds, “I’ll keep it quiet. Whatever you need.”
“Thanks, man.”
“Of course. You deserve to be happy, Knoxy.”
I grab the remote and press play on the game. “Don’t ever call me that again.”
Later, while Cam’s busy in the other room pretending he’s not watching Hallmark movies on mute, I wander into the kitchen for water.
That’s when I see it.
A small, pink hairbrush half-tucked under a dish towel on the counter. Rhinestones on the handle, the kind of thing you’d findin a purse or backpack. Not Cam’s usual style, unless he’s had a serious midlife glow-up I missed.
I pick it up, look it over. He didn’t boast about a date or say anyone staying over.
So, I slide it back beneath the towel.
If he’s keeping my secret, I can keep his.
Chapter thirty-four
Brynn
Ihaven’tstoppedsmilingsinceI left Knox’s.
I mean, I’m trying to. I’m aware of how ridiculous I must look, walking down Main Street like I’m starring in a toothpaste commercial. But there’s this lightness in my chest, a hum just under my skin. My brain keeps replaying every second of last night like it’s my new favorite movie—his quiet voice in the dark, the way he held me like he didn’t want to let go, the way it felt soeasybeing next to him again.
And the best part? We didn’t even have sex.
It was just talking. Touching. Breathing the same air like we used to, but with more patience and less urgency. It felt like the kind of night you hold onto when everything else is chaos. Like the beginning of something that actually has a chance this time.
I tug the sleeves of his hoodie down over my hands as I walk, breathing in the faint scent that still lingers—something warm and clean and a little woodsy. Him. I hadn’t meant to keep it. It wasn’t planned. But when I was getting dressed this morning and saw it slung over the back of the couch, something in me wanted to hold onto it. Like wearing it made the whole night feel more real. More mine.
By the time I push through the door of Penny’s Café, I’m practically vibrating with the need to talk about it. I need to get it out of my system before I explode—because there’s only so much grinning-like-an-idiot one woman can do in public before someone starts asking if she’s having a mental break.
Kate and Kinsey are already at our usual table, tucked into the corner by the window. They’re mid-conversation, but both look up when they see me.
And then they look at the hoodie.
And then they look at me.
