Page 125 of Well Played

They walked down the porch steps arm in arm, and then the guy turned back. “Hey, if you’re a football fan, there’s a pretty famous quarterback inside.” The woman smiled and pulled on her T-shirt. “He was very nice. I got him to sign my shirt.”

My first thought wasOh God, Tanner is here. But then I realized the couple was in their early twenties. They would have been teenagers when Tanner played hisoneseason.I couldn’t imagine they would know him, or if they did, consider him famous. So I leaned forward on the swing to see the woman’s shirt. The signature was pretty much scribble, but the first letter looked a hell of a lot like an L, not a T.

My heart sped up. “What’s his name? The quarterback.”

“Miller.”

“Do you know his first name?”

“Levi.”

“Levi?Are you sure? Are you certain it wasn’t his brother?”

The guy smiled. “Positive. I’m a huge Broncos fan.”

My eyes widened. I’d been sitting on one of my feet, so I practically fell on my face as I leaped from the swing and ran toward the door. Ripping it open, my heart stopped when I found Levi standing on the other side.

“What—what are you doing here?”

He looked over my shoulder. Apparently we had an audience. The young couple I’d completely forgotten about already was eagerly watching us. Levi gestured down the hall.

“Can we talk in your room?”

His face was stoic, so I tried not to get overly excited that he was here. He probably knew Tanner had found out and felt obligated to come try to fix things.

I nodded. “Sure.”

I followed him away from all the prying eyes. He opened my bedroom door for me to walk in first, and then closed it behind us.

“What’s going on?” I said. “What are you doing here?”

He swallowed. “Tanner knows about us.”

“I know. He sent me a bunch of texts. How did he find out?”

Levi raked a hand through his hair. “I guess he’s suspected something was going on for a while. We got into an argument last night after I saw you, and when he called me out on it, he read it on my face. I couldn’t deny the truth, but I’m sorry it came out the way it did. I’m sure he’s been harassing you.”

“He’s on his way here.”

Levi shook his head. “No, he’s not. He went to the airport when he woke up, but apparently, the rest of the flights for today were all booked. I just spoke to my mom on my way here, after I got off the plane. He’s with her at the ceremony right now.”

“Oh my God!” I covered my mouth. “The ceremony! Why aren’t you there?”

Levi looked down. “Because I fucked up—in so many ways. I’m so sorry, Presley.”

“It’s okay. It was bound to come out. I’ll deal with Tanner.”

“It’s not just about him. I fucked up with us. I never should have let you go. I thought it was the right thing to do. But I miss you so freaking much.” His voice broke. “I love you so damn much.”

The elephant that had been sitting on my chest for the last twenty-four hours finally shifted. I was able to breathe easier.

“You…love me?”

Levi closed the distance between us and took my hand. “I have for a long time. It just felt selfish to admit it. But I’m done giving a shit about my brother or our families, because I realized that by not sharing how I felt with you, I was being selfish to the one person who mattered most: You.”

My breathing quickened.

Levi took my cheeks in his hands. “I love you, Presley. I am crazy in love with you.”

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