Page 42 of The Rookie

I shake my head, not at all surprised. She is a born entrepreneur, with such great ideas and management skills. Any firm would be lucky to have her.

You’d be lucky to have her.

“I would love to see your pieces,” Jules says.

“Yeah?”

“For sure. Would you be willing to sell a few? I’ve been trying to figure out what to bring back for my sisters and my girlfriends.” A smile lights up her face. “Oh, Charlie, you would love all the wives of the players,” Jules says, like she read my earlier thoughts and is going one step further with them. “Did you know Cole Callaghan’s wife Nina is a New York times bestselling author? Maybe we can hit up a bookstore if we get into the city again. And Zander’s wife Sam is a speech pathologist.” She flops her hand out toward Rider. “Of course, you have to meet Kane, Rider’s brother, and we’ve been trying to get him and my closest friend Lindsay to tie the knot forever.” She rolls her eyes like it’s been a huge chore. “Oh, Jonah’s wife Quinn runs her own daycare in Boston, but the guys all have cottages at Watauga Beach. You’ll love her. And—”

“Slow down, love,” Rider says, giving her a loving hug. “She’s not going to remember all those names.”

Jules nods. “You’re right. Anyway, I’ll introduce you when you come to Seattle. Everyone is going to love you.” She turns an eye to me. “We’ve been trying to talk Wes into getting a place on the beach, but we haven’t been able to get him to bite yet. I heard from Fallon, that’s Jamie’s wife, that a new place went on the market.” She points at me. “You’d better grab it before it sells.”

“They’re overtaking the entire lake. I think it could be a cult.” I wink at Charlie. “Resistance is futile.”

It doesn’t pull a laugh from Charlie like I hoped, because yes, I like when she’s happy. Instead, she sits there and blinks at all the information coming at her. “I probably won’t be going to Seattle anytime soon.”

“Oh well you never know,” Jules says with a wave, like she doesn’t believe that. “But you’re invited to come stay with us anytime you’d like. Isn’t that right, Rider?” She doesn’t give Rider a chance to answer. “Or you could stay with baby Rookie.” She grins at me. “He has a big place with lots of spare rooms. No matter where you decide to stay, I’d love to show you around my state.” She holds a finger out and adds more as she starts listing off all the fun things to do in Seattle. “At Pike’s market, there’s this gum wall.”

Charlie makes the same face Jules and Rider made when we told them about the beaver tails. “A gum wall?”

“Yeah, a gazillion pieces of gum stuck to it. I even put a glob there.”

“That sounds…disgusting. Wait, how can you say Canadians are weird, when you have a gum wall?”

We all laugh, and I finish cooking the eggs and divvy them up. I finally sit to join in on the breakfast and Charlie pours me a big cup of coffee from the Thermos. I toss her a thankful smile, as I picture her touring Seattle. The four of us going out to dinner, and showing her all the places I think she’ll love. Like I said, we haven’t known each other long, but I’ve got a pretty good idea on what she’d like to see.

I toss a slice of bacon into my mouth and moan. “I don’t think it’s the cook, I think it’s the bacon that tastes good,” I point out.

Charlie looks pleased with herself. “I get it from a local butcher.”

“Is this Canadian bacon?” Rider asks.

“In Canada, we just call it bacon,” Charlie and I say at the exact same time, and then we laugh. I turn to her and we share a secret smile. I definitely think we’re more alike than we realize and maybe she does see the farmer beneath the jersey, and maybe, just maybe, she likes that guy. I know I like the girl who wears rubber boots and overalls. A lot. Too much, probably.

“I don’t know what it is about this place that makes me so hungry,” Jules says as she forks egg into her mouth. She moans with pleasure as she chews and lifts her face to the breeze washing over us.

“Fresh ocean air,” Charlie explains. “And wait until after our hike. You’ll be ravenous.”

“It’s a good thing I’m only here for a week, otherwise I’d be the size of a whale. Then I’d be the one you’d be taking pictures of from the side of the boat.”

Rider kisses her forehead. “You’re beautiful no matter what.”

“I’m a sure thing, babe,” she says, playfully and nudges him. “No need to sweet talk me. Leave the sweet talking to Brody.”

Charlie’s eyes go wide. “Brody Tucker?”

“You know him?” I ask quickly, my voice suddenly deeper, possessive, thick with jealousy. Shit.

“I don’t know him personally, but I do love him. He’s my favorite defensive player. He made some great plays last season.”

Jules grins at her. “He’s single. If you come to Seattle, I can introduce the two of you.”

My gut squeezes. If Jules is trying to lure the green-eyed monster lurking in the depths of my gut to the surface, she’s succeeding. I chew my food harder, trying to dispel the image of Charlie with Brody, or any other guy for that matter. Fuck, I don’t like that one little bit. But Christ, she’s not mine. She can slide between the sheets with any guy she likes, and Brody isn’t a bad guy. He’s actually a great guy, and they’d probably have a great life together.

Fuck that, shit.

“You okay, Wes?” Jules asks, her voice light and easy, but it’s the knowing grin on her face that gives her away. She’s pushing my buttons because she thinks Charlie and I make a cute couple. I glare at her. I love Jules, I really do but Charlie and I can’t have a future. Her life is here, soon to be in Toronto, and she told me this was just a fantasy weekend.

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