Page 13 of Breakaway

I nodded and agreed to send his assistant our schedule of training and games for the week so that they could prepare around it. As we paid for the pizza and gathered the leftovers, it hit me that it would be another Saturday I wouldn’t get to sleep in.

Well, puck it. Who needed sleep, anyway?

CHAPTER FIVE

Henley

With the open house on Sunday, I had to reschedule the brunch with Aggie and her husband. She’d been gracious about it, telling me to get back to her when I could.

The girls had overheard my canceled plans and demanded a mini-team reunion with Sera, the four of us not having time together yet. Scar and Susie argued Sera’s house was closer to campus and, therefore, I could leave whenever I needed to for the open house and, the real kicker… I still had to eat.

When Susie and Scar put their heads together, it was hard to say no.

Double checking I had the correct address, I pulled into the driveway of a gray, two-story sprawling house. Several windows adorned the front with white shutters and beams that accented the dark gray color.

Parking, I climbed out of my SUV and headed to the porch, a swing and several rockers gracing it. Before I’d even stepped foot into the house, I was already digging its homey vibe. Sera had made this a home, and I was mad at myself that it’d taken me this long to make it out here.

Ringing the doorbell, I peered around at the landscape with the mountains in the background. It was the kind of house I hoped to have one day. The door opened, Sera’s smiling face greeting me.

“Hen! You’re here!” She pulled me into a hug, rocking back and forth.

“Thanks for the invite. Your home is beautiful.”

She released me and towed me into the foyer, which was even more breathtaking than the outside.

A giant light fixture hung in the entryway that was so pretty it resembled art more than a light. Stairs jutted off to the left, with a walkway up above. An image of Christmas garlands wrapping up the stairs and a banister with stockings hanging down flashed in my mind. Except it wasn’t Sera’s family’s names on them—but mine.

Shaking my head, I followed her through the house as she pointed out various rooms, all more beautiful than the last. Soothing colors mixed with perfect decor to create a warm and inviting environment. Despite my mind being overloaded with more information than I’d ever need to know about wainscoting and tempered glass, I absolutely loved the place and never wanted to leave.

“Can I move in?” I joked.

Sera laughed, slapping my arm like I was playing. She directed me out to the patio, where a table filled with food sat with an umbrella over it. A gorgeous pool with a grotto and waterfall sat in the background, the sound of the trickling water soothing. The mountains made the perfect backdrop to the peaceful morning.

Scar and Susie were already laughing as Sean poured them coffee. The scene was domesticated in a way I’d never dreamed about before, but as I watched my friends, I knew it was something I wanted for my future with my guys—inviting our friends over for brunch, our home full of love and laughter.

“There’s the woman of the hour!” Scar teased. Sean looked up, a smile for me before he turned to his fianceé, and his whole face changed. There was no question he was a man in love. I’d seen it the first time I’d met them, and it only seemed to grow each time I was around the two.

“Good morning, Coach. How’re the new recruits looking?” He filled a coffee mug and sat it before an empty plate for me. Bless the man.

“You’re a star,” I said, picking up the coffee and taking a drink before I answered. “Mm…hopeful.” I tilted my hand back and forth in the air. “Susie and Reed picked their top ten, and I’m meeting with them in a few hours for an interview.”

“Wonderful to hear. Braden’s having the best year—both in playing and enjoying the game again. I don’t think he would’ve continued after high school if you hadn’t shown him what the sport could be like. Now he’s talking about colleges and pro teams. It’s been great,” Sean admitted.

“Wow. I’d never know that from his playing. He’s always so focused.”

“That’s his father’s perseverance in him,” Sera added. “He would’ve seen it through even if he hadn’t enjoyed it because that’s the Rivera way.” She kissed her husband on the cheek before shuffling him off.

“Yell if you need anything,” he said, chuckling at Sera as he waved at the table.

“He’s such a catch, Sera. If I didn’t have my own dick trifecta, I might be jealous,” Scarlet teased.

“Speaking of,” Sera cut in, not even phased by Scar’s comment as she wiggled her eyebrows dramatically. “How is your little harem going?”

“I wouldn’t say they’re little,” Scar replied as she sipped her coffee, smirking.

“Ew, stop. Cody’s become a friend, and I respect Keaton a lot. I don’t want to think about their dicks.” I grimaced as I shook my head to rid the images.

The girls laughed at my displeasure; the conversation moving to safer topics like Sera’s wedding while we filled ourselves full of delicious food.

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