Page 40 of The Long Game

Not even the dozens of pictures I’d browsed.

Accidentally.

Sort of.

Turned out, Cameron was on the reserved side of the spectrum where players were concerned. No major ad campaigns, barely any interviews, and hardly a picture of him with anything that wasn’t the full uniform, training gear, or a suit. There wasn’t a single picture of Cameron shirtless—which I hadn’t been looking for—that could have prepared me for that pec outline I was seeing right now.

With a shake of my head, I faced forward, spotting María in the distance as she walked in the direction of the group that had gathered for GOGHH. She was carrying a goat in her arms. One that wasn’t as young as the ones currently bouncing and swirling around the mats and definitely too big for María’s arms. Her eyes found me, and she tried to wave a hand at me, only managing to drop the goat to the ground.

I heard—and made the effort to ignore—Cameron’s grunt from my side. Exactly where sneaky Josie, who happened to moonlight as yoga instructor in addition to café owner and mayor, had placed him.This is what we always do at GOGHH, she’d said with a twitching eye.I personally assign all the spots. She’d been full of it.

“Hi, Miss Adalyn!” María squealed, suddenly by my side. “Miss Josie doesn’t let me participate in adult activities, not even when they’re right here on my farm, but I wanted to introduce you to Brandy.”

The goat at María’s feet bleated.

Oh. “Brandy,” I said. “The six-month-old goat who is blind and suffers from anxiety.”

“That’s her!” she confirmed. “I knew you’d remember her. Do you want to pet her?”

“I…” Really didn’t. “Sure. Maybe in a little while. Yoga should be about to start.”

“Oh wait, you know what? I can leave her here with you, you can do yoga together. And after you’re done, I’ll be back so we can hang out.” I watched her eyes shift to a spot to my right. Her expression changed. “Hi, Coach Camelback, I’d also invite you to hang but you don’t pass the vibe check. You could hang out with my brother, Tony, though, he’s not cool.”

I had to press my lips to suppress a snort.

“Thanks, María,” Cam drawled.

“María?” Josie said from the front of the group. “I love you, honey, but you know the rules and GOGHH is about to start. So…”

“Sorry, Miss Josie!” María turned around, all that messy dark hair bouncing with the motion. “See you later, Miss Adalyn,” she said over her shoulder. “Take care of Brandy for me! Oh, and don’tmake super sudden noises? They freak her out and she starts pooping all over the place!”

My eyes widened at that last piece of information.

The goat bleated in what I interpreted as confirmation.

I looked down, finding her slit-shaped eyes directed at me. “That’s, um, okay. Brandy.” She took a step my way, and I forced myself to smile at her in case she could sense my energy. I softened my voice. “We will be fine. No freaking out, okay?”

A snort came from my right. And when I glanced in the direction of the sound I found Cameron—and his stupid skintight thermal—with his eyebrows up. My smile fell.

“So that really is your smile,” he said, shifting his gaze forward. He lifted his arms, stretching the length of his body and bringing my attention to new muscles that were being delineated by the fabric of his shirt. I swallowed. “Yeah, no wonder.”

Making an effort to rip my eyes off his chest, I settled them on his… left ear. “No wonder what? There’s nothing wrong with my smile.” I returned my attention to Josie, who was leading the group through a stretch. “I was smiling for Brandy, not you. And she liked it just fine.”

“Isn’t Brandy blind?” he asked.

My cheeks flushed. But I lifted my arms in the air, drawing an arch in the air, just like Josie was doing. I was going to ignore Cameron and be my best-behaved self. Civil. Calm. A through-and-through GOGHH lover. I’d never done yoga, but how hard could it be?

“All right, guys,” Josie’s calming and commanding voice sneaked into my ears from her post at the front of the group. “I want you to inhale…” She trailed off, taking in a loud and noisy breath through her nose as she lifted her arms up in a graceful motion. “And now… exhale.” She released both arms with her breath, letting them draw a perfect semicircle in the air as they fell. “And we fold forward.”

I gaped as everyone followed along, heads and torsos disappearing from my sight. Diane and Gabriel and some of the team’s other parents were here. They all had their hands on their mats. Including Cameron.

Yes. Cameron Caldani, who was a six-foot-two mountain of lean and firm-looking muscle.

I gave it a shot and… my fingers didn’t even reach my ankles.

Okay. Maybe yoga was going to be a little hard.

Josie cleared her throat, catching my attention. She smiled, giving me an encouraging nod as she guided the group through a third repeat of the same exercise. I looked down at my legs, bending my knees a few times, as if doubting the flexibility of the leggings. I lowered myself, arching my back again. But… it didn’t feel right. Muscles pulled in the wrong places. Like… my ears. Or my butt.

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