Page 6 of Love on the Line

Chapter 3

Wyatt glanced at John,sitting in the passenger seat. “What’s the cat-that-ate-the-canary grin for?”

“Nothing. I’m enjoying my DD ride. Losing sucks, not that I’d know.” John slid a hand to the top of his forehead and formed an “L” with his fingers. He let out a long sigh.

Wyatt snorted. “Wait ’til next week.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“You’re a real dick, you know?”

“Yup, and I try hard.” John closed his eyes and faked a snore.

“I’m not even going there.” Wyatt held in a laugh. Smart ass. “Why don’t you make that snore real and zone out?”

“I should. Monday morning I’m back to work.”

A pit formed in Wyatt’s stomach. His best friend put his life on the line every day as a Baltimore detective.

John waved a hand. “What was up with that chick you dumped your soda all over?”

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean.” John slid a heavy-lidded glance in Wyatt’s direction. “I haven’t seen you wimp out like that since middle school. Why did you? Women ask you out. Professional football player and all the hero-worship shit.”

Wyatt stopped for a red light. “That’s former player, and she didn’t exactly seem like a fan.”

“No. She didn’t faint at the mere sight of you.”

The light turned green, and Wyatt checked for jaywalkers before accelerating. On Saturday nights, the city streets crawled with people.

“Doesn’t matter.” John shifted in his seat. “You have plenty of other fans.”

“Maybe I’m tired of that.”

“What?” John did a double take and straightened.

“Just saying, it’s getting old. Something about Anne was…different.” Refreshing. The second he’d seen her, he’d fired to life. With gorgeous blue eyes and dimples that popped when she smiled, she’d caught his attention. Never mind the curvy body her understated T-shirt and jeans couldn’t hide. And when he’d held her elbow, she’d blushed. All his fault for spilling a drink on her, yet she’d taken it in stride.

John dragged him back to the present. “You saying your playboy days are over?”

Wyatt shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, with sports and travel I’ve kept my dates casual. Then my mother needed me.” A heaviness settled over his heart. He cleared his throat. “With her gone now, it’s just me. I’m not sure what I even want anymore.”

“I’m sorry, dude. That was some heavy shit to deal with.”

“Yeah. Not that I don’t like spending holidays with your family, but—”

“Stop right there. If you tell me your biological clock is ticking, I swear I’ll revoke your man card.” John held up a hand. “I get it. I get it.”

Wyatt waved at him. “Nah, it’s not that.”

“Good, because I think at thirty-three your swimmers still have plenty of stamina.”

“Christ, does everything go there with you? Your mind’s always in the gutter.”

“And I drag you right down with me, bro.” John settled back in the seat.

“I can’t even think about having kids. And besides, if I get that offensive coordinator job at USC, I’ll be moving to California.” Wyatt switched lanes and kept his eyes open for pedestrians. “What about you? You ever consider having a family?”

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