Page 76 of Walkoff Wedding

Also a slut for treats.

You and me both, big guy. As long as they come in the form of my wife.

“Addie? You here?” I call out, making my way out of the foyer and down the hall toward the kitchen. But when I poke my head inside, she’s nowhere to be seen.

“In here!” Her voice comes from the bedroom, so I head there. I find her sitting in front of the window, the warm rays of the sun setting along her skin as she sits in front of her easel. She’s wearing a big T-shirt that I think used to be white but is now stained with a hundred different shades of paint. Her hair is piled messily on the top of her head, and her lips are set in a firm line as she drags the brush along the canvas.

There’s a spot of paint on the tip of her nose, and her fingers are stained with color.

Like every time I see her, my heart thumps erratically in my chest. I’ll never get over how beautiful she is. No matter how long this arrangement lasts, I’ll still want more time.

The thought of having to walk away from her makes an ache form in my erratic, thrashing heart. But that’s not something I even want to think about right now, regardless of if it’s inevitable for our future.

I’ve been so focused on her that I didn’t even see what it is she’s painting. My eyes scan the large canvas and the art that’s taking shape.

“Hi, beautiful,” I murmur as I walk over and press a quick kiss to her head before flopping onto the edge of the mattress. “How long have you been working on this?”

“For a while,” she admits, giving me a radiant smile that lights up her heart-shaped face. “I couldn’t focus any longer, so I came home after class and started on it. You told me you wanted something for the apartment, so I took a break from my thesis project to work on it.”

“I love it already. Whatever it is.”

There’s not enough on the canvas to really make it out, but I have no doubt that if Addie’s creating it, it’ll be a damn masterpiece. She’s naturally talented, and everything she creates blows my mind.

She nods, dragging her attention back to the canvas. We sit that way for a while, me watching her make small, calculated strokes of her brush, her working in silence. Every few minutes, she cocks her head, those blue eyes scanning the canvas as if she’s searching for the perfect place for the next stroke.

My phone rings in my pocket, and when I pull it out, I see my agent’s name on the screen.

I answer it with a quick swipe of my finger. “Hello?”

“Hey. I just heard from Aaron, and you’ve got the sponsorship.”

What? Holy fuck.

I fly off the bed, turning to pace the bedroom.

“I got it? For sure?” I ask.

Jeremy chuckles. “Yep. I just got the call. They said they’ll be sending over an email soon with additional information as far as getting you out there for an onboarding meeting, as well as some shoot dates. They did mention they’d love to include your new wife if that’s something you’d be comfortable with. Turns out they really liked the happily married thing even more than I thought they would.”

My eyes flick to Addie, who’s abandoned the paintbrush and is staring at me with wide eyes.

“I can talk to her and let you know.”

She stands from the stool and walks over, stopping in front of me. I reach out and loop my arm over her shoulders, hauling her against me.

Fuck, I can’t believe it actually worked. I got the fucking sponsorship. This kinda money, attention… It’s going to change our lives. Not just mine.

Ours.

“Yep, that sounds good,” Jeremy replies. “They also mentioned a gala in New Orleans coming up and asked if you could attend. Smile for a few cameras, meet some of their board members. I think it’s a good opportunity for you to rub elbows with a bunch of influential people. Couldn’t hurt.”

Thank fuck it’s the offseason, or there’d be no way I’d have time for all this.

Nodding, I say, “Yeah. I think I can do that. I’m going to run things by my wife, and I’ll give you a call first thing in the morning.”

“Cool. Shoot me a message if you need anything in the meantime. Congratulations, Grant. You turned it around and made this happen. Go celebrate with your wife, but don’t get in trouble.”

I laugh. “You got it. Later.”

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