Page 58 of This Wild Heart

I can’t even be mad at him about that dropped pass anymore because this is a fucking win right here.

DAMN SON, you married up.

She’s so sweet. BRB sobbing.

I can’t even hate her because she’s like an actual angel.

Max Bridges is a fucking idiot. Why would you ever cheat on her??

Never, ever getting over these two.

I set my phone down and covered my face with my hands. “Vida, I’m kinda freaking out a little,” I admitted. “This is … this is bigger than I thought.”

“It’s pretty big, babe,” she agreed. “What’s freaking you out?”

The words stuck in my throat, and I forced them out simply because it was Vida, and she’d know if I was lying anyway. “I don’t know what I’m doing,” I whispered. “In the moment, it was easy, right? It always is with him. But how do I trust that any of this isn’t going to come crashing down on top of us?”

“You can’t know that, Anya.” Her tone was gentle. “There’s always that risk in a relationship.”

“This isn’t a relationship,” I answered firmly. “It’s … it’s an agreement. A temporary one.”

“Even temporary ones are relationships. You just have to talk to him.”

I ran a hand through my hair. “Yeah. I will when he wakes up.”

“Ahh. The post-sex coma. It’s a real thing.”

I rolled my eyes. “Apparently.”

“You’ll be okay,” she promised. “This will die down. Get into the season, and they’ll just be focused on the football. You and I will be hard at work. I’ll spend all your money?—”

“Oh, that’s another thing,” I interrupted. “Parker’s giving you three million dollars.” The beat of silence on the other end of the phone was heavy. My brow furrowed when she didn’t make a sound. “Vida?”

“I-I’m sorry, what did you say?” she asked faintly.

“He said it during the interview, and I think he meant it.”

“That’s more than double what you’re giving me,” she said in clear bewilderment.

“It’s like he can’t help himself from trying to be the actual perfect man. It would be so much easier if he was ugly. And mean. Maybe he’s secretly mean and he just hasn’t shown it yet.”

She snorted. “If he was mean, would he be donating three million dollars to the charity of your choice?”

“No,” I said in a glum voice.

“I thinkI’mgoing to come bang the hell out of your hot, emotionally unavailable husband.”

My eyes narrowed. “Try it. See what happens.”

She cackled in delight. “I gotta go, babe, someone else is calling in.”

“Love you,” I told her.

“Love you too. And have fun.”

The knowing tone in her voice had me rolling my eyes, but as soon as she ended the call, reality hit me like a slap across the face.

I speared my hands in my hair, elbows braced on the table, and decided to raid the candy cupboard before he woke up, and we’d have to talk.

---