Page 134 of Just Like Home

Cole met her at the front of the truck and took her hand. “Oh, everything about this is going to feel like a real game. I wanted to make sure you got the full effect.”

She stopped walking. “What do you mean?”

He looked away. “Nothing. I’m just doing what you said—adding the fun back into football.”

“Yeah, but that has nothing to do with the band. Or the lights. Or—” A group of cheerleaders warmed up on the track. “The cheerleaders.”

He shrugged. “I made a list of things you’d never done. And I’m working my way through it.”

Charlotte watched as something inexplicable passed between them. He seemed intent on making sure she experienced everything she’d missed out on. Nobody had ever cared about her with such detail before.

“I have to go get ready,” he said. “And take some preemptive Advil.”

She laughed and pulled away just as Lucy’s car stopped in a nearby parking place.

“I’ll cheer as loud as I can,” she said.

He grinned, kissed her once more, and strolled off, meeting up with a group of guys heading toward the locker room.

“Oh, Cee.” Lucy had stopped at her side. “You’ve got it bad.” She looped her arm through Charlotte’s and pulled her toward the entrance of the stadium, but not before Cole looked back at her and smiled.

“Oh, wow,” Lucy said. “He’s got it bad too.”

She looked around, doing her best to take in the sights and sounds of her first football game. The smell of popcorn filled the air, and people filled the seats. Everyone was decked out in royal blue and gold, the Harbor Pointe Hawks’ colors.

Quinn and her sister, Carly, arrived a few minutes later, followed by Haley and Betsy. The girls all sat together, watching as the teams took the field.

And Cole was right—it was fun.

The team had fun. The older guys had fun. The crowd had fun.Charlottehad fun.

The entire town seemed to be crammed in those seats, and Charlotte fit right in. She loved watching Cole show off on the field, wholly aware that he showed off for her. She loved the way he moved, the way he took off his helmet and grinned up at her when he scored a touchdown. The way he had one foot on each team, still coaching his guys even though he was technically their opponent.

And while Charlotte didn’t understand football, it didn’t matter. She understood that Cole’s plan had worked—his guys were working together and loving the game again. She understood that he’d turned this event into a really good fundraiser for a place that meant a lot to him. And she understood that here—in this place with these people—was where she belonged.

She only hoped she could find a way to make it last.

43

After making their public debut, Charlotte and Cole became an official couple. And she quickly found she liked being half of an official couple.

When they weren’t working, they were together. Renovating his bathrooms with Asher. Eating dinner at Haven House. Taking Amelia and AJ for ice cream and stealing kisses whenever they found themselves alone.

She loved kissing him most of all.

Cole continued to check things off his list, taking her to her first concert in the park, her first swim in the lake, and her first unicorn birthday party when Alaina, Julianna’s baby, turned one. That was the day Cole gave her a box overflowing with letters she’d written to Jules over the years, and that box had quite possibly become her most prized possession.

Today, the day before the recital, Charlotte arrived at the studio for her final rehearsal with the football team. She stood behind the counter as the boys began to arrive, surprised when Cole walked in in the midst of them.

She couldn’t help it—she smiled as soon as he met her eyes. Maybe she was remembering the toe-curling trail of kisses he’d placed on her neck when they were supposed to be watching a movie at his house the night before.

“I didn’t know you were coming to this,” she said.

He leaned closer. “You kidding? I don’t trust these boys with you. I need to make sure they’re behaving around my girlfriend.” He squeezed her hand.

My first boyfriend.

The boys filtered through the door. Several of them waved at her or said hello as they passed by. She knew them all by name now, and while she didn’t let on, she really liked them.

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