Page 62 of The Closed Off Captain

He takes a bite and frowns. Then he spits it out into a napkin. “That’s disgusting; you need to get your tastebuds checked.”

I laugh; I can’t help it. “Well, when you can’t have the real stuff, it’s a pretty good substitute. I like it.” I turn to Gunner. “Want to try it? You know you want to.”

He grimaces. “I’m good; you enjoy it.”

I laugh because yeah, it’s good; but only if you have to eat it that way. I take another bite. “What time is your game tonight, Grey?”

He grins. “Seven.”

I glance at my phone. “I’ve gotta go join this meeting. I’ll see you guys in a little while.” I take the last bite of my bagel and throw my trash away and grab my coffee. “Is it okay if I take it in the bedroom?” I ask Gunner.

“Yeah, go ahead.”

My phone rings, and I answer it and wave bye to the guys. “Good morning.”

“What do you have?” Stan asks. I resist the urge to sigh. That’s Stan—always right down to business. Honestly, he’s intense and at times difficult to work with; but he loves this team almost as much as I do, and I know he’s trying to do what’s best for the team.

The call takes longer than I anticipated, but it’s good because I don’t get to talk to him for an extended amount of time very often. This was a good chance to get caught up on everything happening in the next few months. When I come back out to the kitchen, the boys are nowhere in sight. The front door opens, and I turn around. Mrs. Coftman gives me a big smile. “Hi, Chloe.”

I can’t help but return her warm smile; Mrs. Coftman has always been a favorite of mine. She’s always so friendly and easy to please at family and friends’ events. “Hey, Mrs. Coftman.”

“Come now. None of that Mrs. Coftman stuff.” She pulls me into a hug. “It’s good to see you, Dear.” Her eyes scan my face, and her eyebrows knit together. Her frown reminds me so much of Gunner’s scowl that it makes me smile.

“I’m fine,” I say, trying to push aside her concern.

“What happened? I wanted to ask last night but didn’t want to upset you.”

I debate a moment, trying to determine how much to tell her. I decide to keep it vague and let Gunner decide what he wants to say about it. I don’t want to cause any problems between her and Jenny’s mom and ruin their friendship. “Nothing to worry about,” I assure her. “How was Mahjong?” I ask, trying to change the subject. It works.

“Wonderful. Do you play?”

“No, but I want to learn.”

Her eyes light up. “Say no more. I will teach you.”

I nearly laugh at her enthusiasm. “We don’t have to right now.”

“But of course we do. I can’t let my future daughter-in-law down.” She eyes me as she says the words. And suddenly, I don’t feel like Mama Coftman is going to be as easy to fool as we think she is.

“Listen, Mrs. Coftman, about Gunner and I—"

“Hey, Mom,” Gunner says from right behind me. I feel a hand on my lower back. “Hey, Gorgeous, how’d the call go?”

It takes me probably a second too long to respond. “I made an official statement from the team and took care of what else I needed. Everything that can be done for now on my end has been taken care of. Eventually, Stan will realize that, and then he’ll chill.”

Gunner chuckles. “I don’t think the man is capable of chilling.”

“Yeah, probably not.” I’m surprised I’m capable of sounding normal when he’s no longer just touching my back. Now he’s moved to running his hand up and down my spine.

“He should trust you by now; you’re amazing at your job.” I look up at him in surprise. “You’ve taken our franchise and totally turned it around in the last four years.”

“Yeah, you guys have had nothing to do with it,” I say dryly.

He smiles. “You’re really good at your job, Chloe. So much better than the guy before you.”

His praise really means a lot, because Gunner is a man of few words and not super expressive. Actually, I don’t think the man has an expressive bone in his body. “Thanks.”

“Did you eat?” Gunner asks as his mom drops her bag and heads into the kitchen.

---