Page 13 of Hello Quarterback

“Well... I’m on my way to Ford Madigan’s house for a date!”

“WHAT?” she cried. I heard her mutter something, probably to Gage, and then I heard a door open and close, and then it got quiet. She must have locked herself in her bedroom. “Tell meeverything.”

Fiddling with the hem of my dress, I filled her in on all the drama with stupid Thomas and then the awkward date with Hayden and how Ford had passed me that note at the café.

“Oh my gosh, he totally likes you,” she said, excitement in her voice. “Especially since he was telling everyone at the Cottonwood Falls Fourth of July barbecue that he wasn’t interested in dating. Must have just been waiting for the right woman.”

My lips curled to a smile despite myself. “I haven’t felt this excited about a guy since Ryan Pendleton asked me to prom.”

Farrah laughed. “Ford has way more hair than Ryan Pendleton.”

“Yeah, now. But back then, Ryan had thebesthair.” I giggled at the walk down memory lane. I almost hadn’t recognized Ryan at our fifteen-year high school reunion when he came in with his wife of ten years, saying they already had four children and a fifth on the way. We were leading completely different lives now.

“What are you wearing?” Farrah asked.

“Let me send you a pic.” I held the phone in front of me to text her a picture the stylist had taken for me before bringing the phone back to my ear. Out the window, I could see the suburbs giving way to more impressive houses spread out against the countryside.

“Gorgeous,” Farrah said. “He won’t be able to keep his hands off you.”

“No sex on the first date,” I replied. I was raised by older-than-average parents who told me all the old-fashioned rules of life—this was one of the few that had stuck.

“Even if the first date’s at his house?” Farrah said, skeptical.

I bit my lip. Would I really be able to resist Ford if he wanted to hook up? I wasn’t so sure. “It has been a while...”

“Maybe the dry spell ends tonight,” she said.

From the front seat, Zeke said, “This is his driveway.” I looked in the mirror, almost blushing. He heard probably more than he wanted to, driving me around all the time.

“Thanks,” I told him, then I said to Farrah, “I’m almost there. Wish me luck.”

“You don’t need luck with tits like those.”

I cackled. “Love you, bye.”

“Bye,” she said, a smile in her voice.

The car slowed in front of Ford’s place, and Zeke got out to hold the door open for me. “Need me to wait?” I could see a hint of concern in his eyes.

I bit my lip, looking to the front door of Ford’s modern house set in the private countryside outside of Dallas. “I’ll be okay,” I said to both of us. “You can go.”

8

FORD

I finished rollingmy shirt sleeves as I walked toward the front door. The security system had alerted me to a car coming down the driveway, and I wanted to be there for Mia when she arrived.

I looked through the mirrored front window, and my jaw nearly hit the floor. The path to the house was her runway as she walked to the door in a flowy dress the color of a pale Texas sky. It wrapped around her like the wind, her hair brushing over her shoulders, drawing more attention to her cleavage on display.

She was nearly at the door when I remembered to swing it open. Her looks may have caught me off kilter, but damn, her perfume had my mind spinning circles like the blades of a windmill. Soft, sweet, expensive, classy—like the woman in front of me, looking up at me with the prettiest blue eyes.

Fuck, maybe this really was a bad idea.

“Hi, Ford,” she said sweetly, not looking away. She wasn’t shy—I liked that about her.

“Mia.” I stepped back, swallowing hard, and let her walk through. My eyes drifted, admiring the way her hips swayed under the light blue fabric. Fuck. That image would be running through my mind all night.

I gave myself a quick shake of the head and closed the door after her. “I’ll hang up your bag,” I offered.

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