Page 109 of Love at Second Down

“Nothing.” She shakes her head.

“Avery.”

“Damon.”She grins, and this time, the corners of her eyes crinkle but only slightly.

“I know you. Spill. Is it me?” I ask, thinking about the night we spent together. “Are we moving too fast? Is it something I did?”

“No,” she’s quick to answer. “No, of course not.”

“But . . .?”

My heart thumps wildly in my chest when she hesitates. I hold my breath, staring at her as she fights with whatever she wants to say.

“What would happen if the truth about my father and the collapse came out and it effected your future with the NFL?”

I breathe a sigh of relief.That’s what this is about?

“Ave, that’s insane. Even if it did come out, it wouldn’t affect me in the slightest.”

“But if they know we’re dating . . .” She trails off, worrying her lip with her teeth.

I reach out, tugging at her lower lip, hating the fact that she’s worrying at my expense.

“It was your father’s company that caused it, not you. I mean, yeah, your name would probably get dragged into it to an extent, but not enough that it would have any bearing on my career.”

“But what if it did? What if there’s something we’re missing? Some detail we don’t know that would change things?”

“Like what?” I ask, trying to understand where this is coming from.

An emotion flickers through her hazel eyes that I can’t read, turning them a hazy shade of amber.

I reach up to her face, brushing my thumb across her cheek. “Honestly, if the investigation turned up nothing, I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”

Her throat bobs, and I get the sense this isn’t the only thing bothering her.

“Is this about my dad?” I ask.

Her eyes widen, pupils swallowing the brown of her irises, but when she opens her mouth, nothing comes out.

“Does this have something to do with your parents? Did something else happen?” I ask, because from my experience, where there’s fire, there’s Reginald Astor.

When she doesn’t answer right away, I huff out a laugh. “They found out you’re here and called you, didn’t they? That’s what this is about?”

Her throat bobs, her gaze wary as she says, “Maybe they did call, but it doesn’t have anything to do with?”

“Sure, it doesn’t,” I cut her off, a wave of anger and fear rising inside of me. “They found out we’re together again, and now they’re putting pressure on you to break it off.”

“Even if that’s true, I won’t let them scare me again. This isn’t about my parents.”

“Then what the hell is it about, Avery,” I snap, losing my cool as I spread my arms wide. “Because just hours ago, everything was fine.”

“It’s about your father,” she blurts.

“What about him? Who cares about the stupid contract he signed?” I shake my head. My heart is in my throat, and I’m scared to death it’s happening again. She’s pulling away from me. Retreating. And losing her a second time will be so much worse.

“The contract was a lie.”

“Imagine that. Your parents lied.” I scoff.

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