Page 66 of Away Game

We both laughed, knowing I wasn’t romantic. I mean, I had my moments, but it seemed to come naturally to West, and his actions always put me to shame. He set up candlelit dinners and surprised me with weekends away when he got the chance.

Shit, now I felt horrible for not trying harder and showing him how much he meant to me.

“Would you say yes if he asked you?” Easton leaned in, asking with a strange smile on his face.

“If your brother asked, I… yes, I guess.” I did plan to spend my life with him, so why wouldn’t I.

Easton only shrugged and went back to watching the game before he yelled. “He’s going to do it.”

Turning back to the game, I couldn’t believe I let them distract me from the game and fill my head with fantasy.

West was running down the field, and just like his brother, I knew deep in my bones; he was going to make another touchdown. He’d be the MVP of the game, and if he kept this up, he’d be the MVP of the Super Bowl they were now slated to play in.

“Fucking hell, man, he’s fast. There’s no way they can catch him,” Ford yelled as the crowd around us jumped up and down. There was nothing I loved more about the game than feeding off the energy of the surrounding people in the stands.

As I watched my man spike the ball and his teammates run into the end zone to congratulate him, I wished I could have been down there with him like I had been in college.

“That was unfuckingbelievable,” Oz shouted over the roar of the crowd.

The smile I had on my face was big enough to split it in two. I thought for sure when West was drafted to play for the Steelers, he’d be lucky to see the playoffs his first year, but damn if he didn’t make everything better by being part of the team.

“You give that motherfucker a big kiss for me,” Oz slapped me on the back with a wide grin of his own. “Now what?”

“We go to the family waiting area. West will meet us there when he’s done. I have a feeling it will be a while after the way he played today and all the interviews they’ll want him to do, so we might as well get a beer while we wait.”

“I like the way you think,” Ford chimed in. “And I need to get out of this cold. If we stay out here any longer, my balls are going to shrivel up and fall off. How the hell do you live here?”

I pulled at the collar of my parka. “I bought the thickest and most expensive parka I could find, invested in some long underwear, and enough of those little handheld heaters to last me a lifetime.”

I wasn’t going to lie. Once the game was over, the cold started to seep in. My blood was thin after living in California all my life. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever get used to the cold. By the time we got used to the winter there, West would likely be playing for another team.

“Well, my hand warmers feel like they’re starting to die, so let’s go inside with all the smart people and get warm.” Ford didn’t even wait for us to respond. He started moving like he knew where to go, which he did since he tried to come to every game he could, even though he still lived in California with his woman.

I stayed in the rear, soaking up the ambiance as Ford guided the group to the waiting area. Almost an hour later, West stepped into the room wearing a suit that made him look like the ten million dollars the Steelers signed him for, and the biggest smile on his face. I thought he’d greet our guests since I was on the other side of the room, but West headed straight for me with long strides, and with each step, his smile grew. I’d never seen him happier.

Taking my face in his calloused hands, West swept in and kissed me breathless.

“I can’t wait to celebrate with you tonight,” he said against the shell of my ear once we broke apart.

“Imagine the celebration we’ll have when you win the Super Bowl,” I answered back in our own little bubble.

West’s green eyes glittered back at me with happiness. “I feel like I’m living in a dream.”

“I’m so fucking proud of you,” I kissed him back, showing West how amazing I thought he was.

Over his shoulder, I noticed the other people in the room who were waiting for their players, looking at us wide-eyed, but I didn’t care. While they all knew we were together, they were not used to PDA from us. We hugged and held hands occasionally, but that was it when we were at the stadium.

“Holy fuck, I wish I had someone who was that happy to see me,” Ridley remarked.

Breaking apart, West turned to look over his shoulder at our friends. “If you’d like, I can give you a similar greeting.”

“No thanks, but if you can find me a girl to do that, I’m game.”

Ford rolled his eyes at Ridley. “We’ve been trying to find you a girl for the past four years. What makes you think we’re going to have better luck now?”

West moved to hug our friends and let them congratulate and joke with him. “Let’s get out of here. We’ve got dinner reservations to make, and I’m starved.”

We all piled out of the waiting room and down the tunnel that led to the parking garage. I threw my keys to Oz so he could drive my car and I could ride with West.

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