Page 57 of Falling Stars

I take in the way Mav’s t-shirt stretches across his broad shoulders as he holds my baby. I take in his messy hair and handsome face. And the hopeful look in his expression.

I can’t bring myself to turn him down. “I’m always game for some hot firemen.”

He chuckles as I sit on the other side of the couch. While he’s searching for the show, he turns to me. “Thanks for the ass-kicking. You’re right. I owe it to myself to go after what I want.”

We stare at each other, and for a moment, we’re those dumb kids in high school. A swell of emotion rises in my chest, and I blink back the sting in my eyes. “You deserve all the good things, Mav. Don’t let your injuries derail you.”

He nods. “You’re right. Life is too short. I can do this.”

Hearing him say he’s going to fight to return to the NFL is bittersweet because I know how far that will take him from Wild Heart.

And that means he and I will never happen.

20

MAVERICK

Searingpain runs down my arm, and I jerk awake. “Fuck.”

“What’s wrong?” Baylee’s sleepy voice calls out from the other side of the bed.

“Sorry I woke you.” I groan and rub my shoulder. “Go back to sleep.”

It’s dark out, and she has to get up in a few hours. She was just up a little while ago feeding Leo. I try to roll over, but my whole shoulder pulses with pain. This is what I get for not icing it.

Baylee rises up over me. “What hurts?” Her hair is a wild tangle over her shoulders.

“Everything. From my neck down my back and arm. I’m okay. I just… I just need a minute.”

“We never tried that CBD. Let me go grab it. I looked it up, and it’s THC-free, so you won’t flag a drug test.”

“I’m open to anything at this point. Over-the-counter painkillers don’t usually put a dent in this, and I don’t want to rely on the stronger stuff.”

She hops off the bed and returns to my side with a small bottle in her hand. “Can you sit up and take off your shirt?Otherwise, we’re going to get oil everywhere.”

It takes everything in me to get upright, and then I can’t really lift my right arm. “Who am I kidding? There’s no way I’m playing football if I can’t catch the damn ball.”

“Here, let me help.” She has to undress me like I’m a fucking child. Her eyes meet mine. “Maybe I should get some ice? It’ll help the inflammation.”

This is why I dragged my sad ass back to Wild Heart. Because I felt helpless in New York with roommates who were never home in a city where I didn’t know anyone.

My throat closes as I stare at my best friend, who’s barely slept all night. Yet here she is, running around, doing shit to help me. I don’t know what I did to deserve this woman in my life, but I never want to lose her. “Thanks, Bay. If you don’t mind.” It’s been torture sleeping so close to her but not being able to touch her. My penance for being a dickhead, I suppose.

She returns a minute later with the plastic bag the Thai food came in, filled with ice cubes. “Where are your ice wraps?”

“In my freezer in New York.” She raises a judgmental brow, and I chuckle, then groan because the movement hurts. “I promise I’ll take better care of myself, Doctor.”

“Where does it hurt?” she asks, her voice husky and low.

I almost let out another groan because everything about Baylee turns me on these days, even now when I’m in pain, but I somehow manage to rein that in and focus. “My whole right side, but I’m guessing it’s from pinched nerves in my neck.”

She wraps the ice pack with my t-shirt. “Sorry, but you don’t have any kitchen towels. Here.” She gingerly places it on my neck. “Can you hold it?”

Not with my right arm, so I try with my left. “I won’t be able to do this for very long. Let me lie down and turn on my side. Can you brace the ice with a pillow?”

“Sure.”

She helps me recline and roll over and then tucks it to the back of my neck, using a throw pillow to keep it in place. Coming around the other side of the bed, she slides under the covers. Facing me, she scoots closer and tucks her arm under her head. “Let me know when you’re done, and I’ll rub in some CBD.”

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