Page 73 of Sweet Temptation
Sounds good. I’m ready.
For a lot of families in the area, football is special. Our team has had a lot of great years over the past few decades, and a lot of that revolves around my family. For us, football isn’t just special. It’s a religion, and the stadium is our church. I grew up here. Going to games each weekend. Running between our suite and my girlfriends’ family’s suite. Their family owns the team, but my family... My familyisthe team.
My grandfather used to coach the team, and now my Uncle Declan is the head coach. Dillan’s dad, Uncle Brady, is the quarterback coach, and Callen, who we’ve all always refused to call Uncle Callen because he’s only nine years older than my brothers and me, is the All-Pro tight end. With my cousin Jamie at linebacker and Linc at wide receiver this year too, we’ve got a lot to cheer for.
And now I’ve got a little bit more.
When Dillan and I walk into the box, all eyes turn my way, and I know I’m going to be questioned all night, but I’ll deal with it. At least I’ll try.
But when literally everyone in the suite stops talking and stares, Dillan cracks up. “It’s not like she has on a Dallas jersey, guys.”
The Dallas team is basically likened to a four-letter word in our family.
And so the rivalry goes.
Dad shakes his head and looks away, turning back to Jamie’s dad, and my heart drops.
What the hell?
“Hey, girls.” Mom hugs us quickly. “Come on. Let’s get you some food.” She guides us over to the table and brushes my hair over my shoulder. “Ignore your father, Lexie. No man was ever going to be good enough for his baby girl, and you just showed up with another man’s name on your back. Dad might need some therapy after today.”
I take her hand in mine and tug her away from Dillan, not ready to discuss this with the world, but kind of wanting to discuss it with my mom. “Funny you should say that.”
Mom tilts her head, a little confused, and I take in as deep a breath as I can.
“I wanted to know if I could have your therapist’s information? I think I need to talk to someone about some stuff,” I admit, not sure if I’m ready to tell her more yet and not wanting to hurt her with my words.
“Of course, Lex. Should I be worried?”
“No.” I squeeze her hand, hoping to reassure her. “Not at all. I just think I need to work through some of the things you pointed out last week.” She’ll never know how hard that is to admit. Because I’ll never share how much I worry about what’s going to happen when I’m no longer here. “You were right to point some of that out, Mom. Between you and Lucky, I realized I need to work through some things. It’s a good thing.”
“Did he tell you that?”
“No. Not at all. I realized it when I figured out that my need to not hurt him was actually hurting him.” Emotion clogs my throat, and I force myself to push it down. “Please don’t make me talk about this now.”
“No. I promise.” She pulls me in for a tight hug. “I’ll send you her contact. She’s great. She’s helped me work through a ton of things over the years.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
Her hand cups my cheek, and my breath catches in my throat. “Anything for you, sweetheart.”
My lungs are never going to get better. The doctor told us just last week they’re still getting progressively worse. Not that, that was surprising... but it still wasn’t easy to hear.
I want to live.
I want to love.
I want to let people into my life without worrying aboutthe what happens whenof it all...
And if I want to do all those things, I’m going to need some help getting there.
LUCKY
We all stand in the locker room, amped and ready to go as Coach moves in front of the team. His lucky hat, tattered and sun-bleached, sits on his head, almost out of place next to the dark black Kings polo he’s donning today. But none of that matters as he looks around the room. “Last week is gone. It doesn’t matter. Winning last week doesn’t mean a damn thingtoday. For the next sixty minutes of football, you and the men next to you on that field are all that matters. One inch at a time. One play at a time. One game at a time.”
He looks around at each of us as every man in the room hangs silently on every word. The energy surrounding us is a living, breathing thing, building like a pressure cooker, threatening to explode. “You’ve got to be ready to fight for that inch. To fight for that play. You’ve got to look at the guy next to you out there and be ready to fight, side by side—claw your way down field, side by side—and be willing to leave it all out there and know you gave everything you’ve got for this game. For this team.” He waits as the team gets louder. Everyone yelling their agreement. Their excitement.
“For this family.” If you reach out, you can touch the energy now, it’s so goddamned strong. “For theseKingsall around you. And what do Kings do, gentlemen?”
