Page 98 of Hidden Plays
I stared at my phone. Damn, the deal with the Cardinalshadto go through now. It was everything.
“JJ? Are you still there?” Holden asked.
“Yes, babe. I’m still here.” Squeezing my eyes shut for a beat, my heart pounded against my breastbone. “I’m so proud of you, Holden. You’ll make it to the NFL even if you can’t play.” God, I wished I was there with them. But I’d return tomorrow.
“Thanks, babe,” Holden said.
“That’s my baby brother, the star trainer for ASU.” Noel barked out a laugh.
“At least you stopped calling me Golden Boy.” Holden huffed. “Anyway, JJ, I can’t wait for you to fly home.”
“I can’t wait to be home. I love you.” I dropped onto the end of the bed. I should let him get back to his brother. They had so much time to make up for.
“Love you too,” he said. “Bye.”
“Bye.” I ended the call, pressing my phone against my chest. Draft day couldn’t come soon enough.
The day was herewhen I’d find out if the Cardinals would pick me and if the good luck streak my life had turned into would continue. We’d gathered the guys at the house to watch. I was the first one to go, besides Cooper, but Cooper was having a watch party with his boyfriend at the hockey house. He was waiting for Seattle. They were lower in the pick though.
To say my nerves were on edge was an understatement. Even though I was a shoo-in for the new Cardinals offensive line, last-minute surprises were commonplace. I stood in front of the open refrigerator, perusing the contents. If I took the champagne bottle out early, I’d jinx myself. But fuck, I needed something, and all we had was wine otherwise. But I still wasn’t sure about drinking in front of Noel.
Noel stepped beside me. “What are you looking for?” He grabbed a Gatorade from inside and twisted it open.
“I think a glass of wine?” I glanced at him. No beer or hard liquor existed in the house. They had been Noel’s drinks of choice, and we didn’t want to trigger him. For whatever reason, the dude hated wine.
“Go for it, man. You deserve this.” Slapping me on the shoulder, he sipped his Gatorade.
“Oh, what the hell.” I slipped the bottle of chardonnay out of the refrigerator and set it on the counter.
“Youarepouring me one of those bad boys.” Malik, sitting on one end of the sectional, loosely crossed his legs, his arm sprawled on the back of the couch behind Tex.
“Me too. If you’re drinking, we’re all drinking.” Tex chortled and bumped his shoulder into Malik’s.
Holden gave me a look. “Did?—”
“Yes, dear brother, I can handle it.” Noel strolled to Holden, sitting dead center on the sectional, and squeezed his shoulder. “Isn’t that why we always hang out at the wine bar?”
“Yeah, but…” Holden huffed. “Go ahead, pour me a glass.”
“Casey? You’re the last holdout.” I took five short glasses from an upper cupboard and unscrewed the bottle. Yeah, weweren’t fancy around here. But this inexpensive wine surprised with its great flavor.
“Hell yeah.” Casey said, sitting on the opposite end of the sectional from Tex and Malik.
“I might need to open two bottles.” These would be heavy pours. As I dispensed the wine, Noel passed by me, picked them up and handed them out. The guy was completely different since becoming sober. Not only his personality, but he’d started going to the gym with Holden and, damn, his physique rivaled his brother’s. They actually looked like brothers now.
I opened a fresh bottle of wine, poured the last glass and rounded the couch to fall in beside Holden. The draft picks started on the television, and the Cardinals were third in line.
“They’re supposed to call you first, right?” Holden edged into my side as his brother dropped in beside him.
“Yes.” I glanced at the coffee table. “Where the hell is my phone?” My stomach clenched. Damn, losing it now was terrible timing. I patted my shorts. “I don’t have it.”
“Hold on a minute, JJ. Don’t freak out.” Casey jumped off the couch and paced to the dinette. “Fuck, I don’t see it.”
“Shit.” I hopped off the couch and paced the room. “Maybe my bedroom?”
On the television, the first team made its pick, and the announcers debated who the next in line would pick.
I hauled ass into my room and stomped through it, scanning every inch of the place. It wasn’t here. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!” I couldn’t miss this call. Would they change their minds if I didn’t answer? It’d be a dick move on my part. I stormed out of my bedroom.
