Page 49 of Protecting the Boundary
And despite our incredible date where I felt like we got closer to each other, I know we have a long road to travel for him to let Sydney go enough to be able to love me too.
THIRTY-ONE
This game feels different from any other game I’ve played in this stadium, and it has nothing to do with what’s happening on the field, and everything to do with the woman holding my daughter while she wears a jersey with my name and number on it.
It doesn’t matter how many other people in this stadium are wearing Watson jerseys. It only matters that Meredith is. A fierce caveman-like pride swirls in my gut and makes me play harder than ever.
“Trying to impress someone?” Ty asks with an arched brow and a smile when we run off the field.
“No,” I say, but I’m smiling and he knows that’s exactly what I’ve been doing.
I grab a water bottle from the trainer and take a drink as I scan the crowd for my girls.
My girls. Damn, that feels good to think about Meredith as one of my girls.
As mine.
My eyes land on them and they both wave, which immediately makes my smile grow even wider. I’m on cloud nine therest of the game, feeling lighter than I can ever remember feeling and having fun on the field. It’s not work, and it’s not about channeling my grief; it’s just about having fun and playing a game I’m not only great at, but one I’ve loved for almost my whole life.
When the game’s over, I’m eager to get showered and changed in record time so I can get out to Meredith and Kaylee. The guys all look at me with knowing grins, but they’re all speeding out of there too to get to their women.
It feels good to walk out of the locker room and see Mere standing beside the other Fierce Four wives—not that she’s my wife. My brain stutters on the idea.
Why couldn’t she be my wife someday? I already told her this isn’t casual for me. I never planned to get married after I lost Sydney, but I never thought I’d meet someone like Meredith either. My throat gets tight and my stomach clenches, still holding on to the residual guilt of moving on.
I’m putting the cart before the horse and need to focus on the here and now. I know better than most that the future is unpredictable.
Kaylee lets go of Meredith’s hand and comes racing toward me. “Daddy!”
God, I live for that sound. Her laughter, calling me her Daddy. Pride surges inside me at how smart and incredible my daughter is. No matter what I do in life, raising her will always be my greatest joy and the thing I’m proud of the most. I don’t care how many championship football rings I have. None of them come even close to Kaylee’s simplest accomplishment.
I lift her up, throwing her into the air and causing her to squeal. The guys all give her smiles and then go to kiss their wives. My stomach tightens again, wishing I could wrap my arms around Mere and kiss her, but I can’t with Kaylee here.Not with this thing between us still new and us finding our footing.
Instead, I give her a smile and a wink, hoping she knows I’ll make it up to her later when we can be alone.
As soon as Kaylee falls asleep, I head out to the guesthouse with the baby monitor tucked in my back pocket so I can hear Kay if she wakes up. I knock on the door, and the second Meredith opens it, I reach out and grab the back of her neck at the same time that she grabs the sides of my shirt at my waist. We collide in a hungry kiss. Without breaking our lips apart, I move us farther inside the guesthouse and kick the door shut.
She moans against my mouth.
“God, I’ve wanted to kiss you all day,” I say before her mouth parts and I slide my tongue along hers. All the blood in my body rushes south at how badly I want her.I forgot about this feeling, the hunger to feel her lips against mine, to lick up her neck as she shudders in my arms, the way the vibrations of her moans light all my nerve endings on fire.
I walk her backward until the back of her legs hit the arm of the couch and she tumbles over it with a squeal. We both start laughing, which only slightly tempers the need brewing between us. But maybe this is good because there’s something I need to confess to her before we take this any further.
“I need to tell you something.”
“Okay?” She sits up on her elbows, her face suddenly filled with trepidation.
“I’ve only ever been with Sydney.” Her brows furrow in confusion, so I push on. “She was my first everything, and there’s been no one since her.”
Understanding dawns on her face. “Ohhh.”
“I just thought you should know before we go any further.”
Her gaze softens. “Were you worried I’d think less of you?”
Before I can respond, she says, “Because I don’t. I think it’s really sweet that you’ve only been with your wife. Does that make this harder for you?”
She gestures between us, and the concern for me is just one of the many reasons I never stood a chance keeping my guard up with her.
