Page 8

Dev

It was opening day for the new shelter, and a huge crowd had formed. The town had basically shut down, and Brody and I had hired a band, food vendors, and everything needed to keep children entertained. Everett had returned from his promotional tour and joined us. We’d all taken turns showing the kids—and quite a few parents—how to throw and catch a ball, and now Everett was posing for pictures.

I chomped on a hot dog. “Vette’s got an admirer.” I tipped my head to the woman who’d been hovering by his side for the past hour, getting him bottles of water and a towel to dry his sweating face. Brody frowned.

“I went to school with Dora Lee. She had it rough. Her father went to jail, and her momma was killed in a car accident. Her grandparents raised her, and they were stricter than a state-prison warden. When she got pregnant by a Black guy, they tossed her out on the street, the racist pigs. She lived in the shelter for years while trying to take care of the baby and working at the local supermarket.”

I huffed and shook my head. “I don’t understand family who turn their backs on their kids.”

“Me neither.” Brody kicked at the ground, and I could see something was eating away at him.

“What’s wrong?”

He chewed his lip. “I think before I leave, I’m gonna tell Momma.”

This wasn’t a conversation to have in the middle of a fair. I led him to one of the picnic tables set up under tents. The area was emptying out, as it was getting close to dinnertime and most people were playing games or had already left.

“You sure?” I asked him. “What made you decide now?”

“It’s time. Plus, with me leavin’ and all, it’ll be easier if she’s not okay with it.”

Under the table, where people couldn’t see, I nudged his foot. “Are you still upset she’s not coming with you?”

Those big blue eyes reflected the painful talk they’d had. “I guess.”

“You never told me about it. Only that she wanted to stay.”

“Dev—”

“No. Please, Brody.” My eyes expressed what I couldn’t show him with actions. “Talk to me.”

“She’s lived here all her life and it’s too late to make a switch. That’s all.”

I crossed my arms and glared at him. “Bullshit. You’re lying.”

“The fuck you call me a liar.” He scowled at me.

Our first real disagreement. I leaned in closer. “Baby, I love you, but I know there’s more.” He hung his head, which only solidified what I suspected. “Did it have anything to do with me?”

First he paled, then turned red, and that was all I needed to know. “No, ’course not.”

“Please? You won’t hurt my feelings. I’ll always love you and your mom.”

He lifted a shoulder and clasped his hands on the wooden table. “She really did say she wasn’t interested in moving because her whole life was here with Theo. So I teased her and said I thought I was her life. I told her we could go to Broadway and have real good pizza. See the tree at Rockefeller Center at Christmas.”

It all sounded pretty innocuous to me. “But something happened.”

His fingers gripped tighter, the knuckles turning whiter. “You know Momma loves you.”

It was as I suspected. My smile was thin. “Yeah. I know.”

“Baby—”

“Please.” I held his gaze. “Tell me.”

Brody gave a sharp nod, then a sigh of defeat. “Okay. I made all the arguments I could, and she didn’t say anything. Finally, she looked up at me and asked if I was doing all this because of you.”

“Me? You mean because we’re together?” The last few words were said in a whisper as I spotted several people walking toward us.

“No. It was more like, am I making this big decision to follow you. That’s all.”

That was enough. My heart sank. I thought Brody’s mom and I got along, certainly better than I ever had with my own mother. For her to think Brody was coming to New York simply to be with me and not doing what was best for his career devastated me. Early on, when my parents had told me over and over how I’d disappointed them, I’d learned to hold that pain inside. But God, it hurt. Badly. Now I knew I had no one completely on my side except Brody, and even then, I was tearing him apart with this decision. I wasn’t being fair to him.

“What did you say?” I asked in a low voice.

“Don’t look like that,” he pleaded. “You know how I feel. Nothin’ and nobody could ever make me do anything I didn’t wanna. And I told you it was a long shot that she’d wanna move. But that won’t change my mind or how I feel about you. Nothing ever could.”

Hoping my smile would reassure him, I nodded. “I know. And I do understand. More than you know. I’m not going to insist you stay in the city if you don’t want.”

“What’re you talkin’ about? I want this trade, I swear. Momma didn’t mean it like that. She loves you.”

I dismissed his protests. “Let’s do this. We’ll both have apartments in the city, but after the season is over, you go home, and after a month or so, I’ll follow and hang out. Like we’ve been doing this time.”

“Dev, you don’t think the press is gonna think it’s odd that two guys hang out only with each other—no women?”

Annoyed that he was right, I crushed the empty cup in my hand. “Dammit. I’m trying to make it work for us, but it’s ridiculous. What the hell are we supposed to do? Get married to women and live a lie? I wouldn’t do that to a woman or to you.”

“I don’t know, baby. It sucks balls.”

“If you don’t want to stay in the city in the off-season then I’ll buy a place for myself down here somewhere. Not in the same town, but close enough that it wouldn’t be hard to see each other. All I know is that I’m not going to spend half the year without you. I’m thinking about the end game all the damn time. You and me together.” I kicked the dirt under the table. “Love shouldn’t be so fucking hard.”

Brody sighed. “We’ll work it out.”

But at what cost?

Vette joined us, his arm around the shoulders of the petite, blond Dora Lee. “What’s up, my dudes? Y’all look like you were havin’ an intense conversation.”

Brody and I rose to our feet, and he gave a wave to the couple. “Nothin’. Just figuring some stuff out. Hey, Dora Lee. How’s little Nicky?”

“Not so little anymore. He’s almost ten and taller than me. Wants to play football.” She gazed up at Vette. “Everett said he’d be happy to show him some special moves after dinner.” Her bright-pink nails played against his copper-brown skin, tracing the rose tattoo under her fingers. Over the years, Vette had accumulated numerous tats, and he and I had spent some time comparing.

From the intensity of Vette’s dark eyes as he gazed down at her, I’d bet he’d be showin’ Dora Lee some special moves as well. “No one better than Vette.”

“Hey, baby?” Vette bent to kiss Dora Lee. “Why don’t you find Nicky, and we’ll go out to dinner. Wherever you’d like. I just need to talk to my boys here for a moment. Wait for me by the car?” He dug out keys from his shorts. “It’s the white Escalade.”

Her skin flushed pink, and her blue eyes glowed. “Oh, okay. Thanks.” She smiled shyly at us. “Bye, Brody. Nice to meet you, Devlin.”

“Call me Dev. And same.”

Vette watched her walk away. “ Mmm - mmm . She is so fine.”

“Don’t fuck with her, Vette,” Brody growled, acting like a big brother. “She’s had it rough.”

Vette’s eyes narrowed. “You think I didn’t talk to her? I’m not just tryin’ to get in her pants. She told me about those supposed grandparents of hers. And the guy who got her pregnant and ran. Bastards. All of ’em.”

Brody’s shoulders relaxed. “I just don’t want to see her hurt again. She’s a nice person who deserves good things.”

“Maybe that could be me.” He ran a hand over his tight braids. “Something about her makes me wanna protect her. She’s so sweet, and she has no one to care about her and Nicky.”

I grinned and exchanged a look with Brody, but he remained skeptical. “Are you saying you fell for her? In one day?”

He shrugged. “No reason why it can’t happen. Guess we’ll see how it goes.” We stood for a few, and I wondered why he lingered when Dora Lee and Nicky were waiting. Vette shifted nervously from foot to foot. Several people had entered the tent, and Vette pointed over to a spot under a tree, away from the noise. “Got a sec?”

Brody was as confused as I was. “Yeah, sure.”

I leaned against the tree, wondering what was going on.

Vette scratched his cheek and bit his lip. “Lemme ask y’all something.”

I was checking my phone. “Yeah? What’s up?”

“Are you two a couple? Like…together?”

The phone fell out of my hands and I lost my breath. I scrambled to pick it up and sputtered. “Wh-what? Why would you say that?” The unexpected and shocking question rattled me, and I shoved the phone into my pocket, hoping no one could see how my hands trembled.

Brody huffed. “What the hell, Vette?”

“Listen, I swear I’d never say nothing, but I remember that trip to Cancun and how you two shared a room. Y’all were different together than the rest of us. I don’t know how to explain it. I noticed, every off-season, y’all spend it together.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “I never seen you with girls or nothin’. Devil, in college…I know you never had a girl stay the night.” He placed his hands on our stiff-as-a-board shoulders and squeezed lightly. “Hey. I don’t care. Y’all are my best friends, and that ain’t never gonna change. Just want you to know that if it’s true, I got your backs. And now I’m gonna go find my lady. Talk to you later.”

Still frozen, we watched him leave toward the parking lot.

Brody shook his head. “Damn. I thought we were doing so well hidin’ it.”

“I guess not. Makes me wonder who else might be thinking the same thing.”

“You’re thinking where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”

Gazing at Brody’s dejected face, I wanted to hold him and say it was gonna be all right, but I didn’t know if that was true. If rumors started to spread, we’d have to deny it and prove them wrong by rejecting who we were inside. All to keep playing football. And that was a fucked-up way to live.

I toed the dirt with my sneaker, wishing I could kick the damn tree down. “Maybe you’re right and I should hold off on coming here to visit.” We left the shade of the tree and headed for the playground, where plenty of kids still took advantage of the swings and slide. “Are you still going to come out to your mother?”

Under his tan, Brody paled, but he set his jaw. “Yeah. Training camp begins soon, and I got tons of things to do. Get the stuff from my place in Texas to New York, find an apartment. Do you wanna leave with me? I can drop you off at home.”

“No, I’ll get a ride from someone.” It had never made sense for me to rent a car, as I always used Brody’s or we were together.

“We’re good, right?”

More serious than I’d ever seen him, he nodded. “Always.”

Relieved, I nodded. “Okay. Later.”

After he drove away, I wandered to the playground and sat on a bench, watching the kids run around. Janie appeared in front of me.

“Mind if I sit?”

“Be my guest.”

She stretched out her long legs. “Where’s your other half?”

I jerked my head up. “What?”

She snorted. “C’mon. This is the first time I’ve seen you by yourself since you came here. You and Brody are attached at the hip. Lemme ask you somethin’.”

“Shoot.” The kids shrieking made me smile as they soared higher and higher on the swings.

“I know you and Blink are best friends, but you could go anywhere in the world. Why’re you here?”

A chill ran through me. Was she fishing for information? Did she know and think she was going to out me? Nonchalantly inspecting my nails, I shrugged. “Exactly for that reason. I’ve been everywhere—Europe, Asia, the Middle East. Believe it or not, I enjoy the quiet, peaceful life you all have here.”

“Bet it’s a lot different than New York City. You thinkin’ of settling down here? You could have your pick of the ladies.”

I chuckled. “I haven’t thought about settling down. I’m only twenty-five.” I decided to change the subject. “What about you and Tom? You guys travel?”

“Honey, I ain’t been outta this town in ten years.” She drank from her water bottle. “But I can’t complain. I’m happy running the Kitty Kat, and we have our house and dogs—neither of us ever wanted kids. Me ’n Tom are thrilled with how you and Brody have stepped up, and not only renovated the original shelter, but put this all together so quickly. You really made your mark.”

Aside from my football prowess, I hadn’t received much praise in my life. I almost didn’t know what to do with it. “Thanks, but I didn’t do it for accolades, and I know Brody didn’t either. It’s important to give back, and I’m happy to help. I have several favorite charities in the city I donate my time and money to as well.”

“Well, we sure appreciate it. What you’ve done here will make a whole lotta difference. We’ve already had inquiries from people who need a safe space.”

My heart sank. “I don’t know why I was hoping it would be empty for a while, but it’s here because of necessity.” I squinted into the sun.

“Unfortunately not. Like that couple there? He was injured overseas, and they’re scrambling to keep their house. He can’t work yet, and her income from working at the beauty parlor just don’t cut it.”

I peered at the man and woman, whose little boy had come running from playing on the swings. “Damn. I know them. That little boy is Jimmy. I met them when Brody picked me up at the airport. That’s terrible. You said they might lose their house?” At her nod, I got to my feet. This was fucking unacceptable. “I gotta go. I’ll talk to you.”

Leaving Janie, I strode away from the grounds, intent on making my way to Main Street. It wasn’t yet three o’clock, so I knew the bank should still be open, but I still jogged there. I was panting from my mile-long jog in the warm weather, and quite a few people stared at me as I took a second to enjoy the cool air on my flushed face.

“May I help you?” A customer service rep walked over to me.

“Yes. I need to speak to the manager.” His brows rose, and while I never used my fame to push myself into place, I didn’t have time for explanations. “Please. I’m Devlin Summers. I’d like to talk to him about some business.”

“Oh, of course, I’m sorry. I didn’t recognize you.”

“It’s not a problem. Thank you.”

He led me to the bank manager’s desk.

An hour later, I shook his hand, my task complete. “Pleasure doing business with you. Please make sure they get the papers as soon as they’re filed, so they know the house is theirs.”

“I’m sure they’ll want to thank you. Can you leave your number, Mr. Summers?”

“I don’t want them to know. I’d like it to be anonymous.” I gave him a salute. “Have a great rest of your day.”

By the time I walked out of the bank, it was past the sun’s zenith. I could’ve called for a car to drive me to Brody’s, but I chose to walk and clear my head because despite my paying off Amber and Troy’s mortgage, I couldn’t get the earlier conversation with Brody out of my head. I hated that his mother thought I’d pushed him to make the change. I didn’t think that was the case. It was my suggestion, but it was a business decision as well. The Kings were paying him a lot more than the Lonestars. If I didn’t believe it would be a good career move for Brody, I wouldn’t have proposed it.

I walked and walked, leaving the town behind me and heading toward Brody’s house. Occasionally we’d go jogging, and I knew a path through the wooded area that avoided the main road.

Was I too pushy? Brody wasn’t the type to follow what I wanted. He made his own decisions. I might be the leader of my team, but Brody and I were equals in our relationship. I loved him so much, I wanted him with me, and knowing my team could use a player like him, I’d lobbied for him to join me, even though he’d never indicated that he wanted it.

I stopped at an open space where a stream of crystal blue water rushed by, and I splashed my overheated face. A startled deer ran past me, and I smiled.

“Man, you are not on Mercer Street.” I took a seat on the leaf-covered ground and sat for a few moments, soaking in the sounds of the forest, listening to the birdsong and breathing. I understood why Brody loved it here.

Dripping with sweat by the time I reached his house, I made a decision. Brody might not be happy about it, but I knew it was for the best if we wanted to be together forever.

That was our end game, and I was damned if I’d let anything screw it up.