Page 11 of Endlessly Yours (The Wilder Brothers #10)

I shook off the odd feeling as a few of my crew members, both from the current job sites and the expansion, joined in.

Not all of the Wilder men were playing because indeed we were getting older.

And even though it was flag football, we were probably going to end up tackling each other. It’s what we did.

Kendall, my cousin-in-law, came over and grinned, “Am I allowed to play?” she asked.

“Hell no,” Evan, her husband, said as he smacked her ass before kissing her hard on the mouth. “You can tackle me later.”

Kendall rolled her eyes. “I brought food because apparently that’s all I’m good for.”

“You know you’re good for more,” he grumbled against her mouth, and I rolled my eyes.

“Seriously? In front of the family?” I growled.

“Go get you some, and stop judging,” Evan snapped, even though his eyes were filled with laughter.

“Be nice. And I don’t actually want to play because you guys get all sweaty, and it’s gross.”

“You like it when I’m sweaty,” Evan teased.

And then he leaned down and kissed his wife so softly that I knew that Kendall’s knees probably went weak.

It was an odd thing to see because I didn’t want to be jealous of it. Not of Kendall, but of that sense of home.

Evan and Kendall had been through their own twists and turns in their relationship, and their lives hadn’t been easy. But they had gotten their second chance with each other.

“Be careful, please.” Then Kendall moved back and glared at all of us. “No tackling my husband. You’re welcome to hurt each other, but if my husband ends up with a bruise, there’s going to be poison in your food, and you’re not going to know when. And I don’t mess with food unless I have to.”

Considering she owned two restaurants and was becoming world-renowned for it, I wasn’t going to risk anything.

And I didn’t blame her for that warning.

Evan had lost his leg overseas when he had been on active duty, and while he moved around easily now with his prosthetic, I wasn’t about to be the one who tackled my cousin and hurt him.

“Insurance doesn’t cover the whole prosthetic anyway, so let’s not fuck around and find out,” Evan said as he pointed at all of us.

“Don’t worry. I’m more scared of Kendall than I am of you and insurance companies,” Elliot said with a smile.

I shook my head as everybody took teams, and I found myself playing tight end against Callum and Eli’s team.

An odd little grin slid over my face as I realized that Callum and I would be the ones running against each other for most of the day since we didn’t really have a full defense.

It was our version of flag football, and maybe I’d be able to show this pretty boy exactly what it meant to be on Wilder land.

Not that I was showing off to anyone or anything. That wasn’t what today was about.

Trace, Elliot’s husband, whistled and was going to play referee. He’d had to deal with a trespasser earlier and had fallen off a roof. Just a first floor, but he was bruised enough and in trouble with both of his spouses, so he wasn’t allowed to play today.

I was just glad that Ridge and Trace ran security for the company, and I didn’t have to deal with that, especially with the clientele we hosted. We all liked our privacy.

By the second play, I caught the ball and made my way towards the end zone. But that asshole Callum took my flag before I could get there.

I scowled at him as he just grinned, even though the smile didn’t quite look right on his face. He was too jagged, too stoic for that grin. But then he went over to the water table and spoke with Rory during a timeout.

I glared at him as Rory tipped her head back and laughed.

I froze, knowing I hadn’t heard that laugh in too long. First, because it had been the month from hell, and then because she rarely laughed around me. She usually only did when she didn’t realize I was around.

We’d purposely stayed out of each other’s way because the connection, the chemistry between us was too enticing to ignore.

And now she was my neighbor.

Because I was the one who had stepped in it.

I shook everything off and went back to the game.

With the next play, Callum got me again, and I cursed under my breath as he whistled a small tune.

The others cheered, and I narrowed my eyes at Rory, who seemed to be on Callum’s side.

Well, fuck that.

When it was Callum’s turn, I got his flag, but he somehow wheedled out of my hold during the next play, and when they scored a touchdown, the other team cheered, and I ignored my team’s need to pretend I hadn’t fucked up.

The gloves were off now.

By the third quarter, everybody was sweaty because it was Texas in the summer, so we were shirtless, maybe a little bruised and scraped because now there were only a couple of tackles in, and Callum was going to get the ball. I knew it.

Eli threw, and Callum caught the perfect spiral.

I could have reached for his flag. Yes. I could have.

But Callum caught the ball and winked over at Rory.

And I didn’t even realize what had happened.

I tackled Callum to the ground, slamming him into the Texas clay. He let out a grunt but kept the ball. When Trace whistled, I tried to stand up, but Callum gripped my shoulder.

“Something you’re worried about?” the man asked, his voice low, sarcasm dripping.

“Fuck off,” I growled. I had no right to be this angry, no right to be this possessive.

But here I was.

“You better do something about it then, shouldn’t you?”

“Fuck. Off,” I repeated.

“If you don’t get off me right now, I’m going to have to punch you, and it’s going to be a thing. And I don’t think the little mouse you’re looking at is going to really like you getting your ass beat.”

I shoved up, pushing him deeper into the dirt, before I walked off, doing my best not to look at Rory.

However, I couldn’t help but meet her gaze.

Her eyes were wide, her lips parted, and the small flush riding her cheekbones went straight to my cock.

That damn heat.

No amount of walking away and pretending it wasn’t there worked. Because I wanted her. I had wanted her from that first kiss. But I wasn’t about to do anything about it. Not when it came to Rory.

Not when it came to the one woman who might just make me keep the promise I had made to my dead wife.