Page 64

Xavier

World fucking champions!

Adrenaline surges through me as I drag myself out of the dog pile, grinning like a fool. The weight of the long season lifts in a single breath, replaced by unfiltered joy. My teammates are shouting, laughing, and slapping each other on the back, but my focus has already shifted. I'll celebrate with them later--pop the champagne, hoist the trophy, all of it--but right now, there are only two people I need to see.

Vivienne and Holland.

I scan the field, heart racing for a completely different reason. My eyes lock with them and I break out in a sprint, not stopping until they are both in my arms. Vivienne looks up at me, her irises sparkling with pride. I take Holland from her, and Vivi's hands lift to my face.

"You did it." She beams, her smile impossibly wide.

"And you're here," I breathe, my voice thick with more than just victory.

"Here," she says, her hands lifting to cradle my face. "And I'm not leaving. Not now. Not ever."

Holland coos softly, her tiny hand brushing against my jaw. For the first time since Vivi left for California, everything is exactly as it should.

"I think I like the sound of that," I murmur, my grip on both of them tightening a little.

"Good, because I see you, Xavier," she says, her voice steady but full of emotion. "The three of us together is what I want. It was always what I wanted. Watching Kristy walk in and threaten that . . . it put everything into perspective."

Her gaze drops for a moment before she looks back at me, her lashes glistening. "Before you, I was afraid of losing myself. Afraid of giving my life over to someone else."

"I'd never let that happen," I say, my throat tight.

"I know," she says with a small smile. "Maybe, with someone else, I would have slipped back into old habits and lost pieces of myself, but you and Holland have only ever given to me. You've never taken anything away."

Her hand shakes as it brushes my cheek. "Meeting you, going home, facing everything with my parents and then Tenley leaving showed me that life is better when you let people in. You've given me more than I thought I could ever have. Understanding, acceptance, patience, friendship. Getting to know you and Holland taught me to ask for what I want in life, instead of fearing what I might lose if I spoke up. "

"You did that. You found your voice on your own," I say hovering above her lips. Not kissing her is testing my restraint.

"Maybe," she says, her gaze locking with mine. "But you made me brave enough to use it."

I exhale, the weight of her words settling over my heart. "You've always been brave, Vivienne."

"In some ways, but not in the ways that mattered. Putting rowdy baseball players in their place at work is very different from the bravery it took to open up my heart after all these years," she whispers, a tear slipping free, though her smile is radiant.

My focus drops to her lips. "Can I kiss you now?"

The breath shudders out of her. "Please."

I close the distance between us, my hand sliding to the back of her neck, pulling her closer. Her lips part as I press mine to hers, soft and warm and everything I've missed while we've been on the road.

Her fingers curl into my jersey, anchoring us together, and I pour every ounce of what I feel--relief, love, longing--into her. She tastes like popcorn and my future. Like my everything.

When we finally pull apart, her forehead rests against mine, her breaths coming fast. "That was . . ." she starts, but her words trail off as a shy smile tugs at her lips.

"Yeah," I murmur, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "I missed your mouth."

"It's been three days." She chuckles against my lips.

"Too damn long. I'm kissing you everyday during the offseason. Try and stop me."

Holland stirs softly in my arms, breaking the moment.

A piece of confetti floats down, landing in Holland's hair and Vivienne brushes it away, both of us laughing.

The celebration continues around us, and after a while we hand Holland off to Tenley, her pouty lips smacking together before she yawns, shoving her fist in her mouth.

Vivienne captures my heart for the second time tonight when she brushes a kiss against her forehead, murmuring, "Sweet dreams, Estrela."

I press my lip to her cheek, adding my own, "Goodnight, áine."

Tenley takes her, promising to get her home safely.

"You know . . . that should have been a sign from the beginning," Vivienne says.

"What should have been?" I ask, too distracted by having her alone to follow her logic.

"That we both used nicknames with similar meanings. áine and Estrela. Estrela means star. áine means radiance." She stares up at me. "Two names for radiance and light--for something that guides you when everything else feels dark."

I pause, the significance of her words hitting me with so much force they almost knock me over. "Maybe we were always meant to find our way to each other--to be a family."

She stops walking, her hand slipping into mine, her gaze steady as it locks on mine. "I like to think so."

"Did the boys make it?" I ask, suddenly remembering that Ezra and Elijah are supposed to be here.

Vivi looks around, pointing when she spots them at the net in a crowd of fans holding up a sign with my name and number on it. Hand in hand we cross the field to them and get pictures and hugs. They're beside themselves with excitement when some of the other guys come over.

From there, the rest of the celebration is a blur of high fives, hugs, and cameras flashing as the team pours into the locker room. Champagne sprays everywhere, soaking through my jersey as we celebrate like kids who just won their first game.

Vivienne waits with the rest of the girls in the family area, cracking open their own bottle of champagne.

Later, we head to a private party with family and friends at Draft. They've closed down the bar for us to celebrate, giving us the run of the place instead of just the VIP area where the team typically gathers post game. The energy is as electric as it was in the locker room. Laughter and cheers fill the bar, but I can't look away from Vivienne--at the way she fits here, among my people, as if she's always belonged.

By the time we step through the door of my house, it's just us. The quiet wraps around us, a stark contrast to the noise of the night, and I know this is the moment I've been waiting for.