Page 30 of Run the Play (Nashville Rampage #2)

He shrugs. “A little, I guess, but not really. I’ve always been one to follow my gut.

It’s something my dad used to say to me after football practice.

I’d be beating myself up over a play, and he would tell me that I had good instincts and to always follow my gut, and I’d do the best that I could do.

” He pauses as if he’s stuck in his head in that moment with his father.

“That’s what it feels like with you. My gut tells me that we're meant to be together. You were supposed to come back to Tennessee. You were supposed to work for the Rampage. Your pain and your past led you here, and it’s exactly where you’re supposed to be. With me.”

A rush of emotion that feels a lot like love washes over me. “Please don’t break my heart,” I say, fighting back tears.

He shakes his head. “You hold all the power, Roe. If anyone gets hurt in this, it’s going to be me.”

Unable to stop myself, I lean forward and kiss him. “I really like you, Landry Reynolds.” Every moment with him feels natural, as if it were meant to be.

“Good. Now, eat your breakfast.” He winks, and just like that, playful Landry is back.

There are so many sides to him. The jokester, the brother, the friend, the uncle, the football player, and then the man who’s snuck inside my chest and made a home.

I can’t tell him yet. This feels like a Tilt-A-Whirl of a ride, but I meant what I said.

I’m not running. I want to ride this one until the very end.

“Come on, Rowan, we need some tunes.” Corie taps Knox’s thigh for him to slide out of the booth.

I look at Landry, and he puckers his lips. “Pay the price.”

I feel my face flush. “Someone might see,” I say, just loud enough for him to hear.

“Good. Let them see me kissing my girl. That way, they know you’re mine.” He leans in, and I give him a quick peck, and he finally moves to let me out.

Corie links her arm through mine, and we make our way to the jukebox in the back corner of the pizza place.

“I’ve never seen him like this, Rowan,” she tells me. “He’s never been public with anyone, never been affectionate outside of being playful. He really likes you.”

“I like him too.” I smile at my friend. “Are we okay, Corie? I know I should have talked to you first, but things just sort of progressed.”

“What? Of course I’m okay. Two of my favorite people are happy together.

Did you forget I secretly dated my brother's best friend and teammate? Then, I married him.” She holds up her hand and wiggles her ring finger, showing off her diamond engagement ring and wedding band.

“As long as the two of you are happy, that’s what matters. ”

“If this doesn’t work out, I don’t want to lose you or Sloane as a friend.”

“You won’t. Sure, if tensions are high, we might have to take a break from hanging out with the guys, but what if things do work out? You’ll be my sister. Our kids will be cousins.”

Tears prick my eyes. “I’ve never had a family,” I whisper.

“Rowan, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“It’s not you. It’s… being with him makes me feel like all of my dreams might finally come true. I’d given up hope, but then your brother crashed into my life as my fake boyfriend, and he stole my heart,” I confess.

“Does he know?”

“No. I’m not ready to tell him.”

She nods. “Knowledge is power, I get it—however, not this time. You should tell him. I’m certain he feels the same way.”

“I read the text messages.”

“Yeah, Knox handed me his phone and told me to read it. He said Landry told him not to tell me, but he couldn’t contain himself, so he let me read the messages instead.” She’s beaming with happiness, and I feel it wash over me and take root inside my chest.

She bumps her hip into mine. “When they’re not with us, I want details. Okay, maybe not all the details, but you can figure out what parts I don’t want to hear. Save those for Sloane.”

“Deal.” We make our song selections and head back to the table to see our food has arrived, but the guys aren’t eating.

“You waited for us?” Corie asks.

“Yep.” Landry beams at his sister.

“You waited to consume food?” She’s shocked.

“It’s rude to eat before my girl, Sis, you know that.” Landry stands to let me slide into the booth and proceeds to add a slice of pizza onto my plate before doing the same for himself. Glancing across the table, I see Knox doing the same.

“Rowan, you broke him.” Corie laughs.

“Nah, he’s just finally trained. It took finding a woman worth keeping to make it happen. You should be proud of yourself, Rowan,” Knox teases.

“Hush it, or I’ll eat both of yours too,” Landry threatens. We all laugh and dive into our food.

Lunch is perfect, with lots of laughs. It feels as if I’ve known these people all of my life. And Landry? He’s always touching me—kissing my cheek, hand on my thigh, tucking my hair behind my ear, leaning in close, wrapping an arm around my shoulders—any excuse to make contact.

“We better get going,” Knox tells Corie. “My sisters are coming to stay with us this week, and they should be getting to our place soon.”

“You two should come over for dinner one night,” Corie offers.

“We’ll be there,” Landry tells her.

He and Knox pay the bill, and just as we step outside, a little boy comes running up to us. “You’re Knox Beckett, and you’re Landry Reynolds!” he shouts with awe in his voice.

Knox and Landry both kneel to be at eye level with him. The boy couldn’t be more than eight or nine years old.

“That’s right. What’s your name?” Knox asks him.

“I’m Grayson,” he says, bouncing on his feet.

“Well, Grayson, would you like to take a picture?”

“I’m so sorry,” a man says, rushing toward us. “Grayson, you can’t run away from me like that.”

“Dad! It’s Beckett and Reynolds!” Grayson shouts.

“Hey, little man,” Landry says. “Your dad is right. You should stay with an adult at all times.”

“You’re an adult,” he counters.

“We are, but we’re also strangers.”

“You’re not strangers. I watch you on TV all the time.” This has Corie and me laughing, gaining his attention as well. “Who are you?” he asks us.

Knox stands and pulls Corie into his arms. “This is my wife, Corie.”

Landry does the same. “This is my girlfriend, Rowan.”

“Oh! I know you. You’re the handshake girl. That was so cool!” Grayson says.

We all share a laugh at his enthusiasm. Knox and Landry pose for pictures and sign his shirt with a Sharpie that Corie produces from her purse, and we’re on our way.

“I’m thinking I should start packing a Sharpie,” I tell her.

“Might not be a bad idea,” she says, pulling me into a hug. “We’ll call you about dinner this week.” With a wave, they’re off.

“Now what?” Landry asks.

“No plans. Well, I was going to do some laundry today. Boring stuff.”

“My place or yours tonight?”

“What?”

“Are we staying at my place or your place tonight?”

“I—don’t know.”

“Can we stay at mine? We can go to your place, and you can get whatever needs to be done, then pack some clothes for tomorrow. Wait, all week,” he corrects.

“You want me to stay with you all week?”

“Do you want to sleep alone after last night?”

I take the time to think about his question. The answer is easy. “No.”

“There you go.” With his hand on the small of my back, he leads me to his truck. We go back to my place for a few hours and watch a movie while I do laundry, and then, just as he asked, I pack a bag for the whole week, and we head to his place.

We both have to be up at the ass crack of dawn tomorrow, and since we didn’t get to bed until late last night, we need to go to bed early. He holds me tightly in his arms, and I quickly drift off to sleep.