Page 40 of Run the Play (Nashville Rampage #2)

Chapter Twenty-Two

L andry

It’s been two weeks since the incident with Chaz.

The media lit up the story like a wildfire.

There are a few negative comments, but all of the articles are in support of Rowan, myself, and the Rampage.

The facts are there, and there are a few keyboard warrior assholes who spew their hate, but we’ve been ignoring them. Do not engage and all that.

It’s also been two weeks since Rowan moved in with me.

My big house is no longer empty. I love seeing her shoes by the door, her girly stuff all over the bathroom counter, and that section of my closet that’s been empty for so long is now occupied.

Though she doesn’t have much, and I plan to change that.

That's why I’m meeting my sister for lunch today.

We’re going on a shopping spree for Rowan.

I know my girl, and she’d never spend my money willingly.

My little sister, on the other hand, will, as long as it’s not for her.

Stubborn women surround me, but I wouldn’t change it.

I’ll think of a way to pay my sister back for helping me.

“So, where does she think you are right now?”

“With you. I told her we were having lunch together. I invited her, but she said we should spend our sibling bonding time alone. I told her I’d bring her back her favorite cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory.”

“Oh, you learn fast,” Corie says, nodding. “Good job, Bro.”

“I’d do anything for her, Core. I get it now, the way Knox looks at you. The way he gravitates toward you. I didn’t understand it. At first, I thought maybe he was just doing it to get under my skin, but that’s not it at all.”

“You know he’s not like that, Landry,” my sister scolds.

“I know. I was so lost in not wanting to see or think about you with my best friend that I missed the true meaning. I mean, I know he loves you, and that you love him, but it’s so much more than that.”

“I’m glad you found it too. Mom and Dad would love her,” she says softly.

“Knox too. They’re not here, but maybe they had a little bit to do with us finding the loves of our lives.”

“Whoa, is my brother getting sentimental?” she teases, blinking back tears.

“I’m a changed man, little sister,” I joke.

“Okay. So, I’m getting lunch, and what else? You said something about shopping for Rowan?”

“Yeah, I want to spoil her a little. Fill up the big-ass closet for her or something.”

“Aww,” Corie coos.

“And I have to stop by the jewelry store.”

“Oh, jewelry is always a nice touch.”

“What about the kind you wear on your left hand?”

Corie stops walking and turns to stare at me. “Are you being real right now? You’re buying a ring?” Her eyes are wide and full of excitement.

“Correction. I bought a ring. I need to pick it up.”

“How would you have done that if she agreed to come with you?” She places her hands on her hips, tilting her head to the side.

“Easy.” I shrug. “I would have told you ladies to do your thing and that I had some things to pick up on my own. It would have worked out just fine. It just so happens that it’s easier this way.”

“Can we do that first?” She’s practically bouncing on her toes.

“Let’s wait until the end. I don’t want to lock it up in my truck, and I don’t want to pack it around all day.”

“When are you going to ask her?”

“Soon. When you know, you know, right?”

“Dad used to say that.”

“He did, and I feel it in my soul. There will never be anyone else for me but her.”

Corie slaps my shoulder. “Stop it. You’re going to make me cry.” She blinks a few times and pushes her tears away. “I’m going to get a sister.”

“Yeah, Core, you’re going to get a sister. Now, let’s spoil her.”

“Okay, what are you thinking?”

“Anything. Everything. She’s gone so long with the bare minimum. Even when she was with He Who Shall Not Be Named. I just want to give her the world.”

“Let’s start with some clothes, oh, and a new handbag.”

“I trust you. You know her style. I’m just here to carry the bags and swipe my card.”

“Best day ever!” she cheers and leads me into the first store. She goes from rack to rack, pulling things off and tossing them over her arm. She’s smiling widely.

“Toss some things in there for you too,” I tell her.

“Oh, I’m all set. My closet is busting at the seams, but thank you. Save your shopping spree for your future wife.” She skips off to the counter, and I trail along after her. I swipe my card, and we’re off to the next store.

My sister definitely understood the assignment. The entire back seat of my truck is filled with shopping bags.

“Is it too much?” Corie asks, biting on her bottom lip. She’s trying to hide her smile.

“Nope, and if Rowan complains, I’ll tell her to blame you. That you needed retail therapy.”

“I’ll take the heat.” She laughs, just as her phone pings.

“Work?” I ask. It’s Saturday afternoon, and we have a bye this week, but as the social media director, she works odd hours.

“Yeah.” She taps her phone, and her mouth falls open. “Wait. What?” she says. I watch as she reads whatever it is on her phone.

“Everything okay?”

“Landry, look at this.” She turns her phone toward me, and I ignore the article headline for the image.

It’s of Corie and me and our parents at a Rampage game.

I know exactly when that picture was taken.

I was eleven and Corie was four. It was the last game I ever attended with my dad—emotion wells in my throat, sitting heavy on my chest.

“What are they doing? Digging up old articles about our parents now?” I ask, trying to understand why a media outlet would be interested in this.

“Did you read the headline?” she asks.

“No.” We just got back to my truck. I didn’t check my phone while we were shopping. I’m eager to get out of here and get home to Rowan, but whatever has my sister’s attention on her phone, has me keeping the truck parked.

Corie rolls her eyes and hands me her phone for a second time. This time, I do read the headline. “‘True love or is it fate?’” I read out loud. “I don’t get it,” I tell her.

“Must I do everything?” she asks. “Look at the picture, not just at us, but our surroundings. See the girl sitting next to you?”

“Yeah. You were being a brat that day and wanted to sit by both Mom and Dad, so I took the end by Dad, and the girl.”

“Whatever, I was an angel,” she sasses. “Landry, this article says that the little girl is Rowan.”

“What?” I grab her phone for the third time and read the article. It talks about fate and how our relationship has been fated, even though we didn’t know it.

“Is that really her?” I ask Corie. I zoom in on the picture, and yeah, I can see my girl.

This is her. That blonde hair and those big blue eyes are a dead giveaway now that I’m looking closer.

In the picture, she’s smiling up at me as I give her a high-five.

“Damn,” I mutter. “That’s her. That’s my Rowan. ”

Corie laughs. “This reporter had to dig in the archives to find this image. Good detective work,” she praises.

“I can’t believe it’s her. That we met when we were kids. I know she grew up in Tennessee before moving to Michigan for college, thanks to a scholarship. Is the world really that small?”

“It really is. Now, let’s go get the ring, and you can go home and tell her.”

“I have one more stop to make.” My fingers fly over the keys of my phone, and I get a reply almost immediately. I can’t hide my grin as I glance up at my sister. “Let’s go get that ring.”

“What’s your other stop?” she asks.

“I have two, actually, but I know you’ll be a huge help with the second.”

“Care to fill me in?”

“You’ll see,” I say as I hold the jewelry store door open for her. The plan plays out clearly in my head, and I know this is it.

“Hey,” Rowan says as I walk into the living room. She’s sitting on the couch, a blanket over her lap, watching TV. “How was your afternoon with Corie?”

“Good.” I lean over and press my lips to hers. “How was your day?”

“Relaxing. I got caught up on a few shows, painted my nails, and just chilled. It was nice. I turned off my phone's notifications and didn’t touch it. It was an unplugged day that was very much needed.”

“I have something for you. Well, lots of things, actually, but this one is the first,” I say, handing her a small, wrapped box. Once I told my sister about my plan, she went all out in finding the perfect packaging.

“Landry, you don’t have to buy me gifts.”

I laugh. “Baby, I’m going to spoil you rotten for the rest of our lives. You better start getting used to it.”

“That’s not why I love you. That’s not why I’m with you.”

“I know that, Roe. I just want to spoil my girl.”

She smiles, her blue eyes sparkling with love and happiness. The ring I picked up is burning a hole in my pocket, but that’s okay. It won’t be there for long.

I watch as Rowan opens the box and pulls out the picture frame. “Oh my goodness. Where did you find this?” She turns to look at me. “This is me, Landry.”

“I know. Do you remember that day?” I ask.

“I do. I was young, but it’s a memory I’ll cherish forever.

My social worker, Kathy, said that the children’s home I was living in was given free tickets for all the kids to attend a Rampage game.

I was seven or eight at the time, and I didn’t know a thing about football, but I was so excited to go.

The boy who was sitting next to me was so nice to me, explaining things, and when the Rampage scored, he high-fived me.

It was a happy day. They were few and far between, and this is one I’ll never forget. I can’t believe you found this.”

“I didn’t. A reporter did. They posted an article about it.”

“Really?” She scrunches up her nose. “I mean, I guess I could see the merit since I work for the Rampage now. When I left LA, Tennessee was calling to me. On a whim, from the memories of this very day, I applied to work for the Rampage. I thought it was a lost cause, but here I am.”

“Do you want to read the article?”