Page 49 of The Aster Valley Collection, Vol. 1

MIKEY

I didn’t sleep well, despite pressing myself closer to Tiller than the small Super Bowl tattoo he had on his calf.

Usually, sleeping against him was as good as being knocked out with hard drugs, but I couldn’t stop the anger welling inside me.

I was almost thirty years old, well beyond the age when my parents should have a say in who I dated or slept with.

At first, I’d wondered if I was making too much of it.

I certainly didn’t want to get into World War Three with my father over a temporary hookup with Tiller.

But after the way the gentle giant had claimed me in front of Sam the other night and talked about enjoying the double date as a couple with Winter and Gent, I thought maybe it was okay for me to assume this was more than a temporary fling.

He’d told my father he had feelings.

So I waited until he’d downed his breakfast and headed out to a doctor’s appointment before I started trying to come up with a plan.

Meanwhile, Gary Civetti called to arrange a meeting in Aster Valley on Monday.

They were still in the area and were excited to hear from me.

I went ahead with my plans to fly out in the morning so I wouldn’t be tempted to go to the game on Sunday.

Even if my parents knew about Tiller and me, I still wasn’t ready to see him put himself in the line of fire against the Steelers.

Once I made my travel arrangements, I grabbed my keys and set off for my parents’ house.

I wanted to get it out in the open, tell Mom and Dad that things were real this time.

Tiller wasn’t a fling like Nelson had been.

He was the real deal. This wasn’t a crush or a lark.

This was someone I had true feelings for.

I didn’t just like Tiller Raine. I loved him.

I jerked to a stop in the back hallway just as I was reaching for the door to the garage.

My stomach tumbled in crazy loops as the knowledge of my certainty hit me all at once. It was true. I loved Tiller. Desperately.

The breaths came quick and sharp. Oh fucking hell, I’m in love with Tiller Raine .

I reached out and grabbed the wall next to me as my head spun. Why was this such a surprise? I’d had a crush on him for a long time. Even though I’d been in denial most of the five years I’d worked for him, there was no denying how close we’d become in that time.

What if he didn’t feel the same way? I knew he cared about me. He was a kind man, and we were close friends if nothing else. But what if… what if he didn’t care about me like that ?

I entered this little janky mental cycle in which I had to remind myself he’d told my father he had feelings for me, and then my brain countered the reminder with all the reasons that probably hadn’t meant what I’d thought it had meant.

“Fucking hell,” I muttered to the garage door. “What am I saying? He looks at me like I’m a piping hot supreme pizza and he’s spent days eating nothing but raw beetroot.”

I finally got ahold of myself and made my way out to the SUV.

Sliding into Tiller’s “backup” car was always a treat.

It was smooth, buttery leather with a hundred percent less shitmobile ambiance than my ancient Volkswagen Golf.

I loved the SUV so much, Tiller had suggested I change the tag to a personalized one that said MIKEYV.

I may have even considered it for a brief moment while petting the steering wheel one day, but in the end I’d reminded myself I was perfectly happy with my shitmobile. Most days, anyway.

Not today. Today I needed all the Big Dick Energy I could gather. I had plans to march into my father’s house and declare my relationship none of his beeswax. For that, I needed to get into the mindset of a pro football player with a giant ego.

I also needed an iced coffee from Starbucks and possibly one of their cookies.

Once I was well armed, I made my way into my parents’ house and called out. “Mom! Dad! I’m here.”

Crickets.

I finally found my mom out back talking to Mrs. Nibert over the fence. I tried turning back around before either of them saw me, but it was too late.

“Mikey!” Mom called out with a smile. “Come see Mrs. Nibert’s odd gourd.”

I waved and smiled. “Oh, no, thank you! I saw it last night.”

Mom frowned at me in disapproval. “What in the world has gotten into you, Michael Vining?”

Oh lord. This wasn’t how Big Dick Energy was supposed to work. I sighed and wandered out into the yard. “Yes, Mother.”

Twenty minutes later, after I’d seen more late-season gourds than anyone had a right to make someone look at, my mom finally followed me inside and told me Dad had headed into work already.

Hellfire and damnation. I could have avoided all of this nonsense if I’d headed to the practice facility first.

I decided to float a test balloon. “Mom?”

“Mm-hm?” she asked while dropping a complimentary gourd in the trash can and washing her hands at the kitchen sink.

“I’m kind of… seeing someone.”

“Oh honey, that’s wonderful,” she said, looking up as she dried her hands on a dish towel.

She looked truly happy to hear it. I wasn’t surprised she hadn’t known.

My parents didn’t have the kind of relationship where they talked about mushy-gushy things like dating and relationships.

Theirs was more of a “What time are we meeting the Niberts for dinner at the club?” kind of marriage.

“Yeah,” I continued. “But I kind of need some advice.”

Her face dropped. “Sweetheart, I’m not sure I know how to advise you about dating a man.” Then she seemed to realize what she’d said. “Well, I guess I do, but it’s been a while since I’ve dated one myself.”

“Not that kind of advice,” I said. “I’m dating a player.”

“Meaning he dates lots of people?”

Bless her heart. You could trace my mother’s entire family tree going back hundreds of years and you’d never find an Albert Einstein perched on a single branch.

“No, Mom. Meaning, he plays football for the Riggers.”

“Oh. Ohhhh . Hm.” She pinched her face together while she thought it through. “Are you worried you don’t have much in common?”

I blinked at her. “Well, I wasn’t. Until you said that. Jesus, Mom.”

“Honey, why don’t you tell me what the problem is, exactly?”

“Dad’s going to freak out. And I don’t want him to retaliate on Tiller because he’s dating me.”

Mom clapped her hands together and smiled. “It’s Tiller? Oh, I love him. He’s so handsome and kind. What a nice boy. Plus, it doesn’t hurt he’s one of the most successful NFL players in your generation. How exciting! Tell me everything.”

I loved my mom. She had her fair share of pros and cons, but in general, her heart was usually in the right place. “I really like him, Mom. He’s so sweet and thoughtful. He treats me like the most important person in his life and we’re not even really dating. At least… we haven’t said we are.”

“Will dating Tiller interfere with your job?”

She meant my job working for him. I still hadn’t told my parents about the cookbook deal or my dream of opening my own restaurant, but they had to know I had a ton of savings built up by now. Enough to give me options. “No, because I quit.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. “Why? Mikey, that job is perfect for you. You love working for Tiller.”

“I love taking care of Tiller. It’s not really the same thing. Yes, I did love working for him, but I don’t want to work for him if we’re dating.”

“What are you going to do for work?”

I took a seat on one of the stools at the island. “I have plenty of savings. I’m fine.”

Mom straightened a pewter basket that had fake fruit in it. “Where are you going to live? Do you want to come back here while you look for a place?”

It had never occurred to me that I’d need to move out of Tiller’s place, but if I no longer worked for him, what did that mean exactly? I couldn’t exactly go from a live-in personal chef to a live-in boyfriend without an actual conversation.

Could I?

“I’m not sure, but it doesn’t matter right now anyway,” I said dismissively. “I’m headed back to Colorado. I actually… have a lead on a possible job there. I don’t know. We’ll see.” It was at least a quick way of getting her off my back about work.

Her face lit up. “Oh honey, that’s fantastic. Although… I’m not sure I’d be okay with you living so far away. I’d miss you terribly.”

While it was nice of her to say it, I wasn’t sure I believed it.

She rarely called me or invited me anywhere.

She definitely enjoyed it when I came over for a visit, but it was never reciprocated despite my inviting her over for meals many times to taste-test new recipes or even have an old favorite I knew she liked.

I guess part of me was wondering if the worst came to pass—if Dad sent Tiller off to another team in another city—could I, would I, go with him?

The answer was yes, if he’d have me. At this point I knew well enough to know I didn’t want to be apart from Tiller at all. In fact, I couldn’t even imagine it.

Life without Tiller? No, thanks.

“Bring him to Galveston,” Mom said. “We have plenty of room.”

I tilted my head at her. “What do you mean, Galveston?”

“You know, the big rental house we arranged for Christmas.” She flapped her hand as if she’d already told me this, but I would have remembered. She definitely had not told me this.

“No, I don’t know.”

She fussed with a houseplant on the counter in front of her. “Well, your father and I have rented a house on the water for the week of Christmas. All your brothers are coming so we can have a big family do. Won’t that be nice?”

I refused to have hurt feelings over being left out. “Were you going to tell me about this big family gathering? Ever?”

Maybe I wasn’t as mature as I’d hoped.

“If I recall, you were supposed to be in Colorado for the holiday. It must have slipped my mind. But the two of you can come now, and you can introduce Tiller to your family.”

“They all know him already, and I’m not sure Coach would be as welcoming as you are.”