Page 93 of Too Far

The next time I open my eyes, Decker is dressed. He’s hovering over me, his brow furrowed and his expression unreadable.

Onyx eyes meet mine, and then he nods once.

“Come down to the dining room when you’re ready.”

He turns on his heel, and then he’s gone, leaving me alone in his bed.

Chapter 42

Decker

It’smorethananhour later when I hear Josephine in the kitchen.

I’ve been in the dining room waiting all this time, too sick to my stomach to eat.

The boys are seated on either side of the table. They know very little, but I asked them to stay. As always, they’ve got my back. They’re supporting me, despite the lack of information I’ve given them.

“As soon as Josephine joins us, we can wrap this up.”

They’re here because I need them to witness my resolve. When they do, they’ll know this is the real deal.

I also need them to be here for her, to clean up the mess I’m about to make.

Josephine pushes through the dining room door with a coffee mug in hand. “Oh.” She stumbles to a stop when she takes in the four of us seated around the table.

I clear my throat, garnering the attention of everyone in the room. “I want to talk about what happened last night.”

Silently, our girl nods and makes her way over to Locke.

Their girl.

Their girl.

“I’ve sent away the camera crew, and I’ve notified SportsZone that we’re done.”

“Thank fuck,” Kylian mutters.

Kendrick hums in appreciation.

“How—” Locke starts.

I raise a hand to silence him. If I don’t get the words out quickly, I won’t see it through.

“They have enough footage, and we have final approval over everything shared or published. I made it clear that I wouldn’t approve anything captured after five o’clock yesterday, so collecting additional footage was a waste of resources. I also implied I’d be hard-pressed to approve much of anything if they insisted on coming back to the house.”

“I’ve also hired outside counsel to review my NIL commitments for the rest of the year so we aren’t surprised by something like this again. I’m happy to have them look over yours, too,” I add, regarding Kendrick, then Locke.

“That’s probably a good idea,” Locke mutters as Josephine leans her head on his shoulder.

Their girl.

Their girl.

“Yeah,” Kendrick adds. “Thanks, Cap.”

With my heart in my throat, I rise to my feet. Looking at each of my boys, I will them to feel the sincerity of my next words. I will them to forgive me for what I’m about to do.

“What you all did last night… what you went through and how you handled it, thank you. And I’m sorry.” I fist my hands at my sides to keep them from shaking, to keep my composure. “We always knew there’d be ups and downs. Knowing you’ve got my back even through the lowest points… that makes this worth it. I appreciate it more than you could ever know.”