Page 55 of Wild Card

“No, but I could. I just need to download a dating app, and I’m sure I could find some. It can’t be that hard. I’ve just been busy with work and my history channel.”

“Ah yes. Busy with work.”

“Don’t say it like that. He is a lot of work some days.”

“Oh, I’m sure he is.” Joss grins.

“Which is exactly why you need downtime and someone to take you out and treat you to dinner and a movie.”

“Fine. If you find someone… I’ll go on a date or a double date.”

“Or a quadruple date,” Joss suggests. “See, this is why it would be better if it was someone on the team. Someone who already gets our dynamic and fits in with the group. Trying to adopt some nerd she finds in a university or a dating app… I don’t think so.” Joss shakes her head in disbelief.

“I’ll consider someone on the team, but he has to be able to hold a conversation about something other than football. Don’t get me wrong. I love the game, but I need something more than that,” I concede to the idea.

“All right. Just give us a little time. I’ll plot—I mean plan something good.” Joss slides the cherry out of her drink and into her mouth, crushing it with her teeth as another devious look crosses her face.

“Why do I feel like I’ve just accepted some sort of dark fate?” I look to Harper.

“Because you probably have.”

THIRTY

Tobias

That nightafter they finish practice and dinner, Colt, Xander, Waylon, and Ben all come over to my house to play some video games and hang out for a bit. We’ve ordered some pizza and we’re sprawled out across my living room. It almost feels like old times except for the fact they’re playing and I’m not, and right now things are dire.

“So how’s the mood in the locker room?”

“Not fucking great since I can’t stop throwing interceptions,” Colt grumbles, keeping his eyes on the TV as he and Ben try to take a fictional compound of aliens in the game.

“It’s not all your fault.” Ben shakes his head, glancing back at me to give me a look that lets me know Colt is in his head about it. “I can’t get open. We’re all fucking up.”

“Yeah, and our fucking line could use work,” Waylon adds quietly. “We need to be more in sync. Give you longer to throw.”

“Defense is doing all right. A few things that could be improved but we’re confident it’s all gonna come together. It’s been rough losing Colt and then you. You know? We can’t ignore that. And Colt’s gonna take a minute to be a hundred percent again. That was a serious concussion.”

“Yeah, well… I should be pulling it together faster.” He shakes his head.

“Tell me about it,” I grouch, adding to the general storm cloud in the room.

“How’s that going anyway? The PT?”

“Progress each week. But day to day it feels like nothing gets better. Definitely not as fast as I’d like, that’s for fucking sure.”

“How are things around here?” Xander gives me a look, and I know what he’s really asking.

“She found the library and has a bunch of ideas for how to organize things and care for them better. So I let her have at it.”

“Oh yeah? Makes sense she would like it in there. That’s a bonus if she gets it in order for you.”

“I’ve helped her a little bit.”

“So you’re spending time around each other?”

“Like you don’t know, and she’s not one of your spies.” I glance over at him from the TV.

“Spies,” he scoffs. “Harper asks how things are going. She sometimes gives a minimal report, and it gets back to me. No one is spying.”