Last Play: Book 1 The Last Play Series (11 page)

L
unch was at a pizza place
. One that was attached to the ski resort. It was far more posh then The Lizard Café or the Wolfe’s Haven. This place was all stainless steel tables and chairs. Black, sleek, leather couches around gas lit fireplaces. Framed, watercolor art lined the walls. Roman thought about how Sheena loved to bid on stuff like this. His house was filled with meaningless shapes and colors. He hated it.

Katie had turned to him on the way inside and shrugged. “This place doesn’t feel homey at all, but it has the best pizza in town.”

A couple of skiers were sitting around, drinking coffee, still wearing their boots on their feet. Most of them were just taking breaks between runs.

They went to an open table next to a huge window that overlooked the side of the mountain. A waitress took their order and Roman couldn’t help feeling disappointed when the news guy on the large flat screen above them announced the roads up to Wolfe Creek would be cleared by the end of the day and available to skiers.

She faced him, taking off her coat. “You’re probably glad about the roads.”

He took a sip of water and flashed her a grin. “Why would you say that?”

“So you can get back. This town has probably felt … small.”

The way the sun hit her hair and her green eyes looked so open and happy to be just sitting here with him made him wish he could lean over and take her hand. She was beautiful. No make-up. No glamour. Everything about her was beautiful. She wore her hair back in a braid down the back of her neck. Sitting here in her Destroyers t-shirt, she looked younger than last night. His heartbeat picked up speed. “Actually, I’ve really enjoyed being here. You look good today, by the way.”

Immediately, she frowned and then looked out the large glass windows to the side of them that gave a nice view of the ski resort. “You’ve got your big meeting with the owners tomorrow, right?”

This took him by surprise. It shouldn’t have. Granted, the media was covering it pretty intensely. “Hmm. Yeah.” He hesitated. “But you do look good,” he insisted.

She still didn’t look at him. “Roman, I don’t think you should be complimenting me like that. I mean … especially since today and everything.”

How could he be so stupid? “I’m sorry,” he said quickly. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. He was hitting on her on the anniversary of her husband’s death.

It was only awkward for a couple of minutes. Then she looked back at him. “So, do you think the owners will put you back as a starter?”

“I thought you thought I shouldn’t even play.”

“I don’t.” She grinned. “But I may or may not have checked Google last night.”

Happiness filled him. “Really?”

“Don’t get a big head, QB,” she scoffed.

Typical of what he’d come to expect between them, they simply stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds. It felt completely strange to him how normal things felt with her. Almost like destiny. Like they were meant to meet. “You still haven’t told me what happened with Lou.”

“Do you like it there? In Dallas?”

He knew she was avoiding the question, but he let her. Leaning back in his chair, he stretched out his legs and held his water glass. “I love Dallas.” That was the honest answer. Sizing her up, he took a sip. “Would you ever leave?”

“Wolfe Creek?” She jerked to attention.

He grinned. “Or shall we say—Mecca, the homeland?”

She let out a breath. “My parents want me to. They keep asking why I’m still here.” She shrugged. “You know, the whole over qualified to be an ‘inn keeper.’”

At this point, and for some unknown reason, her response meant a lot to him. His heart raced, and he felt like he was on the sidelines waiting to go back in the game. “So would you leave?” he repeated.

The moment went slow, and their eyes locked. Something passed between them. Some kind of energy that took his breath away. She looked vulnerable and like the only thing that she might want … could be him. Then she looked down. “No.”

No. No? “No?”

Their eyes met again, and she set her jaw. “This is Josh’s home. I don’t have a husband to make decisions with anymore. To be anchored to, but I have this place. I want to give Josh that stability. So I’ll stay here.”

Nervous jitters went through him. Somewhere—deep down, he’d known this. “I can understand that. Is it because of Lou?”

Their food was set on the table. They each pulled off a hot pepperoncini bite. “So good,” Roman commented.

“Right,” she agreed, eating heartily.

“Well …?” He wasn’t going to give up hearing what had happened with Lou. It felt silly but he did want a chance to know.

She took another bite. “He … he likes me. He wanted to make his intentions ‘officially’ known last night.” She air quoted.

This mystified Roman. “Wow, that’s—”

“Gentlemanly,” she filled in for him and lifted her chin.

A small breath puffed out of him. “That’s exactly what I was going to say.”

She laughed.

“So he hasn’t made a move on you before?” he probed, taking a bite of pizza and wondering why he felt like he was competing for her.

She hesitated and then let out a long breath. “He’s made a move before, but honestly, I was completely uninterested then. So we decided to wait a year. As he mentioned, he was my husband’s best friend. It kind of felt natural for him to be around after everything. He helped me out a lot. Then he started coming over sometimes.”

“On movie night,” Roman filled in for her.

She rolled her eyes. “I should have thought he’d be coming over, sorry.”

Waving his hand in the air to dismiss her worry, he took another bite of pizza.

“A couple of months ago I asked him to lay off on the ‘dating me’ bit. I guess he looked at last night as a chance to start dating again. Officially.”

“Oh.” Roman tried not to ask too many questions. Like, why she had to ask him to lay off if she was ready to pursue other relationships now. His heart kept pounding at an unsteady rate. Dang, he felt like a teenager. “Hmm.” He tried to sound casual, disinterested. He wasn’t interested. He was going back to Dallas and she was … here.

A mischievous glint came into her eyes. “What?”

He sniffed and wiped his face with a napkin. “Nothing.”

“You’re not saying something.”

“Nothing,” he answered quickly.

Cocking an eyebrow, she nodded. “So you’re just asking … as a boss.”

He pointed at her. “Exactly. I just want to know if he can fix things.”

The look she gave him told him she wasn’t completely convinced. “So are you keeping me on?”

He stared at her, not comprehending for a second. “What?”

“As the manager?”

Her eyes looked bright and hopeful. Instantly he decided he would only sell it to someone who agreed to keep her on as the manager. He would make sure that was in there. “Of course.”

She nodded. “Thanks.”

Looking for another subject, he pointed to the ski lift. “You ski?”

She scoffed, “I could put you to shame, QB.”

Grateful that she’d picked up on his discomfort, he fell back into the playful banter. “You talk big, boss.”

She winked at him. “I’m pretty sure I can take a Texas boy.” She looked thoughtful. “But I don’t have skies…or a pass.”

He frowned, wondering at the difference between her and the other women he’d dated. They’d always just assumed he would pay. Always assumed he would not only pay, but also buy them things. “C’mon, let’s go get outfitted. I’ll tell you what. I’ll pay if you make me a bet.”

She laughed. “I don’t think I have much you want.”

This was just the thing he wanted. “If you win, I’ll cook dinner for you and Josh. If you win, you cook.”

Eyeing him, she shoved the pizza away. “I would say you just want to get out of work … if you didn’t own the place.”

He grinned. “What do you say?”

She frowned. “I can’t tonight.”

Lou’s face flashed through his mind. “Oh, I see.”

Her face went blank. “It’s not that. Lou, I mean.”

“What?” There was no way he was blushing. No way. “It’s fine.”

She looked thoughtful. Then she exhaled. “Josh’s grandparents have asked for him to come stay for the night.”

“Oh.” His mind whirled. “Well, I guess it could just be you and me.”

Then he saw her blush. “I just need to be alone tonight.”

Disappointment surged within him. “Oh.” He tried to recover and stood. “I understand.”

She stood. “I’m sorry.”

He pulled a couple bills from his wallet and left them on the table, trying to cover the let down. “It’s fine.” All he could think about was the fact he was leaving tomorrow. “No big deal.” He would just enjoy this moment. With his friend.

Katie grinned and stood. “C’mon, QB, I can school you and still get a few hours of work in.”

Warmth surged inside of him. “Let’s go.”

R
oman sat
in the hot tub on his uncle’s deck. How he needed the hot tub. They’d spent the afternoon on the slopes. She’d taken it easy on him on the bunny hill. Then she’d blown him away on the real slopes. Good thing she hadn’t taken him up on the bet. He didn’t know how he would have cooked tonight.

At least, that was the lie he was telling himself. The snow had completely stopped, but the view off his uncle’s deck took his breath away. With the weather clear, he could see the mountain and the ski resort. He could see little people skiing down the mountain. The sun was setting, and it was breathtaking. Still. Quiet.

It was unusual for him not to check his phone every couple of minutes. Or check facebook or twitter or some news report. But he hadn’t today. He’d turned off his phone at lunch, and he hadn’t bothered to turn it back on.

The fact that he’d been so consumed with coming to Wolfe Creek and getting the Alaskan sold felt like something from a long time ago. It seemed less important now. It was more important to make sure Katie was taken care of in that contract.

He could keep it if he had to.

The thought had crossed his mind over the past couple of days, but he’d always rejected it. The only thing that would be hard was if he had to see Katie ‘officially’ dating Lou when he came for visits. She and Lou would get married, have some kids …. He had to quit thinking along those lines or else he would get really depressed. Plus, even if it hurt, he would do it for Katie.

After getting out of the hot tub, taking a long shower, he began looking for his clothes bag.

Folded nicely on the bed were all his clothes he’d worn. There was a note on top of them. “Thought Katie would be working you. Mrs. K.”

Warmth flooded him. This lady, that was battling cancer, was doing his laundry just to help him. For some insane reason, tears filled his eyes. She’d insisted he couldn’t pay her for cooking and now this. What had Katie said about her the other day? That Mrs. K needed a miracle, and it broke her heart to think she might not get one.

Putting on the clothes, he held onto her note and then pushed it into his wallet, making a decision to have money wired to her account when he got back. “You never know when miracles show up, Mrs. K.”

He put on heavy socks and went downstairs. He knew there were leftovers in the fridge, but he wanted to sit by the fire for a bit. He’d started it before he’d gotten into the hot tub and now he put on another log on.

Sitting on the couch, he reflected how nice it had been to check out of the media for a bit. To just … live in the moment. He thought about what Katie had said earlier, about how next time it could be his neck. She’d been right. It could be. It was the fear that stayed on the edges of all football players—that they would get hurt and not be able to play any longer. She’d been right about the fact that he did have plenty of money. He had also been buying up car dealerships and real estate. If there had been anything he’d learned growing up poor, it was that he never wanted to be poor again.

But he did love the game. The competition was the thing that kept him pushing himself the past six months after the injury. He liked being the best. He liked the media attention. Well, he thought of Sheena, maybe he didn’t like it as much anymore.

He felt different. Not just from his uncle passing, but also from being here the past few days. He felt like he’d had a snapshot of what close to normal might be able to be.

He leaned forward and held out his hands to the fire, ignoring the tugging hunger inside him. He wished Katie were here. Then he felt bad for wishing it. She needed to be alone. He got that. She missed her husband. Missed someone who had built a life with her—through sweat and worry and with love. An ache burned into him. She’d had love. That’s why she’d had a hard time getting out of bed. Why she’d had to see a therapist. Because she knew what real love was.

A tear went down his cheek. It wasn’t pity that he felt for the relationship he’d had with Sheena. No. It had been stupidity on his part. Sheena had never pretended to be something other than she was. She had never pretended to be like Katie. It was him that had been different. That felt different now.

Out of nowhere, there was a knock at the door.

P
adding across the floor
, his heart raced. It could be Mrs. K, but somehow he knew it wasn’t. Right or wrong, he hoped it was Katie. He pushed the door back.

There she stood in her Carhartt suit with her red hair in soft curls spilling out of the hat. She pointed to her lips. “I don’t know why I put on lipstick, so don’t ask.”

“Hey.” He didn’t know what to say, how to act. She was emotionally fragile, and this was the date of her husband’s death.

Pushing inside, she shoved a bag into his arms. “You shouldn’t stand there and hold the door open. Don’t you know it’s cold out there?”

He backed up, shaken from his daze and took the bag. “Hey.”

She pulled off her snow clothes and hung them up, tugging off her hat. Her cheeks were rosy, and he closed his eyes for a second and inhaled her lemon scent.

Hesitating next to him, she lifted her brow and shrugged. “I thought you might need dinner.” She took the bag back and moved toward the kitchen.

He followed and watched how she pulled out a couple of foil-covered containers: salad, chicken, and rice that smelled incredible. He couldn’t deny he was hungry, but the hunger he felt wasn’t just for food. No. Once he’d seen her at the door, another hunger had stirred inside of him.

She ignored him, setting the table for two. Lighting two candles. She glanced back at him. “Will you light the fire in here?”

He did as he was told, his hands shaking. He didn’t know what was going on, but all he could say was that it was something bigger than him. That’s all he knew.

She waited at the table, and he noticed she wore a green, emerald turtleneck. With the red hair and lipstick, she looked like a model. Not Sheena kind of model—too perfect, overly done up—no, she looked like an American Girl doll. Pretty. Innocent. Happy.

“Sit,” she commanded.

He sat.

After sitting, she picked up her fork. “Aren’t you hungry?”

He started eating, not knowing why he was so nervous.

“You haven’t said a word,” she said.

His throat felt dry. He took a sip of water. “Thank you, this looks great.”

She grinned and flipped her hair over her shoulder.

He thought, again, how she was attractive without trying to be. “I’m glad you’re here,” he whispered without knowing why.

She watched him eating then took a sip of water. “I sat at my kitchen table with a bowl of cereal. Uneaten. I mean, why should I cook if it was just me, right? A night off. Then I realized something.”

He put his fork down. “What?”

She put her hand on top of his. “I didn’t want to be alone right now.”

His heart pounded inside his chest. What was happening?

She laughed. “Don’t give me that look, I’m not throwing myself at you or anything.”

“I didn’t think that,” he answered too quickly.

She laughed harder and pulled her hand back to take a sip of water and wipe her mouth. “Yes, you did.”

He laughed, too. “Okay, maybe I did, but I wouldn’t have let you.”

A look of disbelief washed over her face. “You wouldn’t have
let
me?”

A serious ache formed into his gut. “No, I wouldn’t have let you tonight.”

She sobered and blinked. “Thank you. I just didn’t want to sit there by myself. I thought …” she broke off and shook her head. “Never mind.”

Gently, he took her hand and laced his fingers through hers. “You thought right.”

She smiled, and how long they stared at each other, he didn’t know. But he did know that he’d been right earlier. Somehow, by destiny or fate, or he’d been brought to the Alaskan Inn to meet Katie Winters.

She teased him about smelling so good, and he teased her about smelling like lemon.

“That’s my splurge, I get that lotion when I go into Ogden. It makes me feel feminine.”

For some reason, seeing her so vulnerable, her hand in his, made his desire to kiss her go, on a scale of zero to ten, from a strong eight to an eleven or twelve. “You don’t need the lotion to be feminine.”

They cleaned up, and then he offered to make some of the cocoa that he’d found on the counter. He knew it had to be left from Mrs. K.

“The great Roman Young makes hot cocoa?” She teased him as she put the dishes back into the cupboard.

He tsked his tongue and pulled out some mugs and filled them with hot water from the microwave. “Are you kidding? You’re going to get a Young specialty.”

“Okay.” Katie laughed, and they took their mugs and moved into the living room.

He saw the football on the table in the front room. “Don’t forget that for Josh.”

She picked it up, and tears came to her eyes. “The one you gave Jim?”

He nodded. “It’s from my first season when I took them to the championship game. It’s a collector’s item.”

“Thank you.”

The sun had gone down, and they went to the couch. He got one of the heavy quilts and put it over their legs.

She sipped the cocoa. “It’s good.”

He grinned and sipped his own. “It is good.”

Looking at the walls, she let out a breath. “I’m thinking when we remodel this room, we keep some things.”

He shrugged and gestured with the cup to the mantel of the fireplace. “Like that old rifle? No, I say take it all down. Get rid of it all and buy new stuff.”

She cocked an eyebrow. “You do know that that gun belonged to … let’s see … your great, great, great, great grandfather that fought in the Civil War.”

The fact she knew more about his history than he did didn’t surprise him. “I didn’t know that.”

Shaking her head, she smiled. “Plus, it was important to Jim. That’s enough reason to keep it.”

Then he reached for her hand. “Then we’ll keep it.”

She grinned. “We’re agreed then.”

“Did I ever have a choice?”

She laughed.

He couldn’t explain how much he wanted to be with her, but how much more important it was for him to be there for her tonight. This was her husband’s night. Tonight, he would be her friend. So he asked about him. About them.

“Are you sure you want to hear this?”

He did. “Of course.”

So she told him. About growing up together. Falling in love their senior year. Marrying right out of high school and leveraging everything to buy the farm.

She sighed. “We made a good team. I was good at keeping the finances organized. He was good with the animals, and we both worked hard.” She looked suddenly sad.

He tried to lighten it. “I can see you being good at being organized … or bossy.” He took another sip.

She blinked back tears. “I loved him so much, but …” She looked away from him. “The last couple of days with you it’s been …” She stopped and shook her head.

Carefully, he put down his cocoa and reached up and touched her hair. “What?”

She put down her cocoa and took his hand and pressed it to her cheek. “Is it bad that I wanted to kiss you last night?” She sucked in a breath. “I’m sad to lose him, I’ve mourned him for a year, but … I can’t deny these feelings for you.”

He wouldn’t do this. He wouldn’t lean forward. He wouldn’t do the only thing he’d been thinking about all evening. He sucked in a breath and closed his eyes.

“Pansy.”

His eyes flicked open. “What?”

“You’re afraid.”

This was unbelievable. “Of what?”

“Kissing me.” She put her chin out in that challenging way.

He broke off, laughing. “I cannot believe you just said that.”

“Well, then you tell me, QB.”

The fact that his heart rate sped up, like he was about to throw a pass, did not mean a thing. “It’s his day,” he whispered.

Katie stayed almost nose-to-nose with him. She stared into his eyes. “I know … and I know I shouldn’t want this.”

“But you do?”

She blinked, and a tear fell down her cheek. “I want you to kiss me. That’s all I know.”

He leaned forward. His lips touched hers softly. So softly it could have been a whisper. But he was startled when she put her arms gently around his neck and pulled him closer, deepening the kiss. Her hands ran through his hair, lighting small fires everywhere she touched.

Within the duration of that kiss his whole life passed before him. The life he could have here. With her. With Josh. With, he was shocked to see, a passel of kids around them. They were here in this inn—welcoming families. Possibly skiing together, sledding, going out to the diner, snuggled up by the fire on cold nights.

Then she pulled back, dragging him back to real life.

The side of her lip tugged up. “You have lipstick all over your face.” She jumped up. “Let me get you a towel.”

Putting his hands on her hips, he tugged her back down. “Huh, uh.”

She fell into him, giggling. “Sheesh.”

He pressed his lips back to her. “I like lipstick all over my face.” He lifted his head back to get a view of her face. “Hey, you have lipstick all over your face, too.”

She giggled, and he kissed her more, pulling her closer, relishing the smell of lemon.

The next thing he knew, he had his hand on her cheek and was gently tracing her jawbone.

She tugged back. “I’m sure glad I didn’t shoot you the other night.”

He laughed and gently kissed her forehead. “I’m glad you didn’t shoot me, too.”

He got up and put another log on the fire and then went back and snuggled back into her arms, just holding her close. It felt amazing. He never wanted to leave this place.

“So, how did that play go?”

He caught the teasing look on her face, and he grinned. “I’d say we definitely made a first down.”

“Oh yeah?” she challenged.

“Well,” he caressed her neck and gave her a little kiss on the lips. “But remember every play has to be considered, thought out, fought for.” He kissed her again.

She giggled. “Well, don’t be thinking you’ll move that ball too far, Mr. Young.”

He kissed her again. “You mean because of Lou.”

After jerking back, she laughed even harder. “Whatever.”

Pulling her forward, he gave her another soft kiss. “Tell me, how many kisses has he gotten in?”

A roll of laughter rushed out of her. “And now you’ve revealed yourself as just another competitive jock.”

“Hey.” He yanked back, slightly offended. “I do not consider you a game. This is not a game to me.”

Her cheeks flushed. “I’m going to be real honest with you, Roman. I don’t know if my heart can take it if it’s not real.”

He gently kissed her, pushing her hair back. “Well, then let’s do as Uncle Jim always said. Let’s look at every chance we’re together like it could determine the rest of the game. Let’s make it good.”

She wagged her finger. “But no touchdowns, yet.” Another blush.

He grinned. “No, we’ll save that part.”

“You’re a good man, Roman Young, even if you’ve distracted me out of work the past two days.”

He sighed. “I know. I’m sorry.”

She sighed. “It’s okay.”

As they watched the fire and held hands, and he was filled with more hope and more love and more joy in that one moment than he’d been in his entire life.

Then, there was another knock at the door.