Last Play: Book 1 The Last Play Series (9 page)

A
s quickly as
Josh had gotten serious about missing his dad, he flitted to other thoughts, keeping the conversation going through dinner with questions about Roman’s childhood, his mother, his father, why he didn’t have any brothers.

Roman fired back questions in equal amounts about Josh’s teacher, his friends, why he wasn’t playing football yet.

At this, Josh rolled his eyes and looked sheepishly at his mother. “She won’t let me until I’m twelve.”

Katie had an eyebrow cocked when Roman turned to her.

“Well,” Roman remembered his own mother having that rule. He also remembered ganging up on her with Uncle Jim. She hadn’t given in until he was eleven, after much convincing. He grinned. “Then you’ll listen to your mother. They’re right most of the time.” He winked at Katie.

Josh seemed to think about it. Then he turned to his mother. “Can I have a donut, please mom?”

He’d eaten most of his dinner.

Katie finished chewing and then took a sip of water. “Yes.” Her eyes sparkled with happiness as Josh jumped off the chair and ran for the sack.

They both laughed.

Katie’s phone buzzed. She got up and checked it.

“Everything okay?” Roman asked.

Giving him her phone, she glared at him. “I see you’ve already been claimed by your Wolfe Creek Bachelorette.”

Even though Roman wasn’t surprised to see the selfie of him and Tiffany, he knew he was blushing. “Arg. I let her take a selfie with me at the gas station.”

Rolling her eyes, Katie took her phone back. “Well, I guess your image can handle Tiffany.”

He was confused. “How come you get tweets from Tiffany?”

“I don’t. Tiffany just texted me to make sure I saw it and added the link.”

A laugh jerked out of Roman. “Of course she did.”

She shook her head.

Roman finished eating. “Well. Thank you for dinner. And you can send out a tweet of our sledding picture anytime you want.” He cleared his throat when she glared at him again. “You know, just in case you want to combat Tiffany.”

She scoffed, “I wouldn’t do that.”

He grinned, liking the fact she was still staring at the picture of him. “Well, you don’t have to get my attention like that.”

“I don’t?” she challenged.

He winked at her and stood. “No, Mrs. Winters, you have all my attention.”

Katie looked surprised and stood, too. “You’re not leaving, are you?”

The fact she looked upset made Roman happy. He gathered his and Josh’s dishes. “In my house, whoever cooked never did dishes.” That had been his mother’s rule, and she’d clung to it hard and fast, even as he’d gotten older. Granted, Sheena had never cooked so it’d never been a thing before.

“Oh no.” She began clearing her own dishes and put the salad dressing in the crook of her elbow. “I couldn’t let you.”

Leveling her with a frown, Roman walked for the sink. “I don’t think you have a choice. I’m a guest.”

“Exactly,” she said, insisting, “Guests don’t do dishes.” She shoved herself between him and the sink just as he was putting the dishes in.

He pulled his arm back and then put the dishes into the sink with her in front of him. It felt intimate standing so close together. He breathed in her now familiar mellow lemon scent. His heartbeat ratcheted up a notch. He was leaning just a bit, and her lips were right there. At the perfect level.

When he looked back to her eyes, he realized they were on his lips, and she appeared to be breathing just as hard.

“You’re not doing dishes. Why do you always have to push me?”

He couldn’t help himself. He drew closer, studying her eyes. “It’s not pushing. It’s manners.” His voice was low.

Her breath hitched, and she grinned quickly spinning to the side and putting the dishes down into the sink. She flipped on the faucet. “You’re too late, I’ve already started.”

Looking back, he would wonder why he had felt compelled to pick her up and take her into the front room.

She fought against him, but he was too strong. “Roman, put me down!”

“Yeah! Woot!” Josh was beside them, a donut in each hand. “No dishes for you, mom!”

He put her on the couch, but kept her arms pinned to the sides for a second before letting go and sprinting back to the kitchen. He heard trailing laughter.

“He got you, mom!” Josh called out.

She laughed more. “Yes, he did.”

Roman had barely begun filling the dishwasher when she came back in. Her chin up, she went straight to the table, a grin on her face. “You are the most
mannered
guest I’ve ever had.”

A laugh escaped him at her backhanded compliment. “Thank you.” He focused on cleaning the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher.

She put all the food away and hummed.

“Mom, can I turn the movie on?”

“Go brush your teeth, and then you can.” She opened the fridge and put leftovers in. “We’ll be out in a second.”

It was ridiculous, but being in the kitchen with her and watching her cheerfully put away leftovers, he was filled with more than happiness. He felt content and at home. Then she was done. She took a towel, sliding next to Roman. “Excuse me, I need some water.”

Feeling silly, he took some bubbles and put them on her nose. “I guess I can spare some.” He pushed the faucet up.

Hesitating, she blew the bubbles off her nose and then gently swiped some more up and onto his nose.

Their eyes met, and all Roman wanted to do at this moment was kiss her. This simple task, sharing a meal on a cold night, and then doing this normal chore left him breathless. How he had wanted something like this with Sheena. How he’d longed for it. But, she’d been a woman that never would have held a tool, let alone made him home made bread. Heck, Katie had done more sincere things for him in two days than his ex-wife had ever done in their three-year marriage. “Katie,” he whispered.

For a second, he thought they might kiss.

“Mom.”

Both of them were yanked back to reality.

Josh put his hands on his hips. “When are you guys going to come watch the movie?” he asked.

Katie shushed him and took him back into the front room.

Finishing up the dishes and wiping off the counters, Roman wondered how long he could stand being in the room with her and not kissing her.

G
etting situated
on the couch had been an easy task. “Come sit by me,” Josh insisted when the kitchen was put away to Katie’s specifications. He held out an old football and a marker. “Will you sign this?”

Roman took the football. “How about I make you a deal?”

“Okay.” Josh looked at him expectantly.

“How about I give you a signed Cowboy’s ball tomorrow?”

He bounced in his seat. “Really?”

He’d seen a ball that his uncle had kept by his bedside, with Roman’s signature on it. He was sure his uncle wouldn’t mind if Josh had it. “I’ll send it home with your mom.”

He grinned. “Deal.”

Katie sat on the other side of Josh, and they all fell into a silent camaraderie as they watched the movie.

Every couple of minutes Josh pointed at the movie and laughed and asked Roman if he’d seen this part. Roman really hadn’t seen it. He relaxed into a comfortable spectator position, crossing his ankle on his knee.

It wasn’t too long before Josh lay back and began to doze against his mother’s side.

At first Roman tried not to look at Katie. Then not looking at her ended up being the only thing he could focus on. Finally, he relented.

To his immense pleasure, she was already staring at him, her hand on Josh’s head and a grin on her face. Her eyes were that bright, almost turquoise green.

“What?” he whispered, feeling caught.

She looked down at Josh for a second. His eyes were closed, and his breathing was steady. “You’re not what I expected, Roman Young.”

Sudden warmth filled him, and he grinned. He could only imagine what she had thought of him from the media coverage. He lifted his eyebrows. “I guess my only answer is…I never expected you, Katie Winters.”

At this, she grinned back.

He nodded to Josh. “Do you want me to carry him up?”

She gave a quick nod.

He stood and then, with extra care, tugged Josh gently from his mother’s arms.

Katie went ahead of him, turning on the lights up the stairs.

He followed her into a super hero decorated room with blue curtains and a Destroyers bed spread. He couldn’t resist. “This boy is clearly a good boy.”

She drew the covers back and sighed. “What can I say? He and his father always liked the Destroyers.”

Roman put him in the bed and then backed up as she finished tucking him in. Josh woke a little. “Mama, lay by me.”

“Will you turn off the light?” Katie asked as she slipped beside Josh in his bed.

Roman backed up, turning off the light and softly going down the stairs. His mind was filled with her. Her long, soft curls and lemon smell—like lemonade on a summer day on the porch with his mother. Emotions swirled through him that he didn’t know how to handle, but they felt good. Real. Everything that his life in Texas was not.

He heard her singing some soft song to Josh. Yes, that was what he liked about Katie. She was real. The kind of woman a man could hold tight on a cold night, without worrying if he messed up her hair. The kind of woman a man could tease and pick up. The kind of woman who would put him in his place—for the right reasons, like to tell him to be kind because Henry and Mrs. K were dealing with a lot.

He sat on her couch and watched Buzz Light Year. It mystified him that suddenly he’d found everything he’d ever wanted. Right here. At the Alaskan Inn.

Had his uncle known that he would fall in love with Katie? How could he have? Maybe he’d hoped? Warmth filled him.

Katie padded down the stairs and Roman felt his pulse spike again. Dang, how is it he couldn’t get used to being near her? He had been at the classiest events, on camera shoots, at the best parties and he had never, ever felt nervous around those women. But here, in the middle of podunk nowhere, here was a woman, wearing a tool belt and pom pom hats, that put him off his game.

She stood by the TV and changed the channels, putting on the news. Immediately, sports came up, and his picture splashed onto the screen. She sat down next to him.

“Tonight, in the Dumont/Young show down, our sources say Young went out of town to get out of the media’s eyes. Sources say that owner Ty Halstad still wants Young to come back and take his rightful place this year, but there have been grumblings after the big win last week that Young might be done with his game. That…”

Katie picked up a remote and turned the television off.

He hadn’t realized that his hands had turned to fists and that he was on the edge of the couch.

Katie put the remote down. “Shouldn’t have turned on the news.”

He let out a sigh. It felt silly to admit, but he’d almost, for just a few days in Wolfe Creek, forgotten all the troubles back home. “How come the word home suddenly sounds wrong?” He stood and walked in a circle, a small circle in her cute living room that had two big magnetic boards filled with Josh’s art pictures. He walked over to study them. She’d already added the picture from earlier.

“I’m sorry, Roman.”

He studied the pictures of animals, of her and Josh together, of little things from nature. His heart tugged. The two of them seemed happy. He stopped when he got to the front mantel and saw a picture of her and Josh and her husband, John.

“That’s the last picture we have of all of us together.” She stood beside him.

Without thinking, he took her hand. “It’s beautiful.” He studied a few others on the mantel, and then he noticed that her hand had gone still.

He looked down at their hands together. Instantly, he dropped her hand. “I’m sorry.”

She blinked and stared up at him with those sad green cat eyes. Beautiful eyes that had so many shades and emotions in them. “I have a question for you.”

He studied her back, feeling the chemistry between them. “Only if I can ask a question, too.”

A slow grin spread across her face. “Maybe.”

He lifted an eyebrow. “Maybe, huh?”

Her face stiffened. “I have a real question.”

He let out a breath. “Shoot.”

At his concession, she took in a breath and backed up from him, fingering one of her son’s pictures. “I can understand why you play football. The rush, the thrill … the money.”

“Yes, yes, and yes.”

She swerved back. “And, believe me, I know more about your ex-wife and what Jim thought of her than you probably do.”

This, he hadn’t been expecting. “Okay.”

“And I know about the knee and the months you’ve been rehabbing it.”

Unbelievably, this conversation kept getting more and more upsetting. “Okay.”

“Here’s my question …”

“‘Bout time.”

She was intense. “Why don’t you quit?”

This confused him. He took a step back. “What?”

“Quit. I mean … you’ve taken them to two championship games. You were on the team this year so you’ve been a part of three championship games. You’ve made millions of dollars. Your uncle told me you made smart investments, and I know your ex got half, but you still have assorted businesses …”

Being blindsided on the field, or in business, especially with friends was not something he appreciated. His back straightened. “See, you have the advantage on me, Katie. I have no idea about your financial assets.”

At this, Katie let out a light laugh. “I have some death benefits and the paycheck the estate from the inn sends to me.” She rolled her eyes. “I have my degree, and I could get a full-time job, but I like the flexibility I have with Josh right now.” She shrugged. “Do you think I’m stupid? I think everyone around me thinks I’m stupid for not moving to a city and getting a full-time job, so I don’t have to live in this rinky-dink place. My parents even asked me why I’m still here. They want me to relocate to Salt Lake and make myself more marketable.” She shrugged again. “But I like being here. I like knowing Henry and Mrs. K and every single person in this town. I like people knowing me, even when it’s hard. Even when they give me jobs I don’t want.” The side of her lip tugged up. “I like that Josh feels safe.”

“I don’t think you’re stupid,” he said quickly. “Believe me, that’s the furthest thing from my mind.”

“Then what do you think?” she challenged.

He didn’t reply to that. Instead he said, “I thought I got a question.”

Their eyes locked, and all the joking stopped. Her eyes fluttered. “Go ahead.”

All at once his palms had turned sweaty, and he wiped them down the sides of his legs like he would if he were in a huddle. His heart pounded, and he still couldn’t understand how Katie could put him right on the edge. “I think you’re one of the most beautiful, strong, amazing women I’ve met in my entire life.”

Her eyes flashed wider. “That wasn’t a question.”

A grin formed on his lips. “I was saving it.”

She looked away. “You think I’m beautiful?”

Certainty filled him. He took a step closer to her. “I do. And even more beautiful because you don’t flaunt it around.”

Red colored her face. “I wouldn’t even know how to do that. But,” she said, looking back at him, “you shouldn’t say that.”

Taking a chance, he reached for her hand. “I know you’ve been through a lot.”

She frowned and looked down at his knee. “How do you know that next time you get hit it won’t be your neck?”

He withdrew from her and turned away. He didn’t need to hear this. “We’re back to this?”

She let out a long breath. “Roman, I don’t care. I just …. I would just think that you’re life is more important than football.”

This had been the argument made by every mother that ever watched their son play football, his own included. “You don’t think I know the risks?” He was getting mad and didn’t know exactly why. He heard about the risks every day, on the news and social media. “You don’t think I keep up on my chances with concussions and everything else?”

Her eyes went sad. She took a beat, and then she looked up at him. “My point is you have enough money. Be done. You are still in great shape and have a life in front of you. As your friend, don’t go out there and get yourself throttled and have something else happen to you. A knee is nothing, but other things are something.” She broke off then flashed her eyes back to him. “I’m not into men dying before they have to.”

The light bulb turned on in his head. Of course. Her husband. He hesitated, thinking of how she’d called him her friend. He sized her up. The only thing he knew for sure at this moment was that he wanted to be more than a friend. But even when she said she just thought of him as a friend, she spoke to him more frankly and with more care than anyone had in a long time. His agent, of course, would never want him to quit. Sheena sure as heck hadn’t wanted him to stop. Football had been his life, his dream, everything that mattered. It represented everything that mattered. Granted, he did want other things. He wanted a wife that loved him and that he could love. He wanted kids—lots of them. “I wouldn’t even know what to be if I wasn’t…this.”

“Anything.”

“Anything?” Roman could not think of himself as doing just anything.

“Well, I do know about this pretty amazing inn.” She grinned. “You could stick around and help do some rehab work.” She grinned again. “Join the ranks of the over-educated, under- paid.”

All the adrenaline from earlier drained out of his system. Slowly, he reached over and held her hand. “Would I have to work for you?”

She let out a light laugh. “I am kind of getting used to you calling me boss.”

“There is that.” His heart raced, and he couldn’t stop himself from looking at her lips. Her perfectly formed lips that wore no make up. Then he looked at her eyes. All he wanted was to kiss her. For her to melt into him.

But he wouldn’t do that. Not tonight. Not like this. Tomorrow was the anniversary of her husband’s passing. No. No. No.

They stared into each other’s eyes. A breath away from kissing.

“Pansy.”

“What?” He let out a breath, the trance broken.

She pulled back. “Well I’ve been standing here, holding your hands, looking in your eyes, giving you all the signs that a girl wants to kiss you. I would have thought that the great Roman Young would have picked up on it.”

There it was. There she was. He laughed. Just when he thought she was vulnerable, she snuck up on him.

Shaking a finger at her, he pulled her closer. “If we’re going to kiss, I’m going to let you be in charge of it.”

The side of her lip twisted up. “Oh yeah?”

He got even closer to her. “Yeah.”

Her hand released his, and she ran her hand up his left wrist, his forearm, and then slid it on top of his shoulder. “First I have a question.”

He was pretty sure the speed of his heart alone might break one of his ribs. “Another question?”

“How many women have you kissed?”

This he had not been expecting.

She grimaced. “That bad, huh?”

“I …”

She cut him off by putting a gentle finger on his lips. “Never mind, I don’t want to know.”

“How many have you kissed?” he whispered.

“Thirteen.” She answered immediately.

This made him laugh. “I guess you’ve been ready for that question?”

“You never ask a question you’re not ready to answer yourself.” She cocked her head to the side. “But that includes Jimmy Smith, my first kiss in grade school.

She was smiling, and he couldn’t stop himself from inhaling the lemon scent of her and for holding onto this moment. Granted, he was still looking at her lips.

She nudged him. “Do you want a question?”

No. He wanted to kiss her, but he’d promised to wait for her. His scrambled mind searched for a question. “Do you like Dallas?”

A soft laugh came out of her. “The Destroyers.”

“I mean, in general.”

“Well, I’ve actually never been to Dallas. The furthest I’ve been is Orlando. John and I went there on our honeymoon.” She laughed. “Arg, sorry. It always comes back to before, right?”

He laughed, his mind flashing to his life with Sheena before. Katie was so different. He felt like a completely different person being with each of them.

“Penny for your thoughts.”

Roman patted his pocket. “No pennies.”

She stroked gently down his cheek and then smoothed his hair behind his ear.