Page 73 of The Run Option

I look down at her, noticing her cheeks are flushed bright red, and there’s a sheen of perspiration over her forehead. The heaters are keeping everyone warm, but they’re almost too much while dancing.

“Do you want to step outside for a minute?” I ask and she nods with enthusiasm.

We weave through the crowd hand in hand until we slip through the barn door into the frigid night. Willow gasps as the cold air hits us. I abandoned my jacket a while ago, and Willow is wearing the same dress she wore when we eloped, so it shouldn’t take long for either of us to cool down.

“Are you having fun?” I ask and she smiles wide.

“Yes! I’m so glad everyone we invited was able to come. I loved getting to meet Shaw and Sutton. Emmett and little June are so sweet too.”

“Remind me to tell Emmett you called him sweet,” I say with a chuckle. “And you just say the word when you’re ready to go…” I trail off.

She shakes her head, a teasing smile on her berry lips. “You just want to get me home.”

“Can you blame me when you look like this?” I tug her to me, wrapping my arms around her.

“We have guests, Jase,” she says as I lean down.

“They aren’t going anywhere.” I kiss her, half-expecting her to push me away, but when she melts into me instead, I can’t stifle my smirk. I deepen the kiss, tasting the apple cider on her lips. I’m about to push her against the side of the barn when the door flies open.

“Will you two quit making out and come inside? This whole party is for you!” Shaw shouts, loud enough for everyone to hear. Laughter pours out of the barn. Willow hides her face in the crook of my neck.

“I take back what I said about meeting Shaw,” she says.

I laugh. “I don’t blame you at all.”

We walk back inside to whoops and whistles. I shove Shaw like I’m annoyed with him, but in reality I’m glad he’s here. It feels good to know we have so many people rooting for us.

I glance down at Willow. She’s blushing and laughing as a few of our friends tease her some more. Her gaze catches mine, stealing my breath away like always. It’s moments like these that reassure me she’s the one. We might have started out for all the wrong reasons, but we’re going to stay together for all the right ones.

Keep reading for a bonus epilogue from Emmett’s point of view! His book,The Double Play, will be available Spring 2025!

Emmett Foster

“Please dance with me, Daddy,please!” June begs, tugging on my hand with both of hers. At five years old, she’s still quite tiny. She inherited my height but also her mother’s slender build, so trying to pull me to stand isn’t quite working out for her.

“I told you that I don’t like to dance. Why don’t you ask one of your uncles?” It takes considerable effort not to cringe when I say the word uncles. My friends all insisted on being honorary uncles to June. In reality, they all like being the fun uncles and doing things like giving her too much sugar when they visit, or impractical gifts. I question my judgment often when around them.

“They’re all dancing already,” June whines, her bottom lip poking out in a pout.

I look around. Sure enough, each of my friends is currently dancing with a woman. Brock is the only single one besides me, and even he has a dance partner: Willow’s grandmother.

“Okay.” I sigh. “I will dance one dance with you. That’s all.”

“Yay! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” she chirps excitedly as I lead her onto the dance floor.

She steps up onto my shoes. It doesn’t hurt in the slightest, considering how small she is. The only thing that hurts is my chest when I think of how soon she’ll be too big for this. I don’t even like dancing, but I’m happy we are now. She’s growing much too fast.

“Do you think you’ll have a party like this, Daddy?” June asks as I lead her around the floor in a waltz I learned from my mom as a kid.

“What do you mean?” I ask, though I think I already know.

“Will you have a party when you get married?”

I clench my jaw. I hate that these questions always come up. I wish June had a mother who cared, who was present, who was still married to me. But her mother made her choice, and June and I weren’t in the equation. So now I’m here raising June alone–except for the help of my mother–and answering questions like these.

“I don’t plan on getting married, sweetheart.”

“Why not?” She starts pouting again.

My heart sinks.Because love leads to hurt.I can’t bear to fall in love and be left again, and more than that, I can’t afford to put June through that pain. She already lost one mom, she doesn’t need to lose another.

“Excuse me, Your Highness, may I steal the princess away?” Shaw dips into a ridiculous bow. June giggles like she’s been approached by a Disney prince instead of a brute of a hockey player.

“Go ahead,” I say and transfer June to his feet, grateful for the distraction from the topic.

I watch as Shaw spins her away. Sutton watches nearby, her eyes glassy, and smiles big. I don’t doubt that they’ll have awonderful marriage with lots of beautiful children. I’m not so cynical as to think love doesn’t exist. It just doesn’t work out for me.

And that’s okay. I have June, baseball, and a few friends. That’s all I need.