Page 162 of The Games You Play
“Oh my god.” I turn to Logan, smiling brightly. “This is so cute. Look at Reed dance!” He’s not half bad, and he’s clearly enjoying himself. His whole face is lit up with joy, and he keeps glancing my way, his smile growing brighter every time he catches my eye.
The music swells, and the couples split apart. The six football players hurry to stand behind the posters spaced along the sidelines as the cheerleaders continue dancing behind them.And when the beat drops, Reed and his teammates bend down and pick up the posters.
There’s a moment of anticipation, like the whole crowd is holding their breath, as the boys flip up the posters. And then they cheer.
“What?” I whisper to myself as the words written in bold black marker register. “Oh my god.” My eyes find Reed, and he’s practically vibrating as he holds the sign bearing my name.
Blair, will you marry me?
I stare at him for another moment, but Reed’s attention moves to my side, even as his smile grows. He raises both eyebrows at me and mouths,Look over.
Heart racing, hands trembling, and every part of me very aware of the phones pointed our way, I turn slowly to where Logan has been sitting at my side the whole game.
Except, he’s not sitting anymore.
“Oh my god,” I say for the tenth time. I’m not sure I’m capable of saying much else. Not when Logan Byrne is kneeling in front of me, his gray eyes sparkling as he smiles up at me, a black velvet box cradled in his hands. Inside of the velvet box is a stunning round solitaire. It glitters under the stadium lights, and it’s massive.
“Blair,” Logan practically shouts over the music still being played by the band. “I never thought I’d be doing this. I thought I had life figured out. Tried-and-true plays that never let me risk a loss. Then you stormed into my life with an eye roll and an attitude, and you ripped my playbook to shreds.”
Pulse racing, I stare down at the man I never expected. The man who saved me and Reed. Who gave us a family and a home. The man on one knee, asking me a question he swore he’d neverask anyone. And when the first tear drips down my cheek, he smiles wider.
“Meeting you must have been fate. It’s the only explanation for how we ended up together. Either that, or Griffin willed it into existence.”
Griffin and the rest of our friends laugh at that, and I do too. I wouldn’t put it past the winger.
“However it happened, I’m just glad that it did. Because you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. You and Reed. I love you so much, and I can’t imagine my life without you in it anymore. So what do you say, angel? Will you marry me?”
The whole stadium holds their breath, waiting for my answer. But Logan? Logan looks completely at ease. There’s no strain to his smile, no nerves tightening his expression. He already knows my answer before I give it.
Tears in my eyes, I nod. Slowly at first, then more emphatically. “Yes. Yes, of course I’ll marry you.”
Logan slips the ring onto my finger, then surges up, wrapping me in his arms before spinning us around. The entire stadium erupts in a cheer that drowns out the band, and the sound etches itself in my heart, right along with Logan’s soft chuckle as he presses kisses to my cheek, my forehead, my nose. Then he kisses the shit out of me. Right there in front of everyone.
I should probably be embarrassed at the way we lose ourselves in a kiss that is very, very public, but I’m not. The whole world ceases to exist in that moment. At least until someone crushes us in a hug. A tall, sweaty someone wearing football pads.
Laughing, I tear myself away from Logan. His expression is so soft, so euphoric, it makes my heart skip a beat.
“You’re getting married,” Reed shouts, squeezing us both.
“They’re getting married,” Griffin echos. And then we’re surrounded on all sides by Rogues players and friends and even some of Reed’s teammates. Flashes go off, people cheer, and the band continues to play.
It’s a surreal moment. One I never could have predicted six years ago when my old life went up in smoke. Hell, it’s one I never could have seen coming even that first night when I met Logan in LA. He was looking for one night of fun, and I was looking for one last hurrah before starting over.
Now look at us. Getting engaged at a high school football game, surrounded by everyone we love. Promising to spend every night of the rest of our lives together. A new beginning that is so much more beautiful than anything I could have imagined.
“We’re getting married,” I say, eyes locked with Logan’s.
I don’t feel the cold when he smiles at me. It can’t touch me when he’s at my side. Nothing can.
“We’re getting married,” he agrees. “You’re mine forever, baby.”
Nothing could ever tear me away.
