Page 65 of Punked By the Playmaker
A smile tugged onto my lips. “Yeah, had to teach the kid how it was done.” I hitched a thumb in Austin’s direction.
“What?” Her voice wavered, and I went on high alert.
Why did it sound like she was about to cry?
“Arizona, are you okay?”
Gaze shifting to her brother, she scanned his face, and I saw the exact moment she realized the dirty lip he usually sported was notably absent. A hand lifted to cover her mouth, and her blue eyes grew glassy.
“Excuse me.” She bolted from the room before I could utter a single word of protest.
Turning to the kids, I asked, “What was that about?”
Austin was elbow-deep in his bag of chips. “She’s fine. Probably getting her period or something.”
“Maybe . . .” But I wasn’t convinced it was as simple as that. “I’m gonna go check on her, okay?”
“Whatever,” he said around a mouthful of chips.
Jogging up the steps, I pushed into our bedroom but didn’t make it more than two steps inside before I came to a halt.My wife’s back was to me, both hands gripping the edge of the footboard, her head hanging.
“Arizona, what’s going on?”
She pulled in a deep breath before saying in a watery voice, “You’re an asshole.”
I shoved both hands in my pockets, rocking back on my heels. “Pretty sure we’ve already established that, so you’re gonna need to be more specific.”
When she spun around, I saw the tear tracks lining her cheeks. “You’re so good with them—not just Maisie, but Austin too—and you make parenthood look effortless. Then there’s me. I try so damn hard, and yet I feel like I’m constantly failing him.”
Closing the gap between us, I said softly, “You’re not failing him.”
“I am!” Arizona cried, flinging her arms wide. “I’m not enough for him, and he hasn’t been shy in letting me know that. He’s desperate for a man in his life. He’d like for it to be his father, but that’s not an option.” She hugged her midsection. “Then you come along, and you two have this instant connection. I love that he has someone to go to for ‘guy’ things. But what happens when this arrangement comes to an end, huh?”
“I’m not going anywhere,” I vowed. “Temporary marriage or not, I would hope that we can still be a part of each other’s lives.”
She blinked at me with wet lashes. “You say that now, but—”
“There is no but,” I cut her off. “The minute I put that ring on your finger, that made us family. For better or worse, until death do us part. You, me, Maisie, and Austin, we’re tied together for eternity, eventual divorce be damned.”
“Do you really mean that?”
With a firm nod, I declared, “I do.”
“I—I don’t know what to say.” After a thick swallow came a croaked “Thank you.”
“No thanks necessary, and I hope it’s not overstepping, but you look like you could use a hug.”
Her lower lip wobbled. “You want to give me a hug?”
“I’m the one who offered, wasn’t I?” I opened my arms. “Now get over here.”
Arizona threw herself at me, burying her face against my chest, her tears soaking through the fabric of my T-shirt. She clung to me like she was drowning and I was the one who could save her.
“We’re all gonna be okay.” I stroked down the length of her long hair. “You’ll see.”
Emotional women used to send me running for the hills, but holding her as she fell apart and promising her forever felt so fucking right.
I was exactly where I belonged.
