Page 22 of End Game

After the game is over, a whopping 32 to 7, Mason grabs my hand and together we head to the tunnels where we can meet our athletes. Barrett already warned me it will be a madhouse, an intense crush of people trying to get a piece of them. Most people don’t want to wait nearly an hour for the guys to shower, change, and exit the stadium; only the most devoted remain.

Sam is standing with a group of people decked out in Cavanaugh jerseys. Must be Miles’s parents and sisters, if I’m reading the ages right.

After what feels like forever, the guys start making their way out of the tunnels. Amir comes out first, sucking on a protein shake in a clear plastic cup. On his heels are Greg and Wes with protein shakes of their own, followed quickly by Tucker. He and Mason have a heartfelt reunion, full on making out in plain view of everyone without a care in the world.

“Dee!” Barrett pushes aside another football player. Before I know it, he’s scooped me up. I’m airborne, my feet dangling off the ground. He wraps me in his big strong arms and holds me close. I revel in the feeling of being in his arms. It’s so easy. It feels so right.

“Hey, Care-Bear,” I say.

He growls, setting me on the ground again. He presses a kiss to the top of my head and slings his arm over my shoulder, keeping me close. A glimmer of deep-rooted affection for him threatens to overwhelm me.

“Good game.”

He grins. “Yeah. It was, wasn’t it?” He runs a hand through his wet hair, making the short strands stand on end.

“Oh. This is Johanna,” I tell him, and his eyebrows go sky high. I’ve told him about her—in broad strokes. I haven’t told him about her little revelation last night.

“Nice to meet you,” he says, offering his hand.

She takes it with an awed look on her face. “You, too.”

He nudges me. “See? I told you you’d make friends.”

I give him a tight-lipped smile, silently communicating that we aren’t friends—not yet. He frowns at me, he doesn’t get it. I guess we’re not on the same level as Tucker and Mason.

“Miles, honey!” The woman in the Cavanaugh shirt is calling for his attention. Probably his mom. Red-cheeked, he ducks his head to kiss Sam before he greets his family.

The guys cluster in a semicircle around us. Amir sucks noisily on his straw. Wes’s eyes are wide, his cheeks tinted a dull pink. I wonder what that’s about.

Greg tugs me into a hug. “Hey, Dee. I was wondering if I was going to see you here.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

He laughs. “This fool didn’t scare you away?”

Barrett growls.

I grin at my best friend. “He couldn’t keep me away if he tried.”

Mollified, Barrett relaxes. He grabs me by the shoulder and pulls me back into his arms, into a bear hug. My sweaty back is plastered to his front as he hugs me to him and wraps his arms low around my belly, like I’ll protect him from anything that comes his way.

Because I will. I’d move heaven and earth for this man. And he knows it.

“So, McRory’s?” Amir says loudly, breaking apart Tucker and Mason.

She wipes at her mouth. “Works for me.”

Barrett buries his face in my hair. “You good with that?”

“I’m with you,” I tell him.

He clears his throat, turning to Johanna. “Would you like to join us?”

“Um, sure,” she says, swallowing and tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. “It’s not an imposition?”

Amir grins at her. “The more, the merrier.”

I step forward out of Barrett’s arms and immediately mourn the loss of contact. I’m surprised when he takes my hand, squeezing reassuringly.