Page 73 of First Down Promise

When all the fixings are ready and our plates are made, we gather around the formal dining room table. We only use it for the holidays. Pete sits at the head of the table, and Abby sits next to him with Coop next to her and Dane across from them. I sit at the opposite end, directly across from Pete, which leaves a couple of empty chairs between them and me.

Abby tilts her head to look at me, making one of her big curls fall from her shoulder. “Gonna join the party?” Abby asks me.

“I’m good.”

She shrugs and focuses on her plate. “Okay, weirdo.”

The guys default to talking about football, and usually, Abby tunes it out. I watch as she takes delicate bites and tears apart a roll in that adorable way she does. Meanwhile, Coop chows down next to her and is the first to get up for seconds. Centers are usually the biggest boys on the team with the biggest stomachs, and Coop is no exception.

But Dane is interesting. He’s big too, but is always extremely mindful of serving sizes and portion control. I bet he counts macros in his sleep and dreams of weighing his portions to maintain his abs. That took far more dedication than I was willing to give, so I settled for a softer torso. I smirk to myself because Abby likes it.

Coop sits back in his dining room chair and pats his belly. “Oh, man, I can’t wait for pie.”

“I can go get them from the garage,” Abby offers. Coop’s eyes light up to match the grin on his face.

“I won’t stop you,” Coop replies with a chuckle.

Abby smiles because I know that girl has to have her annual slice, or three, of pumpkin pie with whipped cream on the side. “I got you.”

She stands, gently placing her hand on Coop’s shoulder to steady herself in her heels, and subtly adjusts her skirt. I push back my chair, making a sudden screech against the wood floor, and now I have an audience.

“Uh, let me help you,” I say.

I follow her out to the garage, but this time I don’t stop at the door. She turns to see if I followed her, and I back her up against the refrigerator. My lips are on her before I can register what I’m doing or whether the door even closed all the way behind me. She giggles against my lips.

“Josh.”

I kiss over her jawline and neck. “Holy shit, I want these…” Kiss. “Heels and socks in my bed.” She moans and steers me back to her lips by pressing her thumb under my chin. I slip my hand under her skirt to lightly pinch her bottom. I pull back with my jaw slightly ajar. “A thong?”

“What are you? Twelve?” she quips. I smile at her and lean down to kiss her again, but she turns her head. “Josh, we need to get back.” She’s breathless as she speaks.

I slump against her. “You coming to the away game on Monday?” I ask.

“You know it.”

“I guess I’ll have to wait a couple of days…” I trail off.

She pecks me on the lips. “It’ll be worth it.” I step back from her and drag a hand through my hair. “Hold on, makeup check…” She studies my face and wipes a little lipstick from the corner of my mouth with her finger. “How am I? Smudged or anything?”

“Beautiful.”

“We have to get back. Getting something out of the fridge doesn’t take this long,” she replies and laughs. She grabs the pies, and I snatch the brand-new can of whipped cream from the refrigerator.

“Hmm, extra creamy?” I say, reading the can.

“Just as I like it,” she comments under her breath as I open the door. Her eyes find mine quickly as she walks past, and I suck in a quick breath that makes me cough.

The guys are congregating at the kitchen island with our plates in the sink when we return. She sets the pies on the counter as I turn to the cabinet for salad plates and pull out five.

Nothing happened in the garage. We’re cool. I’m cool, I tell myself when I realize my heart is pounding.

I reach into the utensil drawer for the triangular pie server, and Abby bumps me to the side with her hip. “Let me. I saw your pie-cutting skills last year,” she teases.

“I’ll be on cream duty then,” I whisper to her. Dane shoots me a look, though Pete and Coop were out of earshot.

“Coop, how much pie do you want?” Abby asks.

“All of it,” he answers.