Page 68 of The Lockdown Mann

Tiana grabs a football and throws it to her dad before the three of us jog over together. We warm up with catch before Oak says, “Let’s show Des the drills we’ve been working on.”

“Okay!” She beams.

I stand back out of the way, watching the two of them do their thing, showing me what he’s been teaching her to practice her footwork.

“That’s really good, but here, let me show you something.” I head over to Tiana, and then the three of us spend the next thirty minutes or so practicing drills. Oakley pipes in sometimes with questions or ideas, but really just kinda lets me teach her. He’s still involved, but he’s giving me this blank canvas to show his daughter things that he can do too, but that I can do a little better—or hell, maybe that’s not the case, and he’s just doing it because he thinks that’s what Tiana wants, since we play the same position.

“I’m going to try throwing the ball to you and Daddy. I want you to try to cover him,” she says.

“Try?” Oakley replies with a cocky smirk.

“You can, but you won’t succeed.” I’m pulled in his direction. I can’t pretend it’s because that’s what Tiana wants, but as much as I was enjoying teaching her, I’m excited in a different way for this.

Be good. Keep your hands to yourself.

I take off running, hoping to catch Oakley by surprise. It doesn’t work, and he’s right on me, moving his feet just as efficiently as I do. There’s a reason they call him the Lockdown Mann, and as much shit as I give him, everyone knows how good he is, knows that he keeps receivers on lockdown better than any other cornerback in the league.

When I try to turn on a dime, switching my direction from left to right, Oakley is still on me. Tiana doesn’t hesitate, though. When she sees the smallest of openings, she lobs the ball our direction, putting it ahead of me just the way she’s supposed to do.

It’s a tad too high, though, and I jump to try to catch it, my fingers just hardly able to wrap around the leather. It all happens quickly, but I can tell when Oakley realizes he’s in my landing zone. He tries to angle his body out of the way, but it doesn’t work; the two of us collide, then go down together in a tangled heap in the grass. Our limbs are all entwined with each other, Oakley on top of me. He feels so fucking good there, smells so fucking good—this mixture of sweat and his natural body scent that goes straight to my dick.

“Shit. I’m sorry. Are you okay?” he asks, but my answer is a laugh, and then he’s laughing too. He rolls off me, both of us looking up at the sky and just fucking laughing like a couple of idiots. I don’t even know why I’m doing it, why he’s following along and doing the same thing. I just know that this is fun, that everything with Oakley has always been so fucking fun, and I want to soak it all up, every second of it, for as long as I can.

“You two knock your heads together or what?” Serena asks, leaning over us and blocking the sun from my eyes. I immediately tense, wondering if I did something to show my hand, but she’s smiling, and then Tiana is there too with a question of her own.

“What’s so funny, Daddy?”

“I don’t know,” he replies, then tugs her down with him, tickling her until Tiana is laughing too. I roll away from them, giving Oak time with his daughter, and then Serena’s hand is there, held out for me.

I hesitate just for a moment before taking it and letting her pull me to my feet.

“Touchdown,” I say, still holding the ball in my hand.

“I hate you.” Oakley stands with Tiana in his arms, her body thrown over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

“Oh my God! Put me down,” she says through laughter.

Oakley puts her on her feet, then glances at me, almost looking shy for a moment, before his eyes flicker away.

“Dinner’s ready!” Sanaa calls out, a bowl in her hand. When she sets it down, I notice the trembling.

“Oh shit. I’m sorry, Mama. I meant to come in and help you.” Oakley rushes over to her.

“They always cook together,” Serena informs me, showing me in another way how much Oakley fits with her family. I can see why he’s afraid to lose this, why he wants to keep the façade intact as long as he can in case it changes, but it’s clear how much these people love him. They will love him just as much after they find out about him and Serena, but I can also see why he’s nervous to shake Tiana’s foundation.

“I’m good, Oakley.” Sanaa kisses his cheek.

We use the outdoor sink to wash our hands, then all sit at the table on their covered patio for pasta salad and shish kebabs.

The food is great, and the whole family keeps me involved in the conversation, asking me about my folks, where I’m from, and, of course, my relationship status. I fight myself, not allowing myself to even gaze toward Oakley, not wanting to give anything away—to his family, yes, but also to Oak, because the truth is, I already want more with him. I was destined to always want more than Oakley can give me since the first time we met.

“No, ma’am,” I say. “Much to my mama’s disappointment, I’m not sure I’m cut out for that.”

“I thought the same thing,” Evander tells me. “Then I met Sanaa, and everything was different.”

“Not everyone is as lucky as Serena and Oakley. We don’t all meet our person when we’re kids, but I’m sure yours is out there.” Sanaa offers me a supportive smile, not knowing that her words are a gut punch.

I feel the tension rolling off Oakley, but it’s Serena who says, “Oakley is my best friend, and I’m lucky for that. Now can we stop harassing Desmond?”