Chapter 32

Drew

Watching Bella laugh isn’t something new to me. I used to secretly observe the way it would make her eyes light up for years, wondering if I’d ever be able to draw that out of her instead of that lip curling snarl she seemed to only reserve for me. Watching her laugh tonight feels different, though. Bella’s happy, and more confident, not to mention sexy as hell in a Rattlesnakes jersey. The only disappointing thing about my whole view right now is that she’s not wearing my last name on the back of that thing since I didn’t want to offend her boyfriend. The boyfriend that doesn’t exist.

We’ve spent the last four hours talking. Or, I should say, she’s talking, I’m listening, hanging on every single word she says about her time here because I love seeing her face light up as she talks about attending the London School of Fashion and all the things she’s made. Bella’s always been beautiful, but she’s simply glowing now. I’ve never seen her so passionate before. Well, unless you count hating me. She was pretty passionate about that for a long time, but now that she’s here, focusing on herself, I can’t help but feel happy for her.

“So, yeah, I made Perry this insanely intricate dress with all these sequins for some charity ball she went to. It took hours, and my fingers still haven’t recovered.” She shows me the palm of her hand as if that’s all the evidence I’ll need. “Only for her to tell me that she doesn’t need it.”

I chuckle. “Can you wear it somewhere else?”

She scrunches her nose and sticks her tongue out. “I don’t have many balls that I’d need a dress like that to go to.”

“Have you got a picture of it?”

She looks down at her phone, flips the screensaver off and starts swiping through her phone. I try to casually pretend I’m not looking, but I’m scanning those photos like my life depends on it, searching to see if there’s a guy in any of them.

When she gets to the picture of Perry, she flips the phone around and shows me. I stare at the detail of the beautiful blue dress she made. “You made that?” Mhmm, I can think of plenty of places that she could wear that if she came back home with me. I swallow that thought because we haven’t even talked about us, and here I am already planning every event I’m going to take her to.

Bella nods proudly. “Yeah. I mean I’m nowhere near the best in my class, but I’ve learned a hell of a lot since I started. I had to do hours of sewing at school just to get up to the same level as some of my peers. Even now it takes me about four times as long to make something as the other students, but I don’t care. I’d rather it be right than rushed.”

“It’s beautiful, Bella. I’m amazed that you could make that. It looks like something you’d buy in a store.”

“Thanks.” She takes back her phone and places it next to her empty plate as she pushes a strand of her hair behind her ear. She almost seems bashful about her accomplishments, and I have to hold myself back throwing more compliments her way.

Bella’s phone buzzes on the table and she winces. I know why. It’s the same reason I’ve been peppering her with non-consequential questions for the last hour. It’s late, and she should probably be heading home, but I don’t want her to go. The reality is, I’ve never wanted to let her go. I just knew I had to. She needed to find herself, and it looks like she has.

“So you’re leaving tomorrow?” Bella asks as she threads her fingers together nervously. She presses her teeth into her bottom lip like she’s trying to think of something to keep the conversation going as well.

“Yup,” I pop out, leaning back into the maroon leather booth. “I’m leaving tomorrow. Got a bye week, but I still need to be at practice every day. Gotta keep up with the grind if I want to make the playoffs.”

She nods and lets out a little hum of what I assume is approval, but I can’t be sure. “Completely. You’ve always been a hard worker. The Rattlesnakes are lucky to have you, and I’m sure they know it. Your work ethic is the only reason Southern Collegiate was able to get to the Championships last year.”

“Mhm.” Remembering that day is bittersweet. Against all odds, I managed to win that game, and there were only two people I wanted to celebrate with. My mom and Bella. At that point, Bella had stopped responding to my texts, so when I didn’t get a message from her congratulating me, I took it as a hint that she didn’t want to talk to me. “I wouldn’t say competing against your dad was the easiest way to meet him after he kicked me off St. Michael’s team, but hey, I won, and he came over and offered me a congratulatory handshake. Even told me he was proud of me.”

Bella’s smile immediately drops at the mere mention of her father. “Are things better with him now?” I ask cautiously.

She sucks in her lips before popping them out. “I wouldn’t say they’re great. They aren’t as bad as they were last time I saw you because the distance has helped us both get clarity on our relationship. I function better with a little space, but I’m nervous because I finish my degree in a month which means I’m moving back to the U.S., and I don’t know what to do.”

“Wait. You’re moving back?” This is news to me, and I can’t help but feel a little offended. Why hadn’t she told me? I thought we had a plan? I guess after two years with hardly any contact, it would be naive of me to think that it would happen. “I thought you loved it here?”

“I do love London. It’s one of my favorite places on earth, but do you know why I originally chose it?” I shake my head. “Because I wanted to be in a place that didn’t have football. Look how wrong I was about that. Not only does it have American Football, but it has British Football, and I’d argue that’s even worse because there are a thousand more games, and so many more stadiums. And people are so passionate about it. Guys don’t talk about anything else. That and the weather. The Brits love the weather even though it’s always overcast.”

I chuckle, pushing aside her comment about guys talking about football because from what I’ve gathered, Bella isn’t seeing anyone right now. I even dropped a hint as one of the first things I said to her, and she didn’t balk, so I have to believe she’s still mine for the taking. If I want her, of course. “All of that is good to know, but that means you can’t stay here?”

She shakes her head. “I’m on a student visa, so it doesn’t matter how great I think London is or that I’ve made a boatload of friends. I’ve got to leave in the next three months unless I marry a Brit.”

I straighten in my seat, taking a swig of my water because I’m pretty sure I know the answer to my question before asking, but I do anyway. For my own sanity. “Met anyone who’s marriage material?”

“Well, there’s this guy, Rich,” she starts, and I keep my eyes focused on her. Her lips quirk on the edges and I wonder if she’s trying to goad me now. Rich. Once I find out his last name, I’ll make sure to contact him, and let him know that Bella is off limits. Girl’s still mine whether she’s ready to admit it or not. “But he’s a friend and has only suggested we get hitched so he can get a free pass to the U.S.”

“So, he’s not a boyfriend?” Again, I ask just for clarification.

“Nope, and to answer your question, I have not met anyone who’s marriage material.” She lets that statement hang in the air. Is that her way of telling me I am? I have no idea. Bella and I have been talking for hours, but neither one of us is willing to address the giant elephant in the room about what meeting again means for our relationship.

“Good to know,” I quip. At least I know a new boyfriend isn’t why she was ignoring my texts, but I’m not sure how to approach asking her that, so I lean back in my chair and thrum my fingers against the table. “So if you can’t stay here, where are you going? Back to Florida?”

She vigorously shakes her head. “No. No. As much as I love my family, it’s best that we only see each other for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Getting space from them has been eye-opening, to say the least. I finally started to do things that I liked, instead of things that I thought would make my dad happy. I’ve eaten foods I never thought I’d try. I’ve done things I never thought I would. Hell, I ended up dancing the night away at some random ball the other week. I’ve never been happier, and the clarity has helped me see that I’m ready for my next step, which is moving back to the U.S. I just don’t know where yet.”

“I get it. I’m not sure I’d ever want to return to Tampa, either. Too many memories there.” Lord knows I’ve hated going back to visit my mom knowing Bella isn’t there anymore.

“What about you? Are you happy that you’re staying in California for the foreseeable future?”

“I’m on a rookie contract, so I’ll most likely be there for at least another four years, unless the Snakes trade me, which is unlikely. But after, I’d eventually like to move back south, maybe play in Louisiana or Georgia, so I can be closer to my mom. Until then, I’ll just have to enjoy the California sun and rent out a huge house for her there because she deserves it.”

“You know, going from the worst team in college football to beating the best takes a tenacity and strength that you don’t see in many people. Most people would have given up in your situation. You didn’t and look where it got you. You got that perseverance from your dad, and I’m certain he’d be proud of you.”

“I hope so.” A small, pleasant smile plays on her lips as she watches me and there’s a quiet moment where we just sit, enjoying each other’s company. There’s something about knowing someone for as long as we have that can immediately put you at ease. We’ve seen each other at our worst and our best, and somehow, we’re still sitting here.

Together.

“You know,” I start, narrowing my eyes because a thought comes to me. “Since you have to come back to the U.S., and you don’t want to go back to Florida, maybe you should come and stay with me in Carmel.” I propose with a slanted smirk. “I’ve got a five-bedroom house, so there’s plenty of space for you.”

“You have five bedrooms, and you rent a house for your mama? What kind of son are you?” She looks me up and down with mock disgust.

I raise my hands, laughing. “Hey, it was her choice, not mine. She told me I’d cramp her style. Don’t know why. It’s not like I’m around much during the season. The rest of the time, I’m just working out in my gym.” I lick my lips and look at Bella with a mischievous smile. Oh, the memories we have from all the times we worked out in the gym. I still get a boner when I go for a jog on the running machine just thinking about her. “So that means I’ve got a big old house overlooking one of the best beaches in the country with no one to share it with.”

There’s a short moment of silence as Bella pushes her lips from side to side. I know there’s something going on in that pretty little blonde head of hers, but I have no idea what. “Not sure what Sam would think of me staying with you.” She drawls out the same like she used to with Brianna’s.

“Sam?” It takes me a minute to realize who she’s talking about. “Do you mean Sam Taylor?”

She nods with pursed lips. “Yeah, read that she was after you after a couple of failed relationships, and saw a few pictures of you guys together.”

I throw my head back on a cackle. “Wow, I didn’t think they had Baseball Wives out here. How are you keeping up with all this crap?”

“They don’t, but I saw some stuff online.” And there it is. Without asking, I can see it. The hurt and frustration mixed in her facial expression.

“Is that why you stopped responding to my texts? Because you thought I was dating Sam?”

The sheepish expression and red tinge to her cheeks answer the question for me, and I clench my fists, annoyed that a few PR pictures cost us two years of talking to each other. “I’m not dating Sam.” I can see her shoulders visibly relax. “Sam slid into my DM’s shortly after I got drafted, trying to get me to agree on fake dating her so she could get more tabloid attention. You’d think she’d be bored with it after that apparent non-engagement to Tate Sorenson and that other football player, but she apparently thought she needed to date younger. I ignored her, but she stalked me for a few weeks, trying to create some buzz, which worked for a week.”

“So you didn’t date her?”

“Nope, and I wished you had asked me about it instead of ghosting me,” I sigh out because I can’t believe I’m still having to explain my intentions to this girl. Okay, okay, I wasn’t a saint for the last two years. Sue me. Bella stopped talking to me, and last time I was messed up like that was when she showed up at St. Michael’s without warning. “The only girl I’ve ever been interested in seems to be more interested in running away from me.” I wink, and watch as she slowly takes that in. Biting down on her lip, she raises her brow and tilts her head. “She ran all the way to London to get away from everything.”

“I think you’ll find she stopped running a long time ago,” she retorts, lifting her foot until it grazes against my knee. I move back, solely because I’m worried she’ll accidentally kick me in the balls. “She’s got a bad leg, after all.”

“Prove it.”

Her foot stops moving, and I grab it with my hand. Holding her boot in place, I watch her squirm. She doesn’t know what to do so ends up just shuffling in place. “Is that a dare?”

I press down on the fabric of her boot, trying to massage her leg. “No. I don’t want to dare you to do anything. I want you to act on something because after two and a half years of soul searching, you finally know what you want.”

“Do you want me to admit that I love you again? Because the last time I did that, you told me to leave the country.”

“Because I love you enough to want what’s best for you. I never wanted to be a reason you held back and never found your true passion in life. I never wanted you to feel like you settled on what you wanted in your life, and with me.”

“Silly, Drew. I’ve always known what I wanted when it came to you.” My heart is beating wildly because her admitting that makes me want to throw her over my shoulder and drag her up to my hotel room to show her just how much I’ve been thinking about her this whole time.

“Then what are you waiting for? Show me.”

“I need an invitation to your room first.”

I smirk, moving my bulky body out of the booth to her side because I’m not going to let that linger for too long. “So, an invitation to live in my house in California isn’t enough for you?”

I hold my hand out, and she accepts it without hesitation. “But an invitation is just that. It’s not reality, Drew. Things aren’t that simple between us. They have never been. We’re complicated.” She shakes her hand, but that doesn’t deter me.

“We were complicated. Like I said before, our timing has never been right. But think about it. You need to come back to the states and have nowhere to go. I’ve got a big house, waiting for someone to fill it with their stuff. Hell, I’ve even got a room where you can sew if you want. Maybe this is it. Maybe this is finally our time.”

“Are you sure you’d be ready for that? Living with me twenty-four seven?”

“Are you forgetting that I’ve already lived with you?”

“Yeah, but that was only for a few days, this would hopefully be for a lot longer.”

“Like forever,” I joke, but not really and I’m pretty sure that zing of electricity passing between us makes it obvious. “In all honesty, Bella. I’ve been ready for you to be mine since I was sixteen and painting your name on that stupid ball. Come upstairs. Let's figure out the logistics later. Right now, I want to make up for lost time.”

“Okay,” she says with a smile and lets me pull her into my arms, ready to go wherever I want to take her.