Chapter Sixteen

Reed

The faint sound of my phone ringing jolts me awake. I groan, rubbing my eyes and extending my arm to where Tate should be. The sheets are cool now, a stark contrast to the warmth I expected.

The ringing continues, more insistent this time. "What the hell?" I grumble, dragging myself out of bed. All signs of Tate are gone.

I unplug my phone, seeing Darren's name flash on the screen. "Yeah?"

"Good morning to you, too." He chuckles. "Rise and shine, fucker."

I lift my phone from my ear to check the time, revealing it's after eight thirty. Why does it feel like it should be earlier, though?

"Why the hell are you calling me so damn early?"

The line goes silent, and I sense whatever he's calling me about is more serious than he's letting on.

"Is it about Gram?"

His heavy exhale rasps through the phone. "She fell and hit her head last night. We don't know how long she was lying there before the staff found her. We're waiting on the results of the CT scan, but so far, they believe she fractured her hip."

I wince, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. This is one of those times I hate being so far from home. Sometimes I regret taking a scholarship for Braysen when Darren needs my support right now.

"You want me to check flight times?"

"What?" He scoffs. "Hell no, and you know she'd rip you a new one if you missed a game and showed up here. She'd put up a hell of a fight if she even knew you were considering it, so no. You're staying put."

He's right. Her dementia has been worsening over the past year. Occasionally, there are flashes in time when she's the feisty, opinionated woman I remember. More often than not, though, she's a stranger. As selfish as I feel about admitting it, I'm relieved I don't have to face it daily like Darren does. Most days, she thinks he's her brother, who she hasn't seen or spoken to in over ten years.

I don't know how Darren does it, but I guess we both do the best we can.

I promised him I'd come home after college and help him take care of her. No matter how many times he insists he's got it, I know he could use the support.

"What time do you leave for warm-ups?"

"I got a couple of hours yet before I take off."

"All right. Well, if I hear anything more before then, I'll let you know. Otherwise, kick some ass today. I'll be watching you from here."

We exchange goodbyes, and I hang up. I lean forward, pressing my elbows to my knees and burying my face in my hands as the weight of Darren's news sinks in.

My pregame routine begins with me eating a hearty breakfast and watching tape to get my head in the right space. On my way to the stadium, I usually crank up some rock or rap music to get pumped up.

After a quick shower and packing up my gear, I grab my wallet off my desk and spot a note I hadn't seen earlier.

I can't wait to watch you kick some ass today. Went for a run and didn't want to wake you. Good luck!

Xoxo, T

I tuck the note in my wallet to keep it safe where it won't get ruined and shove it in my bag before heading out the door. It's the only thing grounding me after that call, a reminder of the distance between us when she needs me most.

At the gym, we all board the shuttle over to the stadium. As we exit the bus, I see Tatum and Everly standing along the barricades. Hayes, who's ahead of me, makes a beeline over to Everly, and pulls her in for a kiss.

When Tate spots me, she curls her lip into a grin and extends her hand to me. The other night when she joined me in the backyard, we got to talking about our games. I mentioned the handshake I saw her give Talon after he won his playoff game.

"Well, I can't kiss you before I take the field like the other guys do. I guess you'll have to shake my hand and wish me good luck instead."

"You're ridiculous, you know that?" She snickers. "Are you jealous because I have a handshake with my brother?"

"Maybe I am, or maybe I'm jealous I can't kiss you like I want, so I'm settling for a handshake instead." I huff.

She tilts her head to the side, turning her gaze over to the fire. She becomes distant, as if lost in the flames. Meanwhile, I take out some of my aggression by chopping wood.

After I finish, I'm ready to head inside and shower when Tate stops me. She extends her hand out to me with a smile, and I tug her into my arms.

I'm tired of caring if someone catches us, even if it means breaking her rules.

Some rules are meant to be broken.

I hold my hand out to Tate, and she stares at it for a second. Her lips twitch into a reluctant smile. She finally gives in, taking my hand, and we go through the moves of our handshake. She plays along, even when I tug her closer and wrap my arms around her in a hug.

Only this time, I pressed my mouth to her ear. "I wish I could kiss you right now instead."

I brush my lips against her ear, and she shivers slightly before pulling away. She presses her lips together, flattening her smile and avoiding eye contact.

"Good luck, guys." She glances over at Hayes, giving us a wave. I return it with a wink.

As we join the rest of the guys heading toward the stadium, we clap hands with a few fans and sign a couple of shirts and hats on our way inside. The atmosphere is electric, but the quiet in our locker room is a different level of intensity.

Beckham and Colter are ahead of us. Beckham takes his whole pregame ritual seriously, so he's in the zone until we take the field.

Hayes falls into step beside me, a thoughtful look on his face. I can tell something's on his mind when he keeps pace with me.

"What's going on between you and Tate?" he asks, glancing around to make sure no one overhears. "You two seem pretty close since she moved in."

"Yeah, I guess you could say we are," I reply. "I never mentioned this before, but I met her in Rixton at Talon's game last spring, before you and Beckham introduced us."

"Wait, you did?"

I nod. "I ran into her at the concessions with her friend. Overheard her talking about her ex showing up at the game with another girl. When her friend stepped away to use the bathroom and left her alone, I noticed she was upset, so I struck up a conversation."

"That's why you were looking at her when she came to sit with us."

I nod. "I never put two and two together until you introduced her, and it clicked that she was Talon's sister."

He caught me staring at Tate when she joined our group to watch the game. He mistook my reaction to seeing her as I was checking her out, which I was, but I was also caught off guard by how she knew the Carvers.

Hayes holds the door open for the last few teammates, then turns back to me once we're alone.

"Listen, I don't know what all happened in Rixton. I've picked up bits and pieces from Beckham and Talon, enough to know that whatever it was, it had Tate packing up and moving here on a dime."

"I know, man."

"All right. Well, if you know, then you should also know what I'm about to say then. Her brother asked me to keep an eye on her. I'm not one to interfere with her relationships. She's a big girl now, and she's capable of making her own decisions."

I nod. As much as I want to tell him the truth, I promised Tate I wouldn't tell anyone what was going on with us.

Even if Hayes might speculate, I won't confirm nor deny anything until we talk about it and she's on the same page. I don't want to push her away or make her question my intentions.

"Just do me a favor, okay? If you're not looking for anything serious, let her be. She's been through enough already, and I don't want her getting hurt. You've said you're not a relationship guy, and fuck, until Sunny, I wasn't either."

"What changed?" I question.

He chuckles, shaking his head. "I changed. Or maybe she just brought out parts of me I never knew existed. You'll know when you find your Sunny, though."

"What makes you so sure she's the one?"

My throat goes dry, and I swear it's like I'm trying to swallow a ball of cotton.

Hayes's expression softens. "For me, it was realizing I'd give all this up in an instant if it meant never losing her. She'd never make me do it, but I can live without football. I can't live without Sunny."

Hayes studies me, his eyes roaming over my face, and I nod.

He extends his hand, and I shake it, pulling him into a hug and clapping him on the back.

"I care about her, man. You should know me well enough to know I'd never do anything to hurt her."

"There's no doubt in my mind. I'm not gonna be a hard-ass like I know Beckham would be. I'm just gonna tell you to be good to her. Don't get feelings involved unless you know she's who you want."

He pats me on the shoulder again and nods toward the door. "We should probably get in there before Ferentz starts wondering where the hell we are."

A few hours later, when we take the field, I pull off my helmet near the sideline and scan the stands for Tate. Hayes's words about how he knew Everly was the one echo in my mind.

I can live without football. I can't live without Sunny.

It takes me a moment, but I finally spot her. I notice Everly first—the pompom on top of her beanie bounces every time she jumps. Tate must see me searching because she waves her hand high, catching my eye.

The tightness in my chest at the sight of her isn't lost on me.

I'm starting to wonder if I was living or just existing until Tate moved into the room next to mine. The more I think about it, if something happened and she moved away from Braysen, I don't know if I could live without her either.