Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

It was all taking longer than she expected, and honestly, she thought Jax would have called her by now.

But he hadn’t.

She thought he would have texted her by now.

But he hadn’t.

And more than anything, she thought she’d have the confidence in herself to believe that it was all going to work out.

But…she didn’t.

Tonight, the Warriors were playing against the Jets and as much as she wanted to watch the game in hopes of catching a glimpse of Jax, she was refraining in the name of self-care.

Does that make me weak?

Even if it did, she didn’t care. She was handling things the best she could. Every day, she went to work. She’d had dinner with her family and they had all talked like adults without throwing accusations and even though she didn’t share exactly what had happened before she came home from Wichita, she had a feeling Ty knew what was up.

Hell, she was surprised he hadn’t shown up and played the “I told you so” card.

Strolling into the kitchen, she contemplated dinner. “Let’s play tonight’s round of do I want to cook or get takeout?”

While she was standing in front of the open refrigerator trying to figure out what she was in the mood for, her phone dinged with a text.

Gemma: Incoming!

Frowning, she had no idea what that meant.

Lucy: ???

Gemma: Open the front door and find out!

For a moment, hope filled her. Was Jax here? Was he trying to surprise her and used her friend to help him?

Skipping to the door, she yanked it open with a big smile, completely ready to launch herself into his arms.

“Surprise!” Gemma, Ty, and Wyatt shouted. They each held up massive bags of takeout from some of her favorite places.

Disappointment hit her hard, but she forced herself to smile. “Hey! This is a surprise! Come in!”

They each hugged her on their way in and made their way to the kitchen. “We got all your favorites,” Gemma said. “I went to the bakery and got cupcakes, Ty went and picked up a ton of Chinese food with extra dumplings, and Wyatt picked up your favorite wine and…mozzarella sticks for some reason.”

“Um…because I like them,” he explained, winking at Lucy. “We thought it would be fun to have a non-Mom-and-Dad dinner and just hang out like we used to do. These last few months you were always busy and we didn’t know why, but now that we knew you’d definitely be in town, it seemed like the perfect time.”

Great, her pitiful life went back to being predictable. Awesome.

Food was unpacked, dishes were set, and drinks were poured. When she sat down, she realized that this was the perfect thing for her right now. Having her bestie and her brothers here was exactly what her weary soul needed.

It took only five minutes of casual conversation before Tyler brought up Jax.

“So, are we going to talk about what really happened in Wichita?” he asked.

Shrugging, she picked up a dumpling. “I don’t know what you mean.”

He chuckled, pointing a chopstick at her. “Oh, I think you do. Something obviously happened and you’re going to be stubborn and not talk about it because you’re afraid I’m going to say ‘I told you so’ or something.”

Tossing her fork down, she nodded. “Okay. So if I told you that Jax wanted us to take a break because he needed to put all his time and energy into football right now, what would your response be?” Her tone was heavy on the sarcasm and it was almost comical how Gemma and Wyatt seemed to eat in slow motion.

“Well, I’d day that it makes sense because the Warriors have a great shot at going to the Super Bowl this year,” Tyler responded. “But then I would also say that I don’t see why you can’t still go and see him. It seems a little dramatic for him to put an end to things, especially after all that sappy ‘My Girl’ stuff on his social media pages.”

“Dude, that was a little snarky,” Wyatt murmured.

“Since I’m obviously in the know on all of this,” Gemma cautiously began, “I get that your mom threw out the whole Blake comparison and you mentioned that Jax did too, but…you know that’s not the case, right?”

“Of course I do!” she cried with frustration. “With Blake, I was trying to run away from my life! I used that relationship like an escape. All I saw was how it was going to immediately change things for me. I never thought about what things would look like when it actually happened. But when I force myself to think about it, I would have been miserable with him.”

“That guy was a douche,” Wyatt said, popping another mozzarella stick into his mouth.

“And with Jax?” Gemma prompted.

Sighing, she shook her head. “With Jax, leaving everything here wasn’t an escape. It was running toward the person I wanted to be with because I love him. I don’t care where we live—and I already know that with the camp, that’s going to be here in South Creek at least part of the time—I just want to be with him. That’s it. No agenda, no ulterior motives, just him.”

Saying it out loud like that hit her harder than she thought. Tears stung her eyes and rather than acknowledge them, she picked up a dumpling and ate it.

“Can someone pass the lo mein?” Ty asked.

That was it? No one was going to say anything about her big admission? Was that the end of the discussion? Seriously?

“Did you eat all the mozzarella sticks?” Gemma asked Wyatt. “I was hoping to grab at least one.”

“Yeah, sure.” He held it out to her and then pulled it back. “Although…you kind of made fun of the fact that I got them, so…maybe I should keep them all for myself.”

“Don’t be a doofus,” Gemma said before snagging the stick from him. “It seemed weird, but who doesn’t love a good mozzarella stick? I don’t want the marinara sauce, but I’ll totally dip it in the sweet and sour sauce.”

“They didn’t put any hot mustard packets in the bag,” Ty huffed. “Dammit.”

Clearing her throat loudly, Lucy asked, “Um, excuse me? Are none of you going to acknowledge anything I said? I mean, I kind of poured my heart out and all you can talk about is food!”

Three pairs of wide eyes stared back at her, but ultimately Ty was the one who responded.

“We just wanted to come here and make sure you’re okay, Luce. I doubt that you want to sit here rehashing everything that went wrong or have a Jax bashing session. The goal was just to come and hang out and distract you, that’s all.”

“Oh.”

With that out of the way, she let herself relax and enjoy the meal. They talked about everything and nothing, just like they always had. She heard about the jobs her brothers were working on and some of the animal antics Gemma dealt with at the vet this week. When they were done with dinner, they took the box of cupcakes to the living room and sat down on the sofa.

“Would it be weird if we watched the game?” Wyatt asked.

“Dude! What the hell?” Ty snapped. “That’s a little insensitive.”

“Yeah, but…I’ve got money on it. The tile guy on the house I’m redoing was talking shit about the Warriors. He’s from up north, so he’s clearly a Jets fan. I just want to catch at least some of it, but if it’s gonna be weird…”

“No, it’s okay,” Lucy assured. “Before you guys got here, I was kind of contemplating it myself, so…”

“Excellent!”

And that’s how they ended up sitting and watching the entire game. Her heart ached whenever the camera zoomed in on Jax, and she wished she could reach out and touch him.

“Hey, um…Luce?” Gemma whispered sometime in the fourth quarter.

“Yeah?”

“I need to call Mike. He’s been texting and…I just need a few minutes' privacy. Would you mind if I went into your room and closed the door?”

Turning her head, she said, “Why would I mind? Of course you can. You don’t even have to ask.”

“I just didn’t want it to look weird. Thanks.” She got up and walked away just as Jax threw the pass that put the Warriors ahead by fourteen points and, with only a few minutes left on the clock, the win was almost guaranteed.

“Yes! That’s what I’m talking about!” Wyatt shouted. “I can’t wait to rub this in Jeremy’s face! Ha!”

“That’s just poor sportsmanship,” Ty mumbled.

“Dude, we’re not the ones playing. Just talking about it. It’s not the same.”

Rolling her eyes, Lucy contemplated grabbing a second cupcake. The game went to commercial and when it came back, there was less than two minutes of play left. In the background, you could see scores of fans leaving because their team lost, but she always felt it was important to stay until the end because anything could happen.

The clock ran out and the Warriors won; the sideline reporter was touting how this was one of Jax Wylder’s best games all season.

Lucy had to agree. He was magnificent the entire game.

When his face came on screen, he was smiling as the reporter waved him over, and she was desperate to hear his voice.

“What a game tonight, Jax! Congratulations!” the reporter was saying. “You seem completely rejuvenated. Can you tell us how you’re feeling? Is the shoulder finally healed?”

“Thank you, Brent, and thanks for asking!” he said breathlessly. Looking around, Jax was smiling at everyone around him and she knew there were a ton of distractions as the media took to the field for the post-game interviews. “The shoulder is doing great and it feels good to be confident in my arm again.”

“That’s definitely great news. Coming into this matchup tonight, did you have any worries about it? You’ve been back on the field for several weeks, but your playing tonight reminded me of your sophomore season with the Warriors. You were on fire!”

He grinned. “More than anything, I was motivated. It was important to get in here and win so we can get home!”

“Oh?” That clearly wasn’t what he was expecting Jax to say. “And that’s because…”

“Because when we get back to Kansas, I’m hoping my girl is going to be there waiting for me.” He looked right into the camera and winked. “There’s nothing like going home and having the person you love there waiting for you, and Lucy Dawson, I can’t wait to see your face.” The interview immediately went back to the game as if he hadn’t just dropped a huge bombshell.

“What the…how…who…?” Jumping to her feet, she was babbling and had no idea what she was supposed to do. “Oh my God! What do I do?” she demanded to no one in particular.

Gemma came strolling out of the bedroom with a suitcase at the same time her brothers got to their feet, with Ty handing her an envelope and Wyatt swinging his car keys.

“I don’t understand what’s happening right now…”

“Simon chartered a flight for you for tomorrow morning,” Ty began. “He didn’t want you to have to deal with finding a flight on your own or anything else.”

“I’m driving you to the airport,” Wyatt told her.

“And I already packed you a bag,” Gemma added. “You may want to add more, but…this was symbolic.”

“You guys all knew…? How?”

“I got a call from Jax on Friday,” Ty explained. “Noah and Simon had been hanging out with him and helped him see the flaw in his logic about the two of you. He called me because he wanted to make sure that we were fine—you know, since I’m his best friend and have been since we were five and he never talked to me about dating you.”

She groaned.

“We hashed some things out, but basically all I ever wanted was for the two of you to be happy. Obviously I didn’t know that meant together, but I’m genuinely okay with it. I told him my concerns and he respected them.”

“O-kay…”

“He had to get through tonight’s game and the team isn’t flying home until tomorrow, but I promised him we’d get you there,” her brother went on. “We had a whole group chat going about it. It’s been fun keeping this secret from you!”

She was ready to punch him when Wyatt intervened. “To be fair, we only really found out about it last night, so it wasn’t like a long-hidden thing.”

“I’m just so excited that this is happening!” Gemma said happily. “You’re going right? I mean, you’re definitely getting on that plane, aren’t you?”

“Of course I am! I wish I could fly out right now, but it would be pointless! How am I supposed to even sleep tonight?”

“That’s our cue to leave,” Ty said before hugging her. “You and Gemma can finish out the night as just a girls' thing.” Another hug. “Love you, kiddo. I’m glad it’s all working out.”

“Thanks, Ty. Love you too!”

Wyatt repeated the same thing to her and within minutes, they were gone and it was just her and her bestie.

Who didn’t look all that excited anymore. “Gem? What’s wrong? Five minutes ago, you looked so happy!”

“It just hit me that like…you’re going to move away and then I’ll be here without you.”

Pulling her friend in for a fierce hug, she said, “You’re never without me. And there’s a lot Jax and I have to figure out.” Pulling back, she led them over to the couch to sit down. “As much as I want to pack up everything I own right now, we both know that’s not going to happen. But I’m going to stay with him until the next time the team travels for sure. I’m going to take this one day at a time, but me and you? We’re always going to be close no matter where I live.”

“When you were with Blake, it felt like…”

“Like I was making a huge mistake. I know. But it’s not like that with Jax. One of the things I love about him, believe it or not, is how he never lost that connection to his hometown. I never thought I’d find that sort of thing attractive, but I do. He loves his family and friends and looks forward to coming home and seeing everyone. He’s just honest and genuine and you have no idea how much I hate myself for hating him for so long.”

Relaxing, Gemma smiled at her. “I love seeing you happy, Lulu. I was worried about you for a long time and then I wasn’t and then I was again. But this time, I feel like you’ve finally found your way—your happily ever after is a plane ride away.”

Just thinking about it made her want to get up and do a happy dance.

So she did.

“Is it tomorrow yet?”

Laughing, Gemma grabbed the last two remaining cupcakes and handed her one. “Not yet, but soon!”

He thought he’d be freaking out and anxious.

He thought he’d be nervous as hell and biting people’s heads off because they weren’t getting him home fast enough.

But when he got the text from Wyatt that simply read “Mission accomplished,” everything in him just seemed to relax. With any luck, they would arrive at his house around the same time. He had to get from the airport to the stadium and then home. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that he was going to have to grovel, but he didn’t mind doing whatever it took to make things up to Lucy.

And thanks to an away game, he now had two full days off with no practices, which left plenty of time for groveling.

They were approaching the Wichita airport and he was ready to just get on with the day.

“I hope your declaration on live TV last night means you’re done moping around,” Travis said from the seat beside him. He had been sleeping for most of the flight and this was the first full sentence he had uttered. “And, for the record, you could have talked to me or Declan about all the other bullshit. No one would have ever heard a thing from us.”

“I know, and I appreciate that. I just…I panicked and didn’t want to do anything else to make things worse. The last time I didn’t listen, my whole life imploded.”

“True, but…you can trust us. Always.”

Turning his head, he nodded. “Thanks, Trav. I appreciate that.” After a moment, he added, “My goal is to never get into a situation like that ever again.”

“Offer still stands, no matter what.”

And that was officially the end of that discussion. Within minutes, they were on the ground and he was grabbing his carry-ons and joining his teammates in deplaning. They had to do everything as a team—flying and traveling to and from the airport. So once they were off the plane, it was out to the team bus. Right now, Jax would have preferred to take an Uber to his house, but he was going to abide by all the rules.

No matter how much longer they made everything take.

The entire bus ride to the stadium, he kept checking his phone for any word from Lucy. By now he thought she would have texted just to say she was on her way or to send him pictures from the private plane.

If I’d have taken a private plane, I’d be home right freaking now…

Declan sat beside him on the bus, grinning. “Man, this has got to be killing you.”

“What has?”

“How long this is taking. After that whole little speech after the game last night, I’m surprised you didn’t ask if you could fly home by yourself.”

“Dammit…why didn’t I think of that?” he hissed.

Chuckling, his buddy shook his head. “Unless someone died, I don’t think it’s allowed. Besides, the stadium is only a fifteen-minute drive, and we’re all allowed to leave as soon as we’re off the bus. We got the team meeting pep talk last night and again while waiting to take off, so once we stop in the parking lot, you’re free.”

Fifteen minutes never felt so long.

By the time he was actually off the bus and in his truck, he was ready to scream.

“So much for me being relaxed earlier,” he murmured. He was literally the first one out of the parking lot and as soon as he turned onto the highway, he contemplated stopping for flowers or something for Lucy, but decided that he didn’t want any more stops or delays. He just wanted to get home.

At the gate to his community, he scanned his key card and waved to the guard. “Hey, Bill! Did Lucy come through yet?”

“No, sir, Mr. Wylder. Not yet. But I have her on the list, so as soon as she arrives, we’ll get her through.”

“Thanks, Bill!” Okay, that meant he was going to have a few minutes to breathe and change out of his suit. Why they had to travel in suits was beyond him, but rules were rules.

After pulling his truck into the garage, Jax hopped down, loosening his tie, and unbuttoning the top button of his shirt before grabbing his suitcase. He opened the door to the house and…

There was Lucy.

“What…? I thought you weren’t here yet? At the gate, Bill said…”

She took his breath away.

It didn’t matter that she got here first or that he didn’t know; all that mattered was that she was here.

Striding right over to her, he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. Pouring everything he felt into that single moment, it reminded him slightly of their last kiss—but this time he knew it wouldn’t be their last.

When he forced himself to pull his lips from hers, he loved the dazed look on her face. “Hi.”

“Hey,” she whispered, blushing slightly. “You totally stole my thunder. I planned on making a big scene when you walked through that door.”

“A big scene? Like…?”

“Like I was going to tell you that there’s no hitting pause on us, Jax Wylder. This thing between us is the best thing to happen to either of us. I don’t care how much time you need to dedicate to your job and this football season; I don’t care if I only get to see you for fifteen minutes a day. All that matters is that I get to see you.” Clutching the front of his shirt, she gave him a little shake. “And if you ever pack up a suitcase and hand it to me and it’s not for a trip we’re taking together, I swear I will throw it at you. Are we clear?”

It was hard to keep a straight face. He towered over her and outweighed her by like a hundred pounds, so the fact that she thought she could intimidate him was adorable.

Not that he was dumb enough to point that out right now.

Taking her hand, he led her over to the couch and pulled her onto his lap as they sat. “Okay, well…you should know that I had a plan too.”

“Oh?” One perfectly arched brow raised.

“Mm-hmm. My plan was to get here before you and when you came to the door, I was going to be on my knees, ready to grovel. But it looks like that went out the window.”

“Hmm…groveling, you say, huh?” She paused for a second. “What were you planning on saying during this grovel?”

“I was going to tell you how sorry I was,” he began solemnly. “I never should have said that we had to hit pause. It was so stupid and completely unnecessary. I really thought I couldn’t have any distractions in order to play the way I needed to. Turns out I was wrong about that.”

“How do you know?”

“Because my brothers were here distracting the hell out of me for the better part of a week, and I played just as good as I always did. Well, better than I had been lately, so…”

This time she was the one to reach up and cup his face. “There was never anything wrong with how you played. You’re far too critical. No one plays every game perfectly. There are too many variables and…” She stopped. “Okay, this isn’t about how you play, Jax. This is about us. I’m here and…I want to go back to that moment where I told you I’d stay. I want to move here for the rest of the season. That hasn’t changed. I packed enough stuff to get me through several weeks and I can go home the next time the team travels and check on things and grab more if I need to.”

“I feel guilty about that, Luce. You’ve got a life! A job! I don’t want you giving that all up for me, even temporarily,” he argued softly.

“Yes, I have all of that, but what about you?”

“Me? What about me?”

“You do so much for everyone—care so much about everyone—and you never let anyone come and take care of you. That’s what I want to do. I told you, I’ve got a lot of vacation time banked and a somewhat decent savings account, so I can take the time off. And before you argue again, you have to know that I feel very strongly about this. You are worth it.”

He swore tears stung his eyes because it didn’t seem possible for him to be this lucky.

“I want to be here to cheer you on because I believe in you and support you no matter what. And it doesn’t matter if you want to move back to South Creek after you retire or someplace like Buford, Wyoming, or Aubrey, Arkansas, or even…Hibberts Gore, Maine!” She giggled. “Just FYI, those are just some of the smallest towns in the country, and yes, even smaller than South Creek. I don’t care where we go, as long as we’re there together, it’s going to be the best place in the world to live.”

“You’ve done your homework, apparently. I can’t help how I feel, Luce. I can’t help feeling bad about you making all the sacrifices in the relationship. I want to be the one to take care of you.”

“And when the season’s over, you will. But for now, let me be the one to take care of you, Jax. Please.” There was nothing but tenderness in her words and expression. The only thing that would have made this moment perfect was if she felt for him what he felt for her.

“There is nothing I want more than for you to stay,” he gruffly replied. “And I want to go back to the moment I told you I love you.” His hands covered hers before he gently pulled them away and kissed her palms. “Maybe someday you’ll feel the same way and love me and I’m okay if that day isn’t right now. I just want to be with you.”

When he went to rest his forehead against hers, she slowly pulled her hands from his.

“Um…”

“Are you seriously not getting this?” she said with a mixture of annoyance and amusement. “I’m here because I love you. I want to stay because I love you. And I’m talking about our future because I love you! How did you not know that?”

“Uh, probably because you never said the words, ‘Jax, I love you!’ Did you think of maybe just saying that?”

They both broke out in a fit of laughter as he maneuvered them on the sofa until she was lying beneath him.

“I love you, Jax. So much.”

“That’s the best thing anyone’s ever said to me,” he murmured against her lips before kissing her. “I love you too. So much.”

Her smile was sweet and sexy and full of promise. “Then how about we take this inside and make up properly? I’ve missed you and it feels like far too long since I’ve seen you naked and felt your hands on me.”

“Sweetheart, we’re all alone here in the house, we can get naked and touch each other wherever we want.”

They both paused and seemed to come up with the same idea at the same time.

“The hot tub!”

Jax scooped her up in his arms and strode across the room, letting her unlock the sliding glass doors. They were laughing as he stumbled out the door and put her on her feet. “I’ll get the cover off; you get it started!” he told her.

And just like that, all was right with his world.

It was late, but he honestly had no idea of the time. All he knew was that it was dark out and they had eaten dinner hours ago after making up for lost time all over the house.

And hot tub.

Now, with Lucy curled up beside him, it was one of those sleepy conversations that he always looked forward to.

“I’m thinking of getting a tattoo,” she said around a yawn.

That made him laugh lowly. “Oh, really? Since when?”

“Since…I don’t know. But I love all of yours—especially the one on your chest. Not that I want one on my chest, but I thought maybe something on my ankle could be cute.”

“Like a mini version of mine?” he teased, causing her to laugh.

“ Pfft …there is no way to make a miniature version of that. Between the helmet, the football, the NFL logo, and the shadow of the two players, it would take up half my leg! No, I was thinking like a flower or something.” Another yawn. “But I’m not going to decide tonight. I just thought I’d throw it out there.”

“Okay,” he whispered, placing a kiss on the top of her head. “Good to know.”

“Mmm…so what do you have to do tomorrow? Anything?”

“Rest. Lots and lots of rest. I think we’re going to need it.”

“That sounds about right.” And yet another yawn. “Oh, I forgot to tell you, I talked to Maddie before I left this morning. Or was it yesterday morning?” Lifting her head, she looked around. “What time is it?”

“Doesn’t matter,” he said quietly as he guided her head back down to his shoulder. “What did she have to say?”

“Well, I told her what was going on and how this was something I had to do. I apologized for the short notice, but she agreed to a leave of absence for however long I need.”

“Wow, that was incredibly generous of her.”

“I know. We have a great staff at the clinic, and I think this is going to be good for some of the therapists. It will give them a chance to step up and take on a little more responsibility. I kind of feel like I handle too much by myself and don’t delegate like I should.”

“Seems accurate,” he teased, and she pinched him. “Ouch!”

“That’s for being snarky. Anyway, she said that she definitely wants me on the team for the new clinic when the camp opens, no matter what. I told her that was the plan and it would all be worked out in more detail when the time got closer.”

“You really worked it all out, Luce. All of it. You’re here, you covered your job, and…you’re here.” He hugged her close. “That’s the best part.”

“That was the most important part.”

It was Jax’s turn to yawn. “Let’s get some sleep, beautiful. Tomorrow is going to be the first day of this new life for us, and I can’t wait to get started.”

“Mmm…me too. Love you, Jax.”

“Love you too.”