by Eva Luxe
Maya, Kina, and Liam were in the living room, drinking coffee, talking and laughing. When I stepped into the living room the conversation died down. Maya stood up and walked to me, kissing me full on the mouth.
“I invited Liam and Kina to stay for dinner,” she said. Her eyes asked me if I minded.
“That sounds great,” I said.
Maya smiled, relieved. She nodded and walked to the kitchen. With the open plan layout, she could prepare dinner and still be a part of the conversation.
“I’m glad you’re here, actually,” I said, to Liam and Kina when I put down my briefcase. “I wanted to talk to you both anyway.”
Kina and Liam glanced at each other, a look I knew all too well. What is he going to do this time?
“I want to apologize,” I said.
They both looked at me. Kina was surprised and Liam wasn’t far behind.
“I know this isn’t the first time,” I soldiered on. “It looks like I make mistakes a few times before I learn my lesson. But here I am, again, trying to tell you I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize,” Kina said.
I shook my head. “No, I do. And I want to. I have been horrible lately. I tried before to be civilized about it and failed. But this time, everything is different.” I looked at Kina. “You didn’t give up on me. Since the moment everything crashed down around me you were there for me, helping me out of a hole no matter how far I sank. I can’t tell you how much you mean to me and how happy I am to call you my sister.”
Kina smiled at me. She was getting emotional. “You know I’ll never give up on you,” she said.
“I know. I saw. And I’m sorry I gave up—on me, and on you. That won’t happen again. You saved me from a very dark spot when I didn’t know how to get myself out of it.”
Kina stood and walked over to me, giving me a hug. I held onto my sister and realized how lucky I was. I glanced at Maya over Kina’s shoulder and saw she was smiling at me.
“Liam,” I said, when Kina had let go and made her way back to her seat again.
“I’ve been a shitty friend. I’m sorry. I should have been happy for you when your dream came true. Instead, I was a complete dick about it. You have been the best friend a guy could ever ask for and I appreciate that you never stopped trying, not matter how much of an ass I was.”
“Hey, we stick together, right?” Liam said.
I nodded. “We do. From this moment on, I won’t let you down again.”
“I’m just glad to have you back,” Liam said. Kina reached for Liam and he took her hand, squeezing it.
Maya was done in the kitchen and she joined us in the living room again. I lifted my arm and she took her place next to me, her body pushed tightly against mine. I dropped a kiss on her hair.
“And Maya,” I said. “Thank you for holding on even when there was no reason to. You’re my light. You have no idea how dark my world was before you stepped into it. Both times.”
She smiled and I kissed her.
“Get a room,” Liam called, and we laughed. It was great having my family with me again, to have them back. I hadn’t realized how very lonely I had become, how isolated I had made myself. No one deserved to be as lonely as I was and no one deserved to be treated the way I’d treated my friends and family. It would still take some time before I was back where I needed to be, but with people like Liam, Kina and Maya in my life, I knew I would make it through. When they refused to give up on me, who was I to give up on myself?
Maya cooked for us, throwing together a great meal in no time at all. We sat in the living room with trays because I didn’t have enough space at the counter for four people. That would have to change, I decided. I had to find a bigger place, a place that had space for everyone in my life to sit down and eat dinner together. Because the isolation wasn’t going to happen again and the point of life and relationships was making space for someone in your life.
And I intended on doing just that.
Epilogue
Maya
Three Months Later
I started my car after training and turned in the direction of home. Training had gone well with the team. The Dolphins had a bye this weekend but Liam had invited us to watch the second stringers play. It meant that the four of us—Liam, Kina, Kyle and I—would be able to watch the game together. It was usually only Kyle and Kina because I had to be on the field cheering, and Liam was out there pounding it out on the field.
Soon, we would be watching more games than only Liam’s. Kyle and I had started searching for a football club in Miami and we’d found out there were a couple of amateur clubs around. Kyle had only just started playing for them, but soon he would join the games they played each other. The Miami Magic City Bulls were happy to have him, and even though it was only a minor league, Kyle was happier now that he was playing again.
I had known he would be. Part of the problem had been that he had cut himself off from everything to do with football. But that was in the past, now. It was as big of a part of our life as ever and it was perfect. Liam and Kina supported Kyle’s new hobby, making an effort to watch the games whenever they could.
The roads were quiet on a Saturday and I was home in no time at all. The new place Kyle and I had gotten together was a lot closer to the training center. It had made sense to be closer. The squad trained there most of the time, now, and Kyle often came to watch me or Liam, or both of us.
Shortly after we had kissed and made up, Kyle had announced he wanted a bigger place.
“Because I need more space for all the people in my life,” he’d said. Immediately after, he had officially asked me to move in with him.
Sara now had her condo all to herself and I knew she was happy. She could entertain her friends and boyfriends without having to ask me if it worked for me, and now when we saw each other, we had more than enough gossip to catch up on to keep us talking for hours.
The place Kyle and I had together was a three bedroom place. We had a guest room and an office that could later be transformed into something else. Kyle’s words, not mine. It was great that he was thinking ahead, that he saw me in his future. Because I felt the same about him.
I glanced down at Sara’s diamond ring on my finger. I still wore it even though Tyler hadn’t contacted me for weeks. Since the night he had trashed my room I hadn’t heard from him. Whether the police had picked him up or he had bought the lie about my engagement, he had left me alone. Maybe he had just given up. Whatever it was, I was relieved he seemed to be in the past. Since I had run into Kyle, despite the hiccup we’d had shortly after, everything had been perfect. Life had been great.
When I arrived home the place was quiet. Kyle and Liam had headed out to the game earlier. Kyle had said Liam wanted to talk sports to him and it wasn’t something I cared to hear. I was serious about football, but those two could go on forever.
I showered and dried my hair, dressed in jeans, a t-shirt and sneakers before heading out to the game. It was at Hard Rock and I walked to the box Liam often used. When I let myself in, Liam and Kyle stood at the window looking out over the field. Kina approached me from the side.
“Thank God you’re here,” she said. “I’m losing my mind. They’re getting technical about the sport.”
I rolled my eyes, laughing. “How do you survive?” I joked.
Kina looped her arm through mine and dragged me to the seats.
“So, they weren’t only talking about football,” Kina said. “You might want to ask Kyle about that.”
I nodded. I would.
The game started and we turned our attention the second stringers. A few of the other Dolphins joined us. Hanson and Brian joined Kyle and Liam where they stood and Lacey and Stacey, their wives, joined us. I had met them through Kina a few weeks ago and every time I saw them, we got along very well. I understood now why Liam was so happy, why Kina had started referring to the women as football wives. They had created a solid group of friends, friends that would be
there for each other no matter what. And the football players had drawn me and Kyle in, too. They didn’t care that Kyle wasn’t a part of the team.
The second stringers won and everyone cheered and drank to the future of the Miami Dolphins.
Kyle walked over and kissed me.
“I have news,” he said. “I was watching the second stringers warm up and Liam pointed out that I have a good eye for talent.”
“I can imagine you do,” I said. “If anyone knows the game and what is needed, it’s you.”
He smiled. “Thanks, babe. But Liam mentioned getting me involved in the scouting process for the team. He doesn’t know exactly who to talk to yet but he wants to find out.”
“That sounds great, my love!” I said, and hugged him.
He grinned. “It’s not written in stone yet but it would be awesome if I could get involved that way.”
I nodded. It would be perfect for Kyle. He had talent and football was his life. It would be perfect if he could get a job that was such a fundamental part of the sport.
“It’s all going to work out, I know it,” I said.
Kyle nodded. The men and the women formed a large group and we stood, drinking and talking, laughing and joking. I looked at the people we called our friends and I realized how very lucky I was to be a part of this, to belong.
“How is training going?” Hanson asked me. “Your team is looking good.”
I smiled, nodding. “Training is going well. I feel like we’ve stepped it up a level. We’re working on new routines for the next game as well, something fresh.”
“Can’t wait to see it,” Hanson said.
The others agreed. The Dolphin Cheerleading Squad changed up their routine every now and then to keep things interesting. I had suggested the latest change to the team and Samantha had backed me. It had been great to be able to contribute.
The conversation moved to other things and we spent the afternoon together despite the team on the field having left ages ago. But we were having our own fun. After a while, Kyle took my hand and kissed it.
“I would like to say something,” he said, and everyone fell quiet. “It’s been such a pleasure for me to be a part of this group of friends. You’ve all been so kind to me and I appreciate it.”
We all lifted our glasses to Kyle.
“When everything went wrong for me, I felt like it was the end of the line. But everyone here has done something to remind me that it’s never over, that there are always second chances. I found that to be true in my life, my career,” he looked at me, “and my relationships. When you’re nearly thirty you don’t think you could still grow up, but I found out I wasn’t even close to being an adult until I worked through the difficult times. I wouldn’t have made it this far without you.”
Kyle looked at Liam and Kina and they both nodded at him, smiling.
“And my beautiful girlfriend Maya. You’ve been with me through thick and thin, having faith in me when I lost it in myself. I am so lucky that I got another chance with you, that we can do this again. You’ve always been my one and only love, the person I wanted to spend my life with. I was such an idiot when I broke up with you.”
“Luckily, that’s all behind us,” I said.
“Yes, and to make sure that it stays in the past, I want to prove to you how much you mean to me.”
I frowned. Kyle dropped to one knee and I clasped my hands over my mouth. The other women gasped.
“Maya, you’ve been my strength and my rock from the start. I was an idiot to lose you once, I won’t do it again. You’re an amazing woman, independent and strong, disciplined and supportive.” He took my left hand. “Even if I spent a million years searching, I would never find another woman like you. Will you be my wife and spend forever with me?”
My eyes had welled up with tears and they spilled over my cheeks now. I had cried many tears over this man, but these were tears of pure happiness.
“Yes,” I answered. “I would love to be your wife.”
Kyle smiled and took off the fake engagement ring I had been wearing. He produced a small black leather box and opened it. The women next to me gasped again. It was a rose gold ring with diamonds set in an intricate pattern. Kyle removed the ring from the box and slid it onto my finger.
“It looks so much better than the other one,” he said.
“And it’s real,” I said and smiled. He stood up and pulled me against him, kissing me. Our friends applauded and when Kyle broke the kiss I noticed smiles on each and every face. Kyle and I wore the biggest smiles of all.
Our friends quickly thronged around, eager to congratulate us. I got hugs and kisses on the cheek from everyone. Kina was the last to come to me. She had tears in her eyes when she hugged me.
“Welcome to the family, sister,” she said, after the hug. “And thank you.”
“For what?” I asked.
“For saving him,” she said. “I don’t know where we would have been if it weren’t for you. You brought him back to us. You made our family whole again and now you’re a part of it.”
She hugged me again and I held onto her tightly. I had always seen Kina as a sister but now, finally, we really would be. I couldn’t be happier.
The future for us looked bright. I was sure Kyle would be able to find a job that involved football. If he didn’t end up as a scout he would find something else.
Everything was perfect.
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Copyright © 2017 by Eva Luxe and Juliana Conners; All Rights Reserved.
Chapter 1 – Hanson
There were so many hot women up in here. From the sad-eyed, impatient-looking chicks who had to wait in line because they didn’t have a connection to let them in ahead of all the rest of the poor saps, to the cocktail waitresses dancing on the bar to the bachelorette party attenders shaking their asses on the dance floor in celebration of their BFF’s final night of freedom, I couldn’t even keep up with the number of amazingly stunning women all around me. This was my perfect idea of a Friday night.
The White Room was the kind of night club the who’s who of Miami went to. Situated in Mid-Beach, the glamorous club was part of the Fontainebleau Hotel and a hot spot for famous folk and VIP regulars. I went there all the time. If I was going to get wasted, I was going to do it in style.
Did it cost a lot of money? Hell yeah. But as the Safety for the Florida Sharks Football team— at least, when my ass wasn’t suspended— I had enough cash to get fucked-off-my-face drunk without blinking at my bill at the end of the night.
The venue, the service, and the music was the shit, and that’s why hot women from all over came to the club. If there was anything that made me a happy man, it was a woman in a dress that left very little to the imagination.
Tonight, the club was packed. It consisted of a huge dance floor with banquet booths on the bottom floor, stairs that descended from the doors so you could scope out whoever came in, and sky boxes on the second floor that looked out over the dance floor. Sky boxes were reserved for VIPs like us, so that’s where we were hanging out tonight, just like all the other nights we came here.
I leaned on the chrome railing and looked out over the crowd with a glass of expensive whiskey in my hand. The music throb
bed like a racing pulse, and bodies writhed to the beat. The air smelled of sweat and lust, an intoxicating combination.
“Man, it’s good to kick back,” Brian said, splayed out on one of the white leather couches. “I swear that last game fucked me up. I’m aching all over.”
“Is your face hurting?” I couldn’t help the smirk lifting my lip. I loved dicking around with Brian. He was too easy sometimes.
“Fuck you too.” He rolled his eyes and chuckled. “My face is not hurting, and it’s not killing you. All these women around here are looking at me, idiot. You know this.”
I shrugged and sipped my whiskey. He was an idiot, but I would keep him around. I turned a little as my back ached. He was bent over thanks to the last game; I was just sore from a shitty night of sleep.
Getting hurt in the game was an occupational hazard. Brian McMurry was the Running Back for the Sharks. He was good at what he did and a fan favorite. He was also my best friend. We had played for the Hurricanes together before we’d been selected for the team, and if there was anyone I would turn to in a crisis, it was Brian.
“How long until you’re back in action?” Brian asked. “You must be losing your shit not playing for so long.”
I nodded. “Losing my shit” was an accurate description. Not playing drove me crazy, but I had to deal with it. Life was all about the choices you made.
“Two more games,” I said, rolling my shoulders. “Then I’m back.”
I turned toward Brian and sat down, too. Brian sipped a glass of soda water like a teetotaler. He had training in the morning. The Sharks started at six, and we had to “Focus-Listen-Learn,” as the signage above the door to the training facility reminded us. It was hard to do that when you had so much alcohol in your system the world spun when you stood still.
