“Mr. Brannon,” Roman says in greeting.
My dad gives him a hard look, and the minute they grasp hands, my dad pulls him in for a sharp, one-handed bro hug where they sort of bump chests. My dad claps him hard on the shoulder, and when he pulls back, he says, “None of that Mr. Brannon crap. You’re part of the family now.”
Roman turns his head to look at me over his shoulder, and I give him a wink. “Part of the family. Get used to it.”
“Thinking that’s not going to be as hard as I thought it would be,” Roman says with a smile back at me.
He then releases my dad’s hand and moves over to the other side of the bed to take the chair Gray has been sitting in, waving to the two chairs on the other side for them to sit in.
We spend the rest of the morning talking and laughing. Gray comes back and joins us, and I watch as she and Roman sort of lapse into a sibling type of rivalry, taking snipes at each other but in a completely teasing way. My dad hovers over me at times, and Georgia flirts with him shamelessly, which causes him to blush. The nurses have to tell us to be quiet on more than one occasion, and that makes us laugh harder.
My heart feels full, ready to burst…joyful in the knowledge that Roman is part of a family again.
Amazing to think of how my life turned out.
That I am part of a family again.
Epilogue
Roman
TWO WEEKS LATER… Some say it would be too early to propose.
You don’t know each other all that well.
What’s the rush?
Take your time…enjoy life a bit first.
But as I watch Brian Brannon get down on bended knee in front of Georgia, holding up an opened black-velvet box, I don’t think it’s too early at all. Life is actually too short, and when you know it’s right…it’s right.
Lexi is practically bouncing up and down beside me as she watches.
Gray’s got tears in her eyes.
Ryker is smirking.
Violet and Ruby are ooohing and ahhhing over the massive diamond that’s shimmering against the black velvet.
Georgia’s hand flutters to her heart for a brief moment, then covers her mouth as she stares wide-eyed at the ring.
Brian’s face looks utterly hopeful as he says, “Georgia, how I fell for a wild woman like you is beyond me, but the one thing I’m sure of beyond any doubt is that you are the one for me. I’ve waited far too long for you, and I don’t want another moment to go by without you by my side. I want you there in the eyes of my family, of God, and of the law as well. Please do this old man a favor and say you’ll be my wife.”
Lexi almost faints and I chuckle as my arm goes around her in support.
It’s not often we get to see Georgia speechless, but she opens her mouth and nothing comes out.
“Say yes,” Ruby shrieks.
That seems to knock Georgia out of her fugue state and her lips curl upward, then split into a huge, sparkling grin.
“Yes,” she shouts at Brian, then throws herself at him. She knocks him backward onto his butt and she comes to rest on top of him, peppering his face with kisses. “Yes, I’ll marry you, you sweet, sexy stud you!”
We all laugh, because that’s oh so Georgia, and then it turns awkward when Brian kisses her deeply, his hand dropping down to her ass.
“A-a-a-a-n-d,” I drawl out with exaggeration. “That’s my cue to go get another beer.”
Lexi laughs as I release my arm from around her waist and says, “Get me one too, will you?”
I kiss her on the side of her face, admiring that the bruise is finally faded and nothing is left but a faint pink scar. Her shoulder has healed as well and she’s feeling completely back to normal. “Sure thing, babe.”
Looking across the room, I hold my empty beer bottle up at Ryker, silently asking if he wants another one. He shakes his head, and I turn to walk into Brian’s kitchen.
We’re all here having a Sunday afternoon dinner on one of the rare weekends we don’t have a game. We’ll be flying out tomorrow for a game in Chicago, and while I’d rather be spending today solely with Lexi, I’ve learned to indulge her desires to be with her family as much as possible.
And honestly, it’s not that much of a chore. Brian and Gray have welcomed me right into the family, treating me like I have permanent member status. Fuck…I hope that’s true.
I stand by my earlier position that it’s not too early to propose, and if I thought I had a chance at Lexi saying yes, I’d be whipping a ring out too. It’s like once I decided to jump in to this new experience of love and commitment, I wanted to go full force without any regrets and no holding back.
But Lexi wouldn’t say yes to me just yet, as she’s the more levelheaded of the two of us. As much as she’s my goofy, ukulele-playing barista, she treats our relationship with a genuine and healthy respect. She wants it to grow, flourish, deepen, and solidify before we take the next step.
For me, I’m fairly goal driven, and if I can’t propose yet, I’ve set my eyes on something within easier reach. I’ve been trying to talk her into moving in with me. I think I’m almost there, although her hesitation has more to do with not wanting to leave Georgia in the lurch than it does with giving up her independent living.
But now that Brian’s put a ring on Georgia’s finger, I’m thinking she’ll be selling her house, along with Lexi’s little garage apartment, and lucky me…she’ll have no choice but to move in with me.
Just as I open the fridge to grab two more beers, I hear Gray say behind me, “Ugh…there are some things that daughters are not meant to know about their dads.”
I look over my shoulder at her with a grin. “And what’s that?”
As I pull out two beers and snag Gray a bottled water, she says, “That my dad knows how to French kiss. Just gross.”
Laughing, I nudge the refrigerator door closed with my hip and hand her the water as she comes to stand on the other side of the island from me. I put both beer bottles down, reach into a drawer that I know holds the bottle opener, and pop them both open.
“So I had an interesting call from your agent today,” Gray says slyly as she opens her water.
I feign ignorance. “Oh yeah? What about?”
“Well, he called about another player he represents,” she says with narrowed eyes at me. “But he happened to drop that you were given an offer from the New Jersey Wildcats.”
My dad gives him a hard look, and the minute they grasp hands, my dad pulls him in for a sharp, one-handed bro hug where they sort of bump chests. My dad claps him hard on the shoulder, and when he pulls back, he says, “None of that Mr. Brannon crap. You’re part of the family now.”
Roman turns his head to look at me over his shoulder, and I give him a wink. “Part of the family. Get used to it.”
“Thinking that’s not going to be as hard as I thought it would be,” Roman says with a smile back at me.
He then releases my dad’s hand and moves over to the other side of the bed to take the chair Gray has been sitting in, waving to the two chairs on the other side for them to sit in.
We spend the rest of the morning talking and laughing. Gray comes back and joins us, and I watch as she and Roman sort of lapse into a sibling type of rivalry, taking snipes at each other but in a completely teasing way. My dad hovers over me at times, and Georgia flirts with him shamelessly, which causes him to blush. The nurses have to tell us to be quiet on more than one occasion, and that makes us laugh harder.
My heart feels full, ready to burst…joyful in the knowledge that Roman is part of a family again.
Amazing to think of how my life turned out.
That I am part of a family again.
Epilogue
Roman
TWO WEEKS LATER… Some say it would be too early to propose.
You don’t know each other all that well.
What’s the rush?
Take your time…enjoy life a bit first.
But as I watch Brian Brannon get down on bended knee in front of Georgia, holding up an opened black-velvet box, I don’t think it’s too early at all. Life is actually too short, and when you know it’s right…it’s right.
Lexi is practically bouncing up and down beside me as she watches.
Gray’s got tears in her eyes.
Ryker is smirking.
Violet and Ruby are ooohing and ahhhing over the massive diamond that’s shimmering against the black velvet.
Georgia’s hand flutters to her heart for a brief moment, then covers her mouth as she stares wide-eyed at the ring.
Brian’s face looks utterly hopeful as he says, “Georgia, how I fell for a wild woman like you is beyond me, but the one thing I’m sure of beyond any doubt is that you are the one for me. I’ve waited far too long for you, and I don’t want another moment to go by without you by my side. I want you there in the eyes of my family, of God, and of the law as well. Please do this old man a favor and say you’ll be my wife.”
Lexi almost faints and I chuckle as my arm goes around her in support.
It’s not often we get to see Georgia speechless, but she opens her mouth and nothing comes out.
“Say yes,” Ruby shrieks.
That seems to knock Georgia out of her fugue state and her lips curl upward, then split into a huge, sparkling grin.
“Yes,” she shouts at Brian, then throws herself at him. She knocks him backward onto his butt and she comes to rest on top of him, peppering his face with kisses. “Yes, I’ll marry you, you sweet, sexy stud you!”
We all laugh, because that’s oh so Georgia, and then it turns awkward when Brian kisses her deeply, his hand dropping down to her ass.
“A-a-a-a-n-d,” I drawl out with exaggeration. “That’s my cue to go get another beer.”
Lexi laughs as I release my arm from around her waist and says, “Get me one too, will you?”
I kiss her on the side of her face, admiring that the bruise is finally faded and nothing is left but a faint pink scar. Her shoulder has healed as well and she’s feeling completely back to normal. “Sure thing, babe.”
Looking across the room, I hold my empty beer bottle up at Ryker, silently asking if he wants another one. He shakes his head, and I turn to walk into Brian’s kitchen.
We’re all here having a Sunday afternoon dinner on one of the rare weekends we don’t have a game. We’ll be flying out tomorrow for a game in Chicago, and while I’d rather be spending today solely with Lexi, I’ve learned to indulge her desires to be with her family as much as possible.
And honestly, it’s not that much of a chore. Brian and Gray have welcomed me right into the family, treating me like I have permanent member status. Fuck…I hope that’s true.
I stand by my earlier position that it’s not too early to propose, and if I thought I had a chance at Lexi saying yes, I’d be whipping a ring out too. It’s like once I decided to jump in to this new experience of love and commitment, I wanted to go full force without any regrets and no holding back.
But Lexi wouldn’t say yes to me just yet, as she’s the more levelheaded of the two of us. As much as she’s my goofy, ukulele-playing barista, she treats our relationship with a genuine and healthy respect. She wants it to grow, flourish, deepen, and solidify before we take the next step.
For me, I’m fairly goal driven, and if I can’t propose yet, I’ve set my eyes on something within easier reach. I’ve been trying to talk her into moving in with me. I think I’m almost there, although her hesitation has more to do with not wanting to leave Georgia in the lurch than it does with giving up her independent living.
But now that Brian’s put a ring on Georgia’s finger, I’m thinking she’ll be selling her house, along with Lexi’s little garage apartment, and lucky me…she’ll have no choice but to move in with me.
Just as I open the fridge to grab two more beers, I hear Gray say behind me, “Ugh…there are some things that daughters are not meant to know about their dads.”
I look over my shoulder at her with a grin. “And what’s that?”
As I pull out two beers and snag Gray a bottled water, she says, “That my dad knows how to French kiss. Just gross.”
Laughing, I nudge the refrigerator door closed with my hip and hand her the water as she comes to stand on the other side of the island from me. I put both beer bottles down, reach into a drawer that I know holds the bottle opener, and pop them both open.
“So I had an interesting call from your agent today,” Gray says slyly as she opens her water.
I feign ignorance. “Oh yeah? What about?”
“Well, he called about another player he represents,” she says with narrowed eyes at me. “But he happened to drop that you were given an offer from the New Jersey Wildcats.”
