Chapter Eighteen

Sawyer leaned back against the leather padding of the booth they were in, laughing at a joke Addie’s dad had made. Sawyer felt more relaxed than he expected to and realized that a certain level of privacy could exist even in a crowd. It helped that Isla and Cruz had joined them at the last minute so the wedding talk was fixated in their direction.

Sawyer was surprised by the depth of his feelings for Addison. He wanted to make her smile the way she was now, he wanted to chat with her parents and listen to embarrassing stories about her childhood. It was scary to feel this way. Almost as scary as the ache in his knee and the knowledge that he had at least one more game to get through. She was the first woman in longer than he could remember to touch parts of him he’d thought had grown dormant. Her shoulder brushed his and he squeezed her knee, liking the connection, the feel of her next to him.

“We wanted to wait until after Christmas but since we met in December, we wanted to get married in that month as well,” Isla said, turning to gaze up at Cruz, who looked back like his woman was some sort of sorceress.

Even a couple of weeks ago, Sawyer wouldn’t have understood that look of enchantment, but now, with Addie, he could see being that far gone. That in itself was a huge shift for him.

“I’m so happy for you, sweetie,” Addie’s mom said. “You deserve this. It’s been a tumultuous year for you.”

“Your father is a fool to miss out on having a relationship with you. I hope you know that,” Kyle said, his affection for his daughter’s friend evident.

“Isla knows her dad and brother are idiots. Though Ian seems to be coming around some,” Addie said.

“Honey,” her mom chastised, making Sawyer grin.

“Seriously, Mom. She’s okay with it. She’s been welcomed into the Cruz family, and they are a lovey bunch. She’s not lacking affection or family connections,” Addison continued.

Cruz leaned across the table. “That love includes you, Addie.”

It wasn’t jealousy that twitched in his gut at the sight of Cruz’s hand covering Addie’s. It was…something else. Sawyer wanted to be the one to reassure her, to make her feel like she belonged. He wanted to be the reason for her happiness, and that thought scared the hell out of him. Because sometimes he couldn’t even manage to make himself happy.

“You’re awfully quiet, Sawyer,” Isla said. She lifted her wineglass and eyed him over the rim as she sipped. Both Cruz and his fiancée had sent him more than a few interested looks. They sort of dropped the relationship on their friends without warning, though he suspected Addie and Isla had spoken. He also suspected Cruz would be offering a “big brother” talk later.

“Just taking it all in,” Sawyer said.

The waiter dropped off more bread and asked if they needed anything else. They’d shared several appetizers instead of having a meal and all of them had agreed they were stuffed. Though, that didn’t stop Addie from looking at the dessert menu.

She picked it up again, and Sawyer leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I promised you ice cream the other night, and we got sidetracked. I’ll buy you some on the way home.”

Her lashes fluttered as she looked up with a hooded gaze. More than happiness shone there. Affection. Lust. Sweetness. Yeah. He could handle this.

“Sounds perfect.” She closed the menu and set it down, and they asked for the check.

He caught Addie’s father studying them all around the table; both couples but Sawyer in particular.

“A lot of overlap for the four of you. Friendships, relationships, business. Is it hard for you to separate professional from personal, Sawyer?” Kyle asked.

Sawyer eyed Liam and Isla, knowing that it was a bit trickier than any of them wanted to let on. “Not usually. I’ll admit this is a different situation than one I’ve been in before. But Cruz and I have been friends for years. We knew each other in our early days. Before both of us got so old.”

Cruz grinned, lifting his beer. “Speak for yourself, old man. I only get better with age.”

Isla curled up against him, snuggling into the crook of her fiancé’s arm. “I agree.”

Sawyer laughed. “She’s looking through rose-colored glasses, man.”

“It’s not a typical situation, I don’t think. But Addie’s my best friend so we’ll have to work around the professional stuff,” Isla said.

Easy for her to say. He didn’t have a backup for her in case she sucked at the whole owner/manager deal. He swallowed down a gulp of his beer, but it didn’t taste as good as it had. The thought of Mateo swooping in seemed more likely if anyone figured out how much his knee was troubling him. He’d called his friend and scheduled a private MRI.

“So far, so good,” Sawyer said. He ignored the tension in his shoulders, willing himself to trust these people.

They were damn good people. Regardless of what else she was trying out, Isla was doing a great job of making this team more of a family. And they were in the playoffs which still felt like an alternate reality.

By the time the evening wore down, Sawyer was more than ready for some alone time with Addie. He paid for dinner, arguing with Liam over the check and, no surprise, winning.

Outside the restaurant, the air had cooled considerably and as they waited for their vehicles, Sawyer pulled Addie closer, like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Kyle was saying something to his wife, his face hidden by her hair. When he lifted it, they both had smiles on their faces. A weird feeling struck Sawyer straight in the chest. They were clearly in love. Happy. Even after being married for a few decades. Despite an illness, life’s uncertainties, and having a daughter who they missed.

“We’re going to take a cab back to the hotel,” Kyle said, still looking at Addie’s mom.

“You guys don’t have to stay in a hotel,” Addie said.

Her mom grinned. “It’s our mini vacation, sweetie. We want to. And your dad and I are going to check out a little pub near where we’re staying. They have live music.”

Addie shook her head and then hugged her parents. “Okay. You kids stay safe. I’m not bailing you out if you get up to no good.”

Her dad chuckled and kissed her on the cheek. “That’s why I work hard for my own money.”

Kyle shook Sawyer’s hand again and Stacy gave him a hard hug, asking him to watch out for her girl. She gave Liam and Isla a hug as well, as if she couldn’t stand not passing the love around. Rather than feeling guarded, Sawyer found himself embracing her back and meaning it.

By the time they got Kyle and Stacy in a cab and said goodbye to Liam and Isla, Sawyer felt like he was actually craving Addie. It was a strange sensation to be wrapped up in someone so quickly. More than that, he knew better than to just go all in. Nothing good happened without escape plans and emergency exits.

“You okay?” Addie reached for his hand across the console.

He glanced at her and gave her a small smile before pulling out onto the street. “I’m good. That was a nice night.”

Tension returned to his shoulders, but it was different than earlier. This was all about Addison Carlisle and how quickly she was becoming important to him.

“Thank you for putting up with all of the questions. I promise, your parents can do their worst and I won’t bat an eyelash.” There was laughter in her tone.

He had to work his jaw to keep it from clenching. “My family isn’t like yours, Addie.”

The traffic was light on the way to her place, but the air in the truck seemed to shift. Tighten.

“I wasn’t suggesting I meet them right now or anything. You only met mine because they surprised me. I’m really not trying to rush things between us, Sawyer. If you’d prefer to take a step back…” she said, letting the words hang in the air.

Stopping at a red light, he turned to look at her, his heart clenching. “I don’t. That’s not what I’d prefer at all. I care about you, Addie. I like being with you. More than I imagined. Tonight was great. I’m glad I got to meet your parents and be there with you. I just…you see so much good and…I don’t want you to be disillusioned or disappointed when you meet my family.” Which, seeing as his brother was having a big engagement shindig, was likely going to be soon. The thought of even going made his skin crawl. But he’d promised his Grams he’d go.

A horn honked behind them, jolting Sawyer from the moment, and he reluctantly turned back to the windshield.

“I’m not as naive as you think. I know not everything is roses and lollipops. I can handle that, Sawyer. As long as I know we’re in this together, I can handle what comes our way.”

She said that now, but the last woman he’d believed was now planning a stupidly expensive engagement party with his brother.

“Me too,” he said. He didn’t want to make a habit of lying to her, and it wasn’t untrue. He could handle what came their way.

He just wasn’t sure he trusted her to stand by her belief that she could do the same.

…

Later that night, after Addie fell asleep, Sawyer slipped from her bed and went into the living room with an icy compress. It felt like heaven on his knee after the strain he’d put it through. Closing his eyes, he leaned his head back and thought about the broadcasting offer, about what would happen if he got traded, and what Addie would think about either of those things.

When he opened his eyes, his stomach seized. Addie leaned against the doorjamb between the living room and hallway, staring at him. Damn. He’d been very careful not to mention his knee, but there was no way out of it. He couldn’t find his words and he could see, even in the semi-dark, the hurt in her eyes that he’d kept her on the outside. But being Addison, she didn’t let that stop her from stepping up. Because she was all about whatever other people needed regardless of what it meant for her.

She walked over, curled into his side, situating his arm over her shoulder, and snuggled in. She didn’t say a word, didn’t ask him questions, didn’t judge him. She just lay there, against him, accepting him for everything he was even though he probably didn’t deserve it.