In Her Own League

In Her Own League — 36 Emmett

EMMETT

When we’re playing a home series, Reese and I know we’ll end up together at the end of the night, usually at her place, sometimes at mine. But it’s much harder to draw a line when we’re traveling and don’t have the luxury of spending our nights together.

When we’re on the road, we’ll go to dinner together because that’s easily played off as a work meeting. We’ll extend our pregame lineup chats to steal more time. But we don’t risk either of us sneaking into the other’s hotel room unless we have a connecting door.

Seems a bit extreme after how many times we’ve fucked around at the stadium back home, but when we’re not blinded by need for one another, we both have smarter decision-making skills.

I won’t lie, though. I like being stupid with that girl.

That’s what sucks about this road trip. Reese’s hotel room is on the opposite end of the hall from mine, so our time together has been limited over the past few days.

But on the flip side of that, the thing that’s so great about this road trip is that we’re in Colorado. Back in the city I once played for. Back in the place I raised Miller until she was eighteen.

I knock on Reese’s room, leaning a shoulder against the wall as I wait for her to answer.

Blonde hair half clipped up. Under-eye patches on and a coffee in hand.

Wearing both a matching silk sleep set and a bright smile as she opens the

door.

“Well, good morning to me.”

I chuckle, keeping my hands in my pockets so I don’t tempt myself to touch her until we’re alone. “Missed you last night. Any chance you’re free

this morning?”

“I can be. What’s up?”

“I want to take you somewhere.”

Her eyes sparkle at the idea. “Just you and me?”

“Just you and me.”

“Yes. Yeah, I’m down for that. I need to change quickly. Meet you downstairs in five?”

“Perfect.” I lean in to kiss her before stopping myself, arched halfway over in her doorway.

Things have progressed so naturally between us the past few weeks. Easy kisses and simple touches are second nature at this point, that it takes a conscious effort to remind myself of our positions while we’re at work.

Which is what I have to do now.

I stand straighter, backing away from her door and pointing in the direction of the elevator. “I’m just gonna . . .”

She laughs at me. “See you soon.”

I rented a truck for this specific outing, so I drive it up to the front entrance of the hotel and wait for her there.

A few minutes later, Reese walks out wearing a sweet floral sundress in a light pink shade. Similar to the color of her nails. It’s feminine and easygoing, so different from how she dresses at work. She’s beautiful both ways, but I don’t miss that she dresses softer when we’re outside of work.

More colorful too.

It’s nice to see her allow herself time away from being the boss.

“You rented a car for this?” she asks as I open the passenger door for her.

“We couldn’t have taken a rideshare?”

“Nope. We have a bit of a drive ahead of us.” As soon as she’s sitting, I pull her seat belt across her body, clicking it into place. I don’t know what possesses me to do it. I suppose partly because I just need her safe. And partly because I rarely get to dote on her unless we’re hidden in one of our apartments.

Arm still reached across her body and hand still covering the buckle, I glance up at her. “Sorry.”

She lifts her hand, running it against my beard. “Don’t be. It’s nice.”

Don’t kiss her. Not here.

Clearing my throat, I push off, closing her door before rounding to the driver’s side.

As soon as I’m in my seat, she finds the only thing in this car, which is a half-eaten bag of candy that I left sitting in the center console.

“What’s this?” There’s a playful edge to her question as she holds the bag

up.

“Candy.”

“Since when are you into Reese’s Pieces?”

A shy smile pulls on my lips. “What can I say? They’re a new favorite.”

She chuckles to herself, pouring out a small handful and popping them into her mouth before she returns them to where she found them.

As soon as we pull out of the parking lot, I shift to drive with my left hand on top of the wheel, sliding my right across the center console and over her thigh. Without missing a beat, Reese slips her palm into mine, lacing our fingers together.

Easy. Natural. Connected as we always are when we’re alone.

And we stay that way for the hour-long drive.

Once the streets turn into single-lane roads and trees begin to canopy the path, Reese finally asks, “Are you going to tell me where you’re taking me?”

I squeeze her hand in mine. “Soon. We’re almost there.”

She doesn’t push for more answers. She just relaxes back into the seat as I continue to drive the ingrained route, trusting I’ll explain when the timing is right.

Soon enough, I slow my speed and turn onto a long gravel path that takes me to a cabin-style home. It blends subtly among the surrounding foliage.

It’s quiet and understated. The lake behind it acts as a serene backdrop, and it’s exactly what I needed at the time I bought it.

After Miller and I talked that morning in my kitchen, I knew I wanted to bring Reese here. That conversation acted as all the permission I needed to involve Reese in every part of my life. Even the parts that came before her.

Regardless, I did call my daughter this morning to double-check she’d be okay with me bringing Reese here. She probably rolled her eyes at me on the other end of the line, but then answered my question with a swift, “Absolutely.”

Killing the engine, I hop out of the truck and open Reese’s door for her.

She slowly takes in her surroundings as she steps onto the gravel path that acts as the driveway.

“So, this is my house,” I tell her. “It’s used as a vacation rental these days, but I still own it.”

“Really?” Her eyes trail over the roofline. “Your house from when you played here?”

“Not exactly. When I was playing, I shared an apartment in Denver with some of my teammates. But I bought this place after I left the league.” I gesture to the house. “This is where I raised Miller.”

Realization dawns on her. “Emmett.”

She runs her palm down my arm before slipping her hand into mine.

Reese focuses back on the house, her eyes trailing the cabin more carefully as she studies the details. She takes her time understanding the meaning and importance of this little place.

From behind, I wrap my arms around the front of her shoulders as we look at it together. “I wanted you to see it. I didn’t have someone to share that part of my life with, so I was hoping I could share it with you now.”

“I’d love to see it, Em. But is Miller okay with that?”

My chest tightens at her question.

I love how often she thinks of my daughter. Grown or not, Miller is still my kid. Every time Reese considers her, it reaffirms what I already know.

That she’s what I was missing from my life. That she’s my person.

I drop my lips to her hair. “She is. Miller and I had a nice talk. She’s more than okay with . . . everything.”

I watch the smile spread on Reese’s mouth. “That’s good to hear.”

“Come on. Let me give you a tour.”

I don’t manage the property myself, but I have access to the rental schedule, so I knew the place would be empty today.

Using my key, I unlock the door, and let Reese enter first.

The furniture has all changed. The wall colors too. But the bones are still the same.

“When I adopted Miller,” I begin, closing the front door behind us, “I didn’t know much about what I was doing, but I knew Miller needed some stability. So, I bought this little house for us.”

I take her to the living room first.

“Here, I’d watch game film for the college team I was coaching. The first few years we lived here, I was not only trying to figure out how to be a dad, but also how to be a coach. At that point, I had only ever been a player, and I wasn’t much older than some of the guys playing for me. We had a coffee table right here that Miller would sit at and color while I worked.”

Reese smiles softly, listening to me speak, putting her hand in mine to follow me on this tour.

I bring her into the tiny kitchen and explain that though it’s not much, Miller learned to bake here. That she found her passion right here in this little cabin on the lake.

I show Reese where the dining table used to be. The same one I’d sit at and help my daughter with her homework. Same one where we’d eat dinner together that Miller most likely prepared because she was a far better cook than me.

Down the hall, I take her to the first of two bedrooms. I explain that Miller painted this room a dark green when she was a preteen, and that I built shelves for her and screwed them into the walls so she could display her softball trophies.

Then I take her to my old bedroom. The one where, when we first moved in, I’d lie awake at night, trying to figure out what the hell I was doing.

Though later, once I gained some confidence in the parental department, I’d lie awake trying to figure out how to be a better one.

I explain how the years spent in this house were the hardest of my life, but also some of my best. And that even though they weren’t easy, I wouldn’t change the thirteen years we spent here, just Miller and me, for anything.

“And right on the lake,” Reese says, pointing out the windows on the back door of my old bedroom. “It’s beautiful here, Emmett. You did a good job. For Miller, but for yourself too.”

I push her hair behind her ears, running my thumb over her earrings.

“Thank you for saying that.”

“I mean it.” She steps into me, head against my chest, and I wrap my arms around her to keep her close. “Miller is lucky to have you. And I am too. Thank you for bringing me here. This is really special to see.”

Much in the same way that she had never let anyone into her condo, I had never let anyone into this part of my life.

It does feel special. We feel special.

“It’s special to me too, Reese.”

“Will you show me around outside?”

“Yeah. Of course.”

Opening the back door, I follow Reese out onto the porch then lead her to the dock that’ll take us to the water.

It’s a perfect summer day. The sun is reflecting off the water, but we’re surrounded by enough trees that provide plenty of shade from the heat. The air is crisper out here than back home in Chicago. But that’s not saying Chicago doesn’t have its own charms. That city has been a needed contrast to the years of solitude I spent out here.

We walk down the dock together, and when we reach the far end, Reese kicks off a sandal and dips her toe to test the water.

“It feels nice.”

She looks beautiful, standing on the edge of the water, trees surrounding her. If we didn’t have a game tonight, I’d happily spend all day with her out here.

But we still have a couple of hours at our disposal, so I toe off my shoes and toss my socks off to the side before taking a seat on the edge of the wooden dock. “Sit with me.”

Letting my feet sink into the water, I usher Reese to do the same. She kicks her other sandal off and I settle her between my legs with her back to my front.

We’re quiet for a long while, the sounds of nature playing their own soundtrack for us. She closes her eyes, dropping her head back on my shoulder as the sun illuminates her face.

Utterly content and at peace. With me. Just me.

From an outside point of view, it doesn’t seem like I can offer her much. I can’t provide for her financially. Though I make more money than I’ll ever need, she will always make more. Materialistically, I can’t give her anything that she can’t give herself.

But I can provide for her in every other sense of the word. I can take care of her in every other way. I can make her a part of my unconventional family that I love so much. I can listen when she’s had a hard day. I can fight with her when she needs a safe battle. Be her sounding board when she needs to talk something through.

I want to spend so many more days making her laugh, flirting with her, encouraging her, and challenging her the way she challenges me.

I want to be her closest friend because she’s mine.

I wonder if she knows that.

“Reese,” I whisper.

Eyes closed with the sun on her face, she hums in response.

“I know I told you that there was no part of me that wanted to be your friend, but I think you might be my very best one.”

A smile curves her lips. “That’s good, Em. Because it’s been occurring to me that I’d like to hang out with you for a lot of years to come, and that might be kind of hard to do if we aren’t friends.”

My chest splits with the easy confession. “A lot of years, huh?”

“A whole lot of years.”

I tighten my arms around her middle.

There’s something different about falling in love this time than when I did in my twenties. When I was young, finding love seemed like a rite of passage. A guarantee. A part of life everyone gets to experience and that it was simply my turn.

But now, getting this chance with Reese, it’s filled with more gratitude that I somehow found it again. There’s more of a fight to hold on to it. More desperation to keep it. Love feels more sacred this time around because I didn’t think I’d get the chance to experience it again.

It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her, but I keep that information locked up for another day.

“Can I ask you something?” she says quietly.

“Of course. Anything.”

Reese is silent for a moment. She swallows hard as a pinch forms between her brows. Whatever this question might be seems to have been weighing on her for a long while. “Do you think you have it in you to move

on?”

Move on from her? Absolutely not.

“I don’t understand.”

She shifts between my legs, pulling her feet out of the water to turn and face me. “There’s no wrong answer, Em. I’m just trying to manage my expectations here. That first night I slept in your room. The night you told me about Miller and her mom. You said you didn’t have it in you to move on. I’m just wondering if that’s changed for you.”

She studies me for my answer before the eye contact becomes too much and she forces herself to look away.

But I’m sitting here trying to rack my brain for what the hell she’s talking about. I retrace that conversation in my mind until I get to the part she’s referring to. The part when she asked me if I ever moved on after Claire.

I was drifting to sleep and didn’t have it in me to fully explain. I thought she understood, but it’s clear she’s been holding on to my words since that night.

“Reese.” I cup her face, bringing her eyes back to mine. “You

misunderstood, baby.”

“How?”

“When I said I didn’t have it in me to move on, I didn’t mean emotionally. Or that my heart was still taken. I meant that I physically didn’t have it in me to move on. I was a single dad. I was exhausted all the time. I didn’t have the time to focus on someone who wasn’t my daughter. I was too busy trying to figure out how to do right by her. And by the time Miller was old enough to be on her own, I was older too and thought I’d missed the train on the whole ‘finding a life partner’ thing.”

Her brows lift in surprise. “Oh.”

I chuckle. “Yeah. Oh.”

“Well, that makes a lot of sense.”

She offers me a sheepish smile before turning back to the water, resting her head on my shoulder again.

But there’s something else she should know. Something that I haven’t said to anyone else because it hasn’t mattered until now. Until her. And she,

more than anyone, needs to understand.

“I loved Claire.”

Reese nods against my shoulder. “I know.”

“But we had one year together, and it’s been over twenty years since.

After spending some of those early ones grieving—for myself, but mostly for Miller—I’ve been able to shift that grief to gratitude. The thing I love most about Claire now is her daughter. I thank God every day that I met her when I did because Miller needed me. She is the best part of my life and I’ll forever be grateful to her mom for trusting me to raise her. But I’m not still

in love with someone else.”

I’m in love with you.

But still, I hold those words in. Wanting to use them at a time that can’t be misconstrued with needing to prove a point.

Everything I said sinks in for Reese and as she melts into my chest, I feel the weight of them release a bit of the pressure. And when I crane to look at her, her nose is a shade of pink I’m not accustomed to seeing.

“That’s a really lovely outlook, Emmett.” Her voice sounds thick. “I just needed to understand where your head was at, for my own expectations.”

“My head is here, Reese. My heart too. You’ve got the whole thing.”

Turning to look at me, she runs a palm over my jaw, cupping my face.

“Just know that you can talk about her with me whenever you want. It doesn’t make me uncomfortable. I’m glad you had someone to love you before. That would have been a long time to go without it.”

I drop my forehead to hers. “Are you calling me old?”

She exhales a laugh, and it helps her to swallow down some of the emotions. “Miller should know about her. Max too. So don’t ever feel like you can’t speak about her when I’m around.”

“Thank you for that.”

Reese pops a quick kiss on my lips before she drops her head back to my shoulder, letting the sun shine on her face again.

I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to wrap my head around her. Having her in my life. Being able to share parts of me with her. This house. These conversations. My important moments.

It reminds me of another important moment I want to share with her.

“Kai and Miller’s wedding is coming up.”

“Yeah? She’s going to make a beautiful bride.”

“She is.” I grin at the image. “Will you go with me?”

Reese slowly sits up, turning back to face me. “To your daughter’s

wedding?”

I nod.

“I . . .” Her mouth closes, trying to find the words. “That’s big, Em.”

“It is big. So will you go with me?”

“But Miller—”

“It was her idea.” I cut Reese off before she tries to tell me that Miller might not want her there. “She brought it up.”

“She did?”

“I believe her words were along the lines of ‘our family is growing, and you deserve to have your person there.’”

Reese’s smile slowly blooms. “Your person, huh?”

“Yeah. Whether you like it or not, you’re my person, Reese. And I’d really like to celebrate that day with you. The guest list is small. Just the team and a few friends. It’s out in the middle of nowhere. The only people who will see us together will be those who support us. It’ll be safe.”

She thinks it over for only a moment before she gives me her answer.

“Okay.” She leans in and presses her smiling lips to mine. “I’ll go with

you.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes. I’d love to.”

I kiss her once more before the energy flowing through me becomes too much. I’m too amped up. Too excited. Too fucking giddy around this woman.

Slipping out from behind her, I stand and strip off my shirt, tossing it onto the dock.

“What are you doing?” There’s so much joy in her tone, matching the way I feel.

“Going for a dip. And you’re coming with me.”

She bursts a shocked laugh. “No, I’m not. I don’t have a bathing suit.”

I drop my pants, kicking them off to the side.

“You don’t need one. There’s no one else for miles.”