“Call me Theresa, please.”
My mother was a force of her own. There was no way to ease into it; meeting my family was a jump-into-the-deep-end kind of event, which was why I didn’t introduce people to them very often. But Charlie wasn’t afraid of a big leap.
“Wait until Sean sees you’re here. He’s going to be really excited.” Mom released Charlie, but held on to her arm, pointing to my brother warming up on the field with his team. This was the championship game for the adult soccer league he was in.
“Uncle Connor!” I heard my name screeched from the trees before Liam beelined it straight for my legs. He crashed, almost taking me out in the process, and I reached down with one arm to pick him up and throw him over my shoulder.
Siobhan waddled after, shaking her head, one hand on her very pregnant stomach. “Liam, what have I told you about running? You need to watch where you’re going.”
“He’s all right,” I said, pretending to drop the four-year-old, causing him to yelp in delight.
Siobhan rolled her eyes at me, spotting Charlie with Mom in the process. She did a double take.
I gave a quick introduction. “Charlie, this is my sister Siobhan.”
Charlie smiled at my sister, who in turn raised her eyebrows at me. It wasn’t exactly run of the mill for me to bring a woman to my brother’s game.
“Nice to meet you, Charlie,” Siobhan finally said, hugging Charlie, although her big belly didn’t let them get too close. “Connor, please don’t make him puke. He just had a Go-Gurt.”
I righted my nephew and set him on his feet before moving next to Charlie. She gazed up at me, eyes wide.
“Overwhelmed?”
“Are you kiddin’? I love bein’ around people who like me. I’m thinkin’ of askin’ your mom to adopt me.”
The idea of bringing Charlie around my family for other reasons formed like a cloud in my brain before scattering away.
“Hey, Seanie,” Mom called. “Look who’s here!”
Sean spied me and darted over, ringing his arms around my neck. “Nono!”
“Hey, buddy.” I laughed, patting him on the back. “Are you ready for this? Got your head in the game?”
Sean nodded, fixing the band of his sports glasses at the back of his head. He jumped up and down, his long sleeves covering his hands. His cheeks were already red, probably from a combination of the temperature and him doing jumping jacks to warm up.
“I’m ready! So ready!” He slapped his thigh a few times, then glanced over to Charlie next to me and positively lit up. “Charlie Gibb?”
Charlie nodded, and Sean hugged her. This time she wasn’t apprehensive, somewhat expecting it from my family by now, I supposed.
“Charlie, you coach the Otters. You won three games!”
“We did,” she said with a laugh. “But I don’t care about that right now. I’m here for your game. What position do you play?”
“Sweeper,” he said, pointing to a spot on the field. “I kick it like . . .” He demonstrated a kick, his leg going waist-high with a hop.
“All right.” She raised her hand for a high five, and Sean slapped it before running back to his team, all in red. “Good luck!”
He waved to her, and she gave him a thumbs-up.
I smiled to myself at how they got along. I should’ve known my family would love her. Between my mom’s silly grin and my sister’s hopeful expression, their feelings were obvious. But I didn’t mind that I’d be getting multiple phone calls and texts from them tonight about her. I was just happy that Charlie was here. She’d made my family’s day. And mine.
The game started, and Charlie and I both stepped closer to the field, shouting directions, “Get the ball up the field!” and “Good kick, number four! Keep it up!”
At one point, my mother looked over to me, meaningfully raising her eyebrows. I pretended I didn’t know what her questioning look meant, and turned back to the game with a “Let’s go, red!”
It didn’t escape me that I hadn’t brought a girl around my family since Alison. And I was sure they were assuming things about the two of us, but it wasn’t like I was getting down on one knee either. I simply liked being with Charlie. Plus I owed her something more than the cab of my truck, which she had so indelicately pointed out Friday night.
So here we were, cheering on my brother as he kicked the ball up the field to another player in red. Charlie jumped up and down, her drink completely forgotten, and I wished I’d let go of my resentment about her coming to Douglass as soon as I’d felt it. It certainly would have made for a more enjoyable couple of months.
Sean’s team scored and Charlie absolutely lost her mind, grabbing my shoulders as she jumped up and down. Whenever the Otters scored, she barely even smiled.
My brother hopped up and down as well. I cupped my hands around my mouth. “Nice work, buddy!”
The ref brought the ball back to the center of the field, and I turned to Charlie. She’d been staring at me, not even trying to hide it. There were only a few inches of height difference between us, and with her standing so close I could count each of the caramel-colored flecks in her eyes.
I changed my mind. My word for her was unforeseen.
I hadn’t seen Charlie coming. But before I could tell her, the final whistle blew.
The final score was 5–4.
The soccer coach had medals for each of the players, and Sean zipped right over to me. “Did you see it? Did you see me?”
“I did, man. That was awesome.” I slapped his back. “Let me look at this thing,” I said, holding his medal. Sean’s proud grin was contagious, and I slung my arm around him for a hug. “I’m really proud of you.”
“Mom,” he said, holding on to me. “Can I have my phone?”
Mom grabbed his phone from her purse, and I already knew what he was up to. Sean was obsessed with taking selfies. He had pictures all over his room, his toothy smile starring in each one. “Nono, take a picture.”
I bent my knees, sinking down to fit both our heads into the picture, and Sean pressed the button. The picture was slightly blurred, but he didn’t care. With his medal in one hand and his phone in the other, he took pictures with all of his friends, Mom, Siobhan, Liam, and finally Charlie.
“You want your picture with me?” she asked.
“Yeah. Yeah. Come on.” Sean tugged her down to his height, mushing his cheek with hers. “Cheese,” he crowed, and she followed suit.
“Aww. What a good picture,” she said, looking over his shoulder at the phone that he cradled.
He nodded, his eyes on Charlie, and I could tell he was already in love.
“Hey,” I said with my hand on his shoulder, “don’t go showing that picture to other girls. Remember what happened the last time?”
“Oh. Uh. Yeah.” He frowned. “They got mad.”
“Yeah. And remember what I said about your girlfriends?”
“Uh. That I should have one. Even if I like more than one, I could only have one. ’Cause it’s not nice to have more.”
“Yep. It’s disrespectful. And you need to respect women, right?”
“Right.” My brother nodded, and looked between Charlie and his phone, the picture of the two of them still showing. “But can I keep this picture? I won’t show it to Ava.”
“Sure,” she said, tucking her hands into her pockets. “Mind if I have a copy of it too? Can you send it to me?”
His face brightened as if he’d won the lottery. He held his phone out, carefully punching in each number as she gave it to him. He hugged her once more before running off to his friends, probably to show them the picture.
“We’re going to get something to eat. Want to come?” Mom asked us, Liam hanging off her leg.
I deferred to Charlie. “I appreciate that, Theresa, but I’ve got to get home.”
“Next time,” my mom said, and hugged her. And then, to my horror, petted her hair and cheek. “I’m so glad to meet you.”
“Me too,�
� Charlie said, almost leaning into Mom’s touch.
We said good-bye to Siobhan and headed back to the car. “Sorry,” I said, unlocking my truck. “I honestly didn’t think they’d be all over you like that. Your fan club.”
She bumped her elbow into mine before opening her door. “You mean, your fan club. It’s obvious the sun rises and sets with you. Liam and Sean can’t get enough of you, and your mom might as well wear a neon sign above her head that blinks CONNOR MCGUIRE IS MY SON.”
We settled into our seats, and she continued, “Your family is really sweet. It’s nice to have that kind of support system. Thanks for allowin’ me to come with you today.”
“Thanks for being here. You made more than one person’s day today.” I didn’t tell her that one of those persons was me as I drove her home. No, I kept my mouth shut and my thoughts to myself. The last time I’d let go, I’d been a kid, young and in love, who freely told his girl every thought and feeling that crossed his mind. I’d ended up giving her a ring and a promise to love her forever. She’d given me a Dear John note the night before our wedding.
And I had no plans to relive any part of that. I’d learned my lesson the first time around. If I could keep my feelings bottled up, they’d never have a chance to breathe and grow. I’d smother them before they could live.
When I pulled up in front of her house, Charlie pointed to her front door, asking, “Want to come in? I’ve got leftover pizza and Sunday Night Football.”
“You turned my mother down for leftover pizza?”
She rolled her eyes. “We were having such a nice time, and you gotta go and ruin it.”
She hopped out of the truck before I could respond and didn’t look back when she opened her door. I slapped my palm on the steering wheel.
The more I tried to keep it uncomplicated, the more convoluted it became. We were like kids on the playground, pulling hair and pinching each other for attention. I just wasn’t sure how to make us grow up.
I opened up the text thread with Bear and Blake. What are you guys up to?
Bear responded almost immediately. Depends. What do you have in mind?
Blake answered with a picture of Fresh Wok’s delivery menu. Piper’s working late.
Be over in a bit I replied, and put my truck in gear.
Blake’s condo was only a few minutes away, close to his pub downtown. I was used to it being clean, everything in its place, because of the three of us Blake was the neat freak. But since Piper had moved in, his normally spotless home had become a little more . . . animated. Her imprint was everywhere. I found a pair of mismatched socks underneath a pillow on the sofa and dirty Converse under the coffee table. But he didn’t seem to mind.
Blake threw a coaster down in front of me for my beer. “What’d you get up to today?”
“Sean had his championship game. They won, he got a medal.” I skipped the part about Charlie being at the game and how my family had fallen in love with her.
“Nice. Bet he loved that.”
“Yeah, you know him.”
I looked over the menu for our delivery order as we waited for Bear to show up. He was always the life of the party and the first one to arrive, so it was unlike him to open the door almost twenty minutes after I did.
“Way to finally show up,” I said, sitting up from my sprawled-out position on the couch.
He waved me off and tossed his coat on one of the stools at the kitchen counter before helping himself to a beer from the fridge. “I was on the phone with my mom.”
“How’s she doing?” Blake asked.
“Okay.” He sat down with a big sigh, and Blake and I exchanged a glance. His mom had been diagnosed with breast cancer about two years ago, and Bear had retired at the height of his hockey career to take care of her. It had been pretty bleak for a while, but she was in remission now. “She’s thinking about getting reconstruction surgery. I never ever thought I’d talk to my mom about her getting a new pair of boobs, but I did tonight.”
He ran a hand through his long hair, looking wiped out, but I supposed I would too if I had to have that conversation. He reached for the menu. “I’m starved. Gimme that.”
“Wait. Real quick before we order, I wanted to talk to you guys about something.” Blake got up and disappeared down the hall to the bedroom, returning with a small box in his hand. “What do you think?”
He opened the box to reveal an engagement ring.
“You’re proposing to me?” Bear asked, his hand on his heart, but Blake rolled his eyes.
“Seriously. I want to know what you think, honestly.”
“I honestly think you and Piper are the real deal, man,” Bear said, and stood up to give Blake a hug before they turned to me.
I pointed to the ring. “It’s pink.”
“Rose gold,” Blake said.
“Pink.”
“Dude. It’s, like, a fancy gold. It’s cool, right? Do you think Piper will like it?”
“I think she’ll love it,” Bear said, supplying all the right comments.
I, on the other hand, stumbled as memories of the engagement ring I’d bought flooded my mind. Envy wrapped itself around my gut that my friend had found what I’d thought I had, but I pushed it aside to stand up.
“Hey,” I said, clapping Blake on the shoulder a few times as I hugged him. “I’m happy for you guys. Really, I am. You’re perfect for each other.”
A momentary apologetic expression crossed his features before he smiled, all goofy-like. “Happens when you least expect it.”
Since Alison, I’d carefully curated my life to avoid the unexpected, but the last few months had been like one giant prank. First with the arrival of Charlie. Then finding out we actually had the same outlook for the team and coaching styles. I’d realized we got along great. And she had really good legs, toned and muscular, that felt perfect when she straddled my lap.
And her lips . . .
Charlie Gibb was what I’d least expected.
And I didn’t know what the hell to do about it.
CHAPTER
19
Charlie
Today was in-service day, otherwise known as the seventh circle of hell.
I sat toward the back of the auditorium, trying to stay awake as a woman from the state board of education flipped through a PowerPoint on data analysis. This was definitely important information, but as Connor unfailingly pointed out, I didn’t teach much. Sure, I made plans and had standards to follow, but I wasn’t collecting data to help on state and national tests. I had the task of getting kids to participate minimally in class in order to “earn” their physical education credits to graduate. I tried to stop Tristan in second period from hitting on every girl in class and urged Madison in eighth period to talk to someone, gain some confidence in herself.
After taking one of the handouts that were passed around, I followed the instructions to find my assigned team for discussion. Group Five gathered down in the front, and I made my way there only to find Connor walking in that direction as well.
I kept my features impassive, refusing to let him know how affected I was by him. In the past I’d been made a fool of by men, but it wasn’t going to happen with him. I refused to fall for his stupid smirk and hop in his truck to explore the weird sexual tension between us.
Not anymore.
“Hey, Charlie,” he said, standing at an angle behind me. I spared him one single glance. Normally he wore a button-down and tie to work, which always looked slightly ill-fitting, like a teenager who’d bought the first thing he saw on the mannequin. It was annoyingly endearing.
But because of the in-service, everyone had dressed casually. And Connor was born to wear the light denim he had on today. His jeans were worn in all the right places and fit him like a glove.
I focused on my orange tennis shoes. “Hi.”
“How are you?”
“Fine.”
He sat down, stretching forward to rest his arms on the back of the seat next t
o me. “Cat got your tongue?”
I didn’t look at his face, only his jaw. A day’s worth of stubble there. “Nope. I don’t like cats.”
“No? But Sonja has a cat.”
“And he knows not to get in my way.”
“How?” When I glared at him, Connor smirked. “I’m not scared of that look, if that’s what you’re trying to do.”
I knocked his elbow away from me, causing him to tip off-balance. “You know, I don’t appreciate what you’re trying to do.”
He cocked his head to the side. “What is that exactly?”
“Flirt. I don’t like whiplash.”
He frowned and moved out of my space when Tina arrived. I smiled at her, inviting her to sit next to me. As instructed, our group discussed the best ways to integrate data collection into curriculum. I didn’t have much to contribute, but Connor, as usual, surprised me, having good ideas about using other assessments besides tests. He really did seem to be an excellent teacher. I didn’t know what he was like in the classroom, but the way he interacted with students during lunch proved they respected him. So did the other teachers. Maybe a little too much. I didn’t especially like the way Sandy Harrison, the geometry teacher, was looking at him with come-hither eyes.
But he was oblivious, taking copious notes on his handout.
At one point Mr. Philander stopped by to listen to our discussion. He wore a dark suit, even on a day with no students, and with the arch of his brow, it appeared as if he was judging all of us. Once he left, headed toward Group Three, Tina said under her breath, “Can’t stand that guy.”
“No? I thought it was just me.”
She shook her head. “There’s something off about him. It’s weird how he’s always putting himself out there, you know? I teach because I love it, because I want to educate. But he’s a climber. It seems like he’s a principal for the pat on the back.”
“Sometimes I wonder if he hired me for the publicity,” I confessed quietly.
Tina patted my hand. “You were hired because you were the right person for the job. But I’m sure he doesn’t hate that there’s always a gaggle of photographers and journalists at your games.”
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