On the Shore (Cottonwood Cove, #3)(68)

His gaze hardened. “Lincoln, I appreciate it. That’s not what I came here for. If you want to help out Tia, I won’t get in your way. She deserves a break. She works really hard at school, and she helps out our mom a lot. But I’m good.”

“Damn, you’re stubborn. I can help. Why won’t you let me?”

“I would if I needed it.” He clapped me on the shoulder. “And I’ll see you in a couple of weeks when you and Brinkley come to Magnolia Falls.”

“All right. Call me when you make it home, okay?”

Brinkley came out and wrapped him in a hug. “I’m glad you came, Romeo. You’re stuck with us now.”

“I’m good with that.” He winked. The dude had swagger, no doubt about it. And it made me fucking proud.

We walked him outside, and he extended a hand to me. “Thanks for letting me crash here.”

I pulled him in for a hug, keeping my voice low. “You’re always welcome wherever I am. You got it?”

“Same for you.” He pulled back and then reached for his helmet.

“Remember to shoot me a text when you get home,” I reminded him.

“Like I said, you’re a little clingy, brother.” Romeo barked out a laugh before firing up his engine.

Brother.

My chest squeezed at his words, and I saluted him before flashing him the bird.

I knew in my gut that, moving forward, he and Tia were going to be permanent fixtures in my life.

And I was totally okay with that.





twenty-five





Brinkley





We’d just finished a six-mile run, and my legs were rubbery and weak. “I can’t keep up with you lately, and you know it’s hard for me to admit that.”

Lincoln turned to look at me with concern and grabbed me by the thighs and flipped me over his shoulder. “I’ll carry you, then.”

“It doesn’t mean I can’t walk; it just means you’re getting faster.” I smacked his ass as my body relaxed against him.

“I’m training harder than I ever have, and I like having you push me on the runs.”

I sighed and pushed up, sliding down his body until my feet hit the ground. “Then I guess I’ll just have to keep pushing alongside you.”

“Tell me about your two offers,” he said.

I’d tried to fill him in on the latest with my job prospects when we’d started our run, but my breathing was so labored right out of the gate that I’d been unable to form a complete sentence.

“So, both Football Live and Sports Today want to buy the rights to your story. Sports Today is obviously big time, and they let me break the news about your plans for next year when we made that announcement. But I like the woman at Football Live magazine a lot. And they have a female president over there, which I, of course, love. But then I got a really nice call from Audrey. Do you remember me mentioning her? She was my mentor during my internship at Strive Forward magazine. They are hiring, as well, and she said they’d be thrilled to have me.”

“So, you have three really good offers. The others aren’t in the running?”

“No. I definitely want to go with one of these three. It’s just, you know, there’s a lot to consider.”

The back of his hand grazed mine as we walked, and he glanced over at me. “What is there to consider?”

“All three are talking about full-time positions, which is important for me moving forward. So, it comes down to pay, benefits, and how much control I will actually have over what I write and where it’s featured. And then the big kahuna—where I’d be located.”

He came to a stop and turned to face me. “Where do you want to be located?”

I laughed because he was so funny about certain things. He’d made it clear he wanted to be together. In fact, he couldn’t wait for this story to break so we could go public with our relationship. But he had not pushed me at all to sign in New York, even though we both knew it would make our lives easier.

“I don’t really have a say in that, you know? But obviously, I’d like to be close to you. Both Football Live and Sports Today are based in San Francisco, but that doesn’t mean that I couldn’t work remotely down the road. You know, once I prove myself. And then Strive Forward magazine is located in New York, which would obviously be very convenient, as well.”

“I’m not going to lie, I’d fucking love to wake up with you every day like we’re doing right now. But I know your career is important to you, and I want to support that. So, wherever you go, we’ll make it work. Do I prefer you to be in New York with me? Fuck, yeah. But I can’t really demand that, can I?” His gaze locked with mine, and a loud laugh escaped when I realized that he was actually asking for permission to be a caveman.

“Um, no. You can’t demand that.”

“Fuck. That’s what I thought.” He shrugged, and we started walking again. “So, you’ll go interview with all three of them, and your gut will tell you what to do.”

“Do you always listen to your gut?”

“I do. It’s never failed me. Not with football, not with you, and it even told me to hear out Romeo when he showed up on your front porch. Your instincts are there for a reason. And if you don’t know what to do, you can always ask me, and I’ll be happy to tell you what to do.”