Play Along(109)

“Yes?” I drag out the question, my eyes bouncing around to each person.

“You better fucking tell her you don’t want her to go,” Zanders says, leaning back in his chair.

“Yeah.” I exhale a laugh before continuing to build Kennedy’s plate. “That’s not going to happen.”

“Why not?” Stevie asks.

“Because the whole point of us staying married this season was to keep her in good standing, so when the time came for her to interview for this new position, she wouldn’t have a termination on her work record.”

“But things have changed,” Indy cuts in. “That was before”—she waves her hands, gesturing between me and Kennedy’s empty seat—“this.”

“Would you go with her?” Ryan asks.

My attention immediately falls to Kai. He holds my eye contact for a moment before dropping his attention to his lap.

“My life is here.”

The words don’t taste right as they come off my tongue, because when Kennedy goes, so much of my life will go with her. But Kai, Miller, and Max are here. As are my friends. As are my teammates. As is the team I play for.

“What do you think, Rio?” Miller asks. “You’ve been quiet over there.”

Fucking troublemaker. We all know the only thing Rio has to say is—

“I just don’t get why I’m the only single one left. It’s not right.”

The table echoes with laughter.

“I’m serious. You know how long I’ve been looking?”

“You’re twenty-five,” Zanders laughs. “It can’t be that long.”

Indy cuts in, “I think the hardest part for you will be finding a woman secure enough in your relationship that she’ll be okay knowing you’ll always be more in love with my husband than with her.”

Ryan shakes his head.

“Damn straight.” Rio points at him.

“Honestly, Rio,” Stevie says. “Is there anyone you wouldn’t be open to? You seem fairly open to everyone.”

“Thirsty, Vee,” Zanders cuts in. “He’s fairly thirsty towards everyone.”

“That’s not true,” Rio says. “There is one person I’d never give the time of day to.” He allows the statement to hang in the air. “And it’s not like I want a girlfriend just to have a girlfriend. I’m looking for something serious, and all Isaiah had to do was get drunk in Vegas and he gets a wife. I’ve tried that. It didn’t work.”

Kennedy opens the backdoor slider, rejoining us at the table. I leave her plate in front of her seat before beginning to build my own.

She takes a seat, but doesn’t reach for her food, simply staring at it instead.

“What’s wrong?” I ask quietly while the rest of the table is too busy chatting to hear me.

“You put fries on my burger.”

“Yeah. That’s how you eat your burgers.”

Big brown eyes look up at me. “How did you remember that? I had one once with you.”

I huff a laugh. “I remember every single thing about you, Kenny. In case you haven’t figured it out already, you’re my favorite subject to study.”

She snakes a hand over my lap, hooking to hold on to my forearm. Her voice is quiet when she leans on my shoulder and says, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, baby.”

Sitting up, she uses both hands to pick up her burger, fries tucked under the bun and all.

She pauses with it partway to her mouth. “Hey, Isaiah?”

“Yeah?”

“I live, laugh, love you too.”





Chapter 30


Isaiah


“I think my dick officially fell off.” Cody’s teeth chatter through his words as he suffers through an ice bath. “Kennedy, is my time up yet?”

She doesn’t even look up from her computer. “Six more minutes.”

“C’mon, Ken,” he whines. “I want to have children someday. This can’t be good for the swimmers.”

Her mouth slightly hitches, her attention still locked on the laptop screen as she sits crossed-legged on top of a training table.

“Rhodes,” he calls out. “Tell your wife to stop being so mean to me.”

I’m on the floor, stretching out my hip flexor over a foam roller, not bothering to look up at him. “Sorry, man. I like her mean.”

She and I find each other at that, and I don’t miss the way her lips slightly part when she looks at me. Holding myself up on my forearms, I roll my body again, moving in a way that looks awfully similar to the way I fucked her last night once we fell into bed after a long game that went into extra innings.

My voice is all tease. “You doing okay over there, Doc?”

She swallows hard. “I hate you.”

“Those aren’t the words you used while you were riding my face this morning.”

“Gross,” Trav groans. “We’re at work. You two can stop eye fucking now.”

It’s my two best friends and my wife, doing extra post-game therapy in the training room with no one else around. We’re barely at work.

“Can’t help it, Trav.” That’s Kennedy speaking up. “Have you seen the guy?”