An authentic laugh spills from her lips, something Lex reserves for only the worthiest of times, and I watch on in amusement as she’s carried around the room to give high fives to some of the Mavericks’ star players. Quinn Bailey, Sean Phillips, Cam Mitchell, Leo Landry, and nearly a dozen others, they’re all joining in on the fun, smiling and slapping Lexi’s hand, despite the fact that they’re scheduled to take the field in less than thirty minutes.
“How many TDs, Lex?” Sean, the Mavericks’ leading wide receiver—who also flexes into the running back position—asks.
“Statistically, you’ve been averaging two touchdowns per game, but Philadelphia’s defense is number two in the league, and they’ll be double-covering you. Which makes the probability of you meeting your average below thirty percent.”
If it wasn’t already obvious, she’s a bit of a statistical genius. Feelings don’t matter so much when hard facts are on the line. I can’t help but smile at the disappointed look on Sean’s face.
Cam Mitchell, otherwise known as the best tight end in the league, bursts into laughter. “Uh-oh, Sean. Looks like I might have to pick up your slack today.”
Sean flips Mitchell the middle finger behind his back and feigns a pout at Lexi. “C’mon, Lex. How you gonna do me like that? Double-covered or not, you know I got the skills, girl.”
“I think what our girl is saying here, Phillips, is that you’re going to have to get your cocky as—I mean, butt in gear today, bro,” Teeny comments, still holding Lexi on his shoulders.
Of course, my niece just shrugs, stone-faced and not affected in the least. The girl lives and breathes numbers and the kind of mathematical concepts most grown-ass adults can’t comprehend. If these fuckers weren’t ready to hear the hard truth, they shouldn’t have asked.
Quinn Bailey, the Mavs’ QB, reaches up to take Lexi off Teeny’s shoulders and squats down to converse with her face-to-face. “What do you think, Lex? Are my guys going to pull out a W today?”
“Philadelphia’s defense is going to be tough.” She taps her fingers to her chin. “They’re averaging four sacks per game, and when they played Seattle, they shut down touchdowns and only allowed two field goals. They started out the season in second to last place, and they’re coming off a three-game rally. Rallies have a statistical tendency to give an advantage.”
Quinn just grins. “So…what you’re telling me is that we need to come to play.”
She nods, and Quinn reaches out to place both hands on her shoulders.
“Don’t worry, Lex. We’ve come to play.”
The smallest hint of a smile crests her lips as Bailey stands up to face the rest of the team.
“Ain’t that right, boys?” he shouts at the top of his lungs. “We came to play!”
“Hell yeah! Fuck Philly!”
Just as my brother-in-law Wes walks in through a door on the opposite side from the one we entered, the team starts chanting “Fuck Philly” in perfect synchrony. He shakes his head on a laugh and walks over to Lex and me.
“You brought my daughter down here to listen to my idiot football players drop f-bombs?”
“This is an important part of the pregame.” Lex rolls her eyes for what feels like the one-hundredth time today, and I just shrug on a laugh as I reach out to shake Wes’s hand.
“She insisted, man. Pretty much refused to go to our seats without stopping in the locker room first. Not to mention, she said you let her do this.”
“Oh, she said that, did she?” Wes grins at Lexi. “I guess I should just be thankful you chose to come down after they’re mostly dressed.”
“You and me both.”
I glance down at Lexi, figuring she has some kind of response to that ready to fly from her lips, but I notice she’s no longer paying attention to us. Instead, her eyes are busy looking around the locker room, taking in each player as they finish getting ready for the game. I know whatever she’s doing, she’s doing it with a point, so I don’t bother interrupting.
“Where’s Winnie?” I ask Wes instead, and his smile is both exasperated and amused.
“Probably in the PT room, making sure everyone’s getting taped up exactly how she prefers.”
I smirk. “Isn’t that a physical therapist’s job?”
“You’d think since we hired one of the best physical therapists in the damn country, she’d be able to relax a little, but you know Win. She likes to keep the reins tight.”