Just like it always did.
The wedding song began to play, and I pulled my gaze from him as Lila made her way down the aisle. She looked like a princess, with her dress swooshing around her.
The sun was just going down behind the clouds, and the sky was a mix of yellow and orange. A slight breeze moved around us, and it was a perfect evening for an outdoor wedding. I glanced over at the ocean in the distance. The cove was a special place for all of us.
My attention returned to the gorgeous woman making her way toward my brother.
Hugh moved to stand in front of her as he shook hands with Tate James, Lila’s father, and smiled down at Lila. Tears were streaming down her face, and he used his thumbs to swipe them away.
“They’re happy tears, Bear,” she croaked.
“I know, baby.”
They moved to stand in front of Father Davis, who was marrying them today. They said their vows, and Ever and Hawk’s son, Jackson, waddled down the aisle with a pillow holding the rings.
They were pronounced husband and wife, and everyone cheered.
My gaze found Lincoln’s once again, and in that moment, I knew that this man was not only my right now… he was my forever.
twenty-eight
Lincoln
I couldn’t believe it was almost time to head to New York for official training camp. I had a realtor looking for homes not too far from our training facility, and my mother had already found a house not far from the city, and she’d be making the move next month.
I’d worked my ass off as far as my workouts had gone this summer, and I was definitely in the best shape of my life. I was ready to make this change and play for the Thunderbirds. There was only one thing that wasn’t clear, and that was what would happen with me and Brinkley and where we’d live. She didn’t know where she was going to be, and I was determined to show her that it really didn’t matter.
Our addresses had very little to do with our relationship, in my mind.
So, I’d taken her away for a few days before our worlds were completely turned upside down.
We’d left for Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, last night, and I’d just woken up and stepped outside onto our private patio. I knew she was exhausted, and a few days away would be a good way to unplug and relax a little bit before life got crazy again.
I took in the ocean and breathed in the salty air.
“Hey,” she said as she opened the sliding glass door and stepped outside. “How long have you been awake?”
I was stretched out on a lounge chair, and I opened my arms so she could slip in right between my legs, and I wrapped my arms around her.
“About an hour. I wanted to let you catch up on sleep.”
“Well, I slept really well. This place is gorgeous. I can’t believe we have our own villa. You’re full of surprises, Captain.” She chuckled.
The waves crashed against the shore, and I kissed the top of her head. “I think we could both use a little downtime. It’s hard to unplug when you’re at home.”
“That’s very true. And we have a lot going on between the two of us.”
“We do. That’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” I stroked her hair, and she turned a bit, resting her chest on mine so she could look at me.
“Ahhh… the talk. I know we’ve been putting that off.”
“We’ve agreed that we’ll stay together and figure things out. But I want to talk about some options.”
“Okay.” She smiled, tucking her dark hair behind her ear. “Let me hear these options.”
“I’ve shown you some of the places my realtor sent over, but I’d like you to be more involved in the process.”
“But we don’t know where I’ll be based.”
“Regardless of where we live, we want to be together, right?”
“Yes. Absolutely.”
“Good. If we were going to be living in the same place, which we very well might be—I’d ask you to live with me. So, I’d like you to help pick the home that we live in.”
Her eyes widened. “You want to live together?”
“Fuck yeah, I do. We already do. We spend every night together. Every day together, and I was fucking miserable being away from you when I took Lionel to meet Coach Hardin. I mean, I’m glad the kid is going to be playing there, but I didn’t like being away from you.”
Her teeth sank into her plump bottom lip. “I didn’t like it either. But that was really sweet of you. And you’re giving him this amazing opportunity with the scholarship you gave him.”
Coach Hardin couldn’t offer Lionel any money this year, but he agreed to have him walk on to the team, which would fulfill this kid’s dream. But I didn’t want him to start his life off buried in debt with student loans, so I’d agreed to cover his school and living expenses as long as he was working hard and attending classes.
“Yeah. Everyone needs a break sometimes. Lionel’s a really good kid.”
“He is. And you’re a really good guy, Lincoln Hendrix.”
“So, does that mean you’ll move in with me?”
“Of course, I want to live with you. But what if Sports Today or Football Live offer me a job that I can’t turn down?”
“Then we’ll have a place in San Francisco and a place in New York. But it’ll be together.”
“Okay. I like the sound of that. It’ll be hard living on opposite coasts, but we’ll make it work. And if one of them do hire me, I can work there for a year and prove myself, and then hopefully, they’ll let me work remotely after that.”
“It’ll all work out, sweetheart.” My thumb traced over her bottom lip. “I’m hoping to play out the rest of my career in New York. I’m not big on change, and we’ve got a really strong team and a great coaching staff. But you just never know, so we’ll do whatever it takes, right?”
“I’m all in.” Her teeth sank into her bottom lip.
“Yeah? Did seeing your brother get married give you any thoughts about your own wedding?”
“It’s funny, I never used to think about that. I’d never been in a relationship where I saw things going that way. But I’m not going to lie, it’s different with you.”
“How so?” I asked as I pulled her up farther so her mouth was right in front of mine.
“I think about it. I think about our future. How about you?”
“I never thought I’d want to be married. Never thought I’d have children. I was serious when I told my mother that she’d probably never have more than a bunch of footballs from me. But little Gracie has me wanting to put a whole lot of babies in you.”
Her head fell back in laughter. “She’s the cutest little girl on the planet. I kind of always imagined I’d be a great aunt and that would be it. But I think about babies now. I mean, not right now. We both have things we want to accomplish first. But I see them in our future.”
“A fucking little girl with your dark eyes and hair. She’ll own me, just like you do.”
“Oh, I own you, do I?” She chuckled.
“You own this, Brinkley Reynolds.” I pressed her hand to my heart.
“And you own mine.”
“So, no getting scared and running, okay? We both know it’s going to be a bumpy couple of weeks while we figure all of this out. But we want the same things in the future, and we’ll work hard to get there.”