Page 52 of The Linebacker

They were flying down to Santa Clara in a few hours. Spending the night. Playing the 49ers tomorrow afternoon.

“Wondering what you are thinking about,” she finally admitted.

“I’m currently trying to determine if we have enough time for a quicky before we head to the airport.”

She snorted and damn near took her eye out with the eyeliner pencil. “How about beyond that? Are you nervous about the game tomorrow? What about the fact that you’re going to be in your hometown tonight?”

“I’m always nervous about the next game, and Santa Clara was never my hometown. It was just a place I lived while I played for the 49ers.”

She pursed her lips and glared at him through the mirror. While a small part of her liked hearing that he did not consider Santa Clara home, he was evading the real question.

Just like always with Amil, he knew when to push and when to reel it in. “Yes, I’m nervous. The Mountain Lions are my family now, and I want us to win. And yes, the win will be a little sweeter because it’s against my previous team.”

It warmed her heart when he said things like the Mountain Lions are my family now. They were hers, too, and she was damn proud of this team. And all the players.

Especially Amil.

“Any movement on your house there?” she asked while she dressed, while Amil tucked his toiletry bag into his duffle.

“My stuff has been moved to a storage unit. A cleaning crew just went through it this week. The sign is supposed to go in the front yard on Monday.”

They cuddled with the cats. Fed them extra treats. Slipped out into the hall and headed downstairs. The team rented a private jet for these flights, and they flew out of a smaller airport rather than PDX.

They’d decided to drive to the airport together, but once inside, they’d keep their distance. Diana would go hang with the admin staff or the WAGs, while Amil would sit with his teammates.

“Sounds like you need to make a decision on the condo,” she noted as he guided his truck toward the airport.

“We should go look at houses next week. So I have something to compare it to.”

Fair enough. He’d initially said he wanted to buy a house, so this idea made sense.

Except he’d said we. “I’ll text you my friend’s number. The one who is a real estate agent.”

He gave her a quick side-eye before returning his focus to the road. “Are you telling me you don’t want to go with me?”

“No. I just…” She just what?

She just didn’t know what to think. Yes, she’d offered to help him when he first joined the team, but so much had changed in the short time since then. Suddenly, her joining him on his house hunting expedition felt incredibly intimate.

He didn’t press. He parked the truck. He unloaded their bags from the back.

He didn’t pull her bag along behind him like he had when they left the condo.

Because they weren’t together.

The crazy part was, if Jalen weren’t so up in his head about her, it wouldn’t matter.

Yes, her friends and his teammates would give them shit about being together, but it would be good-natured.

Allison and Emma would be thrilled. They both felt her one-night only stance was ridiculous, that despite her family’s curse, she deserved happiness as much as the next person.

She knew many of his teammates would consider her a catch, so they’d probably be impressed by the speed with which he’d managed to capture her attention. Or maybe not, since most of them were aware that she and Amil had hooked up two years ago. Maybe they’d simply think it was meant to be.

Who knew?

“Hey, you two!”

Diana glanced over at Emma, Allison, and Dante strolling across the parking lot and immediately felt her tense muscles relax.