Page 53 of The Linebacker

The five of them headed into the airport together, the three women out front, chatting like the old friends they were, while Dante and Amil took up the rear. None of them questioned what she and Amil had been doing together in the parking lot.

They’d likely assumed they’d bumped into each other, just like they’d bumped into Emma and Allison and Dante.

Everything was fine, and she needed to quit worrying. Amil had convinced Jalen there was nothing going on between them. So long as they kept things on the down-low, everything would continue to be fine.

So why did she suddenly, while standing in the TSA line, have an epiphany that she did not want to keep things on the down-low?

She, of all people.

Hell, she had been steadily refusing to have the relationship status conversation. Amil wouldn’t put his toothbrush in her holder because of her issues. The family curse.

The curse that, for the first time in her adult life, she wondered whether it was simply poor judgment. Falling into a pattern and refusing to change. Hell, hadn’t that been her, until Amil came along?

In her case, it was a good thing. None of the other men she’d hooked up with were worthy of a second time—and certainly not of moving into her condo.

Was it possible that her mother and sister and grandmother simply hadn’t found Mr. Right yet? And once they did, they’d change their own patterns?

Oh God, did she believe Amil was her Mr. Right?

She stumbled, probably would have taken a header into the cement floor if Amil had not grabbed her arm and kept her upright.

Luckily, Allison, Emma, and Dante also reached for her, so it didn’t look questionable to the rest of the team, waiting to board the plane.

And yes, she was officially sick of being so damn paranoid.

Not that she could do a damn thing about it.

Except put some distance between her and Amil.

Which turned out to be easy at this juncture. He and Dante headed toward their teammates while she and Allison and Emma went to sit with Jillian and Morgan and Kate, Broderick’s wife, who was traveling without their children.

Jillian cracked a joke that every time they traveled without their children, Kate ended up pregnant.

Kate laughed. “Doubtful on this trip,” she said. “We aren’t even sharing a hotel room. Coach is being super strict with their time. Wants to make sure they are 100 percent ready to win tomorrow.” She grinned. “You know what that means. We’re on our own in the San Francisco Bay area for the evening!”

She high-fived each woman in turn. Diana offered up what she hoped was an enthusiastic smile.

She loved hanging with her girls. Most of her positive memories had occurred while she was bonding with her girlfriends.

San Francisco was a fun city. She knew she’d have a fantastic time, especially with this crew.

So why did she feel so damn melancholy?

Chapter

Nineteen

Amil sat near the front of the plane with the team, while Diana and her already half-drunk posse headed all the way to the back. With Jalen sitting next to him, he didn’t think it wise to crane his neck every five minutes, searching for even the smallest, quickest glimpse of a riot of curls or a glowing smile.

Damn, he had it bad. He needed to do something about it.

As in, tell Jalen the truth. Put it out there so they could deal with it and move on. Hopefully as friends, but if he were being real with himself, he’d choose Diana over Jalen in the long run.

In the long run, but not right now. They had to win this game against the 49ers. It was a matter of pride. And Jalen’s inability to let chirping slide off his back would be a huge factor in the outcome.

Amil nudged his arm, and Jalen tugged his headphones off his ears. “Yeah?”

“Are you ready for tomorrow’s game?” Amil asked.