Page 3 of Over the Line

“Yeah, definitely,” he said without hesitation. “I, um…” He swallowed, and a blush rose in his cheeks. “Like I said, I got tickets for you for the games this week. In the owner’s box.”

I couldn’t describe the rush of warmth and relief. “I appreciate that. I’m really looking forward to it. But I don’t want to be a distraction or anything, you know?”

“No, no, you’re fine.” He glanced at me, and he smiled flicker-fast. “It’ll be good having you here. I mean, for the week.”

“What about permanently?”

Chris swallowed. “It’s… I like the idea. I do. But you know I could get traded or something, right?” He looked at me again, brow creased. “I don’t have a no-move clause or anything. And I’ll be a free agent after three years. I’m pretty sure they’ll re-sign me, but like, anything is possible.”

“That still gives us some time, though.”

“It does. Do you… Do you want to uproot your job and everything? Even knowing I might not be here?”

“It’s been years since we’ve been in the same place,” I said evenly. “Quite honestly, I’ll uproot everything if it means I get to spend a couple of months with you.”

He swallowed again, harder this time. “It’ll be good to have you here.”

“Will it? Because you really don’t have to decide right now. I told my boss I’ll have an answer for her when I get back, so there’s no hurry.”

“No.” He shook his head emphatically. “I want you to come here. I…” He hesitated. “The last few years have been tough. I’ve… I mean, even when I was mad…” Some more color rose in his cheeks. “I’ve missed you.”

I struggled to breathe. “I’ve missed you too, kiddo.”

Awkward silence hung between us. Chris tapped his thumbs on the wheel, then glanced at me again. “If, uh… If you’re here and you can get the time off, the dads’ trip is coming up in January. I was going to suggest it anyway—a lot of the dads come in from wherever they live to join us, but if you’re already here…”

My heart jumped. Every year, a lot of teams in the League had multi-game road trips where the players brought along their dads. He’d told me before we were estranged that he hoped to get drafted to one of those teams so he could bring me along on one someday. Ever since the divorce, not so much. But now…

I cleared my throat. “You… want me to come along?”

Gaze fixed on the road, Chris nodded. “Yeah. I do.”

Fuck. If I made it through this trip without crying, it would be yet another miracle. I pulled it together this time, though.

“Okay.” I nodded. “Sounds good. Just, um, give me the dates and I’ll make sure I can get the time off.”

I wasn’t entirely sure my new bosses would approve it, but when Chris smiled, I vowed to get that time off one way or another.

We still had a lot of ground to cover. A lot of time to make up for.

But today already felt like a damn good start.

Chris drove me to my hotel in Cranberry, which was the town he lived in about twenty-five minutes north of Pittsburgh. He’d floated the idea of letting me stay in his guestroom, but I’d shot that down. I didn’t want to impose, and anyway, we were still on uneasy ground. He’d seemed more relieved by that than I’d expected; I wasn’t sure what that was about, but I didn’t want to push the issue. Maybe he just wanted some space while he made sure we could get along in person.

He didn’t stay long after I checked into my hotel. It was game day, so we didn’t have a lot of time to hang out. We had lunch, and then he left me to settle into my room while he went home for his pregame nap. Later on, he’d pick me up again to head to the arena. Tomorrow, I’d have a rental car; I’d wanted to get it today, but he’d insisted on meeting me at the airport, and I wasn’t about to argue with more time together.

When he pulled up outside my hotel to take me to the game, I almost stumbled on my way out. Nothing drove home just how grown up he really was like seeing him driving that high-end SUV in a tailored suit.

Christ. He really wasn’t a seventeen-year-old kid anymore, was he?

No. No, he was not. He was a professional athlete now. One who drove a BMW and wore bespoke suits. He also had a townhouse I hadn’t yet seen and a live-in girlfriend I hadn’t yet met. Holy shit—my kid really had grown up.

I had on a suit too, though mine wasn’t nearly as nice as his. I was doing all right financially, but I didn’t think I had the money for something quite that bougie.

As I opened the passenger door, I realized there was no one else in the car, which caught me by surprise. Sliding into the seat, I asked, “Just you and me?” I had hoped—and apparently foolishly assumed—his girlfriend would be coming with us. He’d said she came to every home game. Maybe she was meeting us there?

Chris fidgeted in the driver seat. “Jasmine is, um…” He shifted gears and headed out of the parking lot. “She’s got some other stuff going on tonight. And she’s going out of town with some girlfriends this week. Someone’s bachelorette thing.”

Why are you lying?