Page 187 of Tangled with the Tight End

He leans in and kisses me, slow and deep. I sink into his arms, into our kiss, into the feeling that nothing can spoil what we’ve found in one another.

Chapter 30

Winona

You may be out of my sight, but you’re all I see.

~ Ahmad Shawqi

The weekend after Thanksgiving, Declan leaves for his first away game on the sidelines. The team is playing in Florida against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“If I weren’t a Thunder fan, the Buccaneers would be a contender for my heart,” I tell Cass from my spot on our couch.

“What? Why?”

“They are literally pirates. They even have a cannon that blasts when they score a touchdown.”

“Stellar reasoning,” she jokes as she settles into the couch next to me with a large bowl of chips and a smaller bowl of dip.

We’re only in the first quarter when the camera pans to the sidelines, capturing Declan dressed out in his uniform, wearing his boot and staring intently at the field. The announcer says something about Declan looking strong and eager to get back into action.

“There he is!” Cass shouts.

I nod, not taking my eyes off him until the camera pans away.

“How are you doing with him being away?” Cass asks.

“Fine.”

She pops a chip in her mouth. “Mmm. Fine, huh?”

“I lived twenty-eight years without him being around. I should be good with him being away. I am good. It’s good.”

Cass laughs. “Win. It’s okay to miss him.”

“I do miss him,” I practically wail. “So much. And I know this next part is nuts, but I keep wondering if the media is going to renew their interest in me the more the spotlight lands on him. I can handle it. It’s just … an adjustment.”

“I can’t imagine dating someone famous,” she says.

“I didn’t plan on it.”

“Love comes from the most unexpected places, I guess.”

“This time it did.”

I don’t even try to deny that I love him. I do.

I am madly in love with Declan O’Connell—his big heart, the way he makes me feel, the constant little touches, the way he’s so steady, the outfits he puts on Geese Witherspoon, his kisses, the laughs we share, and the sweet parts of himself he saves for me alone.

I love all of him.

“I’m in this for the long haul,” I tell Cass.

“Yeah. I can tell. He is too.”

“You think?”

“I know. He’s all in. He can’t keep his eyes off you. It’s in the way his face lights up when you enter a room. The way he moves closer to wherever you are. Something in him settles as soon as you’re within touching distance.”