Page 64 of Center Sneak

“Will you go on a second date with me?”

She bolts up, turns her head to face me, and stares into my eyes.

“What was that?” she asks me.

“Will you go out on a second date with me?” I repeat.

She nods and then adds, “Yes.”

I gently tug her head to mine and lean in for a kiss. Her morning breath is strong, but I’m sure mine is too.

I break away from the kiss, but our bodies are still close.

“I’m looking forward to our date,” I tell her.

“Me too. I have a busy week. I know Christmas isn’t for another month and a half, but I have a lot of work for our upcoming programs.”

“I have an away game this weekend. Opposite coast,” I share, although I’m sure she knows, especially since she’s so close to Sebastian.

“Yeah. Maybe next week? Monday or Tuesday night?”

“Yeah. Next week can’t come fast enough,” I say, meaning my words.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Calvin

We are exiting the aircraft, arriving back on Boston soil, after winning an away game. I step out, walking the few steps out of our private team plane, catching the first hints of the sunrise. It’s just past six in the morning, and I’m exhausted but wide awake at the same time.

Stepping onto the platform, I turn around to the big guy behind me to see if he wants to make a pit stop first.

Sebastian frowns at his phone.

“Everything okay?” I ask him.

“Yeah,” he says in an unconvincing tone.

“Do you want to grab breakfast on the way home?”

“No.” He shakes his head. “I’m actually going to drop you off real quick, if that’s okay.”

“Yeah.”

“Scarlett isn’t feeling well, so I need to head over to the foundation to take care of a few time-sensitive things.”

My ears perk up.

“Need any help?” I ask.

“Nah, I got it, but thanks.” He claps me on the back as we walk over to the parking lot, where his truck sits.

My head is reeling on the trip back to my place. In the five years I’ve known Scarlett, she’s always been fine. Stable. Reliable. Never sick, at least not to my knowledge.

I open up our text exchange and realize that she never replied to the last two texts I sent. They were stupid messages that didn’t necessarily require a reply, so I didn’t worry about not getting a response, but maybe I should have?

I fire off another text to her, and then five minutes later, another one asking if she’s okay and if she needs anything.

By the time Sebastian drops me off at my building, I’m heading to the garage and not the elevator. I pull out my keys from my bag and hop in my Jeep.