Change of Hart (18 page)

O
ver the next few weeks, my life consisted of three major things . . . football, Addison and Jaxon. I had no idea how the two of them became constants in my life so quickly, especially since Addison was determined to keep the relationships separate, but they did.

Addison and I went out several more times. The longer we dated without her name making it into the papers, the more confident I felt that when it finally did, she’d be ready. I still tried to keep our relationship low-key. But there are so many things to do in Dallas, I needed Adam to help us stay behind the scenes a little bit.

The Texas Rangers were having a pretty good year so we were able to get a private box for one of the Divisional Playoff games. It was fun. Deuce and Vanessa met us there and we all enjoyed talking probably more than we enjoyed watching the game. Addison and Vanessa talked all about Vanessa’s pregnancy and even Jaxon’s birth. The look on Deuce’s face during that conversation was priceless. I made sure Vanessa knew she needed to take pictures in the delivery room. Not of the baby, but of Deuce’s reaction. I was wagering that he was going to pass out at some point.

Another time, Deuce and I rented out a private dining room at Abacus. It was fun seeing Addison get all dolled up and in a nice, fitted, sexy dress. It’s a good thing Deuce and Vanessa were there because I was seriously having trouble keeping my hands off of my date. I couldn’t help it. Heels show off those legs.

Every date got better, but it always ended the same way . . . with me kissing the hell out of her in her front room, trying to stay quiet so Jaxon didn’t wake up. And trying even harder to keep my hands in appropriate locations, knowing if they traveled south, I wasn’t leaving. I took a lot of cold showers. That part sucked. But I knew it would be worth it in the end.

Jaxon, on the other hand, came to all my home games with Mick. If I was out of town, he’d call me as soon as the game was over. Talking to him was, if nothing else, entertaining. I thought he could talk a lot about past football games. That was nothing compared to his short-term memory. And it appeared my little buddy was not just a fair-weather fan. He was the real deal. Even when we got pummeled in St. Louis. . . 27 – 10.

I would like to blame the sucky weather we had during that game. But the truth of it was, I was off my game. I missed several key tackles that kept letting the Rams get the first down. I have no idea why and I probably never will. It’s just one of those things that happen sometimes. And it sucked.

The locker room was relatively quiet after that game. No one really has much to say after a loss.

I picked up my phone and saw that I had a message. It was kind of unusual. Everyone who had my phone number knew I was on the field. Hell, they were probably watching. So it concerned me a bit that whatever was going on was important enough to leave a message.

I didn’t bother stripping my uniform off before typing in my password to get the voicemail.

“Hi Jason! It’s Jaxon. My mom and I were watching the game and it was AWESOME! When you jumped up and knocked that ball out of the way . . . you blocked the extra point! It was so cool! So, my mom says I can’t stay on the phone, but I wanted to tell you I watched it wearing my jersey and my mom even let me have a hot dog because Pee-paw gets them for me at the stadium so we needed to eat them when we watch TV games, too . . . I’ll see you at the next game! I love you! Bye!”

Leave it to my little buddy to not see all the missed tackles, but to see the one bright side of my game tonight. Is it possible to fall in love with a kid? Not in a creepy way. But in a he-is-so-awesome kind of way? Because I did with that voicemail. That was it. If there was a question about me ever losing interest in him, the answer was, “Not gonna happen.”

I showered, did my required interviews and sat down next to Deuce on the bus that was taking us back to the airport. Once settled in, I was finally able to call Addison.

“Hello,” she said in a groggy voice.

“I didn’t wake you, did I?” I asked, suddenly realizing it was after eleven in Texas.

She yawned. “I was just dozing off a little. I didn’t want to miss your phone call.”

“I missed Jaxon, though, didn’t I?”

She laughed softly. “Honey, he’s been in bed for hours. He jumped up and down so much during the game, I’m almost surprised he didn’t pass out earlier than he did.”

“I wish he would have fallen asleep during the game,” I said, still feeling the sting of our loss. “It was a terrible game.”

“It wasn’t that bad,” she said. “You only missed a few tackles.”

“Addison Bryant,” I exclaimed with a grin on my face, “don’t tell me you’re learning how to follow a football game!”

She snorted. “I kind of have to. You see, there’s this really hot guy I know who plays defense. I figured I needed to know exactly what that meant if I was gonna keep him around for a while.”

“Well, I’m impressed,” I joked. “I think I need to get you a cheerleader costume for Halloween now that you’re such a fan.”

“I am not wearing that tiny little outfit when I take my son trick-or-treating,” she argued. “Halloween is scary enough without me showing off all that skin!”

“Hey now,” I said sternly while watching St. Louis pass by out the window of the bus, “don’t talk about my woman that way. I happen to think she’s kind of hot.”

“You’re sweet,” she said through a smile. “Speaking of Halloween, you’re still coming trick-or-treating with us next week, aren’t you?

“Of course,” I said. “This is the first time in years I get to go begging for candy without people looking at me funny.”

“You are so weird,” she said without missing a beat. “I asked Jax what he wants to dress up as. You’ll never guess what he decided.”

“Ummmmmm, a ninja,” I guessed.

“What? No.”

“Hey, you told me to guess, so I did,” I argued. “Let me try again.”

“Fine. Try again.”

“Ok. A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.”

“Jason,” she laughed, “that’s still a ninja.”

“It is not! It’s a hero in a half shell!”

“Ohmygod,” she said, belly-laughing now. “You’re such a dork!”

I smiled. “Yeah, but that’s why you love me.”

She stopped laughing abruptly. The silence lasted for quite a few seconds.

“Um, that’s . . . uh . . . ,” I stammered.

“Jason,” she said. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just make this a very awkward conversation. Because I know what you meant.”

I exhaled. “Thanks. That was . . . sorry about that.”

“Stop worrying about it. Besides, we have more important things to discuss. Jaxon wants to be
you
for Halloween.”

“Me?” I asked incredulously.

“Did you really forget that you are his hero?” she asked me.

“No, I mean, I knew that,” I answered. “I guess I just assumed he knew me well enough now to kind of be, I don’t know . . . over it, I guess.”

“Oh, Jason,” she laughed, “how many times did you meet Emmett Smith as a kid and how many times did you dress up as him for Halloween?”

“Good point,” I conceded. “But now that I know that he wants to be me, can I please get his costume? I can get little football pants and a little helmet. Oh! And I can get us costumes, too! I know exactly what to do!”

“I’m not wearing a cheerleader outfit,” she reminded me.

“Not even once we get back from trick-or-treating?” I asked playfully. “Just for me?”

“Uh, no,” she said.

I sighed loudly. “Ok fine. But I’ve got another idea. Can you trust me to get us the perfect costumes that will keep me incognito on the street?”

“I suppose,” she agreed hesitantly. “But this is your one chance, Hart. Don’t screw it up.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I said. “I promise you’ll love it.”

“Whatever you say.”

As our conversation came to a close, the bus came rumbling to a stop.

“We just rolled up to the airport, baby,” I said. “I’ve gotta go.”

“Ok,” she said with another yawn. “Call me tomorrow. Fly safe.”

“Thanks, babe. Sleep well.”

With that, she was gone. And I had some planning to do.

I had barely finished knocking when the door flew open and Jaxon was hugging me tight.

“Jason! You’re here!” he yelled. “You did so good at the game on Sunday. You hit that ball so hard! And when Deuce knocked that guy down and he got a flag for it I was so mad! He didn’t do anything wrong! I saw the replay! Are you going trick-or-treating with me?”

I looked over at Addison who was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and a smirk on her face.

“Did you give him a bunch of candy already?” I asked her, wondering how he could be even more hyper than normal.

“I didn’t,” she said. “But I am assuming the school did. He came home like this.”

“Hmm . . . ,” I said, looking Jaxon in the eye. “Let’s see . . . thank you for the compliment. I agree Deuce got screwwww . . . shafted. And yes, as soon as we’re all dressed we’re going trick-or-treating.”

He wiggled down to the floor and started jumping up and down. “Did you bring my costume? Did you bring me a helmet?”

I picked up one of the bags that was still sitting on the front porch. “It’s all in here,” I said, handing it to him as he continued to jump. “Go put it on so we can get ready to go.”

“Ok!” he yelled and took off down the hallway. When I heard him banging things around his room, I stalked over to Addison and backed her against the wall, pressing my whole body to hers and kissing her with everything in me. She reciprocated for a really amazing few seconds before pushing me away.

“He got really quiet in there, Jason,” she said, still catching her breath. “That means he’s gonna come tearing around that corner any minute.”

“That little stinker is ruining all my fun,” I joked, walking back over to the door to grab the remaining bags. Sure enough, he came racing into the room before I even got to the doorway.

“Why aren’t you ready to go yet?” he asked excitedly, his helmet leaning to one side, just slightly too big for him. “What were you doing while I was getting dressed?”

“We were talking about a game plan for tonight,” I said, winking over my shoulder. Addison rolled her eyes and smiled.

“Why do we need a game plan?” he asked.

“Well, we want to get the most candy we can, right?” I said with a smile. He nodded. “Then we need a game plan of all the best houses with all the best candy. We have to maximize our trick-or-treating.”

“Ok!” he agreed. “Oh! I need our pillowcases! Mom let me decorate some for tonight!” And off he ran again.

I looked at Addison. “We’re gonna have to keep him on a leash tonight.”

“Probably,” she agreed. “Ok, I’m dying to see what my costume is. It better be good.”

I handed her a bag with a smile. “Don’t look until you get to your room and have the door closed,” I said. “I’m gonna change in the hall bathroom.”

She narrowed her eyes and cocked her head, obviously trying to read my expression. “Ok,” she finally said. “I’ll be back in a few.”

She turned around and walked back to her bedroom while I headed to the half bath. It took me more than a few minutes to get my costume on. I could hear Addison trying to keep Jaxon from climbing the walls while they waited for me. But it’s not easy getting this big body in form-fitting costumes and makeup.

Once I was finally done, I opened the door to see Addison waiting for the big reveal. I guess Jaxon had taken off somewhere. As soon as she spotted me, she threw her head back and laughed a giant belly laugh.

“A banana?” she asked between breaths. “You’re going as a banana?”

“It’s symbolic. It’s because I’m bananas for you, baby,” I said, waggling my eyebrows up and down.

“You’re making me go as a monkey and you’re a banana?” she asked, still laughing.

“Cause we belong together,” I said, still playing it up.

“No,” she argued. “It’s because you’re gonna make all kinds of inappropriate comments to me tonight.”

My mouth dropped open and my eyes widened in fake shock. “You have such a dirty mind! I would never think of such things!”

“Uh huh. Then tell me, why did you get a costume that is so tight on me?”

“It’s not tight. It’s fitted,” I clarified. “And you’re a
girl
monkey. So you had to be a
sexy
monkey.”

She rolled her eyes at me and kept chuckling as she went to pick up the pillowcases. Just then, Jaxon came barreling through the room, stopping dead in his tracks when he saw me. His eyes looked back and forth between Addison and me a few times before he spoke.

“Why are you dressed like a banana?” he asked, eyes still wild from his sugar high.

“Um, because your mother is dressed like a monkey,” I said, trying to gauge his reaction.

“Oh,” he said, pausing momentarily. Then he yelled, “Come on, let’s go!” And out the door we went.

As we walked down the sidewalk, Lindsay and Sam pulled up with Emma. We had a terrible time trying to get Jaxon to stay put while we waited for Emma to get her Princess costume situated. I finally appeased him for a few minutes by letting him get down in a squat position, pretend he was going into a play and then ram into me like he was tackling me. For a little squirt, he was pretty good. Almost knocked me over a few times. However, he did have an advantage, being that I was wearing bright yellow tights and all.