The Running Series Complete Collection: 3-Book Set plus Bonus Novella (92 page)

“I did.”  He takes a deep breath before he continues.  “It happened a long time ago.  She interviewed me after a really close game that I kicked ass in.  We didn’t win, but if they left me in longer, I think we would have.  Anyway, I took her out for drinks after the interview and Adam met us at this place called the Rusty Nail.  We were doing shots and Laci had her hands all over both of us.  One thing led to another and the three of us left together.  We went to Adam’s apartment and – ”

“Okay, okay, enough.  I think I got it.  I don’t need to hear anymore.  I can connect the dots all by myself on that one.”  I shake my head, trying to erase the mental image that his description has created in my mind.  “Did you ever see her again?”  Please say no, please say no.

“No way.  I was not going to wade into that pool more than once.”  Evan stands up and walks around the room before saying any more.  “Juliette, I have a past.  You know that.  I’m sorry to remind you of that regrettable fact.  I’ve led a life I’m not very proud of.  There were many women and from time to time, you may be confronted with a remnant from my past.  But this woman is trouble.  Don’t trust her and don’t believe a word she says.”  He sits back down and wraps an arm around me.  “Please tell me what you’re thinking.”

“Oh, did I find Superman’s Kryptonite?” I tease him.  “A one-night stand with her own talk show.  Mind if I have that card back?”

He tears it up.  “Oh, aren’t you the comedian?  Come here, smartass.  I have plans for the wise cracking mouth of yours.”  I leap onto his lap and cover his mouth with my own.  I have no more desire for information about the ghost of girlfriends past.

When we finally emerge from the office, I return to the kitchen and Evan heads straight for the bar.  For once, I’m glad it’s slow and quiet.  It’s too late for lunch, but too early for dinner.  Keeping Evan company are Derek and Marcus.  The three of them are drinking, laughing, and just having a nice time.  It’s so good to see Evan relaxed and enjoying himself. 

Sometimes I can’t believe how well our lives have woven together.  When I see Evan slapping Derek on the back for something hysterical he just said, I feel a little flutter of pride and joy.  These two have had their share of disagreements, but both respect the other well enough to move past it.  This is my life.  These men are my family.  I wouldn’t trade any of them for all the riches in the world.

Occasionally, a fan will come over to Evan and interrupt their friendly conversation.  He patiently speaks with them and answers their questions, but eventually either Marcus or Derek intervenes.  I happen to walk by when a female fan feels brave enough to approach Evan, but the boys are having none of it.  They quickly whisk the young girl back to her table and offer her a drink on the house for her understanding.

Eventually, I check my watch and it’s nearly time for a shift change.  As far as Evan knows, we’re leaving to go out for the night as soon as Natalie arrives.  Time to put my diversion plan into action.  I join the boys at the bar and when I do, Marcus offers me his barstool next to Evan.

“Sweetie, Natalie will be here in about half an hour.  We can go as soon as she gets here.  We have seven o’clock reservations at Via45 in Red Bank.  If we’re not there on time, they will give our table away.  Would you mind running home and letting Maddy out?  I was hoping to go see a movie after dinner.  She’s been home alone most of the day.  Pleeeeaaase?” I know there’s no way he can resist.

“Sure, no problem.  Just let me finish my drink and I’ll go.”  I give him a quick kiss and a hug, and then I hurry back to the kitchen.  Once he goes, it will take him at least twenty minutes to get home, ten minutes with the dog, and another twenty minutes to return.  That’s almost an hour.  Thank God for summer traffic.  Everything is coming together just as I had hoped.

Every Dog Has His Day

“H
i, honey.  Natalie’s here and I’m ready to go.  How’s traffic?”

“I’m just turning onto Cookman Avenue.  I’ll be there in five minutes.”

“Great.  I can’t wait to get out of here.  Listen, the place is packed.  It might be a good idea for you to come in around back through the kitchen.  I don’t want you to get stuck taking pictures or talking football with any of the customers.  This way, we can make a clean getaway.”  I hope my little white lie doesn’t raise his suspicions, but I really want to surprise him.

“Will do.  Thanks for the heads up.  Let me go, I think I see some parking up ahead.  Love you.”

“Love you, too, Chief.”  Phew, I think he bought it.  I hang up the phone and turn to Emmy.  “He’s almost here.  I’m pretty sure he’s coming in through the kitchen.  As soon as you see him, I need you to run to the dining room and get everyone ready.”

“Ooh, this is so much fun!  He’s going to be so surprised, I just know it.”  Emmy grabs me and hugs me tightly.  “Are you sure he doesn’t suspect anything?”

“Nope, he definitely bought it, hook, line, and sinker.  Can you run out there and have Derek start to open the bottles of Dom Pérignon we chilled?  But don’t be long.  Hurry back, okay?”  Emmy agrees, and she quickly leaves the kitchen to warn Derek and Adam to get ready. 

I’m so glad a few of Evan’s teammates drove all the way down here tonight.  Marcus has them entertained at the bar.  He fits right in with them all and had I not known better, I would think he was a professional athlete, too.  Callie is also doing a great job entertaining the wives and girlfriends, having met a few of them at the ESPYs.

Reese has prepared a special menu for the occasion.  She has her sous chefs working madly to get everything ready.  She’s already plated and put out some nosh.  She put out some of my favorites, warm artichoke dip, a variety of stuffed breads, and Peach Chutney and Brie Canapés. 

I try to keep myself busy waiting for Evan.  I hope he doesn’t decide to use the front entrance and ruin the surprise.  Thankfully, my worries are forgotten when he comes through the back door into the kitchen.  Just as he does, Emmy returns to the kitchen more bubbly than usual.  “Oh, hi Evan,” she says, opening up the refrigerator and pretending to look around for something.  She grabs a banana and announces, “Found it!”  She looks right at Evan and me and explains, “I have to bring this to Derek.  He needs a banana.”  She hesitates, turns to her right, and then to her left; unsure of her next move, she sprints for the door.

“Well, that was weird, even for Emmy,” Evan notices.  Damn, I hope he doesn’t make too much of it. 

“Yeah, I agree.  Maybe you should go check on things before we go.  I just have to finish up, then we can leave.”

“Okay, hurry up, please.  We need to go soon if we’re going to get to Red Bank by seven.”  He steps over to me and wraps his arms around my waist.  “I’m really looking forward to a night out, just the two of us.  We haven’t had a night out alone in a long time, baby.”  He gives me a kiss, and then follows Emmy out the door.  I scurry behind him, trying to go unnoticed.

When he turns the corner and steps out into the dining room, he stops dead in his tracks.  “Surprise!  Congratulations!” Everyone hollers.

Evan’s face lights up when he sees everyone who’s gathered here tonight.  I slip an arm around his waist and he pulls me in close.  “You.  Are.  Amazing.”  Each word is peppered with a kiss.  “How long have you been planning this?”

“I’d love to take the credit, but you should be thanking Adam.  It was his idea,” I tell him, looking up into his adoring eyes.

He makes his way down the bar, greeting each of his teammates one at a time, followed by his brother-in-law and finally Adam.  “You son of a bitch,” Evan taunts Adam while the two exchange handshakes and a brief but affectionate man hug.  “You definitely got me, man.  I had no idea.”

Evan spots his sister Callie and heads right over to her where she is sitting with the other football wives and girlfriends.  She immediately gets up and squeezes her little brother tightly.  “Congratulations, kiddo.  You finally did it.  Mom and Dad are so proud of you.”

Evan presses his big sister tightly to his chest.  “Thanks, sis.  Where are they?”  Evan scans the room, looking for his parents.  “How come they’re not here?”

“Someone had to stay home with Regan, you know,” she reminds him. 

Callie’s husband Dean joins the conversation and adds his congratulations to Evan.  “Man, you better hook me up with some seats right on the fifty yard line.  All those years putting up with your crap is going to start paying off – finally!”

“Yeah, you poor thing.  Flying out to see football games all around the country on my dime was a real sacrifice,” Evan sarcastically sympathizes. 

Evan introduces me to the women whom I don’t know and thanks each of them for coming.  Carlo’s wife, Willow, has been to our home before, so no introduction is needed.  I give her a warm hug and a heartfelt welcome. 

Emmy and Derek are walking around our small group, passing out champagne glasses filled with Dom Pérignon with a fresh raspberry floating on top.  Evan and I are the last to get our glasses, and when we do, Adam stands up on one of the chairs, takes a fork to his glass, and signals for everyone to quiet.

“Can I have everyone’s attention, please?  I’d like to make a toast to the man of the hour.  Please raise your glass and join me.”  He raises his glass in the air, then turns to Evan and announces, “What can you say about a man who is admired, revered, and loved by everyone? I can start by telling you that he’s not here tonight, so let’s talk about Evan McGuire, instead.”  Raucous laughter breaks out and Adam waits for the room to quiet before he continues. 

Adam adds, “Evan has a very noble purpose in life – to serve as a warning to others.”  Evan hangs his head low and nods, admitting the sarcastic but dead-on observation.

“Why should I say nice things about him? I'd rather tell the truth.  He’s not the kind of man who takes work home with him. How can he? We do all the work for him.”  All the guys call out obscenities at Evan, confirming Adam’s statement.

“Evan is going to do a great job leading the team this season.  I can say that because he doesn't know the meaning of the word intimidation.  But then again, he doesn't know the meanings of most big words.”  When Adam makes that claim, Evan’s eyes grow wide.  Good thing he’s got a good sense of humor, because Adam is really testing Evan’s limits today.

Adam looks around the room, and says, “Okay, okay.  Evan, you're a great guy. You should go far. That's not a prediction, it's a request.”  Adam is still standing on a chair, but now Evan closes the gap between them, standing directly in front of him, shaking his head.

“Seriously.  We’re all here tonight to celebrate Evan’s success.”  Once again, Adam raises his glass in the air and proclaims loudly, “Evan, you serve as a true inspiration to the rest of us.  If you can make it, surely we can, too.  Congratulations, bro.  You deserve it.”  Everyone joins him and toasts to Evan’s success.

Evan pulls Adam down off the chair and slaps him on the back.  I can’t hear what they are saying, but by the looks on both their faces, everything is fine.  Better, even.  It’s good to know Evan can laugh at himself and remain a good sport.

Evan pulls me by the hand and brings me over to meet his closest teammates who are still sitting at the bar along with Marcus.  These men are physically intimidating by anyone’s standards.  They are all dressed tastefully in jeans and t-shirts, but it’s not hard to tell that they have money.  “Juliette, I’d like you to meet Anthony Romeo Santos.  He’s a tight end and a damn good one at that.”

Anthony takes my hand and gives a strong, confident shake.  He’s bigger than the other guys, outweighing them by nearly fifty pounds.  And he’s taller than Evan’s six foot two.  I definitely would not want to be on the wrong side of an argument with him.  But there’s also a kindness to his smile. “It’s very nice to meet you, Juliette.  You have a great place here.  Thanks for having us.”

“Yeah, he says he’s a tight end, but we all know he’s really a wide receiver!”  I turn to see who’s making the crude joke and I see a young man, around our age, nearly doubled over in laughter.  He’s smaller than the others, but still taller than average.  He’s got dirty blonde hair swept to the side in a messy carefree tangle.

“Juliette, this is Troy Duffy.  He’s our placekicker, but he thinks he’s a comedian.”  Troy grabs the brim of his Sentinel’s hat and tips it to me.  I immediately like him.  There’s something oddly familiar about him.  He looks a little bit like Auggie, but he’s got a quick wit like Derek.

“Hey, watch the wide receiver jokes, Duff, or I may have to rearrange that face of yours and when I’m done, you’ll look like a Picasso painting.”  Shooting daggers at Troy Duffy is the only other teammate I’ve previously met, Shaun Marise.  Shaun, Carlo, and Evan share the cost of a private suite at Liberty Stadium.  Shaun’s the only single man in the bunch.

“Don’t listen to them,” Troy tells me.  “They’re just jealous that I am responsible for scoring more points than anyone else on the team.”  Troy turns to Anthony, “You know it’s true.”

Quietly sitting at the bar, having said not a word to this point is the last guest Adam invited.  Evan notices, too, so he steps in and makes the final introduction.  “And this big guy here is Xander Parish.  He’s our Running Back.  Do you know what a short yard specialist is?” Evan asks.  I shake my head and shrug my shoulders.  I can assume he specializes in running short plays, but I’ll let Evan explain.  “When we only need a few yards for a touchdown or first down, we call in Xander.  If I can get the ball in his hands, I know he won’t fumble.  He can power through the line and get the job done every time.”