Series: Fever Falls Series by Riley Hart
Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 85157 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85157 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
“Not possible.” She patted my hand. “And it’s Beth, remember?”
I didn’t know why, but that made me smile. When I looked up, Beau was watching me, his brows pulled together as if he was confused; then he turned away. “You ready, Kenny?” he asked.
“Yep!” Kenny replied. A stab of disappointment landed in my chest that they were leaving. “Do you want to go to my game with us?” Kenny asked.
I liked where this was going. “Game?”
“I play football like you and Beau. Beau’s our coach.” Kenny beamed with pride, and damned if it didn’t do something to my chest. I saw the love of life in him, the love of his brother, hell, even of football.
“It’s a mostly indoor league sponsored through a group called We Can Play, for those with special needs to play sports. Kenny kicks ass.” Beau grinned at his brother. “But I’m sure you have—”
“I don’t,” I interrupted. “Have, I mean…anything to do. I’d love to go. That’s where I’m going with this.” A local football league that I was assuming was similar to Special Olympics? I didn’t even know there was such a thing. It didn’t surprise me that Beau did.
Beth said, “Beau fought like crazy to get us a team, but as we know, when Beau sets his mind to something…”
“It’s nothing, Ma.”
“It’s absolutely not nothing,” she replied.
“It’s the best,” Kenny added, and that made Beau nod. He would do anything for his brother.
“Yeah, it is.” I thought maybe it was one of the most incredible things I’d ever heard.
“We should go.” Beau nodded toward the door, obviously not liking the attention on him. He’d always been like that, and I thought that had always been part of the discord between us. Beau shied away from praise, whereas I’d always sought it out, even if it was in a playful way.
Kenny and I stood. Beth hugged him, telling him goodbye and apologizing for not being able to make it. I couldn’t help it—my eyes were drawn to Beau. To the way he watched them, the slight pink to his cheeks, the stubble across his jaw, the sculpted shape of the muscles in his arms.
His eyes caught mine, and I realized I was staring. Holy fuck, I was staring, and I shouldn’t have been, so I did the first thing that came to mind. I stuck my tongue out at him.
To my surprise, he did the same. There was a lightness in my chest with it, and when Kenny asked, “Why are you guys sticking your tongues out at each other?” Beau and I both barked out a loud laugh.
“Ash did it first,” Beau replied.
So that’s how it was going to be. Throwing me under the bus, huh? Forget that I actually had done it first, because apparently I was now five. “Yeah, but we all know I’m a big kid. You’re supposed to be more mature than I am.”
“Am not.” From the glimmer in his eyes, I could tell he was playing along on purpose, and I had to admit I liked it. I enjoyed this light, silly Beau. I had no doubt it was more for his brother’s benefit than mine, though.
“Are too.”
“Am not.”
“Children,” Beth said, and we both looked up at her and answered simultaneously.
“Yes?”
Then we were all laughing, and I found myself wondering when I’d last had that much fun. We weren’t even doing anything other than standing there, but I enjoyed it.
“Let’s go, Kenny.” Beau wrapped an arm around Kenny’s shoulders, and the three of us walked out. When I glanced back, I saw Beth watching us with a small grin on her lips.
I followed Kenny and Beau to Beau’s truck. For most of the twenty-minute drive, the two of them spoke about plays and the team they were going up against. I listened, took it all in, did my damnedest to bite my tongue and not give suggestions. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. This was football, and it was football with Beau, and I hadn’t realized how much that meant to me until I didn’t have it anymore. But this was Beau’s team and it wasn’t my place, so I fidgeted in my seat and pretended I wasn’t bursting at the seams. Beau knew what he was doing anyway. He didn’t need my help.
“What do you think, Ash?” Beau asked, and it took me a minute to notice he wanted my opinion about something, though I couldn’t say exactly what. I’d been too busy thinking about this thing he was doing and what it had been like to play with him.
When I didn’t answer, he added, “It’s flag football. Remember blue bird?”
Memories swam through my brain. I damn near felt the air change, taking me back to when we played in high school, to a time when things were simpler. When I could just be me…well, sort of. More so than I’d been me most of my life, at least.