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“Get out … please.”
Her brow scrunches in confusion, but she kills the engine and gets out. She stands near the open car door.
I lean in and pull her into a hug. At first, she’s stiff. I caught her off guard, I know. But regardless of how I feel about her, she needs this right now.
“Marcus,” she says in a tone that says she intends to fight me. But her body sinks into my embrace and she raises her arms from her sides and wraps them around my middle.
“You’re filling the gap,” I assure her. “You’re showing up when they need you most. You can’t shoulder it all, but you’re doing more than you know.”
“I wish I could do more—more quickly, too.”
I smile into her hair.
“Okay,” she says, lifting her head off my chest and looking up at me.
Our eyes catch and hold. That familiar chemistry crackles between us.
I make the mistake of glancing at her lips.
Her eyes dart to mine.
Then she steps back. “Well … okay.”
“Yeah,” I say, “Okay.”
“Thanks,” she says. “For coming. The boys were thrilled to meet you.”
“Yeah. No problem. Marcus Delaney, star quarterback—chill star quarterback—at your service.”
She runs a hand through her hair and looks up at me.
“You were really great back there,” I say.
“Thanks,” she shrugs off my compliment.
“No, really. You’re made for this kind of thing. Not everyone has the balance of organizational skills and compassion that you have. Waterford’s blessed to have someone like you.”
“What’s your angle, QB?” she teases.
“No angle,” I say, pulling my keys out of my pocket and putting my hand on her car door to wedge it open so she can slip back into the driver’s seat.
“Just … noticing you,” I admit.
She stares up at me and then she says, “Goodnight, Marcus.”
I shut her door and step away from the car. I don’t head upstairs until I see her taillights pull out of the parking lot.
Chapter 30
Cass
One good kiss can last a lifetime in your memory.
~ Uday Mukerji, Dead Man Dreaming
I’m moping around the house.
Winona’s at Declan’s.
