She cupped my face in her hands. “I know you will. We’ve been through too much. I trust you, Sutton. With my heart, with my life, and with my family.” The determined look on her face made my stomach flip flop. I put her phone on the nightstand.

“But I was going to order food.” She laughed when I nuzzled her neck. “We’re going to wither away before this relationship takes off. What are you doing?”

I nestled my body between her legs, eliciting a soft moan from her slightly swollen lips. “I’m making up for lost time, remember? We have a lot of catching up to do.”

Epilogue—Lose the Game, Win the Girl

I’m throwing the ball to you so I need you to catch it and lateral pass it to our amazing running back, Vee,” I said to Hayley who nodded solemnly at the players in our huddle.

“I’ve got this. You can count on me. Vee’s going to run it in for a touchdown and we’re going to win this game. You ready, honey?” Hayley asked.

Vee growled like a cat, fittingly so. The Pumas were me, Parker, Hayley, Matt, Mason, and Vee. We were up against the self-proclaimed undefeated Cheetahs. Grayson was the quarterback with Max, Dad, Rose, and Kaleb rounding out the rest of the roster. Cameron was cheering on both teams and digging in the sand, or maybe he was eating it, I couldn’t tell. The game was tied and this was the last play before Mike and Judy called us up for dinner.

“Don’t run until I get the ball in my hands.” Mason was my center. I looked at him. “Hand me the ball when I yell Independence.” We lined up against the Cheetahs. I stood behind Mason. “Red fourteen. Red fourteen. Independence!” Mason turned and handed me the ball. I scrambled out of the way of my dad who quickly broke through the line and was hot on my trail. I tossed the ball to Hayley who caught it and gently flicked it to Vee.

“Run, baby, run!” Hayley yelled.

She almost made it. Grayson picked her up right before she crossed the end zone and ran her back the other way over his shoulder for a touchdown in their favor.

“If only she’d dropped the ball,” Parker said. She stood between me and Hayley with her hands on her hips shaking her head. “Daddy’s little girl right there.”

“Cheaters! Not the Cheetahs!” Hayley yelled.

We watched as they celebrated twenty feet away. “Boo! Hiss! Boo!” I grabbed Cameron and put him on my shoulders. I high-fived Mason on a job well done.

“Dinner’s ready. Come on up!” Judy waved us over before we had a chance at redemption.

“At least we’ll get to the table first,” I said.

“Let’s drop their food in the sand,” Hayley said.

“Harsh, my friend. Harsh.”