“What flight?” I asked again, feeling a little light-headed.
Tiller’s nostrils flared. “Nothing. No flight.”
Jill frowned and glanced over at Moose. “But Coach Vining called your father last night. He said they needed you back for next Sunday’s game.”
I felt the blood rush from my face, not because my father was an asshole who seemed content to put Tiller’s health at risk, but because Tiller clearly knew and chose not to tell me. “Excuse me.”
I turned to make my way back to my bedroom as calmly as I possibly could. Tiller’s voice sounded oddly loud in my ears. “Mikey, wait.”
I waved a dismissive hand over my head without saying a word and kept walking. It was fine. He didn’t owe me anything. It wasn’t like we were… anything to each other. Well, except I did still work for him, and technically, I was the one who was supposed to make the travel arrangements. Even though I knew I was overreacting, the fact he’d hidden this from me stung like a bitch.
I spun on my heel and jabbed a finger in his chest when he came closer. “Fuck. You.”
“Baby, wait.”
“Do not ‘baby’ me. Don’t. What? Did you think I couldn’t handle a change of plans? That I was going to curl up into some kind of fragile ball of crybaby if you—” I suddenly realized his entire family was standing at the entrance to the back hallway gaping at us. “Never mind,” I choked out before turning into my bedroom and throwing the door closed.
Everything in my body wanted to curl up into a fragile ball of crybaby.
Tiller caught the door before it slammed and followed me in, closing it carefully once we were both inside.
“Michael.” His voice was soft, but it held five years of emotions. I met his eyes, and my heart thudded to a stop. I didn’t want him to call me that. I never wanted him to call me that. “Please stop.”
I crossed my arms in front of mud thundering heart. “It’s fine.”
He stepped closer and reached for my upper arms. “It’s definitely not fine. I didn’t tell you he wanted me back because I was in denial about it, okay?”
I saw the mixed-up feelings behind his eyes, and suddenly I wanted to let him off the hook. I didn’t want him to be emotional over me when he had a job to do.
“Tiller, it’s okay,” I said more sincerely. “It just surprised me, that’s all. I should have known he’d call you back. There was no way you could actually spend a month away during the damned season. I was a fool to think you could.”
His arms slid under mine and wrapped around my back, pulling me in for a tight hug that lifted me to my toes. “I’m sorry,” he said into my neck. The rumble of his familiar voice against my chest loosened some of the tension between us. I didn’t want to fight. I wasn’t mad at him. I was mad at the circumstances. And furious with my father for treating people like his own personal chess pieces.
“Me too.”
His lips moved along my neck up to my ear and down along my jaw to my lips, leaving tiny kisses in their wake. “One more night, though. Think we can make it count?”
I would not cry. I would not feel sorry for my pathetic, lovesick ass who’d dreamed of more than only one more night with this kind and sexy man.
“Damned right,” I said despite the tightness in my chest and the churn in my gut. I wasn’t giving up my chance at having sex with Tiller Raine, and now our only remaining chance was tonight.
With his family here.
“Are they staying?” I asked.
Tiller sighed and shrugged. “Who the hell knows? Let’s find out what they have in mind.”
He kissed me firmly on the lips before turning around, but I grabbed his hand. “Wait,” I hissed. “What… what are we going to tell them? About us?”
His grin was easy, and it made my stomach tumble the way it did to the millions of people who saw the same smile on billboards and in magazine ads.
“No need to tell them anything. They already know you’re my… Mikey.”
What did that even mean? “Huh?”
Tiller’s eyes sparkled like he was sitting on a delicious secret. “Babe. They’ve teased me for having a crush on you for at least two years. Ever since I brought you home for my cousin’s wedding.”
That didn’t make any sense. “But that wasn’t a date… Was it?” Holy fuck. Had I been missing out on dating this man for two whole years?
“No, but apparently, I shot you puppy eyes all night and snapped when anyone got too close to you.”
My heart stretched its wings and did a little joyous loop-de-loop. If only it was sustainable. But the fact he hadn’t acted on it in two years was proof it wasn’t. There were reasons we couldn’t do this long-term.
I blinked up at him, deciding to take it one day at a time and push off the fear and stress for a future version of Mikey who would—please god—be better equipped to handle it.
“Thank you for coming after me,” I said, leaning up to kiss him again. “Let’s go have a very Rainey Christmas.”
When we returned to the kitchen, Luke and Jill were in the kitchen sorting out the food while Stephanie sat on the floor in the sitting area setting up a Connect Four game for the kids. Moose had the remote control and was flipping between sports channels.
As soon as Jill saw me, she bounced on her feet and clapped her hands. Her eyes jetted back and forth between Tiller’s and mine. “Oh, please, please,” she said under her breath. “Please make an announcement.”
Tiller’s large hand slid against mine, our fingers twisting together naturally. “No announcement, Mom. We’re just… enjoying spending time together.”
She clasped her hands together over her heart and gave us a look of true affection. It was the kind of maternal moment I rarely had with my own mother, not because she didn’t love me but because she simply didn’t stop and pay attention to those kinds of things. She was flighty at the best of times. But it felt nice to be loved by Jill, and even Moose tended to stop and ask about me whenever we were together. He’d never once treated me like Tiller’s employee. He’d always welcomed me to their family as a real friend.
Moose called over from the sofa. “Stop giving the boys a hard time. Mikey, please tell me that’s your gingerbread I smell. Ever since you sent some in the mail last year, I haven’t been able to get them out of my mind.”
I couldn’t hold back the grin. “I’ll make sure you get the first ones. Maybe the kids want to help me decorate them later.”
The kids shouted their agreement without leaving the game. Moose turned to Tiller. “So Coach told me the team docs want to reassess you. Get you back out there sooner. Isn’t that great?”
“They want you to play?” I blurted. I’d assumed they just wanted him back on the bench or in the booth consulting. It had never occurred to me they wanted to put him back out there before he was ready.
Tiller held up a hand. “Coach was just upset after the loss. I don’t think he really means to play me. The local PT told me I still had at least three weeks before even considering getting back on the field.”
Moose balked. “Bah, that man doesn’t know pro football. He’s just some local yokel. You gotta trust the league docs to know what’s right. And they say it’s time to get back to work, so that’s what you’re gonna do.”