Quarterback Draw

“I did.” He turned toward Katrina and held out his hand. “I’m Easton Cassidy. You must be Katrina.”

“I am.” She glanced at her siblings. Leo looked awestruck, like he was meeting the president. How sweet.

“This is my brother, Leo, and my sister, Anya.”

“Hi, kids.” Easton shook both their hands.

“I’ve seen your film,” Leo said. “You were an awesome quarterback.”

Easton grinned. “Thanks. Those days are over now, though. But I still keep my fingers on the pulse of the game, with my boys and with some of the teams I help out with.”

“Mr. Cassidy helps coach one of the local high school teams nearby,” Leo explained to her. “He’s also part owner of the team in Houston.”

Katrina was impressed. “I did not know that.”

“No reason for you to,” Easton said. “I take it you don’t follow football all that much.”

“I know some. Leo is the expert on sports. Anya loves sports as well.”

“We’ve got a lot of experts around here. Some think they know more than others. All these youngsters coming up these days, trying to best the old man.” He shot a look across the kitchen island at his daughter.

Mia shrugged. “I like statistics, Dad. I’m certainly not going to claim I know what it’s like to play the game. I’ll leave that to you and my idiot brothers.”

“Aww, saying nice things about me, like always,” Grant said as he came up behind Mia and put his arms around her.

“You’re a jerk,” Mia said, but smiled and bumped her head against Grant’s chest.

Grant kissed the top of her head.

Katrina could see the resemblance between the two, especially in the shape of the mouth. But Mia was more petite, like her mother, with lighter brown hair and smaller features like Lydia. She also had her mother’s blue eyes, whereas Grant looked a lot like his dad.

“What can I get you all to drink?” Lydia asked. “I’m sure you’re thirsty from the drive. We have iced tea, beer, cold water, lemonade …”

“I would love some iced tea,” Katrina said.

“Beer sounds good to me.”

“Not yet. I want you to come look at the tractor with me,” Easton said to Grant. “I think we might need to replace the carburetor.”

Grant’s lips curved. “In other words, Flynn isn’t here yet, otherwise he’d have had it torn down and rebuilt by now.”

Grant’s dad let out a short laugh. “You got that right.”

“Flynn had an afternoon game. He’ll fly in later. Tucker will be in soon, and Barrett tomorrow morning.” Lydia turned to her. “It’s Easton’s birthday tomorrow, and our thirtieth wedding anniversary, so the boys all decided to visit and help celebrate.”

Katrina smiled. “Congratulations. What a milestone.”

“It is a pretty big one. Easton and I are heading to the Caribbean for a vacation in a few weeks, but it’s wonderful to have the whole family here for the occasion.”

“I hope we’re not intruding.”

Lydia laid her hand on top of Katrina’s. “You are no intrusion. We’re so delighted to have the three of you here.”

“Okay, Dad,” Grant said. “Let’s go take a look at the tractor. Leo, want to come out with us?”

“Sure.”

Katrina saw the excitement on Leo’s face. Being alone with Grant and Easton must be so thrilling for him. He nearly tripped over his own feet catching up with them as they headed out the back door.

“Now it’s just us ladies,” Lydia said. “Tell me, Anya. What grade are you in?”

“I’ll be a senior.”

“Wonderful. Have you visited colleges?”

She nodded. “A few, though I haven’t made my mind up yet where I want to go.”

“You should go to the University of Texas,” Mia said, grabbing an apple from the island. “There are a lot of great programs there. Though I should ask what you’re considering majoring in.”

Anya took a seat next to Mia. “Actually, and I haven’t discussed this with Kat yet, I really enjoy cooking.”

Katrina’s brows rose. “You want to go to cooking school?”

“I was thinking about it. I was also thinking about getting a bachelor’s degree in hospitality first, then going to cooking school, so I’d have the management and business knowledge to go along with the culinary skills.”