“I’m not sure what position I’m going to be any good at,” she said as she and Flynn sat outside at one of the picnic tables and ate.
He leaned over and whispered to her, “You’re excellent at every position you’ve played with me.”
She laughed, then nudged her shoulder against his. “I meant football.”
“Oh, did you? My bad.”
After lunch they realigned the teams with women included. Lydia begged off claiming a bad knee, but otherwise, all the other women were on board.
Amelia found herself playing wide receiver, hoping she could actually catch the ball if it was thrown at her. She was also on the same team as Tucker and Easton, which meant she was playing against Flynn. She was determined to ignore his presence, because the last thing she wanted was Flynn tackling her.
Unless it was in the bedroom.
She lined up in her position. She was told this was a running play, so she wouldn’t get the ball. All she had to do was block Mia, who was playing for the other team.
Mia was smaller than her. She was certain she could do that.
At the snap, she ran and pushed into Mia, who might be shorter than her, but she was tough. They went toe-to-toe, shoving against each other in one hell of a battle. When the play ended, both of them were winded.
“Okay, you’re strong,” Amelia said.
Mia grinned. “I have to be with these guys around. Plus, lifting weights and yoga pay off.”
“I’m making a mental note of that.”
She held her own for the next several plays, until Easton told her in the huddle that she was getting the ball, so she should go long and wait for it.
She really hoped she didn’t embarrass the Cassidy family by totally missing it. Or even worse, tripping and falling.
She pushed off at the snap and brushed past one of the neighborhood women whose name she didn’t recall. At least she had that part down. She ran as fast as she could, turned and, holy crap, there was the ball. It landed in her hands and she outran the guy chasing her and ended up at the end zone.
Suddenly there were cheers, and she caught sight of Easton and Tucker, both of them with their arms up in the air.
She’s scored a touchdown. Holy shit.
Even Flynn came over and hoisted her in his arms.
“You did it, babe,” he said. “You scored.”
She felt exhilarated. No wonder athletes loved playing. This felt really damn good.
She grinned, then pulled herself out of the game so someone else could play. She took a seat next to Lydia, who handed her a glass of lemonade. She savored several long swallows.
“You played well.”
Amelia laughed. “I am not an athlete. But it was fun. And I scored. That’s one for the memory books.”
“As long as you had a good time.”
“I did. I also have a new appreciation for what your husband did and what your sons do. That is some hard work. I’m sure every part of me is going to be sore tomorrow.”
“They do work hard. Easton used to have a standing appointment with my massage therapist every Monday. He used to scoff at me for getting massages, until I convinced him to go. He still goes to the one I use in Austin a couple of times a month. Ranching isn’t any easier than football.”
“No, I imagine it isn’t.”
“You should consider it. You probably spend a lot of time on your feet.”
“I do. And I should. Right now a massage sounds like a small slice of heaven.”
After the game ended, the party broke up and everyone started leaving. Grant and his crew had to head out, because he needed to be at his team facility early the next morning.
“I’m going to come visit you someday and we’re going to have a cooking frenzy,” Anya said before she and Amelia hugged each other.
“I really hope you do.”
She said her good-byes to Grant and Katrina and Leo as well.
Flynn had an away game this weekend, so he had to report early to his team tomorrow as well, and Amelia had to work, so they packed up and said their good-byes.
She hugged Mia. “Stay in touch.”
“I will. Hopefully I’ll be out in the Bay Area again soon and I’ll see you.”
“I hope so.”
She loved this family. She had fallen hard for all of Flynn’s siblings and their girlfriends and fiancées. Saying good-bye was rough, but she had been so happy to meet all of them.
She said good-bye to Easton, then hugged Lydia. “It was such a pleasure to meet you and spend time with you.”
“Same here,” Lydia said “I hope we get to see you again.”
“I’d like that very much.”
“That would be amazing. Do come visit.”
She was actually sad to leave the ranch. After having had so much trepidation about coming here, these people felt like family to her now.
She really hoped she’d get a chance to come back here someday.
Like maybe at Christmas. She was crossing her fingers that things with Flynn and her were progressing well, and that maybe, just maybe, this was the relationship that would heal the wounds of the past and propel her toward a happy future.
She had fallen crazy in love with Flynn, and now she was crazy in love with his family.
She hoped like hell she wasn’t setting herself up for an awful heartbreak.
TWENTY-NINE
It had been an insane couple of weeks. Flynn had had an out-of-town game, and the time he’d had in town had been busy.
Amelia and he had finally had a chance to go see Ken and Adam’s baby. They’d gone over one night and had brought dinner that Amelia had cooked. Adam had offered to cook, but Amelia had insisted that it was her gift to them.