Page 41 of Penalty Kick

“Gunnar and Felicity do not understand you?”

“Oh, no, they do. Gunnar and Felicity are incredibly supportive. I couldn’t ask for a better family with them. Or anyone I’ve met here—Liam, Cowboy, our whole little family unit. I know it sounds crazy because it’s been months not years, but they are my chosen family and that means more than I can say.” Talia let out a sigh, a pang hitting her as she thought about what she left in Arizona. “But Robert sees things differently. He didn’t really support the whole Special Ed thing, even with a son who needs it. That was part of why I didn’t go back to school after my mom passed, because he told me that if I wasn’t going to major in something that could get me a job, then he wasn’t going to pay. So I was working to save up to pay for school.”

“You could not get a job as a teacher?”

“I could, but in his mind that’s not a ‘real job.’ He wanted me to be an accountant or a lawyer or something like that.” Talia paused, guilt twisting at her stomach. “I feel like every time I mention Robert, I’m bashing him. Please don’t think that. He really was a good dad growing up. Things have just been a little weird since Mom passed and the whole Gunnar bomb was dropped. My moving across the country to be with Gunnar didn’t help anything either.”

“I understand.”

“You do?”

A warmth spread through her, replacing the ache that had been there a moment ago. She liked knowing that Dash understood. Liked it even more that it didn’t make him like her any less.

“Trust me, if there is anyone who understands dad issues, it is me.”

“When was the last time you spoke with him?”

“The day he walked out, calling Mamá a whore, followed by a string of other curses that no twelve-year-old should have to hear. None of us have heard from him since.”

“Even once you were a star?”

“You think I am a star, huh?” Dash waggled his eyebrows and Talia couldn’t help but giggle from his teasing. She felt so relaxed with him in this moment, a large part of her wanting to crawl across the couch and snuggle up next to him. “I did wonder if I would. I thought he would show up, demanding money or something after San Plata announced that I was signing a major contract with them. But no. He has never shown back up.”

Sadness clouded Dash’s eyes. It was still strange to her to see this confident man do anything other than smile.

“Want to know one of my biggest fears?” he asked, twisting on the couch so he was facing her. His intense gaze made Talia’s heart skip a beat, her pulse thrumming through her.

“It’s a little late if you’re gonna tell me it’s heights. I already dragged you on the Ferris wheel.”

Dash laughed, her comment lightening the mood.

“No, I have no problem with heights,” he answered, reaching over and taking her hand, interlocking his fingers with hers. The warmth of his skin was welcoming, sending a wave of heat through her. This probably wasn’t the moment for her body to decide to kick it into high gear, but it was too late now. Sharing this space, fingers woven together, letting each other in on their secrets, was creating a connection that she had never known. And wanted a lot more of. “I worry that I’m going to be just like him. And that maybe I already am.”

Silence surrounded them, Talia not sure what to say. It was a heavy revelation, and not one she wanted him to think she look lightly. She knew all too well how a parent’s choices affected one’s life—after all, wasn’t that what she and Gunnar had just talked about?

“Because of Vegas?” she asked after a moment.

“Sí.”

“Can I ask your side of the story? I know the basics from Gunnar and Cowboy, or least their side of it, and I know what the team’s official statement was. But you have never said anything about it.”

“What does one say about a night they do not remember?”

“You don’t remember it?”

“I do not. That has been the worst part about this. The last thing I remember is a blonde woman coming up to me right after you three left the casino. We gambled for a bit and then my mind fades to black. I do not remember anything between that and the next morning when I woke up, with a very painful head, in the jail. I was lucky I remembered Padre’s phone number.”

“So the video…”

“Oh, that is me. If the lion wasn’t enough to give it away, the birthmark on my backside is not something I can argue against.” Talia bit back a smile, thinking about that birthmark. She’d watched the video enough times that she could see it clearly in her mind, smack dab in the middle of his perfectly curved butt cheek. “I hope you know how embarrassed I am by that. That is not who I am. I know I have this reputation for being the party guy, and I do enjoy going out and having a good time. But…I would never do anything to hurt this team. Or the guys. I hope you know that.”

Talia nodded. She did know that. She’d seen it these last few weeks while he worked with the Unified team. The Dash she had gotten to know was not someone who would hurt anyone. He cared about his friends and teammates, even if he sometimes had a strange way of showing it.

“I do know that,” she whispered.

“I just want to prove to you, and everyone else, I’m not that guy.”

Talia sat up, letting go of his hand so she could lean into him. “Then don’t be that guy. Simple as that. Don’t be the guy who gets naked and waltzes down a public street. Don’t be the guy who kisses his buddy’s girl—”