Page 66 of Penalty Kick

Talia sucked in a breath, her body tensing. She was not ready to let Delaney in on that. She had no idea what Dash had told Chance, but regardless, this was not the moment to confirm or deny. “Look, the game is starting.”

“Nice segue.”

Yeah, right…

“Best friend since the first grade, huh? Then you can help explain to me what is going on in this game. Because no matter how Gunnar, or Liam, or even Avery for that matter, have tried, I don’t get it.”

“Well, when the ball goes into that big square thing at the end of the field, that’s a good thing.”

“I know that.”

“That’s about all I got.”

“Good to know I’m not the only one.”

“Wait…you coach the Unified team, don’t you? How is that all you know?”

“Coach is a loose term. I’m really just there for the kids. I have Dash and Liam for the actual football parts.”

They both laughed, happy to have found someone else who was connected to the team who knew nothing. Talia was sure this was the beginning of a good friendship.

The rest of the night was mostly a blur, between the drink orders, Devlin’s continued harassment of Link to show a little skin, and some surprisingly deep conversations with Delaney. Dash hadn’t been in the starting lineup, something that had made Talia initially nervous. He’d been so excited that he was going to get to dress again for this game. What she hadn’t realized was that “dress” didn’t automatically mean “play.” However, when he took the field in the sixty-fifth minute, her heart leapt. When he scored in the seventy-seventh, her whole body had reacted with so much excitement one would have thought she had scored the goal.

But a moment later, when the camera zoomed in for a close-up of him and his goal celebration, she forgot how to breathe. Standing there, looking straight into the camera, was Dash, one hand placed perpendicular on top of the other, making a T.

T for Talia.

She’d already been looking forward to his call later tonight after the game. But now, she was really looking forward to it. And she hoped he was too.

Because she had something special planned.

* * *

Glancing at his phone, Dash did the math in his head, calculating what time it was back in Atlanta. If he was doing the conversion correctly, he still had a half hour or so until Talia would be home from Bunz. Thanks to the three hour time difference, what was an afternoon game in Portland had been an evening game in Atlanta, allowing them both ample time to do whatever they needed to after the game before their phone date. That hadn’t stopped Talia from sending him a few texts to find on his phone when he got back to the locker room.

That only increased his anticipation to talk to her.

The raucous sound of combined laughter and groans rang out from the other side of the hotel meeting room where the team had dinner catered in. The self-proclaimed “old man” table—filled with the more veteran players—was reacting to a story Vance Henderson, a tall, lanky midfielder who had played in the league for years, was telling. Vance was a man of few words, so if he was sharing a tale, it had to be good.

“And that, gentlemen, is how my junk ended up on the jumbotron,” Vance announced.

Dash and Liam both laughed, shaking their heads. Dash heard the story the first time at training camp, when Vance’s mother—who according to Cowboy was a very sweet woman named Annie whom everyone adored—had shipped the team a box of homemade cookies decorated in the new Atlanta Rising colors, complete with a note about keeping his “man bits” out of the public eye. Of course, that note demanded he tell the story. Why he would be retelling it now was unclear, but it was one of those stories that never got old.

“You’re sure you don’t want to come out with us tonight?” Liam asked, pulling Dash’s attention away from the commotion. “Breakside Brewery is supposed to be excellent.”

Dash shook his head. Beer didn’t interest him in the slightest right now—even if this place “screamed” Portland, as one of their equipment guys told them. The Portland native had been more than happy to give them all the rundown of the hotspots and places they shouldn’t miss on their short trip. An afternoon game gave them a whole evening of free time, something that Dash normally lived for. Not tonight though.

“I am sure. A quiet night sounds good.”

A quiet night. Sure, that’s what it was going to be. It sounded good at least. By the look on Liam’s face though, he wasn’t buying it. It was no secret—at least between the two of them—that what Dash really wanted was to take advantage of Liam not being in the shared room. Liam had done it plenty, since Avery traveled with the team and also shared a room with another staffer on trips. Now it was Dash’s turn.

“A quiet night…” Liam repeated. “Whatever you say.”

Dash shrugged, not sure how else to respond. Yes, it was a departure from how he would normally act, but it wasn’t like he was breaking a rule. Other than the unspoken one about not dating the coach’s daughter. He couldn't help himself though. Talia was unlike any other woman he’d ever met, and he was so taken with her he almost didn’t know what to do with himself. He was dying inside, anticipation gnawing away at him, wanting nothing more than to hear her voice. It didn’t matter what they talked about—she could ramble on all about working with Axel’s little sister on the R and S sounds and he wouldn’t care. The passion in her voice when she talked, paired with the light in her eyes, melted him inside.

Walking into the hotel lobby, they met up with Avery, Chance, and Elliot, who were all waiting on their ride.

“You’re really not coming?” Chance asked.