Page 96 of Penalty Kick

Talia could feel the tears forming in her eyes, and she cursed herself. She said she wasn’t going to cry. No matter what. Even if Dash had taken one look at her and told her to fuck off, she promised herself she wasn’t going to cry. Well, too late.

“So I’m forgiven?”

“There is nothing to forgive, Bonita. Although…” He paused, pulling away from her, looking her straight in the eyes. “It would be greatly appreciated if you could ask Gunnar to start speaking to me again. At least sometime this season would be nice.”

Talia barked out a laugh. “He’s not mad at you either. He’s not crazy that I chose a footballer to be my person, but he gets it. His not talking to you is on me. I wanted to talk to you first, and I couldn’t do that until I had taken care of something.”

“What?”

Confusion spread across his face, just as anticipation rose in her. This was the moment she’d been waiting for. The one that would solidify everything.

“Turn around,” she said, heart galloping with anticipation.

Dash gave her a questioning look, twisting to look behind him. He let out a laugh as soon as he saw it, letting go of her and turning to face the crowd completely. Standing there, lined up perfectly, all wearing their kits proudly, was their team. Their kids, as Dash had called them. Holding up letters to spell out exactly what she needed to tell him.

WE LOVE DASH!

Emily stood at the very end with an upside down heart, Jono had the E in love backwards—matching Sunny’s backwards S—but it was still perfect. Just like him.

Dash turned back to her, his eyes shiny, letting her know that he received the message loud and clear. He was loved, valued, cherished. He was a major piece to this crazy puzzle, and it would be incomplete without him. Now to just put that last piece in place.

“That’s not all.”

With a wink, Talia spun around, hands on her hips, proudly displaying the words on the back of her jersey. Gunnar had gotten her one made at the start of the season that had Gracin emblazoned on it, with the number five, which had been his number as a player. She’d proudly worn that all season long, until today. Today she was wearing a much more important name and number.

Dash’s touch was light, but Talia could feel his fingertip as he traced along the letters. L-A-Z-A-R-O, perfectly centered above the number 15. Slipping it on this morning, she’d felt more pride than she thought possible, ready and excited to walk through Pemberton Stadium showing it off. She was his, he was hers, and she was ready to make that known.

“That…is my jersey,” Dash growled. The rough, gravelly sound to his voice made Talia shiver and wish like hell they were someplace more private. For now, she would just need to make a mental note to make a show of taking it off for him.

“Like it?”

“Love it. Just like I love you.”

Spinning her back around to face him, Dash tugged her into him, their bodies colliding. He was still sweaty from his time in the game, but she didn’t care. All that mattered was being in his arms.

A long, drawn out trill of the whistle, promptly followed by the train horn, signaled the end of the game. Talia glanced up at the scoreboard to make sure nothing had changed while she and Dash had let the rest of the world fall away. It hadn’t. The Rising had won.

“I do believe you said that you wanted to kiss me after winning the game,” she teased. “Here’s your chance.”

“I said after winning the Cup,” he corrected. “And when we win, I will do just that. But for now…”

Tightening his arms around her, Dash dipped her backwards, capturing her mouth in a soul-stealing kiss. It was everything she’d hoped for in the moment and more, feeling all the love and excitement Dash was. He was her future, her forever.

And that started right now.

EPILOGUE

Three years later

Dash squinted at the sign hanging on the door of Gunnar and Felicity’s house as he approached the front door. The thin piece of wood was painted black, with white lettering printed across it, greeting everyone who dared come near the entryway. Stepping up to the door, he laughed, shaking his head. Only Felicity.

SHHHHHHHHHH!

Sleeping baby.

Do not knock or ring this bell.

If you do, you will earn a high five…to the face…with a chair.