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on my shoulder, one of her legs wrapped around mine,
and her nipples pressed against my bare chest. She raised her head
and rubbed her eyes, looking adorably sleepy. There are moments in
life I wish I could put in a time capsule and keep forever. This is
one of them. Last night was another. Waking up with Aubrey for the
second day in a row felt as natural to me as throwing a football,
which was scary weird.
    We showered together, and I took her up
against the shower wall with water streaming down our bodies.
Afterward, we ate brunch.
    “I have to go to work,” she said as we
finished. Sadness dimmed the light in her green eyes. The grizzly
on her necklace nestled between her breasts, filling me with pride
that she hadn’t taken it off. “I’m supposed to be there for the
noon lunch crowd.”
    “I guess I’d better be going then.”
    I said it, only I didn’t want to go. In
fact, walking out of her apartment would leave an empty hole in me
that I wouldn’t know how to fill. As a goal-oriented athlete, I
always went after what I wanted, and I wanted Aubrey. The
realization hit me like blind-side tackle. Life without her would
stretch into lonely infinity.
    “I enjoyed it.” She thought this was
goodbye. I saw it her eyes.
    “I have practice this afternoon, but we
should be done by seven or so.” I held my breath, fearing she might
shut me down like an old cell phone, even though that made no sense
whatsoever. Something just seemed…off, like she was donning armor
and pulling away.
    Aubrey shook her head. Her ponytail bounced
from one shoulder to the other. “Brax, really, you don’t have to do
this. Let’s just say it was fun and go our separate ways.”
    Panic twisted my gut, so I battered it into
submission. “Is that really what you want?”
    She didn’t answer.
    I held her waist with one hand and lifted
her chin with the other. “Look me straight in the eyes and tell me
you don’t want to see me again, because that’s sure as hell not how
I feel.”
    “But I don’t see how—”
    I put a finger to her lips and shushed her.
She was pulling away from me, wrapping herself in that protective
armor she wore for the cruel, outside world. Only, I didn’t want to
be on the outside, I wanted to be warm and cozy, cuddled up next to
her.
    “I don’t see how we can not be
together,” I said. “Didn’t the past few days mean anything to you?”
I fingered my necklace that she wore.
    She nodded, and her emerald green eyes
filled with tears.
    I didn’t want to be the guy that made her
cry. I never wanted to be that guy. Ever. I tried to lighten the
tone and reminded her, “We’re fucking awesome in bed.”
    “And you think sex fixes everything?”
    “Pretty much. Always works for me,” I
quipped. When a lone tear ran down her face, my smile slipped and I
replaced it with a seriousness I rarely show the world. “I want to be with you, Aubrey. You and no one else. I want to give
this thing between us a shot. You’re a gutsy girl. Show some guts.
Take a chance and make this work.”
    She chewed on her lower lip, her face a
kaleidoscope of conflicting emotions. “Brax, I don’t belong in your
world.”
    “You do belong in my world, and any world
you want to be in. Don’t sell yourself short like that. Don’t ever
think you’re not good enough.”
    She nodded, but I could tell she was still
not believing me, as if I were spouting bullshit. Well, I wasn’t,
not one fucking bit.
    “You don’t know me—and trust me, I’m not
good enough for you.”
    “Why would you say something like that?” I
frowned and scratched my head, totally baffled.
    Aubrey chewed on her lower lip, as if waging
a silent war with herself. “I have a past you don’t want to get
mixed up in. Especially not if you’re going to try for the NFL.”
She looked up, her green eyes full of sadness, clearly resigned to
her fate.
    Well, to hell with that. This guy didn’t
give up easily.
    “What kind of past?” Fearing she’d