Page 64 of Undeniable Love

Then she yawned.

Loudly.

“Get some sleep, beautiful. I’ll call you tomorrow night at a more reasonable hour.”

“I’m sorry. I should be able to stay up and talk, but…” Another yawn. “I guess I’m still tired from last night.”

The laugh he gave her was low and sexy again. “Then get all the rest you can because when you’re with me in my house and my bed? There won’t be much sleep either.”

Lucy hummed sleepily. “Mmm…I can’t wait.”

“Goodnight, Lucy,” he said softly.

“Night, Jax.”

Two weeks later, Jax was back on the field. The stadium was packed and the stands were buzzing with excitement as the game entered the final minutes. This was it—go time. As much as he felt completely on his game, the truth was that he’d been making stupid mistakes the entire game and was basically playing like crap. Now, the score was tied with just two minutes left in the fourth quarter. Everyone had been patient with him during his first practices back, but he had a feeling that was about to end.

Standing in the huddle surrounded by his teammates, Jax knew he needed to be fierce with them and himself.

“Alright guys,” he stated firmly. “This is it. We've got one last chance to win this game.”

“No shit,” someone muttered, but he refused to argue about it.

“We’ve been in this exact situation before with these guys and They’ve always gotten the better of us. I don’t want that to happen again.” He rambled off the play and what everyone needed to do. “Are we ready?” he asked with a surge of energy. “Let's bring home the victory!”

“Yeah!” they all shouted as they broke from the huddle and lined up at the line of scrimmage. Jax took his position, his heart pounding with anticipation. His shoulder throbbed mildly, but that was to be expected. He scanned the defense, trying to read their movements and find a weakness to exploit.

Come on, come on, there's gotta be an opening somewhere…

The ball was snapped, and Jax dropped back into the pocket. Surveying the field, searching for an open receiver amidst the chaos of the opposing defenders charging towards him.

“Go deep! I'll hit you!” he called out to Declan.

It all happened so fast and yet in slow motion. Jax saw an opportunity and wound up for the throw, his arm cocked back as he prepared to release the ball.

But just as he was about to let it fly, disaster struck. One of Seattle’s massive defensive linemen broke through the offensive line and barreled towards Jax with unstoppable force. With no time to react, he hit from behind, and the ball knocked loose from his grasp.

“No!” he screamed to no one in particular.

His heart hammered hard as the football tumbled to the ground, bouncing awkwardly amidst the chaos of bodies crashing around it. Players from both teams dove for it, scrambling to gain possession as the crowd erupted into a frenzy of cheers and gasps.

In the midst of it all, one of Seattle’s players emerged triumphant, clutching the ball tightly to his chest. With no one left to stop him, he sprinted towards the end zone to the roar of the crowd scoring the game-winning touchdown.

“Touchdown!” the announcer called out. “Seattle takes the lead with just seconds left on the clock!”

Jax watched helplessly from the ground as his mistake cost his team the game. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that disappointment was written all over his face as the cameras zoomed in on him as he slowly picked himself up. He kept the rage he felt toward himself inside because the last thing he needed was a headline talking about him having a hissy fit on the field. He’d save it for the locker room or even until he got home if he had to.

Those last few seconds were spent running out the clock and Jax simply did what he had to do until he could walk off the field and take the punishment for losing the game for his team.

When he finally walked down the tunnel toward the locker room, Travis came up beside him. “It was a shitty thing,” he murmured. “And it wasn’t your fault. We all let you down by not keeping that guy away from you.”

“Yeah, but…”

“But nothing. The weight of the world isn’t solely on your shoulders, Jax. Remember that.”

Together, they joined their teammates in the locker room and listened to the coaching staff as they praised and berated them. He almost said a loud prayer of thanks when they could finally grab their things and go.

“You want to grab something to eat?” Declan asked as they walked out to their cars.