Defending Hayden (Second Chances #7)(8)

He stared at me as if I’d lost my mind. “We’re going to have to remedy that. When pre-season starts, you’re coming to my house to watch a game. I’ll get you broken in.” Our food came, and I stole one of his fries when he was busy gawking at the players. “I saw that,” he said.

“I just took one.” It was the same thing every time. I never ordered fries because I knew I’d be tempted to eat every last one on my plate. That was why I always stole one or two from him.

“So what did this guy look like? Did he look like a football player?”

Pursing my lips, I closed my eyes and pictured those light blue eyes staring down at me and the way his arm muscles had tightened when he bent down to pick up my phone. “Now that you mention it, he probably could be. He was tall, with reddish-brown hair.”

Mouth gaping, Michael dropped his fork. “Are you kidding? That sounds like Derek McLaughlin. He’s the only one on the team with reddish hair.”

I burst out laughing. “I knew you liked football, but I didn’t realize you were that into it to know what they all look like. But I don’t know if it’s him or not.” Michael pulled out his phone and typed away. “What are you doing?” I asked.

“I’m going to find a picture of him. I have to know.” When he turned the screen my way, I gasped. The guy was in his football uniform, all dirty and sweaty during a game, but it was definitely him.

“That’s him,” I said. He grabbed Derek’s phone and started searching through it. I tried to get it back, but he pulled it away. “What are you doing?”

“If this is his phone, I want to see what he has on it.”

“Michael, stop, it’s private. We can’t look through his stuff.”

He shrugged. “Hey, if he was willing to let you use it, he should’ve known what would happen.” Huffing, I sat back while he looked at the phone in awe. “There are some great pictures on here. Looks like he must’ve been out West when he took that time off after the accident.”

When he passed me the phone, I couldn’t help but look at the pictures. They were beautiful, with tons of snowcapped mountains. I was shocked that there weren’t any with other people. “What accident are you talking about?”

He shook his head incredulously. “Do you not ever watch the news?”

“Obviously not. What happened?”

“First off, Derek McLaughlin is our best linebacker, with record-breaking interceptions. He was in an accident with Evan Townsend and one of the team cheerleaders, Brianna Ward; she and Derek were dating at the time. They were on Stowe Road when someone ran them off the road. Brianna didn’t survive, and Derek almost didn’t, either.”

“Oh my God, he lost her? That’s so tragic. Did they catch the person who ran them off the road?”

He nodded. “Eventually they did, but Derek was f*cked up after that. He left the team and disappeared. I guess he’s back now. It’d be great if he is, because the team needs him. They play so much better with him there.”

My chest ached as I looked down at Derek’s phone, at the lonely pictures. “That’s so sad. I can’t imagine going through something like that. He was very friendly, though.”

A wide grin spread across Michael’s face. “I’d hope so. You’re a good-looking woman, Hayden. He’d be stupid not to notice.”

I glared at him. “Don’t even think about it, Michael. I hate it when you try to play matchmaker. Besides, he’s a professional football player. Those guys go after the glamorous girls.”

“Not true, sweetheart. You’re just scared of getting your heart broken. Just because you had a bad relationship in college doesn’t mean every guy is going to hurt you.”

“Doesn’t matter,” I said, taking a bite of my salmon. “I’m not interested in anyone right now, and I like it that way.” I didn’t have time for a relationship, and I definitely wasn’t going to start with someone out of my reach.





Chapter 4





Hayden


“Good morning,” Andrea greeted me as I walked into our local downtown café.

Belmont was a small city just outside of Charlotte, so the café wasn’t packed, like larger places would be. I liked that. Our downtown was quaint, with lots of different shops. We had an upscale steak house, a high-end salon, the best cupcake bakery in the state, a couple different pubs, and several boutiques. Right in the middle of it all was Stonebrooke Veterinary Hospital. I never had to go outside of my bubble because I had everything I needed around me.

I waved at Andrea and walked up to the counter to wait in line. Andrea May was the owner’s daughter and the manager of Caramel Café.

Once the elderly gentleman in front of me got his coffee and muffin, it was my turn. Andrea smiled and grabbed a large cup. “The usual?”

“You know it.” I laughed. “And I think I’ll take two blueberry scones instead of one. I’m tired of Michael trying to eat mine.” Every morning before going into work, I’d pick up a spiced pumpkin latte. It used to be a drink they’d make only in the fall, but for the past year they’d kept the ingredients on hand, and I was indebted to them.

She shook her head. “He’s such a nut. I haven’t seen him in a while. Where’s he been?”