“Ready for training camp to start, Nathan?” his dad asked.
“Like you wouldn’t believe. It’s all I’ve thought about for weeks.”
His dad nodded. “The offense will look to you for leadership, that you’re ready to grab the reins and run with them. You watched me run that offense all last year. You can handle this team.”
He couldn’t explain how much his father’s confidence in him meant. His dad had always been honest with him, sometimes brutally. If he wasn’t ready to take the team, his dad would have told him, even if it hurt.
“Thanks, Dad. I’m anxious to get rolling.”
Since thinking about leading the team made his gut tighten, he went to play with Sam for a while. With his little brother, everything was simple and easy. There was never any stress, just building spaceships and rolling around on the floor together. Eventually, they went outside and kicked a soccer ball around.
“I’m gonna play soccer,” Sam said.
“Oh, yeah? How about football?”
“That, too. Like Daddy. And you, Nathan. Mommy and Daddy said we’re gonna come watch you play this year.”
“Great. I’ll look for you in the stands. And maybe I’ll get to come watch you play, too.”
Sam’s big blue eyes widened. “You will? Cool.”
He could already picture Sam wearing football gear. He couldn’t wait for pics.
His mom opened the back door. “Sam, time to come inside and wash your hands.”
Sam wrinkled his nose. “Aw, come on. Just a little longer?”
Nathan recognized that look on his mother’s face.
“Now.”
Sam kicked his toe in the grass and looked down at the ground. “Okay.”
Nathan ruffled his brother’s dark hair. “We’ll play again later.”
That lit his face up. “Great.”
Sam dashed inside and Nathan followed.
“We thought we’d find somewhere to eat dinner,” his mom said.
“Sounds good.”
His phone buzzed, so he grabbed it to take a look. It was Mia.
Up for dinner tonight?
He smiled, then texted her back. I’m with my parents and Sam.
She replied with, Want to see them! Let’s all have dinner. Invite them to Ninety-Two.
He looked up. “It’s Mia. She says she wants to see everyone and invited us to her brother’s restaurant for dinner.”
“Oh, I’d love to see Mia and Flynn,” his mom said, then looked over at his dad. “Mick?”
His dad nodded. “Sounds good to me.”
“I’ll text her,” Nathan said.
They made arrangements to meet Mia at Ninety-Two. He wished he could be alone with her, but he knew how much Mia liked his parents and his brother, so it would be good for all of them to get together.
At least he’d get to see her, and he really needed that.
They needed to talk.
FOURTEEN
MIA WALKED INTO NINETY-TWO AND SAID HELLO TO Carol, the hostess. She spotted Grace, one of the waitresses she’d gotten to know fairly well since she’d officially moved to San Francisco. She waved.
“I have your reservation,” Carol said. “And Flynn wanted me to tell you he’d be here in a bit.”
“Okay, thanks, Carol.”
“Would you like me to seat you now, or do you want to wait for the rest of your party?”
She looked at her phone. She was about fifteen minutes early.
“I think I’ll go sit at the bar and wait.”
There was an available chair at the corner, so she sat there and ordered a glass of cabernet.
“I can’t believe you didn’t come back to say hello.”
She turned and slid out of her chair to hug Amelia, head chef and her brother Flynn’s girlfriend. She was wearing her white chef jacket, her blond hair pulled back in a ponytail.
“I didn’t want to bother you while you were cooking. And who told you I was here?”
Amelia stepped back and smiled at her. “Carol did. And other people bother me. You? Never. You’re always welcome in my kitchen.”
“Do you have a few minutes to sit and have a glass of wine with me?”
“Actually, not at the moment. We’re full up and slammed in the kitchen. But you’re having dinner here?”
“Yes. My friend Nathan is coming in with his parents.”
“Nathan Riley? With Mick and Tara, right?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll come out later and say hello to everyone. Plus Flynn will be here so he’d make me leave the kitchen anyway.”
Mia laughed. “True. Go back to work. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Okay.”
Mia sipped her wine and took out her planner, jotting down some notes that popped into her head relevant to tomorrow’s meeting. They were talking with an up-and-coming hockey player who’d had an outstanding season. His team had come close to making the championships and he was touted as a rising star. With a good management company behind him, he could go far.
“Hello, Mia.”
She looked up from her planner to see Ken, the restaurant’s manager. She smiled. “Hi, Ken. How’s it going?”
“It’s great. Haven’t seen you in here for a few weeks. How’s the new company?”
“Busy. But it’s going wonderfully. Which is why I haven’t been here in a while.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“And how’s little George doing?”
Ken grinned. “He’s incredible. Growing so fast that Adam and I can barely keep up with him.”
“That’s how it is with the little ones, I suppose. I want to see your newest photos.”
“You mean the ones I took this morning?”
Mia laughed. “Yes. Those.”
Ken took out his phone and handed it to Mia. She scrolled through and saw an adorable, chubby-faced little boy who looked a lot like both his dads. She handed the phone back to Ken. “He’s beautiful, Ken.”
Ken sighed. “Thank you. You’ll have to come by the house and see him soon.”
“I’d love to. Thanks for the invite.”
Ken gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I need to get back to work. I’ll talk to you soon.”
“See you later.”
She was about to go back to her planner when she spotted Nathan walking in with his parents. She tamped down the race of her pulse.
After last weekend and the sex, she was determined she wasn’t going to get emotional or involved.
It had just been sex. Plus, he was here with his parents, so she had to keep it friendly. She waved to them and they came over.
“It’s been too long, Mia,” Tara said as she hugged her.
“I agree. I was so excited when Nathan told me you were in town.”
She hugged Mick, too.
“It’s good to see you, Mia,” Mick said. “Where’s your brother?”
“Which one?”
He cracked a smile. “The ugly brother.”
“Again, which one?”
He laughed, and so did Mia, who said, “Flynn should be here soon. He said he was looking forward to seeing you.”
“Yeah, I’ll miss playing with him this season. But the team has Nathan, and I know he’s going to kick ass this year.”
Mia looked over at Nathan, surprised to see a brief flash of concern on his face before he masked it with a wide smile. “You know it.”
She made a mental note to ask him about that later.
“Our table should be ready. Let me go talk to Carol.”
She went to Carol, who grabbed menus and seated them in a quiet corner of the restaurant. Mick was as big a celebrity in San Francisco as her brother, so he got looks and waves as they walked through the restaurant. Mick was just as nice as her brother, too, so he stopped to sign some autographs and take selfies with a few people before he joined them at their table.
“That will probably happen forever, won’t it?” Mia asked.
“I sure hope so,” Mick said with a wry smile.
Their waitress came over and handed them the drink menu. Mia stayed with the cabernet she’d already started. Mick ordered a soda, and Nathan ordered a beer. Tara went with the same cabernet Mia was having.