Promise Me

I rolled my eyes at him and settled back against him. His hands were still against my bare skin again. Neither of us pulled my shirt down. “What did you mean about trust Ronan?”

“I broke that trust by taking you to my bed.” I snorted at that statement. “You don’t think so?”

“Hell no. I was perfectly capable of saying no. You even gave me the option to say no but I didn’t. Hell Ronan, I wanted you,” I declared. It was easy to say these things when he couldn’t see my face. Maybe he needed to hear them so he would stop feeling guilty.

I laid my hands over his. My body was getting warm with his soft caresses even though there was nothing sexual about them. He just wanted to feel his son move inside me. He was trying to make sense of all this.

“I feel like I have,” he whispered then he pressed his lips to my temple and was quiet again.

A girl could fall in love with Ronan Moore if she wasn’t careful especially since she already had a crush on him. I sighed and closed my eyes. I decided to just enjoy the intimacy of him holding me and have fun while the fun lasted. We couldn’t do this forever. One of us would eventually want to move on most likely Ronan since I had already given him my heart.

Chapter 10

On Friday, I was at practice watching the wide receivers run plays with the quarterback. It was getting warm even in the mornings. The kid ran his routes like he was supposed to but kept to himself otherwise. He didn’t kid around like the other guys did.

He was almost as tall as me at sixteen. He had some growing to do still most likely. He was still gangly, all arms and legs. He could stretch and catch a ball one-handed. I watched him a time or two make catches that were amazing. This kid had big hands. Hands that were made to be a wide receiver. Maybe even in college on a full scholarship. A way to get an education paid for and who knew after that. Everyone dreamt of the pros but Fionn.

Coach walked up behind me and patted my shoulder. “How’s it going?” He asked.

“That kid, Do

m LaBenito, damn he’s good.”

Coach’s eyes traveled to the field where they were running a single setback formation, two wide receivers to the left and one to the right. Dom ran his route and the right, wide receiver caught the pass from John Mays the quarterback. The boys were wearing pads with their practice jerseys and shorts. A few bruises and scuffed knees were obvious in their practice attire.

“He is good,” Coach agreed. “He has a tough life Ronan.”

“I thought there was something about him.”

“What did you think?”

“He’s hiding behind his walls like Fionn used to do.”

“You would be right,” Coach told me.

I watched them setup for another formation. This play was a running play with the tight ends and the running backs who had just joined them on the field. The WR’s were standing to the side. The kid removed his helmet and took a sip from a water bottle. He kept his eyes downcast to the ground. “What is it?”

“A father who skipped town when he was a kid. Left him and two other kids alone with a mother who is a drug addict. He takes care of them all besides playing football and going to school. He keeps things together.”

“How old are the kids?”

“Fourteen, and eight.” Coach was watching him too. “The eight-year-old was a baby when their father left. He isn’t sure if the youngest even belongs to his father.”

“Are they neglected?”

“Sure they are,” Coach said. “But Dom manages to keep it together with funds that his grandparents give him. They live in Florida. Otherwise they probably all would have ended up in foster care. He doesn’t want that.”

“How do you know this?”

“I’ve talked to him. He carries a lot of weight on his shoulders. The kids are at the games with him every Friday night.”

“How does he handle away games?”

“I let him drive to the away games so the kids can go with him. He doesn’t want to leave them home alone with her. He has no one else.”

I didn’t understand. Why didn’t the grandparents just take the kids? Coach shook his head. “They are older. They don’t want the responsibility. It’s a shame. The money is all they are willing to give. It keeps a roof over their head and food on the table.”

“He won’t go to college then.”