Second Chance: A Military Football Romance

"I burned macaroni and cheese in high school. Remember? You had to knock down the smoke detector with a baseball bat."

"How about astrophysics? You could spend your life studying black holes."

"That sounds uplifting. Oh, wait, my math skills are not strong enough," I said.

"Yeah, you're terrible at making change."

I whacked his feet off the corner of the bed.

"How about astrology, then? I bet you could write a good horoscope," he said.

"Sounds good. Let's start with yours. With the moon in your seventh sign, beware of old friends. Your wit and charm will get you nothing but slapped." I took a hearty swig of the scotch and punctuated his horoscope with a round of hacking coughs.

Owen grabbed two beers from the minibar and cracked them open. "Here, might be better with a chaser," he said.

He sat down on the bed next to me. I grabbed for the beer, but he did not let go. I took another swig of the scotch and his lips followed. The burning alcohol was nothing compared to the fire Owen's kiss started in my belly.

I took the beers from his hand and balanced them on the bedside table. When I turned back, his agate-blue eyes were following me with the same intensity from the party. I crawled back along the bed and into his lap. He sighed, long and hard, his hands coming to rest on my hips. Then slowly, each millimeter taking a century, we drew closer and closer until our lips brushed again. Soft, featherweight kisses that erased the world around us. Over and over again until there was nothing but the two of us.

"I've wanted you for so long," I said.

"You have no idea." Owen tangled his hands in my hair.

The soft kisses disappeared and passion devoured us.

"Wait," I said. I pushed against his chest and stood up. "There's something I have to do. I have no idea what else is going to happen with my life but there are two things I know."

"What's the first thing?"

"I have to call my parents and tell them I am quitting the nursing program," I said.

"And what's the second thing that you know?"

"That I don't want you to move an inch."

#

I did not want to argue. I could not let my father try to build an argument against my decision. He was a lawyer, a very talented lawyer, and I knew the longer I let him talk, the more sense he would start making.

"Father, I'm sorry. I know I have the aptitude for it, but not the heart. Maybe someday, but that will be my decision. This is my decision. I'm quitting the nursing program. I'm leaving UCLA," I said.

"Of all the harebrained, impulsive things to call out of the blue and say." My father held the phone away from his mouth and shouted for my mother. "Your sister would never have done anything like this."

"Exactly," I said. "I'm sorry, but I wanted you to know right away. I don't know what I'm going to do, but I will find a job and start paying back the student loans."

"And how do you think that's going to happen? Have you thought about-"

"Did you just hang up on your father?" Owen asked.

"Why do you think I'm turning my phone off?"

"How do you feel?" he asked.

Owen had not moved an inch. He still sat on the edge of the bed, his feet planted squarely on the ground. I stood between his legs and smiled.

"I feel like I just woke up. Like I've been asleep and having one of those stress dreams when all the clocks are moving too fast or your teeth are falling out. And now, I'm awake, and I know for certain that everything is just fine. I'm fine," I said.

"I think you're better than fine," Owen said. He wrapped his arms around my waist and smiled up at me. "And here I thought Sleeping Beauty needed a kiss to break the spell."