Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 90736 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90736 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
I know this man. I’ve seen his face, and I’ve seen him at the grocery store because he is from Green Bay too.
“I have an announcement,” Andy begins—and before he can say another word, the room erupts, cameras flashing, reporters shouting out follow-up questions as Andy is handed a green baseball cap.
He settles it on his head.
Next to him, the man leans forward, adjusting the mic.
“The Green Bay Packers are excited to announce the signing of Landon Burke to a four-year contract. In addition to being an incredible football player, Landon brings a championship mentality and toughness to our locker room that we hope elevates the Green Bay Packers to the Super Bowl.” He takes Andy’s large hand in his and shakes it; together they pose for a photo as cameras around the room continue to flash.
I gasp—how could I not.
Oh.
My.
God.
It’s done.
He did it. He chose Green Bay.
I might expire from excitement.
My phone pings with a notification.
Then another.
Then another.
Then it begins to ring, one call coming in after another.
This is madness!
Danny: Holy Shit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There are not enough exclamation points in the world to describe how I feel in this moment, and part of me wishes I had gone to be with Andy during the announcement, so I could hug him right now.
He had asked me to be there—to be in the room or at least in the greenroom—but for me, it was too soon. I don’t need to be thrown to the wolves just yet.
I want a few games under my belt before appearing in public, even if I attend those games in one of those private suites celebrities are usually seen in.
Or I’ll be in the cheap seats so I blend in to the crowd.
I’ll be able to blend in, right?
My heart thumps out of my chest, and I ignore all the text chats pinging my phone—there is nothing more important than giving every second of my attention to what Andy is saying on national television.
All eyes are glued to Landon Burke as he leans into the microphone, agent—his gatekeeper—by his side, making sure he doesn’t say anything stupid or give the press too much information.
“We’re going all the way this year!” he shouts, raising his arm in the air, all the men on the screen embracing and clapping one another on the back.
Kevin’s ears perk up like antennae.
“Green Bay,” I whisper to the dog, who doesn’t answer back, merely shoots me a side-eye for daring to speak to him. “Holy crap, Kevin, this is real shit.”
“We have time for one more question,” Trent tells the room once it settles down. “Make it a good one.”
Trent points to a female reporter at the center of the room, who steps forward, all business.
“Who would you say is your biggest fan at the moment?”
“That’s an easy one.” Andy grins. “My biggest fan is Harlow.”
“Hearts all over the nation are breaking.” The reporter grins, her insides probably turning to mush. “So how confident are you about that?”
“Oh, I know for a fact she is.” Andy stands, thanking everyone in the room. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a flight to Green Bay to catch.”
Epilogue
Dex
He did not just say that shit on national TV.
I rewind the interview, listening to my best friend—Landon Burke—word vomiting all the sappy, lovesick bullshit he’s been going on about for the past two months, his visit to la-la land about to become an extended stay.
Surprisingly enough, he gave me a shout-out on the air too.
“I want to give a shout-out to my buddy Dex Lansing—some of you may know him—plays for Arizona, and I look forward to seeing that slick [bleep] on a more regular basis.”
Ha. He called me a slick bastard on TV, that fucker.
I’m the first to admit that it will be nice to see Landon happy. It sucked serious balls having him in Seattle; his whole demeanor changed. He butted heads with his coach and didn’t love Washington. The only time we were ever able to link up was when our teams were playing one another. And now he’s got a new girlfriend to distract him.
He does not miss a beat or waste time, does he?
Fucker works fast.
They’ve been dating such a short time, and he’s going to a team in her city? What kind of bullshit is that? Seriously. Who does that?
I would never.
Not me.
Not that I have any room to talk; I haven’t had a girlfriend in ages, not for lack of trying or for my publicist’s attempts at setting me up.
I think about those women I dated, all of them low-key celebrities, singers, television hosts—no relationships that worked in my favor for various reasons. Hey, it’s not my fault that I have a fear of commitment.
But they always say When you know, you know—right? And I haven’t known.
Landon knew as soon as he met Harlow. As soon as she sassed back at him in Central Park and he damn near puked on her shoes, he knew she was the one for him. The fact that she agreed to go on a date with him, even after seeing him gross and disgusting, still blows my fucking mind. I’ve seen what he looks like with the flu and COVID, and let me be the first to say—it ain’t pretty.