Poppy took the stool next to mine. “Did you flunk out?”
I chuckled. “No, but I wasn’t pulling As, that’s for sure. But the partying got me in trouble. My freshman year, I went to a house party out of town. I had too much to drink but thought if I stayed on the back roads, I’d be fine. On my way back, I swerved to miss a deer, ran my truck into the ditch and got stuck in the snow.”
My stomach rolled when I thought about that night. I was lucky things hadn’t been worse. That I hadn’t hurt someone. That I hadn’t hurt myself. As it was, I hadn’t even wrecked my truck.
“The officer who found me could have taken me right to jail. She could have given me a DUI, and my future career as a cop would have been over. But she didn’t. She put her finger in my face and said, ‘This is your once.’ Then she drove me home, not to the dorms but to my parents’ house, and kept my truck keys for a month.”
“Were your parents pissed?”
“Worse,” I sighed. “They were disappointed.”
And from that night on, I’d tried to never disappoint them again. I’d gotten serious about school. I’d brought up my grades and kept myself out of trouble through graduation and into the academy. All because I’d been given a chance.
“So, you got a once and now you give them.”
I nodded. “If the situation calls for it. I respect the law and we have rules for a reason, but not everything is black and white. Some people, like Isaac, deserve a second chance.”
Poppy’s hand came to my face. “How’d I get so lucky to find you?”
“It’s the other way around, beautiful.”
She leaned forward, pressing her soft lips to mine as the kitchen door swung open.
“Kissing again?” Molly snickered.
“Always.” I wrapped my arms around Poppy’s waist, pulling her off her stool and between my legs to take her mouth. This time, there wasn’t a thing gentle or sweet about our kiss. This one was hot and deep—a kiss that left Poppy panting, Molly rolling her eyes and my dick hard behind my zipper.
“You’d better get me that banana bread,” I whispered. “Otherwise I’ll find something else to eat and we won’t be going to the football game.”
Poppy leaned in to my ear. “I’ll make you a deal. You taste the banana bread, and later I’ll do some tasting of my own.”
I groaned against her lips. I loved this woman.
And since I still wasn’t sure if I should say it, after the game, I’d show her just how much instead.
“What if they drop me?”
I kissed Poppy’s worried forehead. “They’re not going to drop you. If you feel like you’re starting to fall, just set your feet down.”
We were standing in a sea of people. Seventeen thousand Bobcat and Grizzly fans all had their eyes aimed on the football field, but I couldn’t look away from the beauty at my side.
After we’d left the restaurant, Poppy had pulled on a thick black beanie, and her hair was rolling over her shoulders in a loose cascade to her waist. Her nose was pink from the cold and she’d bundled up in her gray winter coat. Her jeans were tucked into a pair of black, knee-high snow boots.
She looked happy.
And I had the picture to prove it.
I’d taken a lot of pictures for Poppy these last few months—ones that she could count as her daily photo—but today’s was a favorite. It ranked just as high as the picture I’d taken a month ago of her and Nazboo cuddling together, asleep on my couch.
A cheer from the crowd snagged my attention away from Poppy. It was just a first down, but the Bobcats were getting closer to the end zone.
“The next time we score, I’ll hoist you up.”
“Okay,” she breathed.
We turned our attention back to the game and stood quietly as the kids around us cheered for the players and cursed at the refs. When we’d gotten to the game, I’d chosen to abandon our ticketed seats and squeeze into the jam-packed students’ section. It was wild and crazy—noisy as fuck and I had to stand sideways—but it was the best place for Poppy to do her thing.
Just as I’d suspected, it didn’t take long for the Bobcats to march down the remainder of the field and score a touchdown, sending the stadium into sheer pandemonium.
“Up you go!” I grabbed Poppy by the waist and hoisted her high.
The mass of fraternity guys in the rows behind us didn’t let me down. They kept her high, sending her up the rows as she laid back flat.
Crowd surfing like a badass.
I laughed and held up my phone, taking a few pictures as she went higher and higher. When she finally reached a group of people that set her down, I pushed past the students in my row to the aisle. Then I took the stairs two at a time, meeting her on the steps.
I stopped one step below her so we were almost at eye level, giving me the perfect view of those cornflower blues.
“Fun?” I asked.
“Yeah. It actually was.” She laughed and threw her arms around my shoulders.
I wrapped my arms around her tight, dragging in a few deep breaths of her hair. It smelled like vanilla and cinnamon mixed with the crisp air and everything Poppy.
“Thank you,” she said into my ear. “For everything.”
I let her go and leaned back.
The stadium was still deafening, but it was all just a dull buzz in the background when Poppy was in my arms. The cheers, the clapping, the whistles, it all just faded away.
There was only her.
I lifted a hand to her face. “Like I’ve told you, I’m glad to help you with the list.”
“No, I’m not talking about the list. This is about everything else. Because of you, I wake up smiling. I look forward to each and every day.
