Series: Fever Falls Series by Riley Hart
Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 81272 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 406(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81272 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 406(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
“I know, but I was fine. I’ll always be fine. It’s what I do.”
“I know,” he replied. “When you won, it kind of got me horny too.”
“I can see about a red-eye home?” I teased, and he laughed. “I miss you.”
“I miss you too. Can you come over when your flight lands?”
“Don’t you work?”
“I took the day off. I figured we’d have some things to do for the fundraiser this week, and…well, my boyfriend just went away for the first weekend since we’ve been dating, and I kind of want to ride his cock,” he said playfully.
Fucking Linc. “You don’t have to ask me twice. I’ll be there.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
I felt like the luckiest man in the world to have Lincoln Gray waiting for me.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Lincoln
Sometimes even when he’s surrounded by people, I think Lincoln feels alone. ~ Trey
Rush was late. I couldn’t fucking believe Rush was late for Trey’s fundraiser.
“He’ll be here any minute, sweetie.” Mama K patted my hand.
“I know. I’m trying not to freak out. I’ve never done something like this before.” And it was Rush’s idea, and he wasn’t fucking there.
“You’re doing a great job. If you need anything, Jude can help. It doesn’t start for a few more minutes. Your friends arrived too, so I’m sure they can pitch in. I’m going to go to the kitchen and check the food. You’ll be fine, and Rush will be here. He won’t leave you hanging.” She smiled sweetly and walked away.
Logically, I knew that. This was too important to Rush. I was important to him too, and he had to know I would be losing my damn mind. Even though he got second place, his trainer had been giving him a hard time all week because of how he’d done in the qualifiers last weekend, which meant he was riding Rush hard in the not-so-fun way, and Rush was riding me less in the fun way. He was busy, and I got it. He’d be flying out late tonight to Minnesota for his race tomorrow, so I was lucky he could even come at all, that he found a way to fit it into his schedule; but I knew he wanted Trey and his dad to have the money before Trey finished his last chemo treatment. Still, I was a big baby and had gotten used to having all his attention while he was out. Now that he was racing again, I was going to have to get used to being the boyfriend of a guy who was gone every damn weekend and trained his ass off all week for most of the year.
Ugh. Even I wanted to roll my eyes at myself when I thought about how I sounded, but it was an adjustment.
“Kathy sent me. Do you need me for anything?” Jude asked, pulling me from my thoughts.
“I don’t think so. Kathy’s checking on the food. Beau’s mom is on desserts. Kenny and the guys set up the tables and such.” It was a mishmash of all fundraisers, with people like Cam donating home improvement services for auction, Ash his time and autographed memorabilia from himself and other professional players, and Rush having donated similar items as Ash. Dax and Carter reached out to some of their clients who were willing to pitch in, as well.
Even the fire department had gotten involved—Beau, Jace, and the guys putting together a quick calendar. It was a group effort, that was for sure, and I felt damn lucky to have so many great people in my life. “I’m being ridiculous.” I plastered on a fake smile. “Everything’s great, and I’m going to stop whining!”
Jude chuckled. “Rush will be here soon. He’s not going to leave you dealing with all this.”
What. The. Fuck. “Do I have a sign on my forehead that says: Needy little twink who fears his boyfriend will walk out on him? If so, it’s wrong. False advertising or something to that effect.”
With another laugh, Jude put his arm around me and squeezed. “It’s okay to need him. It’s okay to want him. He’s not going anywhere, and he’s not going to abandon you in this or anything else. Rush is too damn loyal, and he loves you too much. I’ve been his friend all my life, and I’ve never seen him like this. But I understand not feeling quite good enough for him. That fear that one day he’ll realize he’s better off without you and he’ll walk away. He won’t, Lincoln.”
I sucked in a sharp breath, unable to find my words. It was exactly how I felt, and I struggled to connect the dots that Jude did too. Yes, I knew he cared about Rush, but he’d felt similar to me? “I…thank you. I’m working on my shit.”
“You and me both, Blondy. You and me both.”