End Zone (SEU #3)

prologue

*This is a bonus chapter originally from MR but I will be using it as the prologue/interlude whatever for this story because it gives a good intro on where they currently are right now. 

TOSHA

4 YEARS LATER...

The sound of my phone beeping on the glass bedside table awoken me from my sleep. I yawned, reaching for the vibrating device through the blur of my vision. Once I grabbed my phone, I reached for my glasses and placed them on my face. I blinked multiple times to adjust my eyes to the brightness of my screen. I looked over at Matteo, glad that he was deep in sleep, his annoying snores rumbling as he dreamt away.

I pulled the sheets over my bare chest, aware that after the night we'd had to celebrate the first month being in our new home, I was just as exposed as the very day I was born. I smirked to myself as Matteo's snored filled my ears.

He was home for the off season and soon he'd be back out for training camp to prepare for the next season but while he was here, he made sure to spend as much time with me as he possibly could. And majority of that time was showcasing how much he loved me in the bedroom. I was glad and surprised that after four years of being together, neither of us were bored with one another and we always found new ways to spice things up in the bedroom as a married couple now. I hoped that it stayed that way, especially since his job required so much out of him.

My phone vibrated again in my hand, almost causing me to jump but I composed myself to avoid waking Matteo out of his sleep.

It was multiple messages from Niecy. Some were voice notes while others were regular text messages.

The time on my phone read 3:48 AM.

I rubbed my eyes behind my glasses, hoping to rid myself of my sleepiness.

I opened her text message chat and read her text messages and left the audio voice notes untouched as I didn't want to wake Matteo.

Did you get it?

Call me when you're about to take it.

The nurse manager left early tonight. Call me & I'll find a closet to talk.

I smiled at her last message, covering my mouth to stifle my laughter as I read it.

I looked over towards Matteo again, ensuring that he was still sleeping. I pulled the duvet back and reached towards the end of the bed for my blanket.

Since Matteo had interrupted my nightly reading time a few hours ago to create space for us to please one another, I'd tossed the blanket in the midst of excitement and I was glad that it was still close as any article of clothing was lost in the midst of the darkness.

After wrapping myself in the blanket, I slid out of the bed, my feet touching the softness of the carpet. I used the light of my phone to assist me as I made my way through out walk-through closet.

Since Matteo and I were hands-on during the build of our home and with the help of his family's business, the master suite bedroom was customized to our liking.

The walk-in closet was connected to the entrance of the bathroom and on the other side of the master suite, we had an additional closet space dedicated to me with a custom built vanity space. Over the years, I dabbled a bit more with makeup but I mainly used the vanity for styling my hair and the remainder closet space for my new found shopping addiction. In the beginning of our relationship, I wasn't a big shopping type of girl and I wasn't one to splurge on myself, however, as the years progressed, Matteo's freedom with his fortune made it hard to turn him down. Now, I found myself visiting a shopping strip weekly or scrolling through online catalagues for the latest trendy outfits. I never let the money get to my head, but I enjoyed the perks. In specific, the closet used for my vanity housed all of our latest designer shoes as well as our jewelry collection. Matteo was a collector of watches and rings while I enjoyed bracelets and pairs of earrings.