I still believed that my birthdays were cursed, so I was glad Ellie invited Brody and Mom up for my birthday a week prior to the actual date. Blown away was an understatement of how I felt when I saw they casually sat in Husky Stadium's seats during Friday's practice, like their presence was no big deal. The only giveaway was how Ellie's eyes shone at me when I came over and greeted them.
My girl keeps surprising me.
After Emmitt's adoring love eyes and how Ellie seemed like she barely believed me when I told her about his feelings for her, my ego appreciated her gesture just as much as my heart did. I hadn't kept up with Brody and Mom as much as I had at UCD, definitely hadn't seen them, so their presence was a very welcome surprise.
While Ellie had accepted my apology, I was extremely aware that I hadn't made up fully to her yet. I'd planned that I took her out to dinner tonight, then physically showed her how much I appreciated her, but those plans were slightly derailed with four additions to our dinner party.
With all details spared, the interview went as well as I expected but Ellie was uncomfortable during the entire time. She masked herself the best she could but her small squirms, hand squeezes, and lip twitches all read she wanted to be anywhere else. So I was extremely thankful once I led her out of Husky Stadium, said goodbye to Jake before he caught his ride to the airport, and the rest of us went out to dinner.
"Are you sure?" Ellie craned her neck back at the semicircular restaurant neon sign that, combined with the Christmas-like lights that lined the double brass entrance door area, looked lit up like a carnival ride.
"Yep." I looked at Wes' recommendation, a restaurant right on the water at Pier 54 downtown. The water reflected a royal blue color that contrasted the bold, reddish-orange sky that the nearly set sun left in its departure.
My nose wrinkled at the definite fish-infused smell that the breeze off the water brought to my attention, which Ellie also noticed. Her voice sounded as dry as the night air when she pointed out, "Pretty sure Ivar's Acres of Clams is a seafood restaurant."
"Which I'm sure has non-seafood options," I assured her and opened one of the shiny brass doors that reflected the very skeptical expression on her face and held the door open for her. "Promise I was going to take just us here tonight."
"Really?" Her dark eyes were wide as she passed by me into the restaurant, then paused when I gently grabbed her upper arm with my free hand. "Why?"
"To fully apologize," I murmured and bent down far enough that my nose traveled over the soft skin on her now makeup-free cheek. I noticed once she'd gotten out of her car with Harper that she'd wiped all her makeup off between Husky Stadium and here.
The three additional passengers in my truck aside, I had every intention that I showed Ellie I was sorry about my overreaction to her period but I'd also assumed that we both needed stress relief once the interview finished.
One perk with roommates, at some point we'll be alone.
Preferably sooner than later.
"Dinner first. I had other plans for dessert but they'll have to wait." The sound of Ellie's inhale hit my ears as I pressed a soft kiss right onto the corner of her lips, then pulled back at the squeal that erupted behind us.
"Sorry!" I lifted my eyes off Ellie's soft skin that my lips wanted more contact with and met Mom's gaze. Her eyes glossed over and her hands clasped at her heart. "Just so glad to see this."
"Inside before we hear about grandkids," I teased Ellie with a slight lift of my chin towards the door, which I also held open for Mom, Brody, Harper, and her dad. Mr. Reynolds nodded slightly at my gesture, but I stopped him and held out one hand for a shake.
"Thank you," I told him earnestly and squeezed his hand. "For being here."
Ellie had absolutely no poker face and was a tense, stiff version of her normal self for almost the entire duration of the interview. Her fingers trembled in my hand's grasp when Rachel mentioned Ryder and I was almost as relieved as Ellie was once Mr. Reynolds cut the questions off.
"You're welcome." He shook my hand a few bobs, then we dropped apart. "Solid responses to her questions Logan, but Ms. Sorenson definitely needed to be cut off at that point."
"Did you inform Ryder's parents about this?" My voice stayed neutral but the hairs on the nape of my neck stood up at Ryder's forceful, lawsuit-trigger parents.
"I did." A frown creased Mr. Reynolds' thin, black eyebrows, behind his frameless glasses. "Not surprisingly, they were upset. Had a few choice words that bordered threats but nothing I hadn't expected."
"I'm sorry." I clenched my hand into a fist as a lump of guilt formed in my chest. While we appreciated Mr. Reynolds' invaluable help, the idea we needed it at all bothered me more than I wanted to admit at this moment.
"With as little as I trust those two, I've learned to record all our conversations," he admitted quietly, his eyes forward and fixed right on Ellie. "I suspect Eleanor will need it."
My discomfort grew the more his words settled inside me and, more importantly, the words he hadn't said and what they implied. A knot of discomfort twisted in my stomach from more than the fish smells.
Court. He's talking about Ellie testifying in court.
Days had passed since Mr. Reynolds told us Ellie might get subpoenaed and I still had no idea how that was possible given the NDA. I opened my mouth so I prodded for further clarification but Mom's voice cut through our conversation, "Logan, are you going to hold the door all night, or come in and eat?"
Mr. Reynolds smiled tightly as I gestured him in first. "I'd say it's nice to see you again but one of these times it should be under different circumstances."
I paused at his words, since at this point his eyes still traveled inside the restaurant and his frown softened when he looked at Mom, so I just followed him inside and wondered what that look meant. After I stepped inside, the first thing I noticed was how open the restaurant was, straight views to the water at nearly every seat, and the wood-covered ceilings were low.
"Inside or out?" A tall, thin man dressed in solid black stood behind a small counter, six menus already in his hands.
"Which smells better?" Harper asked him in an entirely serious tone. Since her question drew all our attention, she just lifted her shoulders like that gesture explained anything.
I should be glad she hasn't threatened any of my manhood yet, but we just got here.
The host paused for a moment, then leaned over and said something in Harper's ear with a slight grin. She just nodded, then he gestured out his hand towards the open dining area. With a slight bend down for the low ceilings, I stepped next to Ellie and slipped my hand in hers.
"This is nice," she murmured quietly at me.
With brown wood that was more modern than old paneling and wood tables, the restaurant was clean, open, and thankfully without the seaside tacky wall accessories like fisherman nets and historical diving equipment. The large windows were closed and most people here sat indoors, serviced by waiters dressed in all-black uniforms.
"Wes recommended it," I answered her with a slight hand squeeze while we weaved through a few occupied wood tables until the host stopped at a large one right against the windows.
He placed the menus on the table between us, nodded, and bowed out. We hadn't all even sat down yet when Harper smirked. "No seagull shit."
"What?" All eyes turned towards her.
"Podium guy said inside smells better because there's no seagull shit," she answered in a tone that suggested that information was obvious, so I glanced out the window over Ellie's head next to me. Sure enough, a row of twelve seagulls squatted on the outdoor railings, inches from some of the outdoor tables.
"It'll start to get cold anyways," Ellie replied and opened her menu.
We sat in silence while everyone looked over the selections, but since steak or chicken were the only non-seafood items and I hadn't had steak in Seattle yet, my choice of that with the potatoes swapped out for a salad was easy. While everyone else still decided, I glanced around the table at our seating arrangement. Ellie sat on my right, Brody on my left, with Harper across from Ellie, her dad across from me, and Mom across from Brody.
With her seat awfully close to -
"So Logan," Mr. Reynolds leaned slightly forward and lifted his eyes up to me. "Undefeated so far, huh?"
"So far," I repeated and knocked one of my hands' knuckles on the wood table between us. "Montana's got a good defensive line so our running game will get tested but we've been working hard this week in prep."
"Interview's over Adonis," Harper snorted quietly.
"Sorry, it's like autopilot," I answered her. Warm pressure on my inner thigh brought my attention to Ellie's palm-up hand there, so I lowered mine and threaded my fingers in hers.
"Good evening." A short, round guy with thinned hair in the same black attire approached us with a silver pitcher in his hands. "Drinks or appetizers to start?"
Brody, Ellie, and I stuck with water, Mom and Mr. Reynolds both got an iced tea, and Harper actually ordered a beer. After the entire table mutinied on me and got a seafood sampler appetizer and the waiter bowed out, we all looked at her. Harper's dad even twisted in his seat and studied her.
"What?" She looked around the table. "I'm twenty-one and on vacation, don't tempt me or I'll get the oysters."
"As long as that's your only beer." Her Dad frowned slightly, then looked over his menu. "You can get whatever you want if you promise no bad decisions tonight."
"The only bad decision has already left," she replied with a frown now on her face.
"What did he say to you?" Ellie hinted at the conversation those two held before Jake had left for the airport. Both she and I witnessed how whatever he'd said to Harper, she couldn't have been less impressed with.
"Nothing worth repeating," Harper muttered and dropped her eyes to her menu. "Especially before we eat."
"Are you... seeing each other?" I asked her directly and definitely noticed how Ellie's fingers slightly flinched against mine. "Can't help but feel like that ideal date of his had double meaning."
"Fuck no." Harper's frown deepened into a full face scowl. "I want nothing to do with that chlamydia chameleon. Brody has a better chance of me robbing his virginal cradle at this point."
At those words, loud gasps and coughs erupted from my left as Brody choked on his water. With his face bright red and tears in the corners of his bugged out eyes, I pounded him on the upper back a few times.
Thank God. If those two are screwing each other behind Ellie's back again, I'll beat the shit out of Jake next week. Before or after the game work equally well.
"Harper," her Dad warned her but Mom put one of her hands on his shoulder.
"In her own special way, is Harper saying that your brother left?" Mom asked Ellie, who nodded.
"Yeah, he plays tomorrow," Ellie replied quietly then shifted her eyes and looked directly at Harper. "But it was nice of him to be supportive in person, especially since he'll be back here next week for their game."
"Your brother wouldn't know nice if he tripped and smashed his balls on it," Harper muttered, rolled her eyes, then shifted her gaze out the window. Her voice dipped lower but I still caught when she whispered, "Probably fucked that interviewer before he left."
"He's trying." Ellie's eyes shifted towards Mr. Reynolds. "He hasn't said anything about the anger management classes but he's different and I'm proud of him for that."
Thankfully, our waiter reappeared, but I inwardly groaned at the tiered silver display stand he set into the middle of the table, then filled the four levels with random seafood items that looked less and less edible the more I stared at it.
"Calamari, lemon-butter infused prawns, salmon cakes, and our specialty, local white wine Manila clams," he announced with a level of joy that suggested he'd caught everything himself. While everyone ordered, I just sat back and avoided eye contact, which included a few of those appetizers.
Our dinner conversations were both casual and slightly uncomfortable because none of us had anything in common other than they teased me about how much I didn't like seafood and my 'ten-pack abs' billboard picture. I more than happily served as the table's punching bag until photographic evidence from their drive up from SeaTac was presented.
I used the opportunity at dinner and talked mostly with Brody, although without privacy we couldn't dig too much into many details. After Mom moved to Scotts Valley and Brody transferred to that high school, I was glad that Dad let Brody stay overnight at Mom's during the school week. Brody was reluctant to talk about anything personal-related, only stuck to school and football.
After dinner, Mom hug-mauled Mr. Reynolds and Harper, who left for their hotel room while Mom and Brody came back to our apartment. Thankfully, Mom took one look at my and Ellie's small space before she booked their own hotel room.
"Are you sure?" Internally, I cheered at the idea Ellie and I had some privacy tonight, but Ellie frowned and added, "I can sleep at Wes and Charlie's, it's no trouble."
"I am not sleeping on that." Mom pointed at the folded up air mattress Ellie held in her hands. "And my bones are too old for a sofa. Plus, I need my beauty sleep to fully embarrass Logan on the field tomorrow."
Fantastic.
"Okay..." Ellie dragged out the word, then looked down at the air mattress she clutched in her hands. "I'll go put this back in the closet then."
"You can have my bed," I assured Mom as Ellie walked into the bedroom. "I'll sleep on the sofa."
"Before a game?" Mom snorted and tipped her head sideways. None of me trusted the narrow-eyed look she shot me, like she wasn't sure my bed was clean. Thanks to Ellie's recent laundry efforts, it was very clean. "Already made a reservation one block away."
With one finger pointed at where Ellie'd gone, Mom added, "You've got some serious making up to do to that girl, Logan Thomas."
Before I asked what about, her hand clapped into the back of my head. My shoulders flinched because the contact hadn't hurt but was definitely unexpected. "Hey! What was that for?"
"Did you seriously faint when poor Ellie had her period?" Mom's eyes shifted darker as she looked murderously at me.
"Scarred for life," Brody mumbled from his reclined position on the couch. He opened his closed eyes and looked at Mom. "I'm tired, can you lecture him faster?"
"How did I raise such insensitive boys?" I leaned back as Mom flung both her hands up in the air, and swiped one right past my nose. "Logan, I thought I raised you with at least a smidge of empathy. You've seen mine."
Think I blocked that out.
"I never saw you bleed out firsthand," I defended myself. "It caught me off-guard."
"You. You!?" Mom's voice raised and edged with a shrill tone that cut into my ear drums. "How do you think she feels? Oh my stars, Logan when in doubt? Chocolate and a heating pad. Repeat that."
"Mom, I -" I started my case that I wasn't sure that's what Ellie would've wanted when she clenched her teeth.
"Repeat. That." Even Brody flinched at the sharpness in Mom's voice, after which he grinned in my direction.
"Chocolate and a heating pad," I mumbled and fought an urge that I rolled my eyes.
"You too Brody," Mom shifted her evil laser stare at Brody, which dissolved his grin upon impact.
"What did I do?" He sat up, kicked his reclined feet down, and sat on the edge of his seat.
"Teachable moment," Mom deadpanned. "Repeat it, Brody."
"Chocolate and a heating pad," Brody replied in a flat voice with the same undertone of disgust that I felt about this 'teachable moment.'
Thankfully, Ellie threw me a lifeline when she called out, "Are you done roasting them Grace, or can I come back out?"
"I think it's safe," I responded, my eyes on Mom for any sign of further harassment.
"I'm sure we'll have more words before we leave," Mom warned me before she choked my neck tightly between her elbows in her version of a hug. "But we'll see you tomorrow, Ellie said come by for breakfast."
"Sounds like her," I joked, then patted Mom's back a few times. After Brody stood up and joined Mom at the door, I slugged him in the shoulder, then stepped back. After they both hugged Ellie goodbye, they grabbed their suitcases near the dining room table and headed out our door.
"Do you need us to walk you there?" I looked at the suitcases Mom and Brody dragged behind them. Even though Mom said the hotel was a block over, I felt bad we hadn't walked them over.
"We'll be fine," Mom assured me with another hardened look and shook one finger in my face. "Just remember, no glove, no love."
"Oh gosh," Ellie whispered and put one hand up to her now pink cheeks.
As soon as the door clicked closed, I locked it and shifted my eyes to Ellie. The dark brown in her irises looked darker as her pupils enlarged and my arms slipped around her. In one breath, I leaned down and goosebumps chased the trail my nose nuzzled up the side of her neck.
"You..." I whispered and pressed a kiss right under her ear.
"Me?" The breath that pushed out her response gave away her true reaction but my own heart rate picked up in my chest and my blood flooded warmth into my pelvis at her close proximity.
"Yes you," I muttered and trailed my lips back down to her shoulder. "Bedroom. Now."