Fair Catch by Cindy Roland Anderson Read Free Book Online Page B

had been his, he would have been so proud of him. He certainly never would have abandoned him. Then there was Cade’s mother.
    He covertly watched Ellie help with the dinner preparation and wondered how a man could have ever walked out on her. She was beautiful. But unlike most of the women he’d been around, she seemed unaware of her beauty. Her husband must have been crazy to dump her for somebody else. Betsy had hinted about the lasting effects her ex had left in his wake. Of course Ellie would be wary of trusting a man again. It made him feel better about her earlier rebuff.
    He tossed the ball to Cade and allowed his eyes to stray back to Ellie. Her hair hung over her shoulder as she stirred a pitcher of lemonade. She looked up and caught him staring at her. This time her lips tipped up into a full smile. Nick grinned. Then the football hit him in the chest.
    “Hey, how come you missed?” Cade asked him.
    Ellie’s blush deepened and she giggled softly. Nick’s grin broadened before he tore his eyes away from her to look down at the little boy. “Sorry. I was momentarily distracted.”
    Cade’s eyebrows furrowed. “Mom, what does distracted mean?”
    Ellie stopped mixing the lemonade and the smile fell from her face. She looked like she didn’t know how to answer her son. It probably didn’t help to have all the other adults watching her, waiting for an answer.
    “Um, it means…” The definition seemed to elude her.
    Nick knelt down in front of Cade. “It means I wasn’t paying attention to you or the football.”
    Pastor Owen stood next to the grill and removed the cooked hamburger patties. He laughed and added under his breath, “It also means you had your mind on something other than catching the football.”
    Nick gave the pastor a sheepish grin and shrugged his shoulders. “Just remember, Cade,” he said, tossing the football up and then catching it again, “always keep your eye on the ball.” He was looking at Ellie again and winked at her before she dropped her eyes.
    * * *
    Ellie let out the breath she had been holding and finished mixing the lemonade. She couldn’t define what distracted meant, but she certainly knew what it felt like.
    And what is with Mr. MVP? Every time she tried to sneak a peek at him, he was staring at her. Then he winked. Was he flirting with her? She almost wanted to look behind her to see if someone else stood there.
    “Almost done with the lemonade?” Betsy asked as she opened a bag of potato chips.
    Ellie let go of the spoon. If the lemonade had been cream, they’d have butter by now. “Yes.” She wiped her hands down the front of her jeans and tried to ignore the smug look on Betsy’s face. “Do you need me to do anything else?”
    “Nope,” Betsy said as Owen brought over a plate of steaming burgers. “Looks like we’re ready to eat.”
    When they stood around the table, Owen put his hands on Cade’s shoulders. “Nick, would you mind offering a prayer on the food?”
    Ellie bowed her head, telling herself to get a grip on her emotions. Since Thomas’s deception, she honestly had not felt any kind of attraction for a man. So why did she have to pick somebody who was totally unattainable to have her first crush on? Maybe that’s why she felt this way—nothing could ever come from it.
    As Nick said the prayer, the timbre of his voice made her stomach tighten. It figured he would offer a nice prayer. It was one more thing to break down her resolve.
    After the prayer, Ellie helped Cade get his food and was dismayed when he insisted on sitting by Nick. When she approached the patio table, she took the only seat available. Across from Nick. She tried to avoid looking at him but since Cade sat beside the football player, she found her eyes drifting in Nick’s direction. More than once, their gazes connected, and for a few seconds she almost couldn’t breathe. It made her dinner difficult to ingest, what with her labored breathing. It was