After 6 AM dryland the next morning, my original plan was to crawl back into bed with Bailey and catch a few more hours of sleep, as per usual. We had a nice little routine going and it usually involved waking up for a second time in the best possible way. But there was no hope of going back to sleep today. Despite the grueling workout and innumerable burpees I'd been subjected to, I was buzzing.

When I got home, I briefly debated waking her to tell her about everything, but I felt bad making her get up earlier than she had to. Especially when I knew she'd been working overtime on classes, the paper, and her scholarship application.

This led to a spur of the moment decision to make breakfast instead. Only problem was, between being both amped up and ravenously hungry from training, I got carried away and greatly overestimated the quantity of food required—even with my enormous appetite. I knew Dallas would eat something when he got up, though. I was pretty sure Shiv was still here, too, so one more mouth to feed would help make a dent in this massive spread.

I took the bacon out of the oven, setting it down on a potholder to protect the counter. As I turned around, Bailey came down the stairs, still in pale blue pajamas with her wavy gold hair rumpled from sleep. I loved seeing her first thing in the morning. She was a lot more pleasant than I was upon waking, not to mention far cuter.

Bailey yawned, groggily surveying the kitchen. "You made breakfast?" Her gaze landed on the waffle iron, eyes widening. "Oh my god, I love waffles."

"Then you're in luck because I make the best waffles around. I'm a man of many talents. Not just on the ice—or in the bedroom."

Her mouth tugged into a wry grin. "I'm starting to see that." She padded over to stand beside me, peeking around me to see the waffles in progress. I wrapped my hands around her waist, ducking in for a quick mint toothpaste-flavored kiss. She must have just brushed her teeth before coming downstairs.

"Plus," I said, "I was too wired to go back to sleep."

"Rough session?" Taking a few steps, she hopped up onto a clear span of countertop beside me. Sliding an elastic band off her wrist, she gathered up her hair and tied it up in a messy bun, watching me.

"Not overly. But I was talking to the AGM for Los Angeles on the way home and then I was pretty pumped so...here we are." I gestured to the food lining the counters. Waffles, thick cut bacon, whipped cream, strawberries and blueberries. And a bottle of real maple syrup, because my dad was Canadian and taught me the imitation shit didn't count.

"Oh." Her voice climbed in pitch, growing strained. "So the call went well?"

I could tell she was trying to sound excited, but there was something uneasy in her tone the minute the topic came up, same as the day I met her at Callingwood when we talked about it.

"It did."

The waffle iron beeped and I turned, removing the last cooked waffle and setting it on a plate. I switched off the iron and set down the white dish towel, taking a few steps to close the distance between us. I came to stand in front of where Bailey was perched on the counter, resting my hands on her thighs. She looked at me, her expression neutral in a way that seemed forced. Fortunately, or unfortunately, she wasn't good at concealing her feelings. Her eyelids fluttered as my fingers skimmed along her jawline. My hand stilled, gently holding her face.

"Are you worried about what will happen to us if I leave, James?"

"Kinda." Her eyes flashed with uncertainty. "Aren't you?"

"I guess I just figured we would make it work."

Maybe stupid of me to assume, but it didn't occur to me that there might be any alternative. I didn't really see her presence in my life as optional. Hopefully she felt the same way.

Bailey's forehead crinkled and her voice was quiet, like there was something she was leaving unsaid. "How?"

Good question. I hadn't thought through the specifics yet. I'd been too focused on all the things that would come before that. It didn't seem that hard—we could still visit each other when our schedules allowed, and we could talk all the time. Maybe I was being naïve, though, given that the vast majority of guys I knew who'd actually attempted long-distance said differently. I'd heard horror stories about everything from constant fights to cheating. One of my former teammates found out by seeing a picture of his girlfriend kissing another guy on Instagram. But I knew neither of us would do that. I liked to think none of those stories mattered. We weren't just anyone, right? That was my theory and I was sticking to it, anyway.

"Racking up lots of reward miles flying back and forth? FaceTime? Sheer stubbornness? You know I've got lots of the last one, it must count for something."

"Okay." She looked down at the counter and gave a one-shoulder shrug. I wasn't sure whether she didn't believe me about making it work—or didn't want to try. I sure hoped that choosing to leave early wasn't going to be the equivalent of signing a death warrant for our relationship. Maybe I was wrong about her not being able to hide her feelings because suddenly, I couldn't tell what was going through her head.

I raised my eyebrows, trying to read her face. "Unless you don't want to do that."

"No." Bailey shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut for a beat, reopening them. Her hazel eyes focused on me, still unreadable. It seemed like she had an invisible wall up. "I just...didn't know if you would. Long distance seems difficult."

"Who else is going to put up with me?" I reached over, smoothing my hands up and down her arms. Touching her may have been a mistake because now my mind was going in a different direction. Focus, Carter.

She bit back a smile. "Good point."

"Jokes aside, I would rather have you than not, no matter what that looks like. Why would we let a temporary situation ruin what we have? I want to be with you for a lot longer than the nine or ten months we would be apart."

There I go again, assuming we would end up together after. But she didn't object, so maybe I was on track.

Bailey nodded and I ducked my head, catching her eye. "We're endgame. Right?" My parents were crazy in love. I never thought I would find that until I met her. And now that I had, I was going to fight for it.

The tension in her body eased and I finally won a full, genuine smile. "You think?"

"I know it." I glanced down, checking the time. "If we're fast, we still might have time to get back in bed for a different reason."

Minutes later, I had enough food to feed a small army loaded onto my plate. Bailey sat across from me with a more reasonable quantity of food. But hey, at least she didn't judge me for eating the equivalent of three meals.

"Still going shopping with Siobhan?"

"Yup." Bailey speared a strawberry with her fork, topping it with whipped cream. "I have to work on that scholarship application first, though. It's due Monday and I'm almost finished. The process is killing me. It's so thorough. Essay, references, transcript review, and then if I make it to the final stage, I have to do an interview with an entire panel of people." She paused, mouth pulling into a tiny frown. "It's a long shot, anyway. I should stop talking about it. I don't want to jinx it."

I bit into a piece of bacon, swallowing. "I think you're going to get it." If anyone could, it would be her. She was great on paper, great in person, and had the grades. Obviously, I was a little biased, but even factoring that in, I was still pretty confident she would be in the top group of applicants.

Her lips tugged. "You're sweet, but not exactly objective."

"If there are that many hoops to jump through, I just don't think most other people stand a chance. I mean, have you met the average student?" Most of them were a lot more like me than her. Which, in this case, greatly worked in her favor.

"Here's to hoping," she said. "It's going to be a long day at the mall, I think. I have a feeling Shiv is a marathon shopper."

Spoiler alert: she was. Dallas told me numerous times. And the dude liked to shop, so if he was whining, you knew it has to be dire. Plus, back when Shiv stayed with us, she came home loaded with shopping bags more times than I could count. I tripped on them in the entryway frequently.

"Are you excited for the gala, though?"

"Yeah." Bailey nodded, then her lips pursed in thought. "Who's Ty's date, anyway?"

"This Zoe chick he's been spending time with lately. Says they're not dating, but they totally are."

It was pretty unusual for Ty to have a girl over more than once, much less on the regular. And bringing along a date? Literally unheard of. Especially factoring in the ticket price. He must like Zoe at least a little, though he still refused to admit it.

"Aww. That's cute."

"I think it'll be fun. It's a nice event and the food is always good. Plus, I'm going to have the hottest date there so, bonus." I paused, thinking back on last year's gala. "You didn't go with Morrison last year, right?"

"No." She scoffed a little, like there was a story behind that, but I didn't really want to ask. I was sure it involved him being a total and complete piece of shit, which was a given.

"I figured. I would have definitely remembered you."

Bailey gave me a crooked grin. "Would you have hit on me?"

Is ice cold? I mean, come on.

"The minute I saw you."

I wasn't just flattering her, either. That's what happened at XS, and that's what would have regardless of where I encountered her for the first time. Hell, I'd have hit on her at the doctor's office. With someone like her, you shoot your shot no matter what the setting.

"To piss off Luke?"

"No, because you're fucking hot."

"Ah. But your date probably wouldn't have appreciated that." She bit into her waffle, eyeing me teasingly.

"Who do you think you're talking to? I didn't bring a date," I said. "Ward and I went together."

At that point, Dallas hadn't met Siobhan yet. And until Bailey, I never liked a girl enough to want to bring them along as a date to that type of thing—or to any type of thing. The gala's $625 per head price tag further cemented that. Definitely wasn't letting Bailey know about that. I was pretty sure she'd faint. Or try to argue with me about paying. Didn't need to re-open the money issue.

"I'm sure you made a handsome couple."

"Obviously." I winked at her. "But it'll be more fun with you there. We just went last year to put in face time and support a good cause." It was always nice to see the old alumni from Boyd and to meet other players from the league, as well as coaches, managers, and other people in the industry. I pushed my chair back, returning to the counter to get more food.

"And to get drunk on premium liquor at the fancy open bar?"

"Who, me?" I scoffed, slathering butter onto a waffle and drenching it in syrup. "Never."

Bailey raised an eyebrow. She knew me too well. Pre-Bailey me spent every weekend—and many weekdays—getting obliterated. My liver was probably thankful I met her. And my lungs. My stats were better for it, too. I rallied pretty well before, but it was amazing the difference not being perpetually hungover made.

"Ward may have had to drag my drunk ass out of the Uber." I gave her a sheepish smile. "I won't do that this year."

Bailey looked at me over the top of her glass of orange juice and I could tell she was fighting back a grin. "I hope not. I don't think I'd be able to get you up the front steps. You'd end up sleeping in the yard."

"Don't worry, I want to be sober for what happens after the gala." I pulled out my chair, easing back into it across from her. Dammit. I really shouldn't have let my mind wander back in the direction the conversation was heading.

"What's that?" She leaned over the table expectantly.

"Dressy sex."

Her brow furrowed slightly. "What's dressy sex?"

"What it sounds like. Sex after we're all dressed up," I said. "Then I get to rip off your clothes and mess up your perfect hair and makeup."

"You have quite the brain."

"That's not where those ideas come from."

She laughed. "I know."

Killing myself all week to complete the scholarship application paid off and by the time Saturday morning rolled, I was finally done. Forms filled, essay completed, letters of reference obtained. I wasn't sure it was perfect, but at some point I had to pull the trigger and submit it rather than editing it for the umpteenth time.

As a reward for completing it, I'd decided to allow myself to deviate from budget just a little bit. After all, if I splurged on a dress for my disastrous birthday dinner with Luke, I figured I could justify buying something for the gala.

Before hitting the shops, Siobhan and I stopped by Starbucks for a requisite caffeine and sugar fix. We moved down to the counter at the end, waiting for our drinks. The barista slid my iced caramel macchiato across to me and we stood, waiting for Shiv's hazelnut latte.

"It's freezing outside," she said, nodding to my drink. "How are you possibly drinking something cold right now?"

"It just tastes better this way." I shrugged. Couldn't explain it, but it did. Cold caramel coffee trumped warm caramel coffee. I didn't make the rules.

"I don't get it." Siobhan shivered dramatically. "I practically need to carry around a personal space heater just to survive the winter."

"That's just the Florida in you," I said. "You'll adapt to winters here eventually."

She snorted. "Or freeze to death trying."

We collected our coffees and made our way out of Starbucks, into the mall. It had just opened when we arrived and it was already starting to fill in with weekend shoppers. I hated shopping with crowds—hated crowds in general, really—and I hoped we wouldn't be too long. Chase had led me to believe that probably wouldn't be the case, though. I had mentally prepared myself for the possibility that I'd be here all day.

"I know I said I wasn't going to buy anything, but I think I'm going to cave on that point."

Shiv turned to me, excitement across her face. "Really? Yes! I'm so pumped to look for something for you, too. It'll be way more fun if we're both trying stuff on."

I think we had slightly different definitions of fun. Finding clothes that fit properly and didn't make me look like even more of a giant was more challenging than what I'd consider fun. Especially items like dresses, which were somehow always hopelessly out of proportion in either length or width.

"But I have a strict budget," I said. "Like, hard stop. I can't go over that amount." I really shouldn't be spending any amount, but you only live once. Even if it means you live on a bargain basement food budget as a result.

Her blue-green eyes sparkled. "I love a challenge. This is what I live for. It's like a reality TV show where you have to compete to find the best deal."

I was glad she was excited about this prospect, because I found navigating the sales racks incredibly daunting.

Coming to a stop by the mall's directory, Siobhan scanned the list of stores, frowning in concentration.

"Okay, let's make a battle plan." She pointed to the screen, tracing out a path in the air with a well-manicured purple fingernail. "I think we should hit the department stores first. Find dresses. Then circle back and get shoes to go with."

"Sounds good. I need shoes, too." My monthly budget was going to be blown to bits, but I could re-wear both the shoes and the dress. Or at least, that's what I was going to tell myself. Repeatedly.

"To be fair, I don't know if I 'need' them. My parents might kill if they see another shoe store on the credit card statement. But Dal put in a request." Shiv huffed a laugh, raking a hand through her dark hair. "More specifically, he asked that I buy 'slutty' shoes."

I sipped my macchiato, trying to translate what she'd just said. "What does that even mean?"

"Probably a stiletto." She shrugged. "You know, fuck-me heels."

"That's a thing?" Now I was seriously questioning my own shoe wardrobe. Did I own said fuck-me heels? Did I want to? I wasn't sure on either count. I knew where Chase would stand on the second question, though.

Siobhan's cherry-red lips pulled into a bemused smile. "How are you this innocent? I thought Chase would have corrupted you by now."

"Oh, that's well underway."

She nodded behind me. "Let's start at Nordstrom and work our way over to Bloomingdales."

"I don't know, that sounds expensive." I sucked in a breath between my teeth, grimacing. I was pretty sure both of those options were decidedly well out of reach, price-wise.

"You're talking to the sales rack queen. Give me your budget and I'll deliver."

We began to navigate through the throngs of shoppers, over to Nordstrom on the east side of the mall. Siobhan glanced down at her navy Apple Watch, scrunching her face up in thought.

"By the way, are you...coming to the game against Callingwood next week?" She asked delicately. "I mean, it's totally fine if you don't want to. Just wondering if I should talk to some of the other girls so I have someone to sit with."

Walking into the department store, we headed to the escalators off to the back. "Yeah, I was planning on coming." And praying beforehand.

"Awesome." Siobhan drained the last of her mocha, tossing it into a garbage can as we passed by. "Moving out probably helped put a damper on some of that stuff. I'm sure it'll be less dramatic than last time, right?"

"Right." At least, I hoped that would be the case.