A smile breaks out across my face as we meet in the middle. Having her at work with me every day is going to be an adjustment, but I’d rather it be her than anyone else. I like to think I’m easy to coach, but I know I can be stubborn. Peyton won’t take that shit from me. She’ll happily put me in my place and not think twice about it.
I put the car into drive and pull back onto the main road. We drive for a while, listening to sports talk radio, which I have to say, with Peyton is never fun. She yells back at whoever is hosting, pointing out how wrong, and sometimes how right, they are. And will go as far as to throw her hands up in the air when she’s completely frustrated. It’s comical, and her antics will undoubtedly make the ESPN highlight reel.
She’s going to have to let the stations down easily though. The last thing she wants to do is burn bridges. While she might like working for the Pioneers, broadcasting is what she went to school for, and I’d hate to see her pass up a future opportunity.
“I spoke with Maggie today. She says you asked Alex to be in the wedding?”
“Sort of. It was more like Alex asking who my best man was and when I told him it was Quinn, he said he was okay with that and preferred walking all the women to their seats. I couldn’t really tell him no at that point. Is that okay?”
“It’s your wedding too, Noah. Of course, it’s okay. I suppose we should figure out the rest of the party though.”
“We should have a massive reception.”
“Doable. Our families do like to party.”
“That they do,” I say as I turn into a parking lot. Peyton’s never been here, but I’ve talked to her about it. We’re at the top of Portland, overlooking the city. The sun is setting, making this moment just about perfect.
I get out of the car, rush to her side, and take her hand in mine. Together, we walk to the edge. With me standing behind her, I wrap her in my arms. “This is our city, Peyton. From here, we can see everything.”
“It’s gorgeous, Noah.”
We stand there for a while, me holding her. I want to tell her how much I love her, thank her for
being my constant, my go-to, for being my best friend. I need to apologize for being a jerk to her for weeks on end, for avoiding the elephant in the room, for likely making her feel as if she’s done something wrong. It’s a Westbury trait, getting inside your own head, and it takes a really strong woman to help us see the error of our ways. That’s what Peyton did for me today when she showed up at practice. If she hadn’t, I don’t know where I’d be right now, probably wandering around aimlessly downtown, waiting for her to go to bed because I was too ashamed to face her with what I had done.
Peyton turns her head slightly to look up at me. I lean down and kiss the tip of her nose. “What’s on your mind?” I ask her.
“I’m really happy, Noah.”
“I am too, babe.”
“Then why have you been ignoring me for the past few weeks?”
I go to step back, but she holds on to my arms, digging her nails into my flesh.
“Don’t,” she says. “Don’t move, turn, walk or think about leaving until you tell me why. Is it because of the Rams?”
My head moves slowly up and down. “I got scared, Peyton. I thought I was going to lose everything and you at the same time.”
“How do you think I felt?”
“Probably the same as me. But the only way I knew how to cope with it was to work my ass off. I wanted everyone to see how committed I was to the team. I showed up at the facility before it opened and was there when the janitor locked up at night.”
“So, you weren’t waiting until I turned out the lights and was asleep before you came in?”
I lean back and look at her. “What? Hell no. I’d much rather be with you, but I didn’t, still don’t, want to lose my job.”
Peyton looks down and lessens her grip on my arms. As gently as possible, I lift her chin until her eyes are meeting mine. “What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”
“I thought you were avoiding me because of the Rams. It’s why I came out to see you today.”
“My beautiful, silly girl. You are perfect. You’re the love of my life. There isn’t anything you could do to make me walk away from you. Ever.”
“I’m sorry about the Rams, about everything.”
“Don’t. Don’t apologize for their arrogance. I love you, Peyton, and no job will ever change that.”
11