The Last of White Dawn

Chapter 20: Jace

I turned and watched him jog off toward the packhouse. Just before he turned the corner, I saw his pace slow, he turned his head and looked back at me with a wave.

I turned to ask Jace about the man, but he cut me off before I could begin. "Aren't you getting comfy around here?" He chuckled, steering me back toward the middle of the field. "Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad thing; I was hoping you would. In fact," he wiggled his eyebrows as he looked down at me. "I was hoping you would join me and the kiddos for a game."

"A game?"

"Oh yes, my dear. It's practically a rite of passage," his smirk told me otherwise.

"I am a terrible football player," I blushed.

"Lexi, they're ten at the oldest. It's all for good fun," he rolled his eyes and tightened his grip on my shoulder. Leaning down close to my ear he whispered in his most sexy voice, "unless you want to make it interesting?"

"Beta! What are you suggesting?" I wiggled my brows playfully now. I could see his eyes lighting up with excitement.

"A wager of sorts."

"If my team wins?"

"What do you want princess? You can have anything."

"Hm," I playfully tapped my finger against my chin. "I wouldn't mind having the Beta be the one to give the toast at my birthday party."

He chuckled under his breath as we reached the playing field. "That sounds reasonable. Hey guys! Lexi will be joining us for the next match as the blue team goalie!" He shouted to the children. Most of them just stared at me at first, but after a moment of sizing me up, they agreed and rushed me over toward the goalpost.

"You never said what you get!" I shouted back to Jace who just offered me a smirk.

"Find out the hard way!"

The pups on my team huddled around me once I was settled in the net. They talked about tackling, dodging, and passing with excitement. Before I could fully grasp the plan, the children went shooting off in every direction. The ball was thrown into middle field and the game began.

After the first half, I discovered I was much more fond of watching the game play out from the safety of my window. The other pups, with red little jerseys on, had already scored three times and were only more encouraged each and every time the ball got close. Not to mention, Jace was clapping, cheering, and smirking from the other end of the field. Each huddle, I tried to pay closer attention so I could be more prepared for what could go wrong. And each huddle on the other end of the field, Jace's face became more intense as he coached the pups through complex movements.

By the end of the game, I was spent, covered in grass stains but filled with pride as I had managed to only allow one more goal slip past me. The kids seemed more than happy even with losing the game. They all ran around, swapping jerseys and talking about their most awesome moves from the game. I watched as they all filtered off toward the sidelines to fetch their water bottles, granola bars, and the classic orange slices.

I sighed and wiped the sweat that had formed on my forehead off on my undershirt. As I turned back toward the field, there stood Jace, his hands shoved into his pockets with his shoulders tensed. His teasing eyes were looking down at his feet, casually kicking at a misplaced piece of grass. When he dared to look up, his devilish smile had reappeared.

"I guess this means I win," he chuckled. I resisted the urge to throw a solid punch at him. Instead, I sigh and shake my head in embarrassment.

"I guess you do, but you never did tell me what you wanted if you won."