The Crush (The Wolves: A Football Dynasty, #3)

by Karla Sorensen

She liked me. More than liked me, at the time. And I hadn’t given us a chance to see what that could become. It would’ve been something, of that I’d always been sure. Because I liked her too. But sitting in the hospital waiting room, with that inkling of an idea tugging at the back of my mind, I started realizing the enormity of what that something could have become. Back then, there was no way for me to see it. But I did now. It would have been the start of a life. One step forward with her, all those years ago, and it would have snapped something foundational into place.

My stomach flipped uncomfortably. But we were different. Adaline and me. We had history. She knew me, knew my family, and once upon a time, looked at me like I was the missing puzzle piece. She hadn’t done that in a long time. Because of me and how I’d brushed her aside.

he still taught me a lesson that I hadn’t quite learned until it was too late. It was impossible to force someone to make you a priority. It was impossible to make someone feel the same way you did. And it was impossible to force the stars to align when the timing wasn’t right.

One of the things I couldn’t change—especially after that night—was that I was in love with Emmett Ward. And I didn’t know what to do about it.

“I am in love with you, Adaline Wilder. And if it is within my power to give you what you want, I’ll do it.” Tears spilled over my cheeks, quiet and steady, and he wrapped me in his arms again. “I wish this was easier,” I whispered. “It should be easier to be with the person you want.”