doesn’t know what this little nap did for me. Or my thoughts about her.
“We were up late,” Reese tells her mom.
“I see. Well, what are you two getting into today?” Eve asks.
“Nothing,” Reese answers. “Not a single thing.”
Eve chuckles. “Enjoy the break. Cooper, you ready for the big game?”
“You know it. We’re bringing home a win,” I tell her.
“We’re cheering for you. I got my jersey packed and ready,” Eve assures me.
“You guys are coming?” I don’t know why I’m surprised; they’ve always supported me.
“Of course, we are.”
“No pressure,” I say, and all three ladies in my life laugh.
“You know you’re going to kill it out there,” Reese says. “You’ve been on fire all season.”
“She’s right,” Mom chimes in.
“Reese, I sent you a package today. Great Aunt Edna made you a sweater,” Eve says, barely holding in her laughter.
“I wonder how big this one will be?” I muse.
“She does know I’m an adult now, right?” Reese asks her mom.
“Come on, Reese’s Pieces. You should be flattered.”
“It was for a toddler, Coop. In fact, I’m not sure even a toddler could fit into that thing.”
“She was so mad when you didn’t send her a picture of you wearing it,” Eve comments.
“Yeah, Reese. You’ll have to model it. Eve, I’ll take the picture myself,” I offer, because it’s sure to be a good laugh, but also, seeing Reese in a skimpy state of undress is high on my list of priorities all of a sudden.
“Perfect. Reese, you can take Cooper’s too,” Eve says, throwing me off guard.
“What does that mean?” I groan.
“Aunt Edna made one for you too.”
“Dear God, can we just tell her that it got lost in the mail?” I ask.
“Cooper,” Reese scolds me. “Is that any way to treat poor Great Aunt Edna’s gift? You will try it on, and I will make sure she gets those pictures.”
Our moms laugh. “Let me know when you get it,” Eve tells Reese. “You kids have fun. We need to go, or we’re going to be late for our pedicures. Love you both,” Eve says.
“Love you both,” Mom echoes, and the line goes dead.
“This is going to be good.” Reese grins.
Reaching over, I tickle her side. “Yeah? You think this is funny? Just wait, I’m framing yours,” I say through her laughter.
“S-Stop. I’m g-gonna pee.” She laughs. Her cute little button nose is scrunched up just like it always does when she’s laughing. It’s a look that I’ve seen often, and one of her best. I love to see her happy.
I move to get a better angle, which has me staring down at her. That’s the moment my bedroom door opens. Nixon and Tessa stand there with weird expressions on their faces.
“T-Tess,” Reese splutters. “H-Help me.”
“You’re on your own, girl. I ain’t trying to be a part of all that.” I look over my shoulder to find Tessa waving her arm in the air toward the bed, where Reese and I are currently having a tickle fest just like we used to when we were kids.
“Mercy?” I ask her.
“Y-Yes.”
“And no pictures to send to Aunt Edna.”
“Y-Yes. Fine.” She gasps for air.
I relent, pulling my hands from her body, and she jolts to action and rushes out the door. Thankfully, Nixon and Tessa jump out of the way to let her through.
Nixon shakes his head while Tessa gives me a knowing look with a smile a mile wide. “We’re going downstairs to watch a movie and order pizza. Just wanted to let you guys know.”
“Thanks, we’ll be right down.”
Tessa’s eyes sparkle. “Take your time. We can wait.” With that, she tugs on Nixon’s arm and pulls him out of my room, down the hall. Their footsteps grow faint as they descend the stairs.
A few minutes later, Reese is back. Her face is flushed, her hair is a mess, and her smile is not only wide but genuine. That’s just Reese. “Where’d they go?” she asks.
“Downstairs. Movies and pizza?” I ask.
“It’s like you read my mind.” She walks to my closet and pulls out one of my CU hoodies. It has my last name and number printed on the back. I wait for her to slip it over her head and then follow her downstairs.
As I walk behind her, I can’t hide my smile. It’s not the first hoodie of mine that she’s confiscated, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. This time though, it feels different. Seeing her wearing my name and number, it’s not new. No, she’s done this since we