Epilogue

JACKSON

Even with all our hard work, we didn’t make it to the Super Bowl. It was a disappointment, but Coach told us that it would be ours next year. Another team surprised us with a win and as close as the Super Bowl was that was all it took.

The team traveled to California to watch the game in a large box, thanks to Coach. There was an open bar and catered food just outside of the room, so I couldn’t find much to complain about. We mingled with everybody and Emma held onto me as she watched the game. I smiled at her and she looked at me with bright eyes.

I slipped my hand into my pocket and kissed her hair. We’d been doing great through the rest of the season, and I looked around at my team and friends, laughing and having a good time. I wished that I was out there playing but I watched the game and thought about the time that it would be us. We had time for that. I had a whole future to plan and all this was going to be a part of it.

The halftime show began, and Bella, Emma and Willow started dancing, raising their hands in the air and singing along. Emma was finally comfortable with the team and the cheerleaders and making friends fast. Some of the other girls joined them and I shared a look with Greg and Nick as I sipped my beer. Greg had brought Willow with him for the weekend as I thought it would be a great time for Emma’s oldest friend to join us. Greg rolled his eyes just like he used to when we were younger, and Emma started acting up. She was always singing and dancing like a kid once she got comfortable with me, but she was still so shy at school. I looked again at Emma and smiled as she bumped her hip against Bella.

Emma had really grown into herself over the past couple of months. She’d received top marks on her engineering courses and her future looked bright. I was proud of her.

The show ended and the girls all cheered and went to get another drink. I pushed forward with the guys to watch the action on the field as the teams started playing again. It was an even game, and I clenched my fist as Dallas moved ahead, calling out a play as they moved just like I expected them to. The camera panned around, and I noticed that it was zoomed in on our box as the announcers discussed something. Emma came to stand by me, gasping as Greg kissed Bella for the world to see, pulling her against him as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

“I knew it!” I said.

I’d sensed something brewing between them, but they were subtle before this. Maybe it was the booze or the atmosphere, but they were out in the open now. I wrapped an arm around Emma and leaned down to kiss her as she smiled against my lips.

“I love you,” she whispered into my ear as my heart began to pound. We finished watching the game, and I felt something inside as Dallas won and converged in the middle of the field. There was confetti and players everywhere as the coaches met and shook hands while the cameras surrounded them.

“I want it to be us,” I said softly as Emma gave me a smile, kissing my cheek.

“It will be. Just you wait and see.”

She returned her attention to the activity below us, not noticing as I moved slightly away and took a deep breath. I dropped to one knee as the guys moved back to give me room as everything went silent in the box. Emma glanced around to see everyone staring at her before she looked at me.

“Jackson?”

Her voice was soft, and I smiled up at her as I reached my hand into my pocket.

“I want the championship someday, Emma. But now, with you, I feel like I won the best prize of all. I’ve loved you for longer than I should admit to and I’ve watched you grow into a beautiful, vibrant woman. That day you showed up to my apartment, I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. I knew that I couldn’t hold back for much longer.” I licked my lips as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“I love you, Emma. I want you in my life, so you can see where this road ends. I need you here with me to feel complete. I want to give you everything, baby. Will you be my wife?”

Emma dropped to her knees and wrapped her arms around me tightly. “I’ve dreamed of this moment,” she whispered as I breathed in her sweet scent, never wanting her to not be a part of my life.

“So have I,” I promised her as she pulled away to look at me. “Will you marry me, Emma?”

“Yes, yes, yes,” she said before kissing me. I held her tight as our lips crashed together before she seemed to remember where we were and she blushed.

I pulled a ring from deep in my pocket and asked for her hand. Emma gave it to me and I slipped the ring on her finger as her eyes widened. I had picked a ring with a round diamond with smaller ones beside it that had a vintage feel to it. It was perfect for Emma’s old soul and she covered her mouth with her other hand as she stared at the shimmering stones.

“It’s beautiful.”

“Not nearly as beautiful as you are,” I assured her as she blinked at me, sniffling. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, Jackson. I can’t wait to be your wife.” Emma kissed me softly, and I finally made my way to my feet and pulled her up. Willow attacked her in a tight hug as she spoke incoherently, and I smiled at them. Bella was jumping up and down and clapping her hands. Greg stepped forward to shake my hand, welcoming me to the family before he said that he recorded the proposal for his parents. The other guys did the same, shaking my hand and clapping me on the back as Emma showed her ring off to the girls. I watched her, knowing now that she was mine forever.

We took the party to a local bar, and I danced with Emma. She was over the moon and pressed her lips to my neck as we moved to the song.

“I’m so happy, Jackson. You’ve made all my dreams come true.”

“We’re going to be happy,” I promised her as I stroked her back gently. We’d bought a house last week, a large three-bedroom that would be a perfect starter home. It offered more space than the apartment and Emma loved planning on how to decorate it. My favorite part about it was the pictures she had already started to frame. They went back into our long shared history and always made me feel good when I looked at them. They made me feel at home. I was looking forward to breaking every room in with her and tonight, I had something special set up in our hotel room.

We headed there after a couple of hours at the bar and I unlocked the door as Emma stared at her ring again. I let her in first and she walked into the suite before stopping in front of me.

“What did you do, Jackson?”

The bed was covered in red rose petals and I ordered a few bouquets from a local florist that were placed on the nightstands and tables. There was a bottle of Champagne chilling by the bed.

She turned to kiss me, and I pulled her against me, deepening it. I couldn’t wait to make love to her as my fiancée and we tore our clothes off and stumbled to the bed. Emma laughed as she dropped down over the soft flowers and I pushed her back to kiss her hungrily. I lingered on her mouth, savoring the taste as love washed over me.

I never met a woman who I wanted a future with. I’d never been with anyone more than a handful of weeks, but Emma meant everything to me. I could look back and see that I always cared for her deeply, but it came across as a big brother type of feeling in the earlier days. It needed to be then but now we were both adults and we could make our own choices and better yet, do it with support from family.

I kissed her hard, hoping to convey these feelings to her. I could tell her that I loved her over and over and it still wouldn’t be enough. Emma made me want to fight to survive and do more than football. I wanted marriage and a family.

Our kisses were heated, but I pulled away and moved to kiss the soft skin underneath her ear and down her neck. Emma whimpered as I teased her mercilessly, holding my body over hers as I used my mouth on her. Once she was close to begging me, I kept kissing down her stomach and between her thighs where I found her soaked and sweet. I licked her folds slowly as I spread her legs, moving to suck her clit between my teeth.

Emma came for me as I pressed my mouth against her to drink her in. She gripped my hair as she writhed against me, giving herself to me completely. I pulled away and crawled over her to settle between her legs, positioning myself in front of her.

“I’m going to give you a baby when we get married, Emma. I’ll give you twenty if you want. Think how that would be.”

Her eyes sparkled as I slid inside her and filled her tight entrance. Emma cried out as I moved, arching her back as she gripped my shoulders. We made love fiercely as I told her how much I loved her, how much I was looking forward to our future.

We passed out naked and intertwined together under the sheet, too exhausted to move. I wanted it to always feel like this and I wondered how to accomplish that once we had a family and a different life. I knew that we would make it because we’d been through a lot already as different people in another kind of relationship.

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Thank you so much to my two beta readers, Lesli and Misty. You both were wonderful!

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Thank you for reading Overprotected. I hope you enjoyed it.

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