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It was a short drive to the small cafe, which only had a few other patrons at the late hour. James waited for Delilah in the parking lot before escorting her inside to their table. Tessa was sandwiched between Rich and Roman, and Carter sat at the end of the table. James held out a chair for Delilah before sitting beside her.

The guys picked apart the game as they waited for their food and Tessa and Delilah spoke across the table to each other. Tessa was polite and sweet, inquiring about how she came to be a dancer and having her own studio, and about how she and James met. She laughed as Delilah recounted the story of their first meeting.

"How did you meet James? You were neighbors, right?" Delilah asked as a waitress brought their food.

"Yeah, Tessa," Rich spoke up. "Who did you meet first? Was it love at first sight with Paul?"

James dropped his fork with a clatter and a muttered, embarrassed sorry to the table. Tessa caught his eye and the look she gave him reassured him and made his heart pound a little less in his chest.

"We were neighbors," she answered Delilah. "I lived in the house in between them. We met in passing once at a block party while I was married."

"You were married?" Rich interrupted.

"To a jack ass," James spoke up. "She kept me from kicking his ass more than once."

"It wouldn't have been good for your career to get arrested for beating up a dude when you were already running around kneeing guys unnecessarily," Tessa remarked. James frowned and the other men laughed.

"Anyway I met both of them in a short, fleeting moment and then several months later, while I was in the middle of my divorce, I met then again, when I went out for my paper one morning. James was coming across the bottom of my driveway to meet Paul, who was getting his paper, for breakfast and they invited me to join them."

"And you knew you were in love with Paul when exactly?” Rich asked, leaning towards her.

"In Minnesota that summer. It was April when we met and it was serious by May. I worked and didn't have summers off but I spent a week with him and met his family and some friends."

"It wasn't love at first sight?"

She laughed. "It was love at first something. I didn't go into it thinking it would be what it became. It was fun, and our relationship was different than what my marriage had been. I think I needed to go through the experiences we had to come out where we are now."

"Did you go to the Olympics?" Roman asked.

"I did. I wasn't going to; I was going to go to Cabo with James but he put me on a plane to Russia instead so I could surprise Paul. You played, right?"

Roman nodded proudly as Delilah squeezed James' hand. "That was sweet of you, to make sure Tessa was with Paul for something like that."

"It was where she was supposed to be," he answered. He shared a smile over the table with Tessa before continuing. "Paul wasn't sure about her going, because of the safety concerns, and I said she could go with me to Cabo, so she wouldn't be in Pittsburgh alone. As it got closer though, I knew Paul was wanting her to go so I got some help from another guy on our team who was also on the USA team and when we got to the airport, I gave her her ticket to Sochi instead."

"I guess since you were all neighbors that you and James were close as soon as you started dating Paul," Delilah remarked.

Rich snorted and James kicked him under the table. Tessa smiled as she answered. "James is a pain the ass, has been since day one. But he came with Paul, and he's not a bad guy to have in your corner when you need someone. He's honestly one of my best friends; he knows me as well as Paul does, probably better to be honest."

“That’s how Craig and I are. He’s the reason I even came to Nashville. He knew I needed a break so he offered me a free place to stay. And when I wanted to open a dance studio and teach, he helped me figure out how to make it happen.”

Talk shifted to the upcoming road trip and there was no more talk about James and Tessa for the rest of the meal. The guys all tossed their credit cards into a hat at the end of the meal to decide who was covering the bill and Carter ended up paying for everyone. Tessa headed outside with him and Roman, Rich trailing them.

Delilah and James exited the place last, James dragging his feet to soak up every second with her. He held her hand and walked her to her car and leaned her back against it to kiss her while the others shot catcalls in their direction.

"I'm glad you came tonight."

"Me too. I wasn't going to you know."

"Why not?"

"I went to the game Thursday night and you had already left by the time Daisy and I made it around to the locker room. So I went to your house, to surprise you. When Tessa answered your door, I freaked. That's why I lied and said I was sick yesterday when we saw you."

"I am so sorry, Delilah. You must hate me."

"Tessa explained it all. You're lucky to have her in your corner."

James glanced at his friend who was laughing with the other three guys. She looked up and waved at them with a smile. "Yeah, she's pretty great. Would you maybe want to go with me? To Tessa and Paul's wedding I mean."

"You want me to go with you?" She asked in surprise.

"If you want to. It's a small wedding, mostly just family and friends."

"I don't want to intrude on their day though."

"Technically it's their night. Paul plays that night and they're getting married after. And I know they won't mind."

"Can I think about it?"

"Of course. It's okay if you say no. I guess it is a lot since Tessa is my..." He stuttered. "Friend. I'm her man of honor."

"Her man of honor?" Delilah giggled.

"Mostly I think it's because I look great in a tux but Tess swears it's because I'm her best friend."

"I'm sure you'll do an admirable job. Are you planning her bachelorette party too?"

He made a face. "Eww! That's gross. No bachelorette party."

"I could help you, if you wanted to surprise her."

"Really? You would do that?"

"Tessa is sweet, and I can tell you care about her and Paul, you want them to be happy. Does she have any girlfriends in Pittsburgh?"

"There are a couple of the other wives she gets along with."

"It doesn't have to be a boozefest with male strippers. You can do classy."

"You can?"

"After you get back from the road trip, we'll talk." She hugged him and kissed his cheek. "You're gonna call me, right? Or at least text me once or twice."

He grinned. "I can do better than once or twice. You'll hear from me every day."

"I'll hold you to it then. Have fun with Tessa until she leaves. And please tell her how much I enjoyed meeting her."

"I will."

She called out a goodbye to the others and climbed into the drivers seat of her car. James held her door open until she was buckled. He waved at her as she pulled out of the parking lot before joining the others.

"You are so pussy whipped!" Rich crowed, slapping a hand to James' back.

"Shut up," James growled, shoving him back.

"Ooo, is someone sensitive?"

"Fuck you."

"I'm dead on my feet here," Tessa spoke up, touching James' arm. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah, come on. I'll see you guys at practice."

Tessa hugged the other three before climbing into James' sleek sports car. "You good?" She asked as they pulled away.

"Good," he replied.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Rich just pushes my buttons sometimes. Did you get enough to eat?"

"Yep. Soooo.... Delilah seems great. I like her."

"You approve?"

"Two thumbs up."

"I invited her to come to your wedding. She's gonna think about it. That's okay, right?"

"Of course."

The rest of the ride was quiet and as he let them into his house, Tessa told James she was going to bed. He nodded, telling her he'd be up after he took Nixon out. He called out for his dog who trotted happily to his side as James hooked a leash on him and took him out for a walk. He took a little longer than he normally would since his other walks since Tessa got to town had been shorter. When he returned home, he set Nixon loose in the house before heading up the stairs.

When he entered his bedroom, he found it empty. Venturing further inside, he found the bathroom door ajar and no Tessa. Doubling back, he noticed her suitcase missing also.

"Tess!" He called out as he walked into the hall. Light came from the doorway of the guest room and he walked there, filling the doorway. "Tess?"

She looked up at his confused expression and smiled. "Come sit down, James."

"Why are you in here?"

"Because Paul is right. We're highly inappropriate with each other."

"But we've always been this way; it's us."

"There isn't an us anymore," she replied gently. "That's the problem. We're so comfortable with one another, and so used to each other that we have zero boundaries. I shouldn't have shared a bed with you."

"But we didn't fuck."

"I'm engaged, and you're seeing someone. It's not right. And I shouldn't have paraded around in just your jersey the other night."

"I've seen you naked," he pointed out.

"But you don't see me naked anymore. That's all for Paul now and no one else."

"So what? We're not supposed to be friends anymore?"

"No, of course not! James, you're one of my best friends and I love you but I love Paul more, and I really think Delilah could be that for you. So I'm gonna sleep in here until I leave. And we definitely should not be getting undressed in front of each other."

"But it's not..."

Tessa cut him off. "I know it's not," she told him gently. "But when you get serious with a girl and she's living with you, are you going to have me over and just waltz in while I'm getting dressed like it isn't a big deal? Are Paul and I going to have you stay with us and you share our bed like old times? No. Because those times are over."

"It feels like you're saying everything we had was wrong."

"James," she said softly, reaching for his hand and scooting closer to him. "It wasn't wrong. You mean so much to me and the time we had together was amazing, and I hold it close to my heart. I wouldn't be where I am now without you. You set this whole thing in motion by feeling me up in my entryway, remember?"

He smiled at the memory. "I remember."

"You brought out a side of me I didn't even know I had, one that made me more confident and sure of what I wanted and who I am. Better than that though, you and Paul taught me to love again. My divorce was devastating to me, and I thought I was undesirable, unloveable even, but you showed me otherwise."

"You taught me to be a better man," James replied. "One that I want to live up to. I know you're right; it's just kind of all hitting me."

Tessa smiled and leaned in to kiss his cheek. "We have to learn to be just friends with each other when we're so used to being intimate with each other. Old habits die hard I suppose. We'll figure it out. First things first, we take a new selfie for my contact picture in your phone."

James laughed and hugged her before standing. "Put my jersey back on," he said before exiting the room. When he came back, phone in hand, Tessa was sitting in the middle of the bed with Nixon beside her. She laughed as he licked her face and James snapped a picture from the doorway with a grin. After he set the picture to her details, he looked up to find Tessa watching him.

"What?" He asked.

"I thought you were taking a picture."

"I already did." He walked over to show her the snap of her and Nixon. "This is how I want to think of you whenever you call." She yawned as she nodded and James whistled for the dog who jumped off the bed. "You need to go to sleep."

"Yes I do," Tessa yawned again. She pulled back the covers and slid under them. "Good night James."

"Good night Tess." He kissed her forehead lightly as Nixon jumped back up beside her and settled in. He pulled the door closed behind him and retreated to his room.