Rush Me by Allison Parr

“I don’t even like the idea of engagement rings. His response rubbed me the wrong way, as though he thought every girl sat around dreaming of a chunk of rock. I think they’re ridiculous,” I shot back. He snorted, and when he spoke he sounded starkly skeptical. ” I hopped up and busied myself wiping down the table.

Did she worry about him every Sunday? “What about a relationship?” I asked. I thought about Malcolm’s would-be fiancée, the tall, beautiful woman from the pictures in his room.

“Couldn’t you find highs somewhere else?” “And isn’t that better than a life of mediocrity?” ” His face softened, his gaze going inward. And even with the lows, there’re all those highs. “How do you turn down the NFL?” he asked, not unkindly. Most guys don’t have endorsements, but they do have medical bills and families to take care of and lifestyles to pay off. “How can you go from a place like this to-nothing?” “Sixty-five percent of players retire with injuries. “You forgot the drugs, the depression, the stress on families and relationships.

He made a noise between a scoff and a snort.