“Well, it was nice to live like a rich person for a few hours.” Patty threw a wistful glance backward.

“Those luxury suites are fantastic, aren’t they?” Heather said. “When they built the new stadium, they paid serious attention to the details.”

As they sailed down in the elevator and followed Heather through a labyrinth of hallways and doors, Dennis and Theo peppered the hostess with questions about the players and the stadium. By the time they reached the lounge, Heather and Theo were fast friends. Theo’s wide-eyed enthusiasm, combined with the good manners Patty insisted he learn, had that effect on people.

“Oh. My. God . . . goodness,” Dennis said as he halted and looked around the spacious room.

At first, Miranda didn’t understand what he was so impressed with. The carpet was blue, of course. The walls were decorated with photos of football players and the Empire logo. The sofas, chairs, and tables were standard high-end office furniture, also in the Empire’s blue with accents of gold. Clumps of people dotted the room. She could identify the players because they wore stylish suits or blazers and stood head and shoulders above the fans, most of whom were dressed in team jerseys and baseball caps. She scanned the crowd but could not find Luke. He must still be trapped in the locker room.

Dennis remained where he’d stopped. “I can’t believe the amount of talent in this room,” he said.

“Oh, so that’s why your mouth is hanging open,” Miranda teased.

“Dad, that’s Dante Rogers.” Theo pulled on his father’s hand. “Can we go meet him?”

“I’ll introduce you.” Heather started toward a gigantic man with magnificent dreadlocks.

“Go ahead,” Miranda said to Patty. “You know who these guys are. I would just embarrass myself.” She didn’t want to interfere with any true fans getting to talk to their favorite players.

Patty followed in Theo’s wake. Miranda smiled as the huge man grinned and bent down to scrawl his name on the little boy’s program. Dennis said something to him and they shook hands.

A charge of excitement ran through the room. Miranda glanced around to find Luke Archer walking in through the players’ door. His blond hair was still damp enough to show neat comb marks, and he wore a perfectly tailored charcoal gray suit with a white shirt and an Empire blue-and-gold tie. Miranda could barely catch her breath.

Half the fans abandoned the other players and surged toward him. A couple of men in dark suits stepped forward to flank him and control the crowd, much like the linemen who protected him on the field.

He chatted and signed several autographs before raising his head to sweep his gaze over the milling throng. When his attention seemed to lock on someone near Miranda, she turned to check behind her. There was no one else standing near her. As she swiveled back, she saw he was walking straight in her direction. He was coming to talk to her.

Her heart did a little cha-cha of excitement.

As he strode across the floor, several people tried to waylay him, but he just smiled, nodded, and kept walking until he stood in front of her. The air around him seemed to glow with energy, an energy that pulsed through her own body as he got closer. His minions had fallen back a pace and were subtly keeping the other fans away.

“I knew you’d look good in an Empire jersey,” he said, his dimple flashing. “Did you enjoy the suite?”

At the sight of his smile, Miranda’s mouth went dry, so she had to swallow before she could form words. “It was fantastic, but I enjoyed the game even more. Congratulations on your win!”

His response was automatic. “It was a team effort.” He looked around. “Is your nephew here? I wanted to make sure to say hello.”

“I’m here.” Theo slipped past the suited guardians and raced up to Luke. “You were awesome. I was afraid you were hurt.”

Luke knelt in a fluid motion so he was at eye level with Theo. The powerful athlete in his custom-tailored suit bringing himself down to look a small boy in the face socked Miranda somewhere right around her heart. “No, I just got the wind knocked out of me. Rodney D’Olaway has sharp elbows.” Luke winked. “And I can’t take all the credit. The whole team was awesome.”

“This is Theo Tate,” Miranda said to Luke. “I think he already knows your name.”

“Nice to meet you,” Theo said, belatedly holding out his hand. When Luke shook it, Theo looked down and said, “Wow, I just touched the hand you throw the football with. It’s cool that they let you shake hands. I mean, what if one of your opponents squeezed your fingers really hard on purpose?”

Luke chuckled. “Don’t suggest that to the Cowboys. They might try it.”

“Thank you for the football and the jersey,” Theo said. “Would you sign my program, too? I’m kind of collecting everyone’s name.”

“Sure thing.” Luke pulled a pen out of his breast pocket as Theo turned to the page with Luke’s photo on it. The quarterback signed his name legibly under his picture.

“Awesome,” Theo said. “I mean, thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” Luke gave the bill of Theo’s cap a friendly tap and rose to his spectacular height. Miranda caught a spark of warmth in his pale eyes. So he genuinely liked kids. Odd that he didn’t have any of his own. There must be thousands of women who would volunteer to have his babies. The heat dancing through her urged her to join the willing egg donors.