Perfectly us steel city.., p.39
Perfectly Us (Steel City Legacy Book 1),
p.39
I laugh as he jumps off me and runs over to help a bunch of guys douse Coach in Gatorade as the confetti starts to fall. Then Sophie runs up and takes a flying leap into Tyler’s arms, and Drew is swallowed up by a bunch of guys. They try to drag me in too, but there are only three people I want right now, and none of them wear a uniform.
I turn, scanning the growing crowd, trying to see through the falling confetti, the crush of players and coaches and media swarming the field. And then suddenly, the crowd parts and there they are.
Riley and Ethan stand on either side of Maddy, the three of them wearing my jersey and laughing as they walk onto the field. Maddy spots me first, beaming at me as she taps my kids and points, laughing again as they take off on a run. They slam into me, wrapping me in a three-way hug, tears burning my eyes as emotion crawls up my throat. My eyes meet Maddy’s, and hers are teary as she watches us, the love in her expression making my own tears spill over.
“I love you guys,” I say, my voice rough and ragged. “I love you so much. I’m so glad you’re here. That you got to see this.”
“Seriously, Dad, where else would we be?” Riley’s voice is full of sass.
“It’s the Super Bowl,” Ethan says matter-of-factly. “Why wouldn’t we be here?”
I laugh, hugging them for another minute, love and pride tangling together inside of me because there have been so many times over the last ten years when I’ve doubted myself and whether I alone could be what my kids needed, but standing here under the lights with confetti falling around us, I really feel like we did okay.
“Maddy, come here!” Ethan yells, and my heart takes flight when she grins, tears trickling down her cheeks and her red hair glowing under the stadium lights as she dashes our way, throwing herself at me. I hold her with one arm, Ethan with the other, and Maddy puts an arm around Riley. For a minute we stand there, wrapped up all together, just the way it’s supposed to be.
With my family in my arms, my control breaks, tears flowing down my cheeks as my emotions bubble over. I think of the last time I stood under the falling confetti, Lainey by my side and a newborn Riley in my arms. The Renegades haven’t won a Super Bowl since she died, and I like to think it’s not an accident that this year was our year.
The year Maddy came into my life. The year my kids and I got to call her ours.
I bend down, pressing a kiss to Maddy’s head, and it’s almost like I can hear Lainey’s bright, infectious laugh, the contagious humor in her voice. And I know, deep in my bones, that she would want this for me. For all four of us. Joy bubbles up, even as my tears continue to fall.
Eventually my kids drift away, laughing with my mom and tossing confetti with Drew and hugging Maddy’s parents and Tyler’s too as they all make their way down to the field.
And then it’s just Maddy and me, wrapped together, and it’s everything I ever wanted. Everything I hoped it would be.
“I’m so fucking proud of you,” she says, voice thick but full of joy. “I love you so damn much.”
I lean back, cupping her face in my hands and stroking my thumbs over her cheeks. “I love you,” I manage. “I love you so much, and there is no one on earth I would rather have with me in this moment than you. You are everything, Wildcat. You and my kids are my whole damn world, and I am going to spend the rest of my life making sure you know every single day how much I love you.”
Maddy grins, her arms tightening around my waist. “The rest of your life, huh?”
“The rest of my life,” I repeat, leaning in to kiss her. “I’m going to marry you,” I murmur, letting my lips drift down over her jaw. “I’m going to marry the shit out of you.”
When she laughs, my heart squeezes, and I’m so in love with her it fills every part of me. “It’s customary to ask someone to marry you before you go making proclamations like that.”
Leaning back, I look into her smiling face. “It’s really cliché to propose right after winning the Super Bowl. I’m more creative than that. Buckle up, Wildcat, because when I do ask you to marry me, it’s gonna knock your socks off.”
Maddy puts her hands on my shoulders and jumps, wrapping her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck, leaning in so our lips are inches apart, hers curving up in a smile. She has tear tracks down her cheeks and confetti in her hair, and she has never, ever looked more beautiful. “I’m counting on it, Cameron, because I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you, too.”
“My girl,” I murmur, stroking a hand over her face, making sure she’s real because I can’t believe this is my life.
I’m the luckiest fucking guy in the world.
And with that thought in my head and a smile on my face, I kiss my girl again as we start our forever.
COMING SOON
IRRESISTIBLY US
Steel City Legacy Series, Book 2
Tyler and Sophie’s story is coming
on June 5, 2026
Get Irresistibly Us
BOOKS BY SAMANTHA BRINN
LAWS OF YOU SERIES
Because of You
When I’m With You
Anything for You
It’s Always Been You
BOSTON HEARTS SERIES
Yours to Lose
Not Your Girl
Just My Type
Play the Game
THE STEEL CITY LEGACY SERIES
Merrily Us
(A Steel City Legacy Prequel Novella)
Perfectly Us
Irresistibly Us
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
WELCOME TO THE STEEL CITY BBs!!!
I can’t even tell you how excited I am for this book to finally be out in the world, and for all of us to delve into the second generation. Writing Maddy and Cam’s book was such a joy, and I am just so freaking grateful to all of you for being here.
To my readers, I say this every time, but there is no group of people more incredible than you. Thank you for taking a chance on me, and for sticking with me for TEN (holy hell how tf did that happen??) books. This has been such an incredible ride, and it would be absolutely nothing without you. You make this the most fun I have ever had, and I am so excited for everything that’s to come.
Grayce and Ginsa, the group chat continues to be my favorite place on earth. There is no way I could get through any part of this author life without you. I am so damn proud of both of you and everything you have accomplished this year, and I’m so excited for what’s next for all of us.
Tina, BOOK TEN HOW EVEN. No, but seriously, how? I feel so incredibly lucky to know you, to have you as a part of this ride, and to call you a friend. Thank you for being the best sounding board when life gets insane, for all of the WTF IS EVEN HAPPENING messages, and for your mad, mad editing skills. All of my books are better because you have a part in them, and I couldn’t do any of this without you.
Sariah and Chels, I don’t know how I got lucky enough to call both of you friends, but you’re never getting rid of me now. Thank you for being the best hype girls, travel partners, and all around best ever. I can’t wait for our big 2026 adventures. Here’s to many, many more pineapples on the beach!
Britt, Doppelgänger bestie, meeting you is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I am so glad that we finally got to have our big Boston meetup, and I’m manifesting so many more IRL times this year. Thank you for always being a voice note away, for being my biggest supporter, and just for being you. I am so, incredibly grateful for you and your friendship.
Tiffany, fellow lawyer/author, and alpha reader extraordinaire, I am so grateful for your friendship. Thank you for being my sanity through my Maddy and Cam-induced crash outs, and for reminding me a million times that this book was not, in fact, terrible. Looking forward to our Tennessee adventure!
Mudge, Literally everything about my life is better with you in it. Thank you for turning Sam’s Hype Squad into the best place on the internet, for being the best number one hype human, for loving all of my babies, and for turning me a person who loves fancy grilled cheese, hot honey, candle lamps, and Aerie pajamas. My life is exponentially better because of you.
Andi, Thank you so much for being the best beta reader and the greatest supporter and friend. Thank you so much for being a part of this ride, and for always yelling about my babies from the rooftops.
Mel, I continue to be absolutely blown away by your talent. Working with you over the last couple of years has been a joy and a dream, and I stand in complete awe of the art you made with the covers for this series. I am so grateful to know you, and I am so excited for everything that is coming next.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Samantha Brinn (Sam to everyone who knows her) is an author of sweet, spicy, and swoony contemporary romance novels. A Pittsburgh girl currently living in the suburbs of NYC, Sam stole her first romance novel off of her mom’s bookshelf at age thirteen and has read pretty much nothing but romance ever since. Her Kindle is basically an extension of her hand at this point.
A lawyer by day and author by night, Sam can most often be found in bed with her laptop and writing desk late into the night, having the time of her life writing words and weaving stories and grinning at her characters’ hijinks.
Aside from being a reader and a writer, Sam is a lover of French fries, Reese’s peanut butter cups, and diet Pepsi, and much like her debut FMC, she rarely makes her coffee the same way twice. A mom of two, Sam cosplays as an organized human, but at her core, she’s mostly chaos and prefers it that way, and is loving every second of this wild indie author ride.
Samantha Brinn, Perfectly Us (Steel City Legacy Book 1)
