FUMBLED PAST by Lauren Runow Reveal

 🏈 EXCERPT REVEAL 🏈

FUMBLED PAST by Lauren Runow is releasing February 9th!! 

Amazon pre-order: https://mybook.to/fumbledpast

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75559814-fumbled-past

EXCERPT:

Present

There’s Friday night lights, and then there’s McLoughlin High. My dad started this program with literally nothing and turned it into the most popular thing in town. They even had to install new bleachers after the mayor of the town was denied entrance one year because they were at capacity. 

I watch as all the high school kids hang around, waiting for the game to start. Memories of being their age flood my mind so wildly that I can’t help but smile. Growing up, I couldn’t wait to be them. Then, when I was them, I loved every minute. 

Being the head football coach’s daughter definitely had its perks of getting to be around most of the guys at the school anytime I wanted. Except for the fact that every guy was afraid of him, knowing if they broke my heart, he’d cut them from the team. He was serious about his football players but even more serious about his daughter, and he made it very clear that I was off-limits—to everyone. What he didn’t realize was that I got to hang out with all of them anyway since they were always at my house for him. 

It was all fun, growing up, and to say I had an awesome childhood would be an understatement even though I basically grew up without a mom. It was my dad and me against the world back then, and I was lucky to call him my dad.

My family and I walk toward the metal bleachers and head up the long ramp to where the seats are. The JV game doesn’t start for another twenty minutes, but already, the stands are packed. 

We make our way to the special spot they have reserved for our family. Since my husband’s mom still lives in town, she’ll be joining us here, too, closer to the start of the varsity game. 

Since it’s just her, she’s always come to visit us. At first, she used it as an excuse to go somewhere, but then, when we had kids, it was just easier for her to join us. I thought we’d get away with never having to come back, but here we are.

Tonight, we’re the guests of honor as the school commemorates twenty years since we lost my father. Though I lost my dad, the community lost an icon, and it truly is a blessing that, all these years later, they still want to honor his memory.

When I got the call from the principal of the school, asking us to come, I knew there was no way we could miss it even though we haven’t been back to our hometown since the day we decided to leave everything behind and start a new life together. 

Everything had felt so devastating when my father passed unexpectedly, but one night, one massive blowup, was all I needed to walk away for good.

And we did. 

My husband promised he’d take care of me if I left with him. I’ve never regretted my decision of choosing him over the other guy in my life—especially as I look at my three beautiful kids—but there’s always been a part of me, tucked deep in the back of my mind that wonders … 

What if …

What if I had chosen that other life?

What if I hadn’t taken his hand that day and said f*ck it to everything happening around me?

Find other books by Lauren Runow here: www.laurenrunow.com

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 ABOUT LAUREN RUNOW

"Love the Life you Live. Live the Life you Love."  ― Bob Marley

Lauren Runow is the author of multiple Adult Contemporary Romance novels, some more dirty than others. When Lauren isn't writing, you'll find her listening to music, at her local CrossFit, reading, or at the baseball field with her boys. Her only vice is coffee, and she swears it makes her a better mom!

Lauren is a graduate from the Academy of Art in San Francisco and is the founder and co-owner of the community magazine she and her husband publish. She is a proud Rotarian, helps run a local non-profit kids science museum, and was awarded Woman of the Year from Congressman Garamendi. She lives in Northern California with her husband and two sons.

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