Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 121233 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 606(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121233 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 606(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
“I expect picks like that all season long,” Holden said, clapping me on the shoulder once we’d all made it back to the locker room. “Except next time, it better be run in for a touchdown.”
“Sir, yes, sir,” I shot back with a salute.
Holden smirked, tearing his damp, dirty jersey off and letting it drop to the floor before he tilted his chin at me. “You good?”
“Good.”
“Sure?”
I cracked my neck, giving him a look that I hoped told him what I wouldn’t voice out loud. No, I wasn’t good. Far from it. But I didn’t want to talk about it.
He just nodded, lips pressed together as he ran a hand back through his wet hair. “All you can do is focus on what you can control,” he said, almost to the ground or himself rather than to me.
I nodded, thankful that he wasn’t pushing it.
We finished undressing in silent, both of us dragging our asses to the ice baths before we took showers. By the end of it all, every muscle in my body was screaming in protest — just like it did at the end of every game. Four quarters of putting my muscles and bones and joints through hell never got easier. In fact, the older I got, the more talented I became? The bigger and badder guys I was facing on the field.
I couldn’t imagine what it would be like once I was facing off against the tanks in the NFL.
As I finally got re-dressed in my sweats and made my way out of the locker room, I promised the guys I’d see them at the party later tonight. I needed a nap before then, and maybe a few drinks to pre-game.
When I rounded out of the locker room and into the hall, a familiar laugh made me freeze in place.
Maliyah’s sing-song giggle floated down the hallway, wrapping itself around me like a warm, esophagus-crushing hug. I followed the sound of it like she was a siren, and I was a helpless sailor on tumultuous seas, only to find her leaning up against the wall a mere twenty yards away.
Kyle Robbins stood in front of her, his arm propped against the wall next to her head as his eyes ran the length of her. He edged in even closer, whispering something in her ear that made her blush and laugh again.
And I saw red.
My fists curled at my sides, jaw clenching so hard I nearly broke a tooth. I dropped my duffle bag to the floor, took two steps toward them with the intent to march right down there and break that motherfucker’s nose.
But two steps was as far as I got before Giana sprang into view.
She startled Kyle and Maliyah both when she sprinted past them, her curls bouncing, glasses sliding down the bridge of her nose with every step. But her turquoise eyes were trained on me, and I bent, ready to catch her before she even launched herself off the ground and into my arms.
Just like in the cafeteria, she wrapped her legs around my waist, breath whooshing out of her at the contact. Her arms threaded around my neck and my hands caught her ass — her bare ass under the skirt she wore. It was apparently something she hadn’t thought about before jumping, because shock washed over her, face paling at the feel of my warmth against her.
It lasted only a second, though, because in the next? She was kissing me.
Her mouth collided with mine almost hard enough to draw blood, and she fisted her hands in my hair still damp from the shower, writhing against me. A soft whimper vibrated through her as I held her tighter, and she was breathless when she finally pressed her hand into my chest and broke the kiss.
I heaved a breath, and her chest rose and fell in tandem with mine as I stared at her red, swollen lips. Slowly, my gaze lifted to hers, and those bright eyes shot wider.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, fixing her glasses. “I just, I saw them, and I saw you, and I thought—”
I cut off the rest of her words with my hand behind her head, guiding her into me for another bruising kiss. This time, I pinned her against the wall, and she gasped when my abdomen rubbed along her center.
Pressing my forehead to hers, I pulled back, rolling my lips together. “You’re picking up on this game quickly, Kitten.”
She flushed against a smile. “I’ve got a good coach.”
Someone cleared their throat, and Giana and I turned to find Zeke and Riley walking out of the locker room holding hands. Zeke hiked an eyebrow at where we were locked together, my waist between Giana’s thighs, and Riley blushed so hard she had to look down at the ground and away from us.