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 couldn’t — not when she was asking me for help.
Swallowing, I reached behind her and flicked on the light. We both blinked at the brightness, but then her Caribbean-blue eyes locked on mine, her breath just as shallow as it was when she dragged me in here.
But she didn’t waver.
She didn’t cower our back down. She didn’t shy away. She didn’t take it back. She looked me right in the eye and asked again, silently, for me to be the one to take something I knew was more precious to a woman than I would ever understand as a man.
I rolled my lips together.
And then, I nodded.
Her relieved sigh came like her first breath after being underwater for years. She threw her arms around my neck, and I closed my eyes as I caught her, warning zipping down my spine like an electric shock.
“Really?!” she squealed, squeezing me tighter. “Thank you, Clay. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
I just buried my face in her neck where I held her, hoping like hell she knew better than I did what we both could handle. It was more disbelief than anything else that washed over me the longer we stood in that embrace.
I’d agreed.
I was going to take her virginity.
Against every obvious red flag telling me this was a bad idea, I couldn’t say no.
Somewhere deep inside me, that wild creature I’d tried so hard to tame smiled in victory…
And anticipation.
Clay
Our first away game was against the South Vermont University Vikings, and we clobbered them.
The field was a rainy mess from the time we jogged out onto it for warm-ups, our cleats and uniforms both covered completely in mud by the end of the first quarter. My knees ached from sprinting in the conditions, and my left ankle felt worse from all the sliding around than when I’d broken it in the sixth grade.
Still, the entire squad had been on fire, showcasing yet again that we were a team to contend with this season. After our bowl win last year, we had a lot of eyes on us — and now, we were two and zero, and had just defeated a team we barely scraped out a win against last year by more than twenty points.
“Um, excuse me,” Riley said, jogging up beside me after a post-game interview on the field. Her hair was soaked, dripping down over her shoulders and in her eyes as she hung her hands on her hips and glared up at me. “Do my three successful field goals not deserve a shoulder ride into the locker room?”
I grinned, reaching for her slight hips and easily helping her climb up. She saddled my shoulders, hands gripping mine as I stood before she lifted them in the air and started chanting one of our team cheers. Player after player filed in around her, joining in, and I ran her through the crowd for high-fives on our way toward the tunnel.
She laughed and squealed with every sliding step I took until I carefully placed her back on the ground once we were inside the stadium. As soon as I did, Zeke swept her up in a hug from behind.
“Nice pick out there, Johnson,” he said, and I clapped his hand when he held it up for mine.
“Next time it’ll be a touchdown. Mark my words,” I promised.
“I have no doubts.” He paused, giving Riley a look that apparently told her to get lost, because she made some excuse about needing to talk to Coach before she disappeared down the hall.
Zeke turned back to me.
“So,” he said. “How are things going with Giana?”
I smirked. “Nosy much?”
“Like you weren’t the same with me and Riley last year,” he shot back, deadpan.
“That was different. Giana and I are great. And not denying our feelings for each other like you two were.”
Something in my stomach rolled when I said those words, but I ignored it, throwing my arm around Zeke’s shoulders.
“Why are you so concerned?”
He sighed. “I don’t know, man. Giana is a nice girl. I… don’t take this the wrong way… I wanted to make sure she wasn’t just some sort of rebound.”
I cracked my neck, removing my arm from around him as Holden’s warning came back to memory. “Why is everyone assuming that’s what she is?”
“Because you were devastated over Maliyah breaking up with you like, a month ago, and now you’re making out with Giana every chance you get.”
“She’s hot. And fun to make out with. And my girlfriend,” I said. “I’m confused as to why this is such an issue for everyone to accept.”
“You’re right,” Zeke said, holding up his hands in surrender. “I’m sorry, man. I shouldn’t have assumed. I’m glad to see you doing so well, honestly. I was worried there at the start of the season.”
“You weren’t the only one,” I confessed, and as we rounded the corner toward the locker room, we were met by a dozen giggling cheerleaders.