Maddox opens his mouth, probably to say something smart-assed, but Grayson beats him to it.“No.”
I narrow my gaze at him. “Be honest.”
“I am.” His mouth tips at one corner. “Keep going. This is fun.”
Maddox nods solemnly. “Honestly, I’m with him. Yell at the defense again.”
I stare at both of them. “You’re making fun of me.”
“Not even a little,” Grayson says, holding out his hand for me to get back up. I take it, watching him, and he… he doesn't even look like he's lying. He looks delighted, and to my absolute surprise,fond. I know that look. I've seen that look, but not pointed at me.
That might be worse than lust. I know how to handle Grayson's lust. Fond feels like a loaded weapon in his hands.
The giant screen above the field changes as the players reset, and the box around us lights up brighter.
Our faces are on the screen.
My stomach drops.“Oh my god.”
The camera has us dead center, no doubt because Grayson Sparkks is in the building and the universe hates me personally.
Maddox is already laughing, barely in frame on the screen. Somewhere below us, the crowd noise shifts into that unmistakable, delighted roar of people realizing what’s happening.
I don’t even need the giant pink heart graphics blooming around our heads to know we’re on kiss cam.
“No,” I say immediately, which would be a lot more convincing if I weren’t already laughing in horror.
The crowd gets louder.
Maddox pounds one fist against the glass, laughing. “Oh, you have to.”
Grayson shifts beside me, and before I can fully process what he's doing, he reaches for me.
My pulse goes feral.
I look up at him. “We really don’t have to do this.” I mean it, too. The last thing I want is to put him on the spot in front of a crowd that knows exactly who he is.
His arm wraps around my waist, the other coming up to cup my cheek. He leans down slightly, dark green eyes fixed on me. “Relax, sweetheart.”
His mouth meets mine, and it's not quick, not a joke, not a half-assed public display.He kisses me like he’s got something to prove to the entire stadium.
One second, I’m upright and blinking at him, and the next, he’s dipped me backward with his arm holding me up, the whole world tilting as the crowd absolutely loses its mind.
I make a startled sound against his mouth and grab at his shoulders on instinct. He just kisses me deeper, smiling a little into it like he knows exactly what this is doing to me.
When he finally pulls me back up, I'm ninety percent sure my face is on fire.
The screen cuts away a second later, the crowd moving on to whatever comes next, but I am still standing there staring at him like he's scrambled my mind.
Maddox is cackling.
“You—you bent me backward,” I stutter, blinking at him.
He shrugs, looking entirely too pleased with himself as he lets me go. “Wanted to.”
Heat climbs all the way to my scalp.
Maddox makes a sound like he’s watching live sports and reality television at the same time. “I’m so glad I came.”
