Your choice to celebrate solo but just FYI, my burger-eating skillz are quite sexy. It’s on you if the boys start fighting over me.
Then:Protect Grey from himself and come. I don’t want to break his face or my best friend’s heart just because I’m trying to eat my dinner.
Outside the locker room is the rapidly cooling night—my wet hair immediately plastered to my face by a breeze.Who’s saying Nick would win that fight?
Addie doesn’t waste half a second in coming up with a response—as quick in life as she is on the field or court.
Nick plows people into the ground every day, don’t think he won’t go all linebacker in the name of Adeline McAndry.
Are the boys standing there watching you type War and Peace?
Yeah, and they like it. But I’m hungry, so hurry the hell up.
Two seconds.
I fire off a text to Ryan to make sure he’s already gotten a ride home, and one to Mom, letting her know I’m with Addie, before rounding the corner to the parking lot.
The boys and Addie are holding court in front of my car, all of them just showered and in street clothes. In Addie’s case, she’s doffed her Windsor Prep uniform for black leggings and a stretchy shirt that her mom would incinerate on sight if she knew it existed.
Addie groans. “Two seconds? That wasthree minutes. A hellacious eternity when we’re talking carbs. Come on—less talking, more driving. You’re chauffeur number two.”
I give her a salute and unlock Helena the Honda. Greydrops into the passenger seat and I’m still putting on my seat belt when Addie burns rubber out of the parking lot.
“Hey.” Grey’s fingers graze my cheek as I put the keys in the ignition. There’s a softness in the hard-edge planes of his face as he leans in without a response, lips pressing against mine, warm and wanting. I sink into him, the ignition dinging despite time standing still.
When he finally pulls away, it’s a struggle to open my eyes, they’re so heavy. I must look like a used candle—my features melty and warm.
“I wanted to do that all day.” He winks. “But there’s no kissing in football.”
I swallow and compose an answer, lips numb with heat. “Ah, yes, just as iconic a phrase as ‘there’s no crying in baseball.’”
“I’m sure Tom Hanks said it at some point.”
“That is the definition of iconic,” I say, grinning. “But… I mean, really, is there any reason we can’t kiss in football?”
Grey runs a hand through his just-washed hair. “Well, no. I just don’t want the coaches to freak. Team chemistry and all that.”
That’s a thing or two I know about—heck, it’s part of the reason I’m in this situation to begin with. And so I nod, though I’m not totally sure what I think about when and where wecankiss.
I press on the gas and Grey places his hand on my knee. It’s all I can do to keep from gunning it into traffic.
“I’m glad your dad caved, by the way.”
I smile at him. “Me too.”
By the time we get to the restaurant, Addie and Nick are waiting for us outside, looking like a painting in the broad brushstrokes of sunset. They’re so into each other, they don’t realize we’re coming their way until the last second, when Nick catches Grey’s eye as he’s nuzzling Addie’s cheek.
“If it isn’t the starter and the spare.” Nick says it as a joke. As if we hadn’t seen each other ten minutes ago.
“Dude, don’t call my girl a ‘spare.’”
My heart stumbles in my chest as Grey half laughs.My girl. Starter.
Nick laughs, and it’s not half. “You’re the spare, Worthington. Haven’t you seen the clipboard?” When it’s clear he hasn’t, Nick’s ears flush. His next words come more quietly. “Liv starts Friday.”
I want to demur. To squeak out an “I do?”… but I can’t. I know it’s true. Nick knows it’s true. I can justify ignoring it for the past few hours, but outright lying now would be a huge mistake.
And I’m done lying to people I care about.
