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“It’s too many.” He let out an exhausted sigh, tucking my body into the hard curves of his.
“What time is it?”
“Six thirty.”
“Crap.” My eyes flickered open. “I was only supposed to have a twenty-minute power nap.”
“Long day?” he asked, nuzzling my neck again. I loved it, the feel of Jase’s five o’clock shadow rough against my soft skin, his arms wrapped possessively around my body as if he might never let me go.
And I didn’t want him to.
This guy owned my heart and soul and I didn’t ever want it back.
“Yeah,” I admitted. It was only two weeks into the semester and classes were already kicking my ass. I shuddered to think how intense things would get in junior year once clinical practice started.
“You’ve got this, babe.” Jason nibbled my earlobe sending volts of electricity shooting through me. “You just need to believe in yourself.”
“I actually signed up for some extra tutoring.”
“You did?” I felt him tense behind me.
“I almost failed last year, Jason.” My brows furrowed, disappointment sitting heavy in my chest.
“But you didn’t,” he reminded me.
“No, but this year is only going to get harder.”
I thought my love of animals, dedication to animal welfare, and determination to succeed was enough. Turns out, it wasn’t.
“Hey.” Jason shuffled us so that I was on my back and he was leaning over me. “You’ve got this.” He slid his fingers into my unruly curls and kissed me, his tongue curling around mine, stirring my body to life.
“I have some news too,” he breathed the words against my lips.
“Tell me.” I cupped his face, pushing his away gently so I could look into his eyes.
“Linc had an accident. He’s out for the season.”
“Oh God, Jason, that’s awful.” Lincoln had really taken Jase under his wing last year, so I knew how hard this would hit him.
“That’s not all...” He hesitated, a flash of fear streaking across his eyes. “Coach wants me to be captain. He thinks I’m ready.”
“Jason...” I smiled so wide my cheeks hurt. “That’s amazing. I’m so freakin’ proud of you.” I slung my arms around his neck and crushed him to me, peppering his face in sloppy kisses. “My boyfriend, QB One and captain of the Penn Quakers.”
But he didn’t revel in my excitement. He was still and quiet.
Too quiet.
“Jase?” I held him at arm’s length. “What is it?”
“What if I’m not ready? What if I screw it up? Fuck, you should have seen the way they were all looking at me. As if I had the answers, the power to make things happen.”
“Babe, listen to me and listen good. You, Jason Ford, are one of the best quarterbacks in the country right now. You came into a well-established team and proved yourself in your freshman year. You ranked third for the most passing yards in a single season.” Pride flooded me. “Third, babe. That’s huge. Not to mention the fact you blew the Quakers passing yards record out of the water.”
Jason was already in the Penn Quaker Hall of Fame; he’d already made Quaker history. But with that kind of accolade came the pressure to always do more, to constantly be better.
“You’ve got this, Jason,” I said with complete conviction, ignoring the niggle of doubt that this was going to take my boyfriend away from me even more than football already had.
Didn’t captains have to spend more time with the coach, watching game footage and devising plays? And then there would be the rest of the team. The captain was a leader, a father figure, the guy everyone went to when they needed an ear to listen or a shoulder to lean on.
