Lots of smartass comments pop in my head, but I bite my tongue and keep my opinions to myself. They’re helping me, after all. I lock eyes with Vanessa, and she seems to guess exactly where my thoughts went.
“To be fair, most of the girls on campus are boy crazy,” she says.
I nod. “I’m slowly beginning to realize that. I’ve been in my nerd cave for too long.”
“And you still managed to snag the most eligible bachelor on campus.” She smiles.
“And to lose him.” I frown and look around the locker room. “Oh, I’m so nervous. What if I mess up and embarrass not only myself but him as well?”
“You’ll be fine.” She squeezes my arm.
“Sure, sure. That’s why I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
“If you need to hurl, you’d better do it now. We’re going out in five minutes,” Heather tells me.
Shit. Shit. Shit. Why did I let Jane convince me this was a good idea?
TROY
I’m with my teammates, ready to run onto the field. Outside, the crowd clamors, infusing me with the familiar rush of adrenaline. I’m going to miss this. My only regret is that Charlie isn’t here to see me play. Hopefully, she’ll come to the playoffs. I just have to bring my A-game tomorrow and convince her that we belong together.
With a roar, we storm the field. The crowd goes wild. The band plays our anthem, but not from their usual spot in the bleachers. They’re down on the field too. Maybe they’ve prepared something special for today’s game. We head for the bench, and then I notice the cheerleaders are also with the band.
The music changes to a familiar tune. It’s only when the actual song spews from the speakers, mingling with the band, that I recognize it. It’s “Hey Mickey,” but the lyrics aren’t the original. Instead of Mickey, the singer is saying Troy.
The band parts, giving space for the cheerleaders to do their routine. Then I see her. Charlie’s in a cheerleader uniform, singing along. She can’t dance like the other girls thanks to her crutches, but she’s shaking her ass to the beat of the song. Her eyes catch mine, and then she winks at me.
“Dude, is that your girl?” Puck, our linebacker, asks me.
“It sure is.”
I can’t keep my eyes off Charlie. I’m afraid if I do, she’ll disappear, and then I’ll realize I’m hallucinating the whole thing. I’m grinning from ear to ear as I watch her perform with the cheerleaders. When the song ends, she heads in my direction. I don’t wait for her to reach me. I run to her, meeting her halfway, and crush my lips to hers.
The crowd goes even crazier, shouting and whistling.
She drops her crutches and then throws her arms around my neck. God, I missed her mouth, her smell, the sounds she makes when she kisses me. I’m sporting a raging boner in the middle of the football field in front of thousands of spectators, and I don’t care one fucking bit.
Charlie breaks the kiss, but her mouth stays close to mine. “I’m so sorry, Troy. I was an idiot for letting my emotions drive you away. Please say you forgive me.”
“Babe, I told you I’d wait for you.”
“I was afraid you would realize with time that I wasn’t worth it.”
“You’re worth it, Charlie. Get that into your thick head. I love you so damn much. You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”
I kiss her again, even though I shouldn’t. Coach Clarkson is probably about to have an aneurysm because I’m delaying the game.
Someone taps my shoulder. “Okay, lover boy. You’d better save the make-out session for after the game.”
I pull back but keep Charlie firmly in my hold.
Andreas bends over, grabs her crutches from the grass, and then hands them over. “Shit, girl, that uniform fits you like a glove. Maybe you should join the squad.”
She shakes her head. “I don’t think so. I’ve never felt more self-conscious in my life.”
“When do you have to return it?” I ask.
“I don’t know. I was planning on bringing it home to wash it first.”
My lips curl into a wicked grin. “Good.”
We return to the bench, and sure as shit, Coach is fuming.
“Oh no. Did I get you in trouble?” Charlie asks.
I chuckle. “Nah. That’s the coach’s normal expression.”
“I’d better go find my seat. Go break some bones.”
“Says the girl with her leg in a cast,” Andreas mutters next to me.
I ignore him, way too fucking happy right now to let his comments get to me. I watch Charlie walk toward the bleachers with Vanessa Castro in tow. I didn’t even know they were friends. I don’t look away until Charlie vanishes from sight.
“All right, everybody, you’ve had your fun. Now it’s time to focus,” Coach begins his pep talk.
Knowing Charlie is here to watch me is better than any motivational speech anyone could give me. I’ve got my girl back, and now it’s time to prove that I’m not the unenthusiastic football player she thought I was when we met.
I’m going to play the best game of my life.
CHARLIE
After the game—which the Rushmore Rebels won, by the way—we all head out to celebrate at a pizzeria recommended by Andreas. And when I say we, I mean, Ophelia, her boyfriends, Jane, Ben, and Danny all join us.
I had the best time watching Troy play. It was thrilling, and also sexy as hell to see him in his element. I lost my voice from shouting so much. I couldn’t believe how wrong I had been about Troy not giving a fuck about football anymore. He was on fire on that field, and now I understand why his fans treat him like a god. He is one.
It’s almost eleven by the time we walk through the door. Troy made me keep my cheerleader outfit on, and now he’s watching me with that hungry gaze of his that makes my toes curl in my shoes. I thought he was going to pounce as soon as the door closed, but instead, he’s just staring at me.
“What?” I glance down. “Something wrong?”
“No, there’s nothing wrong. I just want to drink you in first, memorize every inch of your body.”
I smirk at him. “I didn’t know you had a thing for cheerleaders.”
“I don’t have a thing for them. I have a thing for you. The uniform is just a bonus.”
“This cast makes it uber sexy.” I lift my leg jokingly.
He walks over, and like they do in the movies, he takes me in his arms and angles our bodies sideways as he kisses me. It’s a deep and fast kiss that leaves me breathless. When he straightens us again, I want to jump in his arms. Too bad it’s impossible right now. But Troy seems to be having the same train of thought as me. He sweeps me off my feet and heads for his bedroom, taking the stairs two steps at a time.
We don’t speak as he carefully sets me on the edge of the mattress. My body is humming with anticipation, and my fingers tingle with the need to touch him. Wordlessly, he kneels in front of me, opening my legs. His warm hands feel like gasoline over my already burning skin.
“You know, I was ready to ambush you at Golden Oaks tomorrow,” he confesses.
“Really?”