Page 157 of The Dixon Rule

As captain, I always show up early for practice so I can check in beforehand with our coach, Nayesha. So I’m startled when I hear footsteps nearing the locker room door. A lot of them. Which is even weirder. One girl might show up thirty minutes early, but not the three that enter a moment later.

Suddenly I find myself on the receiving end of three grave expressions.

“Sit down, Captain,” Audrey says.

It’s sort of a random trio. Crystal and Audrey are friendly but not close, and Madison doesn’t really interact with either of them. The only thing they have in common is…

Shane.

Goddamn it, Lindley.

Is his fan club going to beat me up in the locker room for getting with him? I told Crystal during our first cheer practice this week that I was seeing Shane. It was a full-disclosure, I-need-to-be-transparent chat that I really didn’t want to have but forced myself to because I knew eventually it would get around.

“Sit down,” Crystal urges, and that’s when I realize they don’t actually look mad.

They’re concerned.

“I’m going to keep standing, if you don’t mind.”

They all cross their arms in identical poses. Crystal speaks up in a firm tone.

“This is an intervention, Diana.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

SHANE

Wait, are you flirting?

OUR FIRST GAME ISN’T UNTIL NEXT WEEKEND, SO I’M ABLE TO ATTEND the football team’s season opener in our home stadium with Ryder, Gigi, and a few other teammates. Freshman Blake Logan also tags along. On our way to pick her up from the dorms, Gigi tells me she promised Blake’s dad that she’d watch out for Blake.

Blake’s dad being John fuckin’ Logan. It’s surreal to me, the idea of having John Logan, one of the best defensemen of the last couple decades, as your father.

I wonder what my life would have been like if my dad’s NHL journey had ended differently. Hell, I might not even be here. Maybe he would’ve been so absorbed in the professional hockey lifestyle that he decided to hold off on having children for a few years. Or never had them at all.

In the stands near the fifty-yard line, I sit between Patrick Armstrong and Blake, who boasts those fresh-faced girl-next-door looks with a light smattering of freckles and her brown hair arranged in a side braid. But that body is dangerous, hugged by tight jeans and a halter top that bares her midriff. I can understand why John Logan enlisted some bodyguards. Dudes are going to be all over this chick.

On the field, the football team is looking incredible. It’s only their first game, but I’m impressed by how well they gel. Our quarterback connects with every pass, and our superstar wide receiver is on fire tonight. He’s a junior now, but his sophomore season was equally explosive. I wasn’t able to catch as many games as I would’ve liked, but I remember the entire campus buzzing about Isaac Grant last year.

During halftime, Diana leads her squad in a lively, stunt-heavy routine, knocking it out of the park, of course. I can’t take my eyes off her. That short cheerleading uniform reveals a lot of leg and a lot of stomach as she’s tossed through the air by the men on the team. I can’t wait to fuck her tonight.

After the game, Diana meets us in the parking lot, bouncing on her white tennis shoes. She’s still in her uniform, hair in a high ponytail, eyes shining.

“You killed it,” Gigi tells her.

“Thanks, babe.” She hugs the girls. “Ready for your first frat party, Blakey?”

“Yeah, excited about the party, Blakey?” I mock.

Blake rolls her eyes at me. “One, don’t ever call me Blakey. Only Di is allowed. And two, I’m being dragged to this thing against my wishes. I’ve been promised the full college experience and apparently that involves drunk frat guys.”

“She needs to be initiated into campus life,” Diana says firmly. “It’s not college without drunk frat boys.”

Diana, Blake, Patrick, and Austin Pope pile into my Mercedes. I’m not planning on drinking tonight, so I’m the DD, chauffeuring us to Greek Row.

“Did you see the way Madison was glaring at me in the parking lot?” I grumble to Diana. I can still feel the cheerleader’s dour gaze boring into me.

She reaches over from the passenger side, resting her hand on my thigh. “Can’t charm them all, babe.”

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