Page 36 of Touchdowns and Temptations

“Here I am again,” she whispers, and this time I deliberately roll my eyes. “Here you go,” she says, placing a drink in front of Alex and Noah. “Did you choose what you want to eat?” She tucks the tray under her armpit and pulls an iPad out of the pouch on her belt to type in the orders.

“The baked potato for me,” Noah says.

“Spicy or regular?”

“Regular,” he says, and she nods and looks at Alex.

“I'll stick with the burger. Medium rare, please, and regular fries.”

“Sure,” she replies and walks away. I shake my head again and Marina rolls her eyes.

“Why are you looking me like that?” asks Alex. “I think she's nice.”

“Of course you do,” Marina says, not hiding the irony in her voice. “You like her.”

“Maybe,” he says, and we all laugh. Noah also lifts his Diet Coke and with it the coaster, because the wet glass is sticking to it. A piece of paper with a phone number on it appears from underneath. My chest rises and falls tensely and I try not to show how annoyed I am by the situation. I mean, the fact that she's shamelessly flirting with them is okay, I guess. But giving Noah her number when I'm sitting next to him is really bold.

I'm not jealous, I don't think, but I still don't like the idea of him contacting her later. I'm worried about him now. As his friend.

“She gave you her number?” Alex asks, gasping for breath. At least he's as horrified as I am by this brazenness. “That can't be right. I put so much effort into flirting with her and you get her number.” Annoyed, he throws his napkin on the table and Noah laughs.

I take it back! The guy is just upset that his twin got the number and not him. Wow, this afternoon has reached a new low.

“Here!” Noah tosses him the note. “You can have it. She won’t know the difference tonight anyway.”

Marina bursts out laughing and I stare at the twins, stunned. This is unbelievable. What a cheap shot. On the other hand, Noah is right. She won't be able to tell them apart tonight, and she probably doesn't care who she goes to bed with. Still, I don't like the fact that it was originally Noah who got the note and not Alex. Marina takes the note from Alex.

“She wrote it neatly,” she says.

“It's not easy to write a number on a napkin,” I say sarcastically, and everyone looks at me with wide eyes. Especially Noah. His eyebrows rise slowly. “What?”

“You're not jealous, are you?” he asks with a grin.

“Please!” I gasp. “Jealous? Me?” I point at myself. “In your dreams!”

A huge grin appears on Noah's lips, and he leans over to me. I want to pull away, but he doesn't let me. Instead, his hot breath hits my face. A shiver runs down my spine and I bite my lip. Don't give in, Cara.

“In my dreams?” he whispers.

“Hm,” I mumble, unable to make another move.

“I dream about winning the Super Bowl,” he replies and I stare at him. Noah grins and pulls away. “What did you think?”

He looks at me in amusement and I slap his arm. But this teasing slap quickly turns into a real punch that hits me full force. My palm tingles and my heart beats faster. We both know what he dreams about at night, and I'm not sure it's good for our friendship.

But as long as I don't react and control my heartbeat, everything goes like clockwork.

11

Cara

I'm at the stadium with my parents to watch a Boston Foxes game live. They are playing the Seattle Commanders. Their new quarterback, Jalen Armstrong, just joined the team this year. The Commanders drafted him. My dad raved about him on the car ride and said the Foxes could have gotten him, but they thought Noah was a better option for the future. Rookies, especially quarterbacks, can play worse in their first season in the pros than they did in college, and the Foxes didn't want to take that risk. The number of interceptions is significantly higher in the rookie season in the NFL than in college and later years. The young players have to adjust to the more experienced and often more agile defensive players who play at a different tempo.

I listened patiently to my dad, but I didn't put much stock in what he was saying. He likes to talk about players and how he grades them. Especially quarterbacks, only to realize that they will never be as good as he is. Dad would never say it in public, but he enjoys being the best quarterback ever.

When I'm at the stadium with my parents, we sit in our family box, of course. But, when I’m not with them, I prefer to sit in the stands because I think you get a better feel for the game. Today we are not only here as a family, but also to represent Corse Sports Management.

Although it's mid-September, the East Coast of the United States is still experiencing the uncomfortable heat of late summer. The air in the stadium is stagnant and I fan myself with a flyer to create a breeze.

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