Page 107 of Cruel Steps

“What the fuck? You can’t be serious.”

“Your loss, then.” He shrugged and pulled on his pads. My gut sank. Was he right? I didn’t know how to do that part. I hadn’t ever shared things with anyone before.

“Fuck. Fine. Help me?”

Colter spun around with a teasing smile. “I thought you’d never ask. It’s time for me to teach the great Holden Adler how to woo a girl.”

I grumbled, but didn’t argue. Colter might have been a playboy, but he dated the girls he slept with first, sweeping them off their feet until he lost interest. While I never had to work for a girl to like me. Throwing her over my shoulder caveman-style wasn’t sustainable. Or was it?

Coach came out, and the locker room quieted. “It’s game two. You know what to do. Let’s win this, Wolves!”

The team howled and stomped their cleats, amping themselves as we headed out of the locker room. We stopped at the end of the tunnel, the sounds of the crowd just beyond us. The team huddled around me, and I soaked in the camaraderie. This was what I loved.

“Who are we?”

“Wolves!”

“What do we do?”

“Destroy our prey!”

“How do we do it?”

“Fight! Fight! Fight!”

Everyone threw their heads back and howled as the emcee announced us. The team ran out onto the field, the crowd building with each name. The team’s energy and the stadium riled me up, and I held my head high as my name was called and I stepped onto the gridiron. The sun shone bright and warm, making it a perfect day to play football. The stands were full of black and teal, and the fans screamed my name. This was my kingdom, and I was king.

But it all faded away when I spotted Em at the end of the Wolfette lineup. I swallowed, my eyes traveling down her body in her dance uniform. Last week, they’d been long-sleeved one-piece things, but this week, she had on shiny black pants, teal sneakers, and a hot pink crop top, showcasing part of her stomach. My pants became tighter, and my athletic cup pressed against the front. She smiled at me, and I had to stop myself from stopping and kissing it off her.

Once she was out of sight, I could think straight again. Shit. I’d need to focus on the game, not her, or we’d be in trouble. Thankfully, they were on the same side as us and off to the side, so unless I turned my head, I couldn’t see her. Which, of course, meant I kept looking down the field. I was such a sucker for this girl.

“Adler, head in the game,” Coach snapped. He shoved me onto the field, and I realized it was time for the coin toss. I went to the fifty-yard line, where the ref and the captain from Carolina Crushers stood. I knew Langston well. We’d been at the same camps over the years. He was a prick, but he was a good player. He smirked at me when I neared, and I wanted to punch him already.

“Nice of you to join us, Adler.”

I ignored him and glanced at the ref. He nodded and turned to Langston. “Visiting team, what do you call?”

“Heads,” Langston smirked, like he had a secret joke.

“That means, Wolves, you’re tails.” He flipped the coin, and it fell to the ground. I kept my eyes on Langston and waited for the ref. “Heads win. You receiving or deferring?”

“Defer,” he said.

“Wolves, you kick off first.”

I jogged off the field and kept my gaze off Emerson. I couldn’t look at her and win this game.

The game started, and I fell into my groove. The Crushers had a great defense and held us to only one touchdown at halftime. They’d only been able to score a field goal, giving us the lead 7-3, but it was too close for my liking.

The team wiped sweat off their brows as they downed water and Gatorade in the locker room. Coach reviewed a few plays, and everyone was lasered in on the board.

“Offense, you need to get around #98. He’s reading all of your plays and stopping the momentum every time. So we’re going to shake it up.” I nodded, understanding this new tactic. “All right, rest and then hit the turf. We got a game to win.”

“I don’t know which is worse. This week or last week,” Colter moaned.

“What do you mean? Last week, we were up by a lot.”

“Dude. Come on.” He rolled his eyes and sighed like I was the biggest idiot. “Mer in that outfit. Fuck. It’s distracting.”

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