Page 4 of Interception

“Hang on. I can’t reach it. My arms are stuck. This stupid teddy is tangled in my hair.”

“How can I help you if I can’t get in?”

“Can you fit under the door? Hang on, let me try to get the lock.” She bangs against the door, but it’s still locked. “Seriously, Zee, I need you to shimmy under the door. I’m freaking out, and I’m about to rip a clump of hair out trying to get free.”

I look to the bottom of the stall. There’s probably a foot between the door and the floor. Fuck. I’m going to have to lie down on a store changing room floor and push myself through into a stupidly cramped space.

“I hate you right now. My stomach is already churning from the hangover, and now I’m going to gag crawling under this door. You’re so paying for my new underwear, and I’m going to buy the most expensive thing in here.”

“Deal. Just get me out of this.” If all eyes weren’t on me before, they are now. I drop my purse on the floor, along with the items Faith is now going to be buying for me, and lie down. Ugh. This is so gross. I’m going to need five showers after this. I’m not a germaphobe, but I might be after today.

“Move away from the door, Faith. Otherwise, I’m about to get an eyeful of your snatch. The objective was to find you something that would get Hunter in this position, not me.” I grab the bottom of the door and pull myself through, and sure enough, Faith is a sight to behold. I can’t contain my amusement.

“Stop laughing at me!”

“If you could see you right now, you’d be laughing, too.”

“There’s a full-length mirror in here, and I can see how ridiculous I look. Now, get me out of this.”

When I manage to squirm into the room and shimmy my legs so I can stand up, I’m pretty sure I just peed a little, I am laughing so hard. Hunter Vaughn in a tutu would be more graceful than Faith is right now. I don’t even know how she’s managed to contort herself like a pretzel in such a small scrap of fabric.

Her arms are up over her head, one of the straps is tangled in her hair, and the other is across her face, smushing her nose like a pig. I’m fighting every urge I have to snap a picture of her right now.

“Holy shit, woman. How do you get yourself into these messes?”

“I don’t know. Help me!”

“Well, I guess we’re buying this one.” I grab the thin scraps of lace and rip. With a sigh of relief as the teddy is left hanging from her hair, I’m accosted by her breasts.

“Thank God. I think I pulled a muscle.”

“Thank God? Thank me, the best friend a woman could ask for. I’ve seen way more of you than I needed today. Tell me at least some of this looked good on you before you made yourself a teddy straight jacket.”

“Yes. I’m buying everything.”

“Maybe they won’t notice that this is torn to shreds,” I say as I untangle it from her hair. “It’s a shame. I bet you looked great in it. I’m sure Hunter would appreciate it.”

“I can’t even get him to call me back.”

“Well, we’re going to remedy that tonight when we fly back to Nashville. He’ll be the one ripping off your underwear… with his teeth.” Her cheeks blush. Damn, she’s got it bad. Turning up on his doorstep better work.

* * *

What the hell was I thinking? Faith and I are five minutes away from our destination—a stranger’s house that we’re not invited to. Scratch that. We’re going to a celebrity’s house, one who I’ve conjured in my fantasies to flick the bean on more than one occasion.

I’m reminding myself that I’m about to make a jackass of myself for Faith. If nothing else, I’m a stellar best friend. If she’s going to make a fool of herself chasing after Hunter Vaughn, then I’m going to be the dipshit at her side, ready to give him a piece of my mind if he doesn’t let us in.

Hunter Vaughn may have had a bad week, but unless he’s dead or his dick literally fell off, he shouldn’t be ghosting my girl. She told him she was a virgin. He knew the score. You don’t quit answering a woman after you pop her cherry unless you’re a fucking teenage boy, and I know enough about this guy to know he’s not lacking in the experience department. He’s an NFL legend with a legendary sex life—not who I’d have chosen for Faith to take her maiden voyage with, but she’s a grown-ass woman, and no one gets to decide for her.

I’m a little nervous as we edge closer to our destination, and anyone who knows me knows that I don’t get nervous—ever. I’ve been a Titans fan since I was old enough to talk. I never miss a game, and Cooper Danford and Hunter Vaughn were the dream team, the all-time greatest duo in Titans history. I’m starstruck.

I don’t want to make an ass of myself in front of either of them, but if Faith gets the cold shoulder or they turn us away on the doorstep, I’m going to make a scene. It’s inevitable. No one messes with my best friend and lives to tell the tale with their manhood intact.

As we pull up in the driveway, it’s just as ritzy as I imagined it to be. This place must have set him back a few million. Just what you’d expect from an NFL star. I tip the Uber driver and grab our bags from the trunk. Faith looks like she’s going to blow chunks any second.

“Are you ready for this?” I wrap my arm around her shoulder, trying to calm her nerves, but I don’t think I’m helping.

“This was a bad idea.”

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