Page 72 of The Quarterback Sneak

Sitting on my gray velvet chaise lounge, I reread the same sentence in my history book for what feels like the hundredth time. I can’t concentrate, and it’s not because I’m bored or failing this class. It’s because Zach’s all-consuming presence is sitting next to me, his arm occasionally grazing my thigh with every page he turns. How the hell is he getting through so much of this text while I sit here sweating bullets because I can’t stop thinking about him?

Focus, Honey.

I widen my eyes, staring straight at the words, determined to at least read this paragraph, but then Zach turns another page and his citrus shower gel wafts through the air. Squeaky clean after his practice, something about the twinkle in his eyes compelled me to invite him over and study tonight. It surprised me when he said yes, considering all hiscommitments, but I didn’t question it.

He even happily agreed to have dinner with my parents when my mother saw us walk into the house with our hands claspedtogether. She probed him the whole time, and it wasn’t because she was interested. She wanted to get some dirt. I know she doesn’t approve of us long-term, and weirdly, she still thinks there’s a flicker of hope that Jamie and I will be together. No doubt, she and my father expect everything to fizzle out between Zach and me before the start of college, and they’d be right. We aren’t going past prom, but until then… it’s nice. Nice to have someone around I can talk to, and nice to do and say whatever I want with him.

“Why did you come here today?” I ask, dropping my textbook in my lap to focus all my attention on Zach. He takes his time to look up from his notes, reading off a section before facing me with a smile.

“What do you mean, Tinkerbell?” His green eyes twinkle with interest, and I melt when I look into them.

“It’s just that you’re usually busy after school withcommitments, but you agreed to study with me and have dinner with my parents.”

“What can I say? I like being quizzed by your dad. He seems absolutely perplexed by my NFL ambitions.” That’s an understatement. My dad doesn’t do sports and can’t see why anyone would want to degrade themselves for billionaire team owners. He clearly doesn’t see that he does the exact same thing, just with a different set of billionaires.

Zach taps his finger against my thigh. “I also figured that if we were really dating, we’d still need your parents to believe it. Your mom always talks about how close they are to Jamie’s parents. Did you know on your birthday she told me they planned to have you and Jamie at the same time with the intention that you’d get married?” He shakes his head, looking up to the sky. “That’s some fucked-up rich people shit right there.”

My cheeks pinken. “She didn’t say that, did she?”

He shrugs. “Not in so many words, but your mom made it very clear that you and Jamie are endgame and I’m just a temporary bad-boy fantasy come to life.” He smiles, trying to pass it off as nothing, but I can see that the comment upset him. I know he hates when people underestimate him, and that’s exactly what my mother does.

“What did you say to her when she implied that?”

“Told her that decision was up to you, and I’m here as long as you’ll have me.”

If I had the choice, I’d keep him longer than I should, but I know he’s not up for that. “Good to know.”

“Besides, if we were really dating, I’d be over here all the time trying to get into your pants, and your mom would be bitching to Jamie’s mom about it. Got to keep it real if we don’t want people questioning us.”

“Are people questioning us?”

He shifts in his seat. “Jamie is, but that’s because he knows about the bet. He’s getting surprisingly overprotective of you.”

I snort. “Jamie only cares about losing. He’s never cared about me.”

“Think what you want, Buttercup, but it’s obvious Jamie hates me touching what he thinks is his.”

“Oh, and I’m his?”

“Of course not. You’re your own person, but it’s fun messing with him.” Zach drops his chin to read his textbook, and I go back to reading the same sentence over again. “He’s lucky I’m not actually dating you because the things I’d do to you would make him want to kill me,” Zach mumbles.

Silence falls between us, and I gulp. Those words make me hot. A prickling sensation makes its way down my back, as I wonder what he’s referring to. He’s already rocked my world once without trying. What more could he do?

“What would you do?” Heat rises in my cheeks, but I’m not sure if it’s from embarrassment or because he’s turned me on with that short sentence.

“What do you mean?” He doesn’t look up from his textbook, so he’s either not listening or he’s not interested. I’ll assume it’s the former.

Shifting my weight onto my knee, I face him and say, “What would you do to me if we were really dating?” He looks up just as I push my tongue out to lick my lips. “I already know how far you’d go without thecommitment,so tell me more.”

Goose bumps flood my skin. There’s a tiny part of me that’s worried he will reject me, but I’m intrigued now.

A small smile curves at the edges of his lips; he knows exactly what I want, and judging by the look in his eyes, he wants it too. “Well.” He starts on a chuckle, then casually pushes the hair off my left shoulder and brings his nose to my ear, nuzzling against it. “If we were really dating…” His husky voice makes me drop my textbook to the side, and his hand quickly replaces the paper as he draws lazy circles with his thumb around my knee. The way he’s touching me isn’t new, especially after the other night, but it still makes my heart leap out of my chest when I feel his warm hand against my skin. “I’d ask you what you were thinking about in class today.”

I close my eyes as I let out a long sigh. His breath tickles the back of my neck in the most delicious way. “In history?” I ask because it’s the only one we shared today. My eyes are still closed when he responds with a low vibrating hum.

“I was thinking about this assignment and how much I didn’t want to read the chapter tonight.” Not that I thought I’d have Zach sitting here rubbing my thigh, though.

“You know, if you were really my girlfriend, I’d tell you how much I was thinking about you instead of concentrating on Miss Winters.”

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