Page 48 of End Game

“Fine.” He sounds vaguely irritated, and I can’t help it ...

I smile.

“Don’t look too pleased with yourself. I’m sure I’ll hate it.”

“You are so grumpy.”

Nico actually seems offended. “I’m never grumpy.”

“With me you always seem to be.” Reaching out, I shove at his chest lightly, but he doesn’t even budge. The guy is a solid wall of muscle. “Get out of my room. I need to get dressed.”

“You’re already dressed.”

“Not in my yoga outfit. Get out.” I shove him again, and this time he goes, flashing that devastating grin at me before he turns and exits my room.

I shut the door, leaning against it, hating how fast my heart is beating.

How breathless I suddenly am.

Ugh, this man. He’s going to ruin me for anyone else if I don’t watch it.

And I’m going to enjoy every single second of it.

Chapter Seventeen

EVERLEIGH

I have eight giant men in my backyard, all of them wearing serious expressions on their faces as they watch me while I lead them through various yoga positions. I’m putting extra emphasis on shoulder stretching for Frank and a few others who seem to carry their stress in their upper body.

Some of them have brought their own yoga mats, which I encouraged them to get. I love that they listen to me and that they seem to enjoy the yoga sessions. I know Nico is reluctant to give them a try, like he’s full of doubt this even works when it’s a proven exercise and great for stress relief.

Feeling extra petty about his reluctance, I let him borrow one of my yoga mats, making sure I gave him the bright-pink one with stenciled black flowers all over it. All the others I own are a solid color and plain. I’m currently using a black one, which I could’ve loaned him. But I didn’t.

I have to take my small satisfactions where I can.

Nico is in the very back row along with Cooper, and he’s trying to play it cool despite having some difficulty contorting his body into each pose. It’s almost amusing, and if we were the only ones out there, I would probably laugh at him because he’s ridiculous.

Coop is trying to help him as best he can, and he never gets irritated with Nico, which is something I can’t say for myself. Coop is definitely the most patient person I know, and I appreciate him so much. I think everyone in this yard feels the same way, including his sister.

And speaking of his sister, Sienna is in the front row right next to Gavin, contorting her body into a pretzel so she can keep her eyes on him at all times. Frank is on the other side of Gav, his attention never wavering.

Sometimes, in moments like this, I glance around and am shocked that this is my life. That I live in this cute house right by the ocean with these somewhat famous football players and I can consider them my friends. That I help by teaching them yoga and fixing them nutritious meals with plenty of protein. My grandma would love this. She’d think it was hilarious that I was taking care of all these men, and I know she’d be proud of me. Right now, I’m feeling like a proud mama too.

A proud mama who can see her “children’s” faults, though. For instance, there’s Sienna trying to openly flirt with Gavin, who’s not even paying attention to her.

Typical.

I notice the determined look on Frank’s face as he goes through the motions, and I know he’s hoping against hope that his shoulder will miraculously heal and he’ll be back on the football field before the season ends.

I hope that for him. I really, really do. But the deeper we get into the season, the more I’m afraid that’s never going to happen.

And then there’s Nico. He’s watching me carefully as I shift into each new position, his gaze tracking my every movement. I’m definitely not having proud-mom feelings toward him at the moment. I tell myself he’s watching me so closely because he’s trying to figure out what I’m doing since he’s never participated in my yoga classes before, but there’s a small part of me that feels like it could be something more ...

Intense.

I chose my clothes carefully because I’m shameless like Sienna, who was with me when I bought the outfit while we were out shopping last week. I didn’t need anything new, and I’m trying to watch my money, but Sienna convinced me to try it on and basically wouldn’t let me leave the store without buying the outfit.

It’s a matching leggings-and-sports-bra set in dark brown. Nothing special, right? But the sports bra has extra straps in the back that make a crisscross pattern. The moment I walked out of the dressing room to show Sienna, she practically screamed, “Wow, your tits look fabulous!”

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