Page 19 of The Playbook

Grace

“Are you nervous?” Lana asked as I adjusted my snare in front of me.

“No.” I shrugged as both a way to adjust and answer her. “Why?”

“Because Logan is going to be watching you play. Maybe your dad will even keep them out long enough to watch the halftime show.” She rolled her eyes at me.

Wrinkling my nose, I shook my head. “What does that have to do with anything? He’s with Nikki, and Isodo not like him that way. I can barely stand to be his lab partner.”

“Well, I talked to Ryan earlier, and he was asking me about you. And not for himself. He said his friend was curious about you.”

I frowned.

“So I asked which friend because it’s my duty asyourbest friend to find out which one ofhisfriends likes you. You know what he said?”

“No,” I muttered, dreading the answer.

“Logan. He saidLoganwas curious about you! See! I told you he likes you!” Her eyes were bright with her information.

“Who likes Grace?” Noah interrupted.

“Logan,” Lana answered smugly.

Noah wrinkled his nose. “Ooh, tough break, Grace.”

“Tell me about it.” I snorted, my voice high.

Noah raised an eyebrow at me while Lana smiled knowingly.

“I don’tlikehim. At all. He annoys me,” I protested.

“Sure.” Lana shrugged. “Whatever you say.”

“I don’t!"

Noah laughed. “Denial is the first step in acceptance.”

“I’m going to stab you both with my drumsticks,” I threatened, narrowing my eyes at the pair, who laughed loudly at me while my face heated with embarrassment.

Mr. Brown saved me from further humiliation by having us start warmups, but I couldn’t keep my mind off what Lana said.Did Logan like me?He’d definitely taken a sudden interest in me. But then he was kissing Nikki. My brain hurt from trying to figure it all out. Deciding it didn’t matter to me either way, I focused on my warmups before we lined up to march to the football field. I didn't have time to think about Logan and his feelings.

* * *

My dad wasn’t kidding when he’d said Logan had a rocket for an arm. I’d never paid attention to the game in the years before. But tonight, I couldn’t keep my eyes off the field. His throws were perfect, well-aimed spirals. The crowd went wild for him, and he knew it. And if I were being honest, he looked damn good in his uniform. Even if he was a jerk, I could admit that about the brute.

Just before halftime, the crowd was on their feet as Logan threw a pass which Ryan ran in for a touchdown. He and Ryan danced together in the end zone before strutting back to the sidelines. I watched as my dad slapped Logan on the shoulder pads, a grin on his face.

“Let’s go!” Mr. Brown called out, rallying the band together to march out to the field for the halftime show.

The cheerleaders were already out there with the dance squad doing some routine that looked sinful.

Nikki sneered at me as she flounced off the field at the end of their routine. I pretended like I didn’t see her. We marched to our spots on the field and proceeded to play a few classics to get the crowd going before the drummers marched to the front. I’d told my dad we were going to do a drum line. He hadn’t taken the guys back to the locker room as was the norm at halftime. Instead, they were gathered on the sidelines, watching us. Even my mom was in the crowd with her friend, Nadia, and her husband, Todd.

We launched into our routine. It was complex, each of us snare players moving to play the drum next to ours with one stick while still keeping the rhythm on our own with the other stick. I tried to remain focused on what I was doing, but I caught Logan’s gaze as he stared at me, seemingly mesmerized, and if I wasn’t mistaken, maybe even awed. Ryan said something to him which Logan nodded to, his eyes never leaving me. I breathed a sigh of relief when the routine was over though because the unnerving stares I got from Logan made my knees weak.

The rest of the game was great. Logan continued to be amazing, leading our Tigers to the win. When it was over, we marched off the field, changed out of our uniforms, and put our stuff away.

“Want to grab something to eat?” Noah asked me as he stuffed his drumsticks into their pouch.

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