Page 99 of Blitz'd

God, he’s all for me.

I blow through post-game congratulations and the fastest shower I can manage, and by the time I come out of the locker room, he’s there waiting at the end of the hallway.

That grin is still on his face.

He’s practically vibrating by the time I reach him, and I nearly fall over when he knocks into me, wrapping his arms around me.

“Fuck, you were onfire.” He pauses and his lips press against my jawline, and his face feelshotwhen he buries it against my neck. “Myboyfriendwas on fire.”

“Is that your new favorite word?” I grumble it, but my arms wrap around him and I tug him against me, only forcing his body away from mine enough so we can start walking.

“Maybe.” He grins, and I see the second his expression softens. “Maybe it’s what else you said.”

Yeah, what else I said. My lips pinch into an irritated line. “I was going to tell you at my apartment after the game. I don’t know why you got so upset.”

His eyes widen. “You’ve beenignoring mefor three days, Kerian. What was I supposed to think?”

“I said I needed to think.” My frown deepens.

“Most people say that when they’re going to break up with someone.”

Oh.

“I wouldn’t really know that. I don’t date.”

“I—” He cuts himself off again, looking me over. I see the second the fight runs out of him, because he leans into me. “You mean youdidn’tdate?”

A low laugh escapes me. “Yeah, you kinda fucked everything up, Dimples.”

“But you love me for it.” It’s there, singsong and sweet in his words—howhappyme saying that made him. How much it lights him up from the inside out.

“Yeah…” I shrug. “Yeah, I do.”

It’s Zander who manhandles me this time, dragging me through the rest of the tunnel and pressing me against the wall.

“You know, you really are an asshole.” My mouth drops open, but he presses his lips to mine to catch the expression in a kiss that leaves my body feeling warm. “I was going to tell you first.”

“I know.” I can’t help the slight grin that crosses my lips. “I had to practically keep my tongue stuffed down your throat to stop you.”

“Asshole.” He hisses again, but he raises his hands, threading his fingers through my hair. “But you’re mine, right?”

I’ve never wanted to belong to someone before. I’ve neverwantedto feel tethered. I’ve always been adrift in some weird atmosphere, aware that the earth was below me but not understanding why people would want to touch the ground. But there’s Zander, and he makes me realize why.

I wasn’t meant for the dirt.

I was meant for the sun.

For his light.

For his smile.

“Yeah, Zander. I’m yours.”

His mouth brushes mine again, soft, sweet… and he feeds me the words I haven’t let him say.

“I love you too, Kerian. Fuck, I love you so much.” He takes my hand and presses it to his chest, where I can feel his frantically beating heart. “You have my heart. Only you.”

It doesn’t make sense that I feel dizzy when he says it, and it makes even less sense that my shoulders relax against the wall and I draw him against me. He’s like a blanket of warmth on my skin, and I want to bask in it—I’m willing to let some of the chill in my chest melt. For the first time since I was small, I’m willing to let someone close enough that they could break me if they wanted—because I know he could. Zander could cut that tether and leave me floating, cold and alone and breathless in space. Lost.

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