Page 66 of A Game of Ruck

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Time to call in the Rovers.

If I’m already calling in Marco for help, then yeah, this seems like the next step.

Because sometimes winning the girl takes a team effort.

And this girl?She’s worth it.

Every play.Every sacrifice.Every mile.

Game on.

Chapter Sixteen-Luca

“Move your fuckin’arse, Warden!You’re a forward, not a fuckin’ backward!”Coach Dane’s bellow cuts through the humid Carolina air like a war horn.

I grunt and shove through the sprint, lungs burning, legs on fire, thighs tight with every goddamn meter.

Warm-ups are a cruel lie.

There’s nothing warm about them.

Just pain.Precision.And sweat that clings to your skin like armor.

This isn’t a game for the soft.

Rugby is war dressed in jerseys.

It’s muscle.Blood.Bone-on-bone chaos.

You don’t play this game unless you’re half-crazy and whole-hearted.

And I am.

I’ve got a heart full of fury, a head full of love, and every ounce of me is wired to fight for it.

Today, we’re up against the Florida Gators—the dirtiest, most underhanded pack of bastards in the league.

Fast, brutal, cocky as hell.

They’ve got height.

Speed.

A smug-as-fuck fly-half named Malone who’s been talking shit since preseason.

I don’t just want to beat them.

I want to flatten them.

“Pick up the pace!”shouts Koa, our team captain—a man I’ve looked up to since before we met.“They’re watching us from the tunnel!”

Let them watch.I want them to see what’s coming.

Because I’ve got something they don’t.

Her.

My Annabeth.

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