Page 100 of Fair Catch
Her lips wavered as they spread into a smile, but she nodded, jogging back out just as the whistle blew. She lined up with where the ball would be thrown to the holder, taking her two signature steps back and to the left.
Then, her eyes found mine.
And even through the metal bars of her helmet, I saw the words come to life on her lips.
I love you, too.
The ball was snapped.
She kicked.
And I held my breath as I watched it sail.
Riley
The roar of the crowd was deafening.
It was the first thing I noticed, the first thing that broke through the protective cloud of calmness I’d forged around me. That noise broke the bubble, followed by me being hoisted into the air, onto someone’s shoulders. I laughed and threw my hands up overhead, finding Mom and Dad and Gavin in the stands where they were screaming their heads off, my parents jumping up and down as Gavin waved his fists like a wild man.
And then, I found Zeke.
He ran straight for me, ignoring every trainer who told him to stay put and every reporter who tried to steal his attention on the way. When he was a few feet from me, whoever was carrying me set me down.
And I was in Zeke’s arms in the next instant.
He lifted and I wrapped, tearing my helmet off and throwing it on the field. His arms secured me to him, mine curved around his neck, and before that stupid boy could say a word, I kissed him.
I didn’t care who saw. I didn’t care if Coach was watching or a teammate or a reporter or the whole damn world.
Zeke stilled with surprise when my lips crashed into his, but it quickly faded, replaced by an insatiable kiss in return as he squeezed me tighter. It took everything in me not to hold that kiss, not to deepen it and sweep my tongue against his lips to beg for access.
But it was one thing to kiss a teammate.
It was another thing completely to give the crowd an R-rated show.
I managed to use what little bit of professionalism I had left, breaking the kiss as Zeke dropped me to my feet. We backed away, leaving space between us, but he didn’t drop my hand.
And when we turned, we were met with at least a dozen cameras, microphones nearly hitting us in the face as reporter after reporter hammered us with questions.
My eyes widened, but thankfully Zeke had his wits about him. He held fast to my hand, answering the questions that were game related and ignoring any that tried to ask what the hell that kiss was about. But even the ones who kept their questions centered on the win eyed where we held hands, and I knew without a doubt that this would be part of the game news.
It was likely already trending on Twitter.
Poor Kyle would be so jealous.
Poor Giana would have our heads.
“Thank you for being here and for the questions, but we’re going to celebrate with our team now,” Zeke said at last, and the reporters congratulated us as we ran to join the rest of the team. We finally broke contact then, Zeke clapping Holden’s shoulder in a man hug while I launched myself onto Clay’s back.
Confetti fell like rain, the crowd chanting NBU! NBU! Someone was passing out hats that read Blackberry Bowl Champions with the year and our logo sprawled underneath. Zeke put his on backward before reaching for me, and he tucked my hair behind my ears, popping a hat on my head next.
“Congratulations, Mighty Mouse,” he said, his eyes hooded, smile easy. “You just won your first bowl game.”
A wide grin split my face, and like he was a magnet, I found myself leaning into him again, his arms wrapping around my waist, mine threading behind his neck.
“Oh shiiiiit,” Leo said, making a face before he covered his mouth and turned away.
Holden’s eyes widened, and he elbowed Kyle, who tried to whip out his phone to capture us on video, but Clay swatted his hand down.
“About fucking time,” he said, exhausted.
Holden clapped Leo and Kyle on the shoulder, leading them toward where the trophy was being carted out onto the field while they both gawked over their shoulders at us. Clay left us with a wink before joining them, and I turned my attention back to Zeke with my heart bursting.
“I think there’s something else even more worth celebrating,” I said.
And then I gave up what little worry I had left about what people would think or say, and I kissed him again.
Zeke
The locker room was an absolute frenzy after the trophy ceremony, and I watched that gold behemoth bob over the sea of my teammates as each of them chanted or did a dance or stopped to pose for pictures and videos.
