Page 68 of Hard Hitter

“Tell him what?” I mumbled.

Noah chuckled. “About us.”

My eyes flew open, and I was suddenly wide awake. “No.”

He tipped my chin up until I met his gaze. “Why not?”

I opened my mouth to spew the usual reasons—D was overprotective of me, and I didn’t want Noah to see me as D’s little sister—but they weren’t really true. My teeth snapped shut, and I groaned.

“It’s complicated,” I whined.

“Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.” His thumb stroked down my throat, a visceral reminder of what I’d let him do to me earlier.

My body heated, but he wasn’t touching me to elicit a response. He wasn’t hoping for another round, though I was one hundred percent on board. Noah simply liked to touch me. He liked me, protected me, took care of me—even when I didn’t need it—and he deserved better than a half-assed response.

I sucked in a deep breath and held it for a second, pushing past the ever-present fear. “I like being just you and me. You’re mine, only mine, and as long as D doesn’t know about us, I don’t have to share you—or hear about how this is probably another one of my mistakes.”

He threaded our fingers together and lifted my hand to kiss it. “Nothing about this is a mistake, and you never have to share me. I’m yours, all the time.”

I nodded, a tiny movement that didn’t accurately reflect the massive leap I was about to take. “I’ll tell him tomorrow at the game. I promise.”

* * *

“Nachos or hot dog?”D shoved both in front of my face as he took his seat next to me.

My stomach lurched at the smell, and I pressed a hand to my abdomen. “Ugh, don’t talk about food. I’ve been fighting off nausea the last couple of days.”

He sent me a worried glance. “Eat something bad?”

“Hell if I know. I haven’t actually puked anything up, but the thought of food makes me queasy. I’ve been living off of chicken noodle soup and crackers.”

D wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me into his side. “Sorry, Clo. If you do decide to hurl, point it the other direction, okay? My delicate sensibilities can’t handle you spewing.”

“Thanks, asshole. I can feel the love.”

“Hey, I love you. Look on the bright side, at least you’re not pregnant, right?”

D laughed at his own joke, but the world around me shrank to a pinpoint. I’d been so preoccupied with Noah and school I hadn’t been paying attention to my cycle. My last period was the week before the alumni dinner. I counted back, then squeezed my eyes shut.Fuuuck.

My periods were usually pretty regular, and I’d never gone this long before between cycles. How dumb did I have to be to not notice?

For the rest of the game, I was two people. On the outside, I cheered and joked with my brother, but on the inside, I was berating myself for making the stupidest of stupid mistakes. Noah and I had used protection, every time, but I wasn’t on the pill. The hormones fucked with my body too much for it to be worth the trouble.

Suddenly, mood swings and fatigue felt like the better option.

I breathed a sigh of relief when the game ended, but I’d paid such little attention I couldn’t even say which team won. As planned, D and I went down to the tunnel to meet Noah and the others. Going down the steps, I realized I hadn’t hadthe talkwith D. I couldn’t do it now, not until I knew for sure.

Eva was waiting in the tunnel when we got there. I hung back while they jumped all over D. Normally, being ignored in favor of my brother would trigger my insecurities, but my world had shifted over the last few hours. Or maybe it had been shifting for longer than that and I hadn’t realized.

With my head pulled firmly out of my ass, I saw things I’d maybe missed before. Eva’s eyes flicked to me while she talked to D, and Mac rubbed my arm as he danced past to leap onto D’s back. Riley shook her head and sent me a smile. Even Shaw showed he hadn’t forgotten me by catching Mac’s flailing arm before it smacked me in the face.

The prickly version of me convinced she’d never be good enough finally settled down. She wasn’t gone, but she’d lost some of her control. At least for now.

Apparently, I only needed a bigger fuck up to put the rest of my life into proper focus. My timing could have been better.

When Noah emergedfrom the locker room, he made a beeline for me. Shit, he thought I’d told D. I sidestepped him and gave a subtle shake of my head. Disappointment flashed across his face for a split second before the emotion disappeared behind his usual mask.

D clapped Noah on the back, congratulating him for the win, but Noah’s eyes never left me. My stomach turned again. I needed to tell him—about breaking my promise. The baby talk could wait.

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