Page 99 of Mad As Hell

My body throbbed in response. I could definitely get on board with that plan.

The crowd shot to their feet in celebration as the clock zeroed out. I jumped to my feet with them, hugging Bex and Imani as “We Are the Champions” by Queen started to blast over the speakers.

Ryan’s teammates swarmed him, but he turned, his gaze once again finding mine. He shrugged them off and charged to the access stairs at the bottom of the stands. Without hesitating, he jogged up the steps until he was at our row. I shimmied past Bex and a few other people, ignoring the fans who were freaking out that Ryan was in their midst.

“What are you doing?” I demanded with a laugh as he reached out and grabbed me around the waist.

“Kissing my girl,” he replied before doing just that. His mouth crushed mine, devouring me, as I wrapped my arms around his sweaty neck. There was nothing soft or tentative about this kiss; he used it to claim me in front of thousands of witnesses.

The roaring in my ears turned deafening as fans went crazy. When I pulled back, breathless and amazed, I saw the giant screens over the field were now showing us.

“Meet me outside the locker room,” Ryan told me, his blue eyes blazing as his hands tightened on my hips.

I nodded, my lips tingling from his kiss. The feeling spread down to my toes when he flashed me another panty-melting grin before letting me go and running back down the stairs. He was halted a few times by fans desperate for a photo or autograph, and I watched him until he made it back onto the field and was swallowed up by a sea of royal blue.

* * *

Imani and I brought Bex with us to the waiting room next to the locker room. Unlike the other times I had walked in there, the eyes staring at me were filled with curiosity as they bounced from me to Imani and back.

“Hey, Imani,” one of the girls said from her seat. Her navy blue eyes narrowed as she took in the sight of us together. “Everything cool?”

“Definitely,” Imani replied, nothing but confidence in her tone. “Maddie and I were just talking about how we think the guys will go all the way this year.”

We hadn’t been, but Imani’s lie seemed to open whatever social doors had been closed to me.

The girl with navy eyes smiled and toyed with the ends of her auburn hair. “Of course they will. Ryan was okay, wasn’t he Lai—I mean, Maddie.”

I nodded slowly, feeling like I’d stepped into an alternate universe. A few weeks ago, these women had barely given me the time of day. Now, with one little word from Imani, I was one of them.

“He’s great. No concussion or anything,” I confirmed when I realized she was waiting for an answer.

The girl beside her turned her wide brown eyes to me. “That kiss at the end of the game? Damn, girl.” She shook out her blonde hair as the others broke into giggles.

“So fucking hot,” another girl added.

“You should’ve seen it from where I was,” Imani chimed in, winking at me. “Do you all know Bex?” She introduced my bestie, giving me a chance to retreat farther into the room. I sat down on the three-seater leather couch pushed into one corner.

There were scattered chairs and couches in the room, along with a table full of snacks with the cooler at the end. The room was painted the same royal blue as the guys’ jerseys, with the Knights logo in white taking up the far wall. TVs hung in the room, muted with the captions on, while announcers discussed highlights from the game.

Bex and Imani joined me a minute later.

“Thanks for that,” I said to Imani as she slid into the seat across from me while Bex sat on the couch. “You didn’t have to.”

“I know. And as long as you don’t regress, we’re cool,” she replied, shrugging one shoulder. “But if you hop back on the train to Bitchtown…” She let the threat hang between us.

“I have zero intentions of going back to being that girl,” I responded as firmly as I could.

Bex leaned against me. “She’s different. Really.”

“I hope so,” Imani murmured, eyeing Bex. “I mean, if you’re willing to sit next to her? That says some shit.”

I smiled at Bex as the door connecting this room to the locker room opened and players started coming in. The noise level instantly ratcheted up several decibels.

Imani was on her feet before Eddie was even through the door. He was just over six feet tall, not the biggest guy on the team, but he was all lean muscles and built for speed and power. When he saw his girl, his white teeth flashed against dark skin, and the smile he gave her was everything. He crossed the room and pulled her to his chest, kissing her soundly. He broke off and looked at me over her shoulder with dark eyes.

“Hey, Maddie,” he greeted with a nod. “Ryan’s finishing up with the press, so he might be a few more minutes.”

“That was an amazing kick in the first half,” I replied. “Close to the collegiate record.”

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