Chapter 25
TWENTY-FIVE
Jaxon asks if I mind waiting in the SUV while he runs up to grab his things. We’re parked outside his building, where a doorman stands like a sentry beneath a chandeliered lobby and floor-to-ceiling glass. He tells me he packed before the game—already planning to leave for L.A. tonight.
I’m curious, of course. I want to see what his place looks like. But just before the vehicle stopped, a call lit up the dash screen: Daphne – Pretty.
That’s how he saved her in his phone. Daphne – Pretty. Is that his way of reminding himself she’s hot? Or... what?
I found it tasteless. And yes—that’s exactly why I chose to stay in the car. I wasn’t about to linger while he took her call like I didn’t exist.
So now I sit. Fuming. Wondering if he even remembers he’s supposed to have a girlfriend. Or maybe he just doesn’t care.
But God, I’m tired. The longer I wait, the more my body begs for sleep. Still, I refuse. Not again. I can’t risk him coming back to find me drooling in his front seat like I did during his touchdown.
Although, if he hadn’t scored, none of this would’ve gone viral in the first place.
I scowl at myself. What a petty, selfish thought. Maybe Jaxon’s right about me. Maybe there is a streak of selfishness I haven’t faced.
Still, I wonder... how bad did it look?
I pull out my phone and search: Zara Morgan sleeping at football game.
I gasp.
The sheer number of clips is staggering. Apparently, I was caught sleeping before the touchdown. And snoring.
Oh my God—I was snoring.
I scroll from one video to the next.
And the next.
And the next.
“Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit,” I whisper.
This isn’t just bad. It’s catastrophic.
“I’m in trouble.”
Just then, the driver’s door opens.
I nearly drop my phone, shoving it into my purse so fast I fumble the zipper.
Jaxon slides in, not saying a word. In his hands are two large takeout cartons—burgers, fries, probably something greasy and amazing. The scent floods the car, warm and comforting and completely at odds with the panic still buzzing in my chest.
“I didn’t know what you liked,” he says, handing one box to me. “So I just got everything.”
“Thanks,” I say quietly, wishing I could crawl inside the box and disappear.