Chapter 25
Riley
I relax in his arms and feel the pull to him intensify. “Are you really going to have to stay here?” he asks.
“Yes, sorry. She was pretty serious about the whole thing.”
“I finally got you to the house.”
“I know.” I pull back so I can look up at him. “This doesn’t mean that you start staying awake at night again. I can take care of myself. I have new abilities now,” I tell him with a smile. “I can protect myself.”
He growls low in his chest. “It’s my job to protect you.”
I put my hand on his chest, over his heart.
“I know, but I’m okay. I’m not like Evie and Tessa.
I have a fierce predator inside me,” I tell him softly, even though there’s nobody around to overhear us.
He takes a deep breath. “You’ve got your last season upon you, and you’ll start traveling soon.
I will too. You have to get sleep at night and not worry about me. ”
He runs a hand up and down my spine, a familiar move now. “I will always worry about you.”
I smile at that and don’t argue because I can’t say I wasn’t worried about him while he was gone. “So, are you going to go back and get a few hours of sleep?”
“And miss this little bit of time I have with you? No. How long are we running?”
Part of me wants to fight against it; I know he needs sleep. But he makes his own decisions. “Just a few miles because I don’t know what to expect of practice tonight.”
He starts moving backwards. “Let’s go, Slowpoke.”
“Slowpoke? Seriously?” I race past him, and his chuckle follows me, warming my insides.
He easily catches up to me, and I slow down so I can put my earbuds in.
Then we run again. We keep it easy and only run two miles.
I take my earbuds out and catch my breath.
“Thanks. Will I see you after practice?”
He scowls. “We have a meeting after practice tonight. It could go a little while, but I’ll come see you when I’m free.”
“Okay. Have a good day, Reid.”
“You too.” Right before I walk away, he stops me. “Oh, the banquet is this weekend. Will you be my date?”
“What banquet?”
“The college always hosts a banquet right at the beginning of the season for the men’s and women’s basketball teams.”
I take that in. “I didn’t realize.”
“Your coach will probably tell you tonight after the team is set.”
“That’s if I make the team,” I remind him.
“There is not a doubt in my mind that you will make it.”
His confidence builds my own, and I can’t help my smile. “Thanks.”
He smirks. “I’m not buttering you up just because you're my girl. I’m telling you objectively you have nothing to worry about. You’re better than every girl from last year’s team.”
His words are life-giving and motivating after the difficult week last week.
I reach up on my tiptoes before I think about it and kiss him on the cheek, balancing myself against his chest with my hands.
I feel him go still beneath my touch, and I pull away a moment later.
“Thanks.” I take a step away, worried I’ll do far worse if I touch him any longer.
“And yes, I would love to be your date. Just let me know when it is.” I stop walking.
“Is it really dressy?” He nods. “Hmm. I’ll have to look through my dresses. ”
“Wear the red one you wore to prom last year,” he says in a low voice.
I feel my eyes go wide. “And how do you know what dress I wore to prom last year?”
He closed the distance between us. “You should know that I am obsessed with you. I have been for a long time. I know every guy you’ve dated, every dress you’ve worn to prom, every guy that’s tried to push his luck with you.”
“Okay, you know that just put you in creepy territory, right?” I expect him to smile, but he doesn’t.
“I have had to watch you for three years and not let you know who you are to me. Three years of not touching you, not even thinking about you...not that it was possible. But it’s been a long three years.”
I stare up at him and take in what he’s saying.
I can’t imagine how hard it’s been. I can’t imagine what I would do if I couldn’t talk to Reid for the next three years, if I couldn’t be around him.
A shudder runs through me thinking of him with another female.
I feel my body tense, and my wolf growls inside me.
“I can’t imagine,” I finally say. “Thank you for waiting for me.”
He reaches out and drops a hand to my waist and then behind my back and pulls me close. “I would wait forever for you.”
“Reid, you can’t say stuff like that.”
“Why not?”
“Because it makes me want to do things with you.”
“Like what?” his voice is so low, I barely hear it.
“Like kiss you,” I tell him simply.
He groans. “Go. Go inside before I take you up on that.” I continue to stand there, not wanting to leave him. “Go, Baby, because if you continue to stand here, I will kiss you; and I doubt you want our first kiss to be while we’re both sweaty and need showers.”
His words snap me out of the trance I’m in. “Hey,” I push his chest lightly. “Are you saying I stink?”
His eyes bore into me. “Don’t ask me a question you don’t want an answer to.”
“Okay, you’re making me really self-conscious here,” I tell him, only partly teasing. “Do I really smell that bad?”
He snags my wrist and pulls me close, so that we’re only centimeters apart. “When you sweat, it just makes your scent stronger,” he explains in a low voice as his thumb rubs circles over the inside of my wrist. “There are very few things I wouldn’t do to smell that scent.”
I swallow hard, and my heartbeat picks up speed. Now that I think about it, he’s right. His scent is always so much stronger when we run together. “Yours gets stronger too,” I whisper, and my eyes drop to his lips.
“Go.” His voice is full of his wolf. “I have to be in the gym before my first hour class, so I won’t see you until tonight.”
“Okay.” I take a step backwards. I swear it’s like walking through drying cement. I force myself to turn around and head inside, even though everything inside me, including my wolf, is crying out to go back to our mate. Somehow, I manage to make it back to my room and get ready for class.
My classes are pretty much a blur; I’m so nervous about this afternoon. As soon as my last class is finished, I book it over to the gym. I hope what little lunch I ate somehow stays in my stomach. When I get there, Star reaches the door at the same time. “Have you seen anything yet?” I ask.
“No.” She looks just as sick as I do. “You?”
“Nope. Want to go look together?”
She takes a breath. “Yeah, let’s do this.”
I pull open the door, and she follows me inside.
As soon as we’re inside, I see the group of girls gathered around a piece of paper on the wall.
Some are happy; others are not. One girl brushes past us with tears in her eyes.
Star and I exchange a look and continue over to the wall.
We make our way past the girls gathered until we’re right next to the list. I force myself to look over the names.
Relief fills me, followed by excitement when I see my name.
I quickly look back over the list for Star’s name. “You made it!”
Star turns to me, eyes bright. “You did too!”
We hug, and elation flows through me. I reach out really quickly to Reid, only because technically practice hasn’t started yet. And I have to share this with someone. I made it.
His answer is immediate. Of course, you did.
A sense of rightness flows through me, and I face Star. “Should we get ready for practice?”
She grins. “Yeah.”
Minutes later, we’re dressed and ready for practice.
We’re busy warming up when Coach appears and blows her whistle.
“All right. Let’s get to it.” And that’s that.
There are no words of congratulations. She simply tells us what we’re doing first, and we’re off and running...
literally. She has us run several drills for warmups, and then we start scrimmaging against the boys.
I’m surprised when she has Star and I both take spots on the court.
I do a quick scan of the girls. Brene’s at point guard, Star’s at left shooting guard, and I'm at left power forward. On the other side of the key, Angeline is playing right shooting guard, and Sasha is playing opposite me under the basket. "Blackwood take that shot,” Coach yells when I pass the ball instead of taking the shot. I grimace and make a mental note to take the next one. At the other end, they score on us; and we head back up the court. The ball doesn’t make it over to my side for this possession.
Sasha drives in down low and makes it. It takes another possession or two before I get the ball down low again.
Using the moves Reid made me drill, I push against Cameron and get close to the basket.
I end up missing my shot, and Cameron gets the rebound.
Frustration burns through me, and I chase them down to the other end.
I manage to stop the next shot and get the rebound.
I kick it out to Star, and she races down to the other end.
She passes it to Brene, who goes up for an easy lay-up.
I grin and slap Star’s hand as I run past.
“Good job.”
It’s back and forth after that. I do manage to finally score down low, but it’s frustrating.
I’m used to scoring at least double digits every game.
Most games I scored twenty to thirty points, but I would push myself to get better.
I had to if I wanted to keep a spot on this team.
Finally, Coach blows the whistle and calls us in.
“The banquet is this weekend. Each of you should have the official invite in your email. Don’t be late.
Now, five hundred shots and then hit the showers. ”
Star and I make our way over to our favorite basket and get to work.
A little over two hours later, I braid my wet hair and dress in black athletic pants and an FMU long-sleeved shirt.
I’ve been trying to dress better coming and going ever since Coach talked to me.
When I get outside, I don’t see Reid anywhere; and I figure he’s still in his meeting.
Star walks with me a little while before we part ways. “You played well tonight,” I tell her.
“You too.”
“Not really, but I’m working on it. I’m not used to playing under the hoop,” I confess.
“Really?”
“Yeah. I always played shooting guard.”
She looks over at me. “But you’re so tall. You’re what six foot?”
I nod. “Yeah. What are you?”
“Almost five nine. What side did you play?”
“Left,” I tell her.
She grimaces. “Oh boy; you’re gunning for my spot.”
“I’m not; I have a feeling I’m not leaving the forward spot.”
“Well, I would have never known. You’re doing a good job for playing a position you don’t normally play.”
“Thanks, Star. Do you have a dress for the banquet this weekend?” I ask after we’ve walked a little bit.
“I can’t believe I’m going; it’s so surreal. And yes, I think I have one that will work. What about you?”
“Same. I think I have one that will work; and yes, it’s totally surreal.”