Touchdown Baby: A College Football Romantic Comedy

by Tabatha Kiss

  “Decent point.”

  Junior steps into his pants and wanders over to the bed to lean over me. “But I’m sure you can change my mind with the right incentive…” He pecks my shoulder and travels upward, grazing his lips on my skin until he reaches my mouth.

  I lay my finger over his chin, blocking him from kissing me. “No, you’re right. We should take a little break. You have a rough weekend coming up and you need to stay focused.”

  His cheeks turn pale white. “The Homecoming game.”

  “You guys are going to kick some serious ass,” I say, punching his arm. “Trust me.”

  “This team slaughtered us last year,” he recalls. “I’m pretty sure we ended the game with negative five points — which you might think is impossible, but we managed.”

  “You’ve won every game so far this season. If anyone is shaking in their cleats, it’s them. Not you.”

  “Still…”

  “I’ll tell you what…” I sit up, leaning in a little closer to kiss his neck. “How about I give you some serious incentive?”

  Junior considers. “What kind of incentive?”

  “Well, if you guys win the Homecoming game and you ace this test tomorrow…” I lick his earlobe. “I’ll let you put it anywhere.”

  He flinches. “Anywhere?”

  “Anywhere.”

  “Including—?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  He forcefully exhales. “That is some serious incentive.”

  I slip off the bed and grab my panties off the floor. “I mean, if you think that’s too easy, I can make it more difficult.”

  “No.” He stands up. “Your terms are reasonable.”

  “Are you sure?”

  He watches me dress, his eyes blissfully riding my curves as I hide them under my skirt. “I got this.”

  “Good.” I toss his over-sized shirt off and put on my blouse. “Have fun at practice. Text me if you run into any study issues later.”

  Junior slides out in front of me. “What if I get a B on the test and we win the game?”

  I smile. “All or nothing, Junior.”

  “B-plus?”

  “It’s an A or you get no A.”

  “Shit.” He laughs. “That was clever.”

  I pop up onto my toes to kiss his cheek. “Bye, Junior.”

  “Bye, Ally.”

  I scan the street for any witnesses before stepping outside, a habit I’ve developed since the first time I strode down Shanty Row weeks ago. And, just like every other time, I tell myself that this will be the last time.

  Stupid girl.

  I used to hear it in Grant’s voice, but now it’s all me.

  I can’t resist Junior Morgan. I wish I could, I truly do, but something happens to me when he’s around. I tell myself it’s done. It’s over. We’ve messed around long enough, but it’s time to stop before anyone else finds out about us. Then, I open my mouth to tell Junior and… well…

  He puts his dick in it.

  I submit like the good girl he says I am.

  Welcome back to square one, Alyssa. Population, you. And only you, because it’s just sex, it’s always just been sex to Junior Morgan and, despite Grant’s instance to the opposite, he’s done nothing to show otherwise. We go over his homework. We run my lines. We fuck. Repeat. We haven’t even been on another date since the arcade. I tell myself that’s just because we’re both busy, but I know the real reason.

  He’s already getting everything he wants from me.

  I climb into my car as Junior steps outside to make his way back to campus. He throws a quick wave in my direction and I return the gesture. I think to blow him a kiss, but that’s not what we are.

  We’re having fun. That’s all this is. Just good, old-fashioned, casual sex. A quick wave is justified. A blown kiss means something we’re not.

  I can keep pretending that doesn’t bother me. I’m an actress, after all.

  The show must go on.

  CHAPTER 27

  JUNIOR

  “Pack it in, guys!” Coach shouts. “We’re done.”

  I pick myself up off the grass. That last tackle knocked the wind out of me. Not as much as Alyssa promising me her ass this weekend, but enough to make me lightheaded.

  “Hey, Junior!”

  I spit out my mouth guard. “Yeah, Coach?”

  He nods as I pass by him toward the locker rooms. “Excellent hustle out there today. Whatever action you’re getting at night, keep it up.”

  I grin. “Oh, I will.”

  He waves me off and I feel someone bump my shoulder. It’s Ty, of course, casting me a vicious side-eye through his face guard, but his lips still twitch with amusement. He hasn’t said a word to anybody about me and Alyssa, despite his protests to the relationship entirely.

  Relationship. I can’t really use that word, can I?

  I mean, I suppose we have relations, but that’s not the same thing. There’s no acceptable label for what Alyssa and I are — at least, not one I’d openly admit to my mother or anything. Alyssa hasn’t exactly showed that she wants more than what we are, and I’m not about to screw up a good thing.

  So, I’m keeping my mouth shut and my notifications on.

  Got an hour to help me run lines?

  That text is all it takes to get me hard now.

  I shower off the sweat and dirt, listening to the echoing banter of my teammates in the crowded locker room. Sometimes I hear the clack of her shoes beneath it all and I remember that first day. I remember the bolt of lightning that shot through me the moment I heard her voice inching closer to me. I could hardly move. Or think. Or even breathe. I had to have her. I had to feel her little body against mine. I had to pin her against the lockers and—

  “Hey, Junior, you coming or what?”

  I snap out of it as I spot John staring at me from the next stall over. “What?” I ask.

  “Delta Xi party,” he says, running a hand through his shaggy, brown hair. “One last blowout before two days of clean eats and protein shakes in prep for the game.”

  “Oh…” I twist the shower off and wipe the water from my eyes. “No, sorry. I gotta study tonight.”

  “Study?”

  I wrap a towel around my waist. “I have a test tomorrow morning.”

  He laughs at me and follows me between the lockers. “You don’t have to study. You play football.”

  “Maybe you don’t, Kirby,” I say, “but I need to ace this one to…” I notice Coach lingering outside the back office. He pauses, not even glancing at us, but I can tell he’s listening in. “To keep my grades up.”

  “And to please that little tutor of yours, I bet.”

  I blink. “What?”

  “Oh, come on…” He nudges my ribs. “Why else would you have gone all academic this semester? There’s a sexy tutor, right?”

  I hesitate. “I have a tutor, yeah, but she’s not—”

  “Is she hot?” he continues. “She must put out if she’s got you hitting the books so much.”

  I force my reply down my throat. Now isn’t the time for this.

  Before, I would have spilled every bean I had about a girl. What she sounded like. How tight she was. Where every little birthmark or freckle was on her body. But now?

  I don’t even want to mention it’s even happening — like it’s none of their business at all. That’s between me and Alyssa and it should stay that way.

  An odd feeling settles in my gut, but I push it away.

  “She’s a tutor,” I say.

  “That’s a yes.” John grins. “You should give me her number. I’ve got a D that sure could use a little extra attention.”

  The room erupts with whoops and cackles while John accepts his well-deserved high-fives, but I’m not laughing. The thought of Alyssa talking to any of these bastards makes my vision turn red.

  “So, what’s her name?”

  I grab a shirt from my locker. “She’s not available.”

  “Oh, come on.”
He punches my shoulder and my blood boils. “We’re a team. We can take turns with her.”

  I spin to face him. “Back off,” I growl. “I said she’s not available.”

  His expression changes, shifting into something fierce and predatory. “My god.”

  “What?”

  “I never thought I’d see the day.” He looks me up and down. “Junior Morgan is whipped as fuck.”

  “Say that again,” I warn. “Johnny.”

  John smirks. “What, you think you can take me, Morgan?”

  “Pretty confident I can.”

  “Is that right?”

  “That’s right.”

  “Hey!”

  All heads swivel in Coach’s direction.

  “Hurry and clear out,” he barks.

  I back up, retreating to my locker to grab the rest of my clothes, ignoring the murmurs echoing throughout the locker room. John lingers for a moment, but I avoid his gaze until he leaves.

  Where the hell did that come from?

  John isn’t just some jerk. He’s one of my best friends. We never throw down like that.

  I feel a light pat on my back as Ty passes by me on his way out.

  “Delta Xi?” he says.

  A friendly battle-cry. A subtle show of support.

  Thanks, buddy.

  “Delta Xi,” I repeat.

  I finish getting dressed alone.

  “Junior.”

  Before I get the chance to leave, Coach steps out of his office.

  “Yeah, Coach?” I ask, pausing.

  “The team comes first. Nothing is more important,” he says, his arms crossed over his chest. “Not even a pretty girl. I don’t want to see you picking fights with the team like that again. She’s not worth it.”

  I bite my tongue. Would he be saying that if he knew it was Alyssa?

  “Yeah,” I say, swallowing it down. “You’re right. It won’t happen again.”

  He disappears into his office and closes the door.

  I see his point. If the team isn’t on the same page, we don’t play well together on the field. It’s my job as quarterback to lead the offense. I can’t do that effectively if they hate me.

  Maybe I should make an appearance at this party, after all. Just an hour to smooth things over with the guys before heading to the library to do a few practice problems Alyssa assigned me.

  It couldn’t hurt, right?

  CHAPTER 28

  JUNIOR

  Actually, this might hurt a little.

  I pinch the ping-pong ball between my thumb and pointer finger, gently rolling it as I line up my shot. Dozens of eyes lock on me, but I do my best to block them out. Just like the field, it’s just me and the end zone or, in this case, me and the red plastic cup on John’s side of the table.

  If I make it, I win.

  If I miss, I lose.

  For a split second, my concentration breaks. I look at John.

  His brow rises, complimenting his pre-victory smirk.

  Fuck it, I think.

  Let him have this one.

  I toss the ball, missing the rim by a mere centimeter.

  The crowd erupts with joyful applause, but they do that no matter who wins beer pong. This is Alpha Delta Xi, after all.

  Everybody wins in this house.

  I raise my cup to John. “Delta Xi,” I say.

  He does the same to me. “Delta Xi.”

  “Delta Xi!” the crowd shouts.

  We all take a drink. This one hits me a little harder than the last one. I did not plan on drinking this much, but I knew this was the best way to patch things up with John. The library is open until one. Still plenty of time left.

  I step around the table. “Good game,” I say to John.

  He bows. “Good game.”

  “I’m sorry about earlier.”

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “We cool?”

  He presents his hands. “We never weren’t. But she must be something if you’re willing to throw a game in front of all these promising young women,” he says with a knowing grin.

  I chuckle. “Yeah, she is.”

  “Well, I apologize, too. I said some uncool things back there.” He glances around. “Is she here tonight?”

  “Here? No, she wouldn’t be caught dead in a place like this.”

  “Damn. I’ll just stay curious then, I guess.”

  “I guess you will.”

  “Gotta say, I’m not too broken up about Junior Morgan being off-the-market.” He raises his cup. “Less competition.”

  He’s not wrong.

  “Long time no see, Junior Morgan.”

  We turn and look up to find Samantha Jaxx balancing on the back of the couch behind us, her cleavage hovering an inch away from my chin.

  “Hey, Samantha,” I say.

  “Sup, Sam?” John greets her.

  “Hello, boys.” She plops her arms over the back of my shoulders, clinging tightly to my neck. “You two in a tiff?”

  “No,” he says. “We’re good.”

  I shrug in agreement.

  Samantha ignores the answer. “Because I was just telling Tammy — y’all remember Tammy?”

  “Yes, we remember Tammy,” I say, wishing to distance myself from her potent perfume, but the scent in her breath tells me I’m about all that’s standing between her and hitting the floor in a drunken clump.

  “I was just telling Tammy that I can’t stand to see my boys at each other’s throats like this.”

  She fists my hair and yanks my head to the side to expose my neck.

  I laugh awkwardly as John chortles. “Samantha…”

  “Want me to take you home?” Her hand travels across my chest. “I’ve missed you…”

  I pause with sudden clarity. Last year, I wouldn’t have hesitated to engage in a sloppy drunken romp with Samantha Jaxx. But tonight?

  “No,” I say.

  “Oh, come on. Don’t you miss me, too?” she whines.

  “No,” I say again.

  I really didn’t.

  “Boo!” She leans in. “Let me lick your wounds—”

  Her tongue grazes my earlobe. I shift out from under her. She instantly plummets, but John and I easily catch her and stand her back up.

  “How many have you had tonight?” John asks her.

  “None yet.”

  “Drinks, Sam. Not men.”

  Samantha giggles loudly, and she folds herself into his arms.

  I release her as John holds her up on his own. “You should get her back to Tammy,” I say.

  “Good call.” He adjusts his hold, pushing her blonde hair out of her eyes as he leads her forward. “Come on, Barbie. No more party.”

  “Do you miss me, too, Johnny?”

  “Maybe,” he says, not at all bothered by her using the nickname. John always did let the ladies get away with anything they wanted.

  “Want to go home with me?”

  “Depends. How quickly can you sober up?”

  Samantha tries to snap. She fails. “Like that.”

  “Well, we’ll see. Let’s find Tammy first, all right…?”

  “Oh, a threesome!”

  “No.” He pauses. “Well…”

  I take an empty seat on the couch as her cackles carry over the party. If my rejection stung her, she certainly isn’t showing it.

  Have fun, you two. Or three.

  A body plops onto the loveseat beside me.

  “Saving yourself for me, Lover Boy?”

  I laugh. Of course. “Hello, Grant.”

  His brows bounce as he takes a sip from his plastic cup. “Is your roommate here tonight?”

  “He’s around.”

  “Good.”

  Grant scans the crowd like a ravenous hawk. I think to gently remind him once again that Ty doesn’t play for his team, but there’s no use at this point. The man’s determined.

  Instead, I glance at my phone to check the time and find a new text from Alyssa.

 
; How’s the studying going?

  I’ve been here for two hours longer than I intended. I’ve done what I came here to do, so it’s time to hit the library.

  I tap out a simple reply.

  Good.

  There’s no sense in getting into details with her now. “I’m gonna head out,” I say to Grant.

  “So soon?”

  “I have some studying to do.” I pause at his smiling face. “Hey, Grant.”

  “Yes, my love?”

  “Can you… maybe not mention to Alyssa that I was here?”

  “Oh.” He blinks. “Was I not supposed to?”

  My chest sinks. “What?”

  He flashes me his phone. I read his most recent message to Alyssa.

  Lover Boy is here. Where you at?

  Her reply is brief, but it cuts me like glass.

  He is?

  “When did she send that?” I ask him.

  He shrugs. “Few minutes ago.”

  Well, shit.

  I reach for my phone. Alyssa knew I was here when she asked how the studying was going, meaning that my passive, simple, no-details-required reply wasn’t as innocent as I thought.

  I lied to her. She caught me in it.

  “Bye, Grant.”

  I push through the crowd of drunken Northies, dodging a few handsy Beta Kappa Beauties as I go.

  I call Alyssa as soon as I step outside. After five or six rings, I heave a sigh. “Pick up, Ally…”

  The phone vibrates with a new text message from her.

  I guess that incentive was too easy after all.

  I call her again, but she doesn’t answer.

  “Dammit.”

  She thinks she’s not a priority to me, but that’s not the case at all. I retrieve my backpack from my van parked on the street and send a reply.

  Meet me at the library. I’ll explain everything.

  The last thing I want is for Alyssa to think I lied to her. Which I did, yes, admittedly, but it’s far from what she must think right now. For all she knows, I knew about the party earlier today and just didn’t bother to tell her about it. She thinks I went to it and blew off studying because being the star quarterback is more important to me than acing a math test, but it’s not. It’s—

  Holy shit.

  Who am I?

  Maybe John was right. I am whipped as fuck.

  Getting an A on this test doesn’t just mean I’m one step closer to ravaging Alyssa’s body in fun, new ways. While that excites me to no end, the real reason I want to do well is that it would make her happy. She works so hard at making sure I stay off academic probation. I don’t want to let her down.