by Emma Dalton
That was an epic disappointment. A memory I would rather not revisit.
“Don’t worry, guys,” I say. “We got this in the bag.”
All the guys start to cheer and whoop.
Coach Papas gives us a pep talk, and then we run into the field. I stare out into the stands and locate my family immediately. Mom and Dad wave at me and Bailey jumps up and down when she sees me, waving her foam finger. She yells so loud, I swear you can hear her on the moon. How that little girl can let out such loud sounds is beyond me. But that just makes me love her more than I already do.
Even though I know no recruiters are coming, I survey each and every person on the bleachers. And then I internally sigh.
“Head in the game, head in the game!” Coach calls.
I’m about to focus on the game, when I catch familiar straight brown hair. I narrow my eyes, trying to make the person out. That’s definitely Kara sitting with her friends. Did she come…to watch me? Then it hits me—of course she came to watch me, she’s probably still working on the article. And for some weird reason, that thought…hurts a little.
I shake my head. I’m being ridiculous. Must be feeling all these crazy emotions that I can’t make sense of. I just need to take a deep breath and let it out. Focus. Get my head in the game, like Coach said. Because we need to beat Barefield High. I need to smoke their QB. Because if we lose to them again, we’ll never live it down.
Once the game starts, I get in the zone. It’s what Brock and I always called it—total concentration. It’s just me, the team, the opponent, and the ball. No spectators, no cheerleaders, nothing.
And like the blink of an eye, it’s over. We won.
The stands go wild. I laugh when I hear Bailey cheer at the top of her lungs. There’s no doubt about it—the kid is my number one fan.
“Good game, man,” I hold my hand out to Barefield’s quarterback, Tanner Murphy. He throws his helmet to the ground and stomps away.
Okay, I’m not going to lie and say that didn’t feel good.
The team and I hug and slap each other, cheering and exchanging congratulations. A few guys clap my shoulders, telling me they couldn’t have done it without me. I know they look up to me, but the truth is I could have done better. We won by only a few points. Was my performance good enough to attract recruiters?
It’s not long before all the cheerleaders crowd around us, shrieking in glee and jumping, waving their blue and gold pom-poms around. Many of them fling their arms around me or kiss my cheek.
“We’re celebrating at Mikey’s!” DeAngelo announces.
Everyone continues to whoop and cheer.
“Bray!”
I turn around and find Bailey bounding toward me, Mom and Dad right behind her. She throws herself into my arms. “You won! You won!”
“We did,” I laugh.
“You were on fire!” she squeals. “The best quarterback in the world. My big brother. I wanna be like you one day!”
“You’ll be an amazing quarterback.”
“I know! Because I have your jereens!”
“You mean genes?”
“Yeah, that!”
Chuckling, I lower her to the ground. Mom wraps her arms around me and kisses my cheek. “You were fabulous.”
Dad rubs my shoulder. “Proud of you, son.”
“Thanks.”
“We’ll let you celebrate with your friends,” Mom says. “See you at home.”
“Where are you going?” Bailey jumps up and down. “Can I come?”
“He’s hanging out with his friends, sweetie.” Mom takes her hand. “You’ll play with him at home.”
She frowns. “Okay. See you later, Bray the Bulldozer!”
“See ya, squirt.”
She pushes out her chest and stands on her tippy toes. “I’ve grown a few inches since this morning. See?”
I ruffle her hair. “Wow, you really did.”
“Bring me back a chocolate shake, okay? Bye!”
She and my parents leave the field. I head into the locker room with my teammates. The place is abuzz with talk about the game, all of us on a high we won’t come down from until after the weekend.
I’m excited, for sure. Happy as heck. But I’ve got this niggling in the back of my neck. I did the best I could, but is that enough? Will a recruiter come check me out?
“Saw the loser’s face?” Jerry says with a slap on my chest. “Wish I could have framed it.”
“Hmm?” I blink at him.
“Tanner Murphy, man!”
“Oh. Yeah. Sure.”
“You good?”
“Fine.”
DeAngelo sits on the bench and looks at me. “Don’t seem fine. What’s up?”
I sigh as I lower myself next to him. “No recruiters.”
“They’ll come,” Jerry assures me. “If you continue playing like this all season, schools will fight over you.” He slaps my chest again.
“I don’t know,” I say. “You know how stressed I get. I’m scared I’ll choke like I did last year.” I cost us too many games, which is why we never made it to the playoffs. That’s the thing about me—when I’m in the zone, I’m in the zone. When I’m not…I’m not.
DeAngelo and Jerry exchange a look.
“You need confidence, man,” DeAngelo says as he playfully punches my shoulder. “We don’t have time for stress.”
I sigh as I rub my hands down my face.
“Too bad you don’t know a guy who knows a guy who knows a recruiter,” Jerry says. “Someone to put in a good word for you.”
“Yeah,” I say with a snort. Then I straighten up. “Wait a second. Kara’s dad is a recruiter for Astor University.”
“Who?” Jerry asks.
“Kara Gander? She writes for the school paper.”
Jerry and DeAngelo share blank looks. “Our school has a paper?” Jerry wonders.
“Anyway, I was at her house yesterday doing an interview for the paper. Her dad is Nigel Gander.”
DeAngelo’s eyes widen. “I’ve heard of him. Pretty tough guy to impress.”
“Yeah.” I blow out some air.
DeAngelo snaps his fingers. “That’s it! That’s your in. Tell the daughter to put in a good word for you.”
“I barely know her. I can’t just ask her—”
Jerry springs up and starts pacing. “Asking her to put in a good word for you isn’t good enough. Who knows if she even likes football enough to care? And Nigel likes to get to know the players before he recruits them.”
“So what do I do?”
With a smile, he drops down near me. “This is what you do.”
Chapter Eight
“Your house is adorable!” Dani gushes as I invite her inside. She gazes around the place like she can’t get enough of it. She’s the first to arrive out of all three girls. We decided to gather at my place because Dad’s not home and we can have some girl time. “So homey. And the furniture is cute. Did your mom design it?”
A log lodges in my throat as I nod. “Yeah, before I was born. She put so much of herself into it.”
She smiles, but it drops when she sees the solemn expression on my face. “What’s wrong?”
I shake my head, forcing a smile. “She died three years ago. Cancer.”
Her eyes register pain and sympathy as she places her hand on my shoulder. “I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have—”
“No, it’s fine. I love that we have this house to keep her memory alive. Like when I look at that recliner?” I nod to it. “I can see my mom staying up late getting sucked in a good book.”
She smiles. “Is that where you got your love for reading from?”
“Yeah. She would have loved the club and you girls.”
“Thanks. It means a lot to hear you say that. It’s not every day people tell me they like me, except for my parents.”
We sit down on the couch, where I’ve prepared snacks and a stack of movies. They range from action to romance to horror. I’m not that
close with the girls yet and have no idea what their preferences are.
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” I tell her. “Invisible and all that. You think we’ll go our whole lives being invisible?”
“I hope not. I’m going to be a famous Broadway dancer and all eyes will be on me.” She lifts her head high, then chuckles. “And you…you’re going to write for a famous newspaper and everyone will read your articles.”
I laugh, her words touching my heart. “Honestly, I’m not sure I want to follow that path. I don’t really know what I want to do. But Broadway? That’s so cool.”
Her cheeks redden slightly. “But I’m nowhere as good. I was just exaggerating. Sometimes I don’t watch what comes out of my mouth. No, all the time. But dance is my life. I mean, I’m not part of a team or anything like that. I just take lessons a few times a week at the studio near my house. My instructors think I’m good, but for someone as uncoordinated as me? It’s going to take a lot of hard work.”
“Uncoordinated?”
She playfully rolls her eyes. “Did you forget that I tripped over my feet yesterday in the cafeteria? When I was little, I was so uncoordinated my mom put me in dance class to help. I’m a little better now, but like I said, nowhere as good as the other dancers. But I need to dream big or else what’s the point, you know?”
I nod slowly. “Yeah, you’re lucky you have big dreams. Me? I just want my crush to know I exist.”
She smiles crookedly. “How did the sexy quarterback look last night? Sorry I couldn’t make it to the game. I had to work.”
My cheeks redden. “He performed exceptionally and brought the team to victory.”
“No, how did he look?”
I throw my hands up. “I don’t know! He wore a helmet.”
“Uh huh.” She giggles.
I’m about to say something, but the doorbell rings and I invite Charlie and Ally inside. They, too, compliment the house and I tell them it was all Mom. When they find out she’s no longer with us, they’re as sympathetic as Dani. Their kind words make me want to cry. I haven’t had anyone other than Dad to talk to about her. Now I have three girls who I know will always be there for me. It’s like we have a silent understanding between us, something intangible, but completely present.
“Are you okay?” Ally asks with wide eyes.
I didn’t realize the tears rushing down my cheeks. I quickly wipe them with my sleeve. “I’m just glad you’re all here,” I say.
Charlie smiles warmly. “Us, too.”
“The Four Musketeers!” Dani pumps her fist over her head and we all laugh.
“I really like the sound of that,” I tell her.
Charlie waves her hands around excitedly. “The Four Musketeers who use books instead of swords to defeat their enemies.”
“Speaking of books,” Ally says. “Did you guys bring Wuthering Heights?”
I gesture to the pile of DVDs on the coffee table. “I thought we could leave the reading for the club and watch a movie. If you guys want.”
Dani places her hand on my shoulder. “You’re part of us now, Kara. Don’t be scared to speak your mind and don’t ask us permission for anything. A movie sounds awesome.”
“But we need food first,” Charlie warns. “I can’t do anything on an empty stomach.”
Dani’s eyes catch sight of the backpack sitting at Charlie’s feet. “Don’t tell me you brought homework here.”
Charlie shrugs. “I thought we might get some done.”
Ally and I exchange a glance and chuckle.
As they argue back and forth about doing homework on a Saturday afternoon, Ally and I flip through the DVDs, each of us making a pile of the ones we’re interested in.
“Romance?” I ask as I check out her stack.
She nods, cheeks flushed. “My favorite genre.”
Then she starts adding horror to her stack. I raise my eyebrow for an explanation, and she laughs gently and softly. “You’re going to think I’m weird.”
“You and the others can never be weird in my books.”
She gives me a shy but thankful smile. Then she bends close. “It’s not a secret, since the others already know this, but my dream? It’s to watch a horror movie with a guy. Maybe we’re lying on his couch or his bed, and I get so scared he wraps his arms around me and comforts me.” She covers her face. “I’m pathetic, aren’t I?”
My thoughts drift to Brayden and me snuggled on his bed, his strong, protective arms around me as I bury my face in his massive chest that smells so good because I’m terrified of the movie.
“No,” I say, unable to hide the dreamy tone from my voice. “It’s not pathetic at all.”
She smiles a little more confidently.
“Are there any guys…?” I ask.
“What are you guys talking about?” Dani asks. It seems she and Charlie are done arguing.
“No,” Ally quickly says. “There are no guys. No one would ever fall for the shiest girl at school.”
Charlie wraps her arm around Ally’s shoulder. “Our girl here is a hopeless romantic,” she informs me. “She’s obsessed with the men in her novels and has this perfect guy envisioned. I don’t want to hurt your feelings, Ally, but such a person doesn’t exist.”
“At least Ally has dreams of her perfect guy. Not everyone here hates romance like you do, Charlie,” Dani says, sticking out her tongue playfully.
Charlie returns the action. “Of course Ally can dream about a guy sweeping her off her feet. I just don’t want her to get hurt.”
Dani is about to argue, but Ally lifts her hands. “I know there’s no such thing as a perfect guy. That’s why I’ll never find him. So I’m okay with falling in love with the men in my books.” Her cheeks are so red, I wonder if maybe there is someone she’s set her eyes on at school. I mean, she wouldn’t blush so fiercely about a character, would she? I doubt it. But I don’t call her out on it because it seems she wants to keep that to herself, and I’ll respect my new friend’s wishes.
Dani focuses on the movies. “So…what have we decided?”
“Pizza,” Charlie says.
“I meant the movies.”
“I know. I’m just letting you know I want pizza. Do you want me to order it, Kara?” She slips her phone from her pocket and clicks on the app. “Tell me what you want, guys.”
We each give her our order, then try to agree on a movie. Ally wants romance, Charlie’s interested in a documentary about microorganisms—the girl loves science—Dani wants a musical with more dancing than singing. And me? I’d like anything with a storyline that’ll suck me in. Okay, and it wouldn’t hurt to have romance in it. Then it’ll give me a chance to picture Brayden and me doing all the things the man and woman do on the screen. Like hold hands, kiss, declare themselves to each other forever…
Dani snaps her fingers in my face. “I think we lost you for a second.”
“Sorry. Have we decided?”
Charlie frowns. “Two votes for romance, so it looks like majority wins.”
I get to my feet. “I’ll grab some plates from the kitchen while we wait for the food to arrive. Start the movie and I’ll be back in a few.”
The bell rings the second I turn toward the kitchen.
“Food’s here!” Charlie cheers. “Do you need help, Kara?”
“No, that’s okay, thanks.”
I make my way to the door and throw it open, expecting to see the delivery guy. But my jaw crashes to the floor when I spot a tall guy with a massive chest and silky sandy brown hair standing there. The sun reflects off his mesmerizing blue eyes, making them look like gems.
I just stare at Brayden. “You’re not the pizza guy.”
His eyebrows furrow. “Pizza guy?”
I laugh lightly, pushing my fingers through my hair. “I mean, hi. How can I help you? Is this about the article? I haven’t written it yet.”
He shakes his head, giving me a bright smile that’s oh so Brayden and oh so sexy. I’m going to die. “No
, I’m not here about the article.”
I nod and wait for him to go on.
“Can we talk?” he asks, voice a little hesitant. Man, even when he’s hesitant he sounds so sure of himself. It’s like a natural talent or something.
“What’s taking so long!” Charlie shouts from inside.
Brayden’s eyes flit to the slightly open door. “Oh, you have company. I can stop by later.”
“That’s okay. We can talk out here.”
I shut the door behind us and gesture for him to take a seat on the porch steps. Then I cringe. You don’t ask the most popular and sexiest guy at school to sit on your dirty porch steps!
But he drops down like it’s no big deal, sweeping that silky hair out of his eyes, making it perfect-messy that makes me want to touch it. But I curl my fingers in my lap.
“Kara.”
I love when he says my name. It’s so smooth and gentle and makes me tingle all over.
He lifts a brow, and I quickly shake that thought away before he thinks I’ve lost my brain. “Yeah? That’s me, Kara.” Then I cringe. Maybe I really have lost my brain.
He smiles warmly. “Saw you at the game. Do you have enough material for your article?”
I just nod because I can’t seem to do anything else. He noticed me at the game? Out of all the people crowded on the bleachers, he saw me?
He leans back on the steps, shooting that sizzling smile my way. Doesn’t this guy know that every time he’s near me I’m at risk of melting into a puddle?
I have no clue why he’s here or what’s taking him so long to say whatever it is he needs to tell me. But that’s okay because this gives me a chance to stare at perfection as long as I want.
I don’t know how much time passes before he finally says, “I have a proposition. No, not a proposition, but more like a favor.”
I just stare at him. The star quarterback needs a favor from me, Invisible Girl?
“My friends and I were talking about, you know, getting recruited into a school with a good football program. And since your dad is a recruiter for Astor University…” He searches my face. “My friends suggested I get close to him, let him get to know me. Then he’ll be so impressed by me and my performance as QB that he’ll recruit me in a heartbeat. My friends’ words, by the way, not mine.” He laughs lightly, though his sounds cool and confident, like music to my ears.
