Chapter 1
2071 Words
I never thought that when I finally got everything I’d ever dreamed of, I’d be this f*****g miserable.
My entire life, I’ve gone with my gut. I trust my decisions—both on and off the field. I’m one of those one-in-a-million cases. I left my small town with a scholarship to a D1 college to play football, entered the draft and was a first-round pick, then two years ago, I signed a five-year contract that’s still the biggest in the league.
I don’t say all that with arrogance. The fact that I have a horseshoe up my ass isn’t lost on me. Guys like me—from small schools in remote areas—don’t get looked at by colleges. They sure as hell don’t get as far as being the best quarterback in the league. But here I am. And despite all that, I’m unhappy.
My phone dings as I’m eating my breakfast before practice, and I pick it up to see a DM from Sessilee. She’s my ex’s good friend, and ever since Giulia and I broke up, she’s been popping up in my DMs.
Sessilee: I’m in San Fran. How about dinner?
I’m not exactly a mind reader when it comes to women, but even I know that going to a dinner where Sessilee will one hundred percent snap a picture or tag me in some s**t will stir up drama.
Me: Sorry, Coach has me on a strict regimen. Next time for sure.
The three dots appear immediately, which is probably meant to entice, but now that I have my phone in hand, I do what I’ve done every day for the last week—I scroll to my text messages and make sure I didn’t miss a reply from Clara. Like every other time I’ve looked, the last text in the thread is my own.
Me: You looked good tonight.
Clara’s my best friend, or my ex-best friend I suppose, but I could never think of her like that, even if she’s not talking to me and our relationship has become strained to the degree of archrivals. She and my family got stuck on a layover last week after a family vacation in Hawaii that I couldn’t take since it’s my preseason. The minute I saw her, all I wanted to do was give her a hug and talk out our issues, put it all behind us, but I’m a coward. Instead, I waited until we’d parted that night and sent a message that should’ve said I’m sorry. But as always, I’m too f*****g proud.
Messages from Sessilee trickle in as if the woman can’t for the life of her form her thoughts in complete sentences. Instead, it’s a string of two or three words per message.
I keep thumbing up as if miraculously, Clara will decide to forgive me. I tell myself the same bullshit I have every day—that Clara just returned from vacation and came home to a lot of work at the town library, which hasn’t afforded her time to respond to my message yet.
After picking up my plate, I put it in the dishwasher and start the machine before I grab my bag and head out of my condo. On the elevator ride down, I scold myself for being in such a mindfuck.
I’m Xavier f*****g Greene and I have the world at my fingertips. I can get into any restaurant in this town, even if it’s the new hot place. Kids wear my jerseys. Hell, adults wear my jerseys. People stop me on the streets for pictures and autographs. I’m in sponsorship ads plastered across the glitziest cities in the country. This is what I’ve worked for my entire life. I should be f*****g happy.
I’m so distracted by my thoughts that I don’t realize at first that the elevator has stopped three floors below mine. My teammate, Ben Noughton, walks in, his head down and looking at his phone, a smile tipping up the corners of his lips. He’s probably going to fill me in on last night’s conquest.
He looks up and sees me. “X, what’s up?”
“Morning.” I press the door shut button to get this ride over with sooner. Which is absurd because Ben’s been one of my best friends on the team ever since I started with the San Francisco Kingsmen.
“I never realized how funny Clara is,” he says.
I tense and whip my head in his direction. He doesn’t bother looking at me, his thumbs continuing to tap on the phone screen.
“I mean, at first I was all in because she’s a librarian, you know.”
Oh, I know, fucker.
“The whole sexy librarian with dark-framed glasses in a pair of black sheer stockings—”
“Keep in mind, she’s my best friend.”
Ben has no idea what went down with us.
“Funny you mention that.” He glances at me. “I asked her why she hasn’t been down here in the past two years.”
My gut twists and I reposition my gym bag over my shoulder. I wait for him to continue.
“She said she didn’t want to step on toes because of Giulia. That people might assume things because you’re best friends.”
Where did my truthful Clara disappear to?
Ben shrugs it off. “Anyway, I told her to come down when we play Seattle. With the rivalry between our teams, it’ll make for one great party when we kick their ass.”
My throat dries at the thought of Clara being here that weekend. The fact she’d be there because of Ben is another prick in my throat.
“And what did she say?” I do my best to keep my voice even.
He pockets his phone, his permanent smile still in place. “Said she’d think about it. She’s kind of reserved, huh?”
The elevator stops on the bottom floor, and we step out, both saying good morning to our doorman, Kerbie. He opens the door and my car is there, waiting for me.
When Kerbie opens the car door, Ben slides in. “We’re going to the same place, right?”
“Thank you,” I say to Kerbie and follow Ben in.
What would’ve been an enjoyable ride by myself to the arena will now be filled with Ben’s nonstop talk about Clara.
Sure enough, the second the door shuts, he turns and asks me, “What does she like to do for fun?”
I shrug, pretending I’m reading something on my phone, but all the words are melting together.
“Come on, X. I want to make it nice when she comes down. We can’t talk about books, so help a brother out here.”
“If, you mean?”
His forehead wrinkles. “What?”
“If she comes. She didn’t say she was coming for sure.”
“Hello, I’m Ben Noughton. I know I’m probably not her usual type, but—”
“What do you think her usual type is?” I’ve known Clara my entire life, and even I’m not sure I know her type.
“I’ll bet she likes really smart dudes. Ones with a pipe and a plaid coat with the patches on the elbows.”
A laugh escapes me despite how uncomfortable I am with this conversation. “And you think a lot of those guys live in Alaska?”
“Probably not. That’s why she’s still available. I mean, she’s smokin’ and now that she’s a blonde… Damn, how could any guy not want her?”
“Yeah, right.” I agree with Ben, because of course Clara would make any guy happy. Her only negative trait is that she’s stubborn as hell, which is the reason we’ve yet to make up after our blowout.
“So? X?”
We pull up to the arena and I grab my bag, ready to flee this nightmare of a car ride. I already sucked up my pride when I told Ben he was free to get Clara’s phone number the night of my family’s layover. Wasn’t that enough? I don’t think I can handle having to tell him how to win her over.
“You know I’m not used to women like her. I’ll f**k it up for sure without your help.”
I blow out a breath, my hand on the handle of the door. I’ll do it for Clara, because she does not deserve to come down here and spend all her time at sports bars where Ben spends more time with fans than he does with her. If she likes him, which she must if she’s still talking to him, then I’ll give him my two cents on what I’d do if Clara was a girl I wanted to impress.
“Listen. Clara isn’t into the scholarly types. Hello, I’m her f*****g best friend. I went to school on a football scholarship, not for my grades.”
“But still, man, you’re smarter than me.”
“First of all, she won’t like it if you keep putting yourself down. She agreed for you to have her phone number. That must mean she’s into you. And she’s cool as hell with sports and bars. She can eat more wings than me most nights, but if I was going to date her, I’d take her to a nice restaurant outside of town, or get a private room. Give her the opportunity to dress up and get to know you. Maybe take a walk around the pier after.”
Clara and I have done all the tourist stuff ten times since I’ve been here.
“Show her why you love San Francisco,” I add.
He nods a bunch of times. “Yeah, okay.”
“And I’d hold off on Kozy Kar until the third date or something.”
Kozy Kar is a theme bar that Ben loves, but it’s got a weird vibe that includes throwbacks from the seventies up to the nineties. You can drink on a waterbed, and there are stripper poles and posters of naked women everywhere. What do I know though? Maybe Clara would like it.
“Really? I always take women there. I think it’s cool and there are all the dark corners to make out.”
I swallow hard at the thought of him making out with her.
“Well, she’s not your average girl.” I open the car door, say goodbye to the driver, and head into the arena, saying hello to security.
Ben’s quick to catch up to me. “Are you sure you’re okay with this?”
I stop before entering the locker room. “Just… I mean, she’s someone really important to me.” That truth remains, regardless of how long it’s been since we really talked.
He puts his big bear paw of a hand on my shoulder. “I know, X. I’m not in this to get in her panties. I’m getting older now and I’m looking to settle down.”
I raise both eyebrows.
He chuckles. “I’m not just looking for fun anymore, that’s what I mean.”
I nod and open the locker room door. “Her favorite food is dessert. Get her anything to satisfy her sweet tooth after the meal and it will be a success.”
His smile grows while my stomach grows nauseated. “Thanks, X.”
He heads to his locker, and I do the same. My mood grows sourer when I see the guy sitting next to my space.
Lee f*****g Burrows. The new quarterback brought onto the team to take my place should I not be able to perform this year.
“Hey, Xavier,” he says with a smile. The guy is so laid back it drives me crazy. The worst part is, he’s smart as s**t, probably already knows the playbook.
He got traded at the end of the season, and I can’t deny from the tapes I’ve watched, he should do well. He showed that he could probably take my place in a heartbeat.
Which gives me two goals this season. Further secure my position on this team. Show them why they signed me to a huge five-year deal two years ago. And second, win back my best friend.
- Writer
