Rookie Move (Playing for Keeps #1)(38)

“I wasn’t—”

“You were.”

He blew out a breath and laughed softly as he ran a hand through his hair. “Okay, maybe a little.”

“It’s fine. I promise. Trust me?”

His eyes met mine, and he was silent for a beat before speaking. “I do. Sometimes I don’t even know why, but I do.”

“Good.” I tugged the collar of my T-shirt straight and stood, extending a hand to him. “Are we still going to get something to eat, or was all that some kind of innuendo? Because I’m fucking starving now.”

He grasped my hand and let me tug him upright. “I could eat, yeah.”

“Despite the mouthful I just gave you?”

“Goddammit, Garrett.”





11





RAMSEY





I was really good at sucking cock.

I’d only blown him twice so far. Once at the practice facility, which had been dumb as hell, and I was still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I’d done it. Then again that same night when Garrett had come over. A couple of weeks later, I still couldn’t get the noises he made out of my head. I still felt the sting in my scalp, his pleasure and want for me, showing in the way he’d gripped my hair and spilled down my throat.

I really liked sucking cock too, and I couldn’t wait to do it again.

But I also needed to tell Houston. I hadn’t planned on letting it go this long without talking to him. I’d considered it when we’d hung out the day after the Tennessee game, which we’d won but just by a field goal.

How did a guy even do this? Hey, I’m exploring my sexuality by hooking up with your little bro. There’s nothing like the sight of him on his knees, draining my balls. Is this what you had in mind when you asked me to keep an eye on him?

Somehow, I didn’t think that would go over well. Fucking Garrett—that was my new catchphrase. He was too tempting. I still couldn’t figure out why he was so different. What was it that made me want him so much that I lost my head. Like blowing him in the supply closet. Coach was cool, but he would kick my ass if he found out, fine the shit out of me, and likely take my captain position away, if not worse. And that whole not-ready-to-come-out thing would be out the window.

But knowing wasn’t enough to make me stop.

I pushed myself harder, my feet smacking against the trail as I took a morning run, while I tried to exercise away my thoughts of Garrett. Coach had worked us hard at practice yesterday, but from here on out, we’d only have light training before our game on Sunday.

We always wanted to win, but I think it was even more important to G this week. Not only because it was against another undefeated team, but because it was his first home game of the regular season, which meant his family would be there.

Maybe playing in Denver this weekend was why I’d decided it was time to tell Houston. We didn’t need that shit weighing us down. When I’d talked to Garrett about it before he left last night, he’d agreed.

The trail wrapped around, so I followed it back to my house, leaves crunching beneath my shoes, one of my favorite true-crime podcasts talking about blood-splatter patterns in my ears.

I got inside just as my phone rang. I glanced down to see it was my agent. Allen had pushed hard for me my senior year in college. I liked his grit and business sense. He was one of the best.

“Hey, Allen. How’s it going?”

“Just checking on my favorite golden boy.”

I rolled my eyes. I couldn’t blame him for the nickname. When I first got signed, it was what I’d told him I was going to be—the complete opposite of Mike Ramsey. An angel. A badass angel who was going to win a motherfucking Super Bowl ring. “Come on. You’re never just calling to say hi.”

“You’re right. I got an offer for this new vitamin water on the market. They’re coming in with a lot of cash. They really want you to endorse their product. Our motto is go big, or don’t go at all. We want the very best representation for our brand, and there’s no one better than Warner Ramsey. That was a direct quote, by the way. They want you bad, and luckily for us, they have the funds to back it.”

“Well, clearly they have good taste,” I replied, making Allen chuckle.

“You never change.”

“Why mess with perfection?” I teased, before getting back to business. “I need to try it first. I’m not agreeing to pretend to love drinking something that might taste like ass.” Though…I sort of wanted to taste Garrett’s ass, so maybe I should rephrase that.

What would Allen think if he knew about me and G? Not that he ever would, since we were just fucking around. But at some point, I should tell him I was bisexual. I didn’t think Allen was a homophobe, but it wasn’t a conversation we’d ever had. It was shitty that I even had to question it.

“Of course. I’ll get every flavor out to you and send you the details of their offer. We’ll take it from there.”

“Sounds good.”

“And the team has that hospital visit coming up too.”

It was one of the hardest and most rewarding things we did. It was a fucking honor that we could light up a kid’s life, give them something to look forward to, but damn, there was nothing worse than seeing sick kids. I wanted the power to fix them all.