Page 135 of Game Stopper
I brushed my thumb over her cheek, wiping away a bead of water. Her smile softened, her breath catching, and I swear the whole world paused. Just me, her, and the taste of sunshine onher lips when I kissed her—slow, reverent, like I was still trying to convince myself this was real.
Her fingers slid into my wet hair, tugging lightly, her legs wrapping tighter around me. And then she whispered against my mouth, “Hey, Oliver?”
“Yeah, honey?”
“I want to marry you too.” She grinned, the familiar sexy and shy smile I loved on her.
Her words healed a bit of my heart. I held her close, both of us floating in the lake, laughing as if the world had finally let us exhale. This was it. The dream wasn’t the highlight reels or the headlines—it was her, right here, in my arms, with sunlight in her hair and nothing but forever ahead of us.
“Children,” Ivy’s voice cut across the water, sharp and amused. “Lunch is ready, and Sloane, your hair looks…interesting.”
Sloane groaned and buried her face against my shoulder. I grinned and started swimming us back toward the dock, kissing her temple because I could.
That was when Ivy’s tone shifted. She stepped out from the porch, her brows pinched as she waved a phone in the air. “Hey, Noah. Someone’s been calling you—over and over. It hasn’t stopped.”
The easy smile slid right off Noah’s face. He paddled toward the dock, snatched the phone from her hand, and went pale as he checked the screen.
He didn’t say a word. He held the phone to his ears and stormed off, his shoulders tightening as he let out a gasp.
I exchanged a glance with Sloane, the laughter fading from her lips, replaced by the same unease curling in my chest. Whatever that call was…it wasn’t nothing.
And just like that, I knew this weekend wasn’t going to stay simple for long. But that was the whole point of being aroundpeople you loved and cared for. You weathered through shit together. Sloane taught me that, Ivy taught me that, and the guys taught me that.
The Rampage was my family, and that included Sloane. She was not only my best friend, but my future. We’d gone through so much the last half a year—my parents, sister, and I finding a new rhythm. Once Rachel learned I helped pay for college, she vowed to pay me back every cent. I refused, obviously, and told her to repay me with her time. Cheesy, but I got to see her more, and we were both enjoying being close again. A part of me worried she was a little too close with some of the team, but she still lived on the West Coast for now.
Sloane and I also survived her and her brother reconnecting and her going no contact with her parents. She agreed to do therapy to help sort through her feelings, and it turned out her parents only caused her harm. She’d been happier and lighter, and I was proud I had something to do with that change. We still kept both condos but were thinking about moving into a new place together soon. It wasn’t like we spent a single night apart since that day I woke up in the hospital. Why would I even want to? She was the best part of my life, brought out the best in me, and every day I woke up wanting to make her smile, make her laugh.
Yeah, Sloane and I fought hard to get where we were at, and I couldn’t imagine a better life. So the fact she agreed to actually marry me? It was game fucking on.
