Page 15 of First Down Promise

“Hey, rookie. Get fucking lost. She’s QB one’s sister.”

I close my eyes and exhale. Josh.

“Oh, Mack. Sorry,” the rookie says.

He scatters while Josh pauses by me. “Fucking Thomas,” Josh mutters under his breath. Josh appears freshly showered, with damp hair and slightly reddened cheeks. His black leather duffel bag hangs from his shoulder as he turns to me. Josh’s brown eyes peer into mine, and the corners of his mouth lift in that sexy, boyish way that makes my stomach flutter. “Why are you still here?” I break eye contact and blink a couple of times.

“Um, waiting for Pete. He drove me here earlier.”

Josh stifles a laugh and digs into his shorts’ pocket. “He left a while ago. Thought you were going out with the girls after the win tonight.” I pale at the realization that my ride left me without a text.

“Oh. Well, I guess I can Uber home.”

“No, no way. I’ll drive you. He’d kick my ass if I let you Uber with some rando.” He shakes his head and pulls his keys out of his pocket. “Come on, Ab.”

“I mean, are you sure?”

“You live right down the road from me.” He pushes the door open and holds it for me.

I brush a loose curl behind my ear and walk past the exit with him trailing behind. “Thanks.”

The warm, humid air hits me as soon as we step outside. I lift my curls off the back of my neck, grateful I freshened up after three hours of cheering in this heat and watching the clock tick down in the fourth quarter. Specifically now that I’m apparently getting into Josh Mackenzie’s truck.

“I’m headed to meet him and the guys, actually. Want to come?” he asks. The headlights of his truck flash ahead of us as he unlocks it with the key fob.

“Which guys?”

“Which guys?” he repeats and laughs. “The only ones who’ll put up with your brother. Especially after a game.”

“That’s not true. I’m sure the entire team would love to be in his inner circle,” I argue.

“No such thing,” Josh teases.

He tosses the duffel into the backseat behind the driver’s seat, and I climb into the passenger seat and buckle in. The truck shifts as his large frame takes the driver’s seat, and he glances at me again with another smile on his lips. He starts the engine, and faint classic rock plays over the truck’s speakers. I knew he wasn’t into the rap music Pete blasts during their workouts.

“So, you in? I’ll buy a drink.” His eyebrows raise as he adds the part about the drink. Just kiss me, Josh. “I know you love Coop.” My smile fades as my shoulders slump against the cloth seat because I’m so damn foolish. Does he really think I’m into Coop?

“Platonically,” I correct, holding his gaze. “He’s nice.”

“Whatever, you’re coming.” He puts the truck into gear but looks over at me with another smirk before pulling away. “Guess I’m kidnapping you.” He might be joking, and most girls might bristle at the statement, but I’ve fantasized about that very scenario for years.

“Where are we going?”

“A hole-in-the-wall. Where we always go after a home win. The usuals know who we are, but they leave us alone,” he answers, turning out of the mostly empty parking lot.

“So, what kept you after the game?” I ask, flipping down the sunshade to use the mirror behind it, and the LEDs turn on to illuminate it. “Oh, do you mind?” I gesture to the lights. Josh turns his head toward me briefly but shakes his head and returns his focus to the road.

“No, you’re good. Um, I needed some TLC after a couple of hits I took.”

“One looked bad,” I say, peeling off my false eyelash strip, followed by the other one. The glue tugging on my natural lashes makes me wince, but the relief of having them off my eyelids is immediate.

“Ain’t nothing but a G thing.”

“If you say so…” I trail off.

I tuck the lashes into my bag and open the travel-size makeup wipe package to wipe my hours-old, sticky lipstick off. Self-consciousness settles in as I de-beautify myself in front of Josh, despite that he’s seen me without makeup plenty of times, but there’s something so weirdly intimate about getting unready with him so close.

“I feel like these lashes could make me fly away if I catch the wind,” I joke.