“We’re soul mates, Liam. You’ll always be a part of me.”
How she knows this is beyond me, but I feel something when I’m with her. She’s my sun and moon, the air that sustains my life. She can bring me down and make me weak in the knees with one look. If this is what it means to have a soul mate then I guess she’s right.
“Can I hold you, Josie?” I whisper against her skin. “I just want to hold you.”
Josie rolls over so she’s facing me. My eyes close as she softly runs her finger down the side of my face. She rubs the stubble on my chin before leaning in and kissing me. The feeling of her lips against mine never fails to take me by surprise. It’s like I’m kissing her for the first time, the way my heart rate increases, the tingling that I feel from her mouth brushing against mine. I get lost in the moment every single time. It’s the sweetest kind of heaven and for that moment, her kiss helps me forget about the shitfest that Sterling brings with him.
“I don’t know what’s going on in that head of yours, but I’m here for you. You know that, right?”
“I know,” I reply, pulling her closer to me. Our foreheads rest against each other’s, our noses touching. All I have to do is turn slightly and I can press my lips against hers again. I know that if I do, it’s all over for me. My desire for her is already peaking and if I start kissing her, I’ll have her undressed and beneath me before I realize what I’m doing. As much as I need her, it’s a game day and I have a routine. I’m too superstitious to veer off course. No sex on game day, not until after.
We’ll win and after we do, we’ll meet at the tower and hang out. We’ll get in my truck and find a deserted road or go to the overlook where she’ll show me how much she loves me. And she does love me. There’s no doubt in my mind that Josephine Preston loves me. I just hope I’m enough for her.
Chapter 4
The school day drags on. I’m anxious to get out on the field and start warming up. I’m ready to put on my pads and helmet and hit the field. I need to feel the vibrations from the stands. Its opening night and I know the fans will be out in droves. We’re playing our cross-town rivals, a game that is usually played on Homecoming, but someone higher up thought this would be a good way to kick off the season. Honestly, I don’t care who we play, as long as at the end of four quarters, we have the winning number on the board.
The only highlight is watching Josie walk around in her short as sin skirt and tight shirt. No, I take that back. The highlight would be when I get to saddle up behind her and press into the flimsy excuse for briefs that she has on. I’ve told her over and over again those aren’t briefs but a true testament to a guy’s ability to wait, because each time I see her do a split I imagine myself sliding them down her legs, which is exactly what I’m thinking about now as I watch her walk down the hall.
I don’t know why I’m not up there next to her holding her hand. Sometimes I want to watch her. I love seeing her interact with our classmates. Does this make me a stalker? Maybe, but there are times that I feel like I need to hide in the shadows, like today. Don’t get me wrong, I love the praise I receive on game day, but we’re in school, we should be learning. Watching a game film in history class or discussing what scheme we’re going to run tonight in English is over the top. I love football. I study the game. I run each play over and over in my head every single day so when it comes to game day, I want to relax. I want my mind to focus on the War of 1812 and not the Wing T offense our opponents are going to run.
I know the teachers can’t help it. They’re excited. I get that. We’ve won the last three state championships and are going for an unprecedented number four. Mason’s expected to break the state’s rushing record too. That’s what I worry about, his record. I know he needs to break it to get some decent college looks and I can help him. I’m not worried about college. The scouts will be in the stands with their notepads writing down everything that I do right and even things that I do wrong. The phone calls will start soon. The coaches will make their intentions clear. I’ll sign in February and seal my fate. Division I football is all but guaranteed for me. My dad’ made sure. Th
e high intensity camps since I was eight. The elite summer programs that took me away from friends each year. I’ll give him credit; he saw potential and capitalized on it. I just wish he cared more about me as a person rather than a player. Why can’t I be more to him then QB1 of Beaumont High? Why can’t he see me as his son?
Why? Because he doesn’t care the way Mr. Powell does about Mason. Sterling only wants front page news. He wants to parade around in his business suit talking about stats and what college I’ll pick. As much as it would kill me, I’d laugh if no one came forward. That would show him… and me because I need college to make it to the NFL, but the look on his face would be priceless.
I step behind Josie and slide my hands up her legs and over her hips until they’re resting on those ridiculous briefs. I lean in and press my lips to the back of her neck. Her long dark hair is up in a ponytail. The ends are curled, making it look a lot shorter than it is. As much as I love my cheerleader, I look forward to the days when she’s not wearing her uniform. I love running my fingers through her hair and burying my face in her locks. Games days are all about looks. She has to look her best. Only her best are days when she’s wearing sweatpants and my jersey or one of my t-shirts. That’s when she looks beyond beautiful.
My fingers run along the edge of her briefs, teasing her. She shivers lightly. I’m driving myself crazy and she knows it. Josie won’t hesitate to use this to her advantage. I haven’t learned my lesson yet because right now I can’t do shit about the bulge in my pants. Not sure why I torment myself like this. All this is going to do is make me want to get tonight’s game over with so I can have her. So I can feel her skin against mine. I need her to keep me level headed and focused. After spending the night with her in my arms, I think I might need to break tradition and skip the tower. I need my girl, desperately.
“What are you doing, Liam?” she asks, her voice heavy with anticipation. I relish the way she responds to me. She may be my first girlfriend, but I’ve heard enough locker room talk to know that she wants me. When we’re together she’s not a cold fish like some of the guys have described their hook-ups to be. Her body knows my touch and craves me just as much as I crave her. I often ask myself why it took me so long to notice her. Why it took until sophomore year, and for Mason to get me to notice her, before I had the courage to speak to her. The only answer I can come up with is that I was so focused on making varsity and securing my starting spot that I had blinders on. I don’t know what it was about that day I asked her to homecoming, but I knew then that I wanted to be in her life forever.
“You know what I’m doing. I’m giving you a preview of what’s to come.”
Josie’s head hits the front of her locker as she sighs. She turns slowly in my arms, her fingers move along my shoulders and to the base of my neck. I love that my girl is all natural. She doesn’t dye her hair or spend hours tanning her skin under fluorescent lights. Her nails are real and kept short, but just long enough to dig into my skin at the right moment.
“Are you trying to break your self-imposed rules, Liam?”
“No, I’m just showing you what’s to come later tonight. I thought maybe you’d want a little preview before we have to focus on other shit.”
Josie teases my freshly shaved sides with her nails, causing my spine to tingle.
“What I want is for my super sexy boyfriend to go out there tonight and kick some ass so we can celebrate later.” She finishes me off with the lightest, but almost deadly kiss. I hate my life right now.
When she pulls back I look into her blue eyes and know she’s the voice of reason. I need my stamina for the game. I can’t let anything get in the way of the prize. Beaumont needs to win this game to prove we’re still number one and show them that it’s going to take an army to bring us down.
“I love you, Josie.”
“I love you too, QB1.”
My hands are resting on the collar of my jersey, pulling it away from my neck. I’ve been standing here watching Josie work a routine for the past twenty minutes. She’s left me with a walking hard-on since early this morning and I’m still hours away from being able to do anything about it.
I turn as Mason slaps me on the shoulder. He stands next to me, eying Katelyn, I’m sure. “Man, our girls are hot.”
I nod in total agreement. We do have the two finest chicks in school on our arms.
“Are you going to show her the eye black that you made?”