The Jock by J.L. Beck Page 0,64

hate taking his money now, but with me constantly sending cash to my brother and mom, I’m always short.

“Hey, that was a joke,” Cage says when he catches my mood.

“I know… it’s just I hate taking money from you now. You do so much, pay for my meals, letting me stay at your place–”

“Don’t worry about it. I mean it. I don’t care about the money. I only care about you.”

“I care about you too,” I half lie, I don’t just care about him, and that scares the hell out of me. I’m falling for Cage, and I’m falling hard.

We study at his place for a few hours, his test is coming up, and I want him to be ready. By the time we’re done, it’s completely dark outside, and I’m exhausted.

“Ready for bed?” Cage asks, just as I answer his question with a yawn. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He grins.

We walk upstairs hand in hand, and again I’m reminded of how close we are, how attached I am.

In the bedroom, we both strip out of our clothes and climb into bed. Cage turns off the light, descending the room into darkness.

Pulling me into his arms, he kisses the top of my head, and I melt into him.

Closing my eyes, I try to go to sleep, but it seems impossible with something on my mind. It won’t let me go.

When the urge to talk to him becomes too much, I suck in a deep breath to calm my nerves. I have to tell him, but that doesn’t mean I’m not scared about what he will say in return.

“Cage…”

“Mmhh,” he answers as if he is already half asleep.

“I need to tell you something.” That has him alert, his arms tightening around me, his body going tense.

“What is it,” he asks, his voice wrapped up in worry.

“I just… I want to be honest with you, Cage. I’m feeling things I’ve never felt before. I’m not sure how to handle them. I want things with you, want them bad, and that scares me. This is all new to me. I’m not experienced like you.” I feel his body relax at my confession, making me wonder what he thought I was going to say.

“This is all new to me too. I’ve never dated anyone, Blair. I’ve had sex, that’s it. I’ve never wanted anyone before. I only want you, I told you that.”

“I know. I guess I still have a hard time wrapping my mind around it.”

“Don’t worry your pretty little head. You are mine, and I’m yours. There is no one else. Only you.”

His words soothe me like salve on an open wound. Relaxing into his hold, I breathe in his scent and let his warmth seep into me. I close my eyes again, and his time, I have no trouble falling asleep.

20

Cage

I never thought dating a chick would be this easy. My thoughts on dating had always been that I didn’t need a chick, especially not one that was clingy and controlling. Being with Blair was nothing like I expected. She was neither of those things nor was she boring, which I also thought being tied down to one woman would be like.

The team laughed their asses off when they found out I was dating Blair, many saying they thought she couldn’t stand my ass. Little did they know, Blair knew more about me than most. Their laughter and jokes didn’t mean shit to me so long as it didn’t come back on her.

“I can’t believe you got suspended from this weekend’s game,” Murphy says.

“Yeah, it is what it is.” I shrug. “Worth it, though. The guy deserved much worse than a broken nose if you ask me.”

“I’ve never seen you like this before,” Evan says.

He grabs his bag off the bench as I slip into my t-shirt and jeans. The fact I still have to practice even though I’m not playing sucks donkey balls.

“I’m not different. I mean, not really.”

“You’re totally different. We’ve lost our wingman. You used to get us all the pussy, and now I’ve got to rely on Evan to help me get the ladies,” Murphy leans over and whispers as if he’s telling me a secret. “And let me tell you, Evan doesn’t bring the ladies in. In fact, I think he might be the reason I have none at the moment.”

Evan glowers. “You’re an asshole, Murphy.”

“Better than a whole ass,” Murphy taunts.

“You’re stupid, that’s why you can’t get the ladies,” Evan replies and steps