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  An arrogant college football player meets his match.

  Dedicated to my family, friends, and anyone else who believed in me from the start <3

  Copyright © 2020 Rachel Aghanwa

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without the prior written permission of the copyright owner,

  except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Thank you for supporting the rights of the author.

  To request permissions, contact the author directly at [email protected]

  Paperback: 978-1-7350458-1-8

  Ebook: 978-1-7350458-0-1

  First Paperback Edition: August 2020.

  one: start

  I often find myself making promises I know I can't keep.

  For instance, I swore I would buckle down and focus more on my classes instead of fooling around and slacking off.

  But instead of studying for my US Government and Politics midterm that’s next week, I'm cornered in the living room of a frat house with a red solo cup in my hand, laughing my ass off.

  Albeit, I wasn't that drunk (maybe a little tipsy, but who's really asking). I was faded enough to find the sleazy, beefcake of a guy currently speaking to me comical though. I never found typical jokes funny, because they're usually not my kind of humor. They're lame, honestly.

  “So then, he tried to get by me, and I was like, ‘no freakin’ way!’ and I pushed him out my face!” The guy, whose name was said earlier but quickly forgotten, slurred out his oh so interesting story.

  Rolling my eyes, I placed my drink on the table behind me and walked away. My mind was sobering up, and I no longer saw the point in pretending to laugh. I needed air. It was too humid, and I felt closed in.

  I scanned the room and almost jumped for joy when I saw the back door of the house. But before I could take a step in that direction, someone stepped in my way.

  “Cash, don't tell me you're leaving already?” My roommate, Isra groaned out, shaking her head. “Stay a little longer.”

  “I just need some air,” I explained, before giving her a quick hug. “I'll be back inside in a few so we can walk or take a cab back to the dorm together.”

  “Okay, find me when you're ready to leave,” Isra said to me, before continuing to dance with the guy in front of her.

  I walked to the door and pushed it open, letting the early autumn Massachusetts air blow against my skin. I continued to walk further outside until I could lean my head against the side of the house with my eyes closed and take a big gulp of clear air.

  The sounds from the party were muffled, and the wind whistling from outside only added to my newfound solace. Sometimes I wondered why I continued to go to parties when I always retreat to a less populated area to let out steam.

  I tilted my head up to the night sky, wondering if it was just me that sometimes felt as small when compared to the endless vacuum of the universe. Stars burned so brightly, but to my eyes they were just specks of light being gazed upon in my tipsy haze.

  “A beautiful girl all alone behind a frat house,” a voice said, shaking me out of my thoughts. “Why, this must be the start of a cliché horror movie.”

  I started to chuckle at his joke, but the moment I opened my eyes to see who it was, the laughter died in my throat.

  The first thing I noticed were his eyes. They were an intense shade of hazel, lighter than coffee but not darker than cocoa. Even in the dim lights of the backyard, they glowed with amusement and that somehow intrigued me.

  My eyes drifted down to his neck, which had inklings of a very intricate looking tattoo peeking out from underneath the neckline of his black short sleeved shirt.

  He was the most beautiful man I had ever seen.

  I realized he was talking when my eyes drifted to his mouth—oh my god, his lips—and he was saying something. I could see his breath condensing in the chilly air, and it made me wonder how he wasn’t freezing in that shirt.

  “So, what's a pretty girl like you doing outside by herself?” He asked me, and I almost melted at his words. It was the second time he called me pretty, and his voice was to die for.

  He had an indecipherable accent, which made his voice deep and tainted every syllable in the words he spoke. It sounded divine, and I couldn’t understand how the hell he sounded like this going to school here.

  “It's way too packed in there,” I responded, and as I took a longer glance at his features, the more familiar he looked. Where did I know him from? “I needed air.”

  He nodded and stepped closer to me, and I could feel his body heat radiating and his musky, heady scent wafting up through my nose. “I needed some air too, but I didn’t expect to find someone like you out here.”

  I could feel his fingers brush the side of my face and when I looked up, he was so close; any closer our lips would've brushed. His touch sparked something deep within me, and I swallowed hard, not understanding what this was.

  This was against everything I have been trying to avoid for months, but the sparks that radiated from where he trailed his fingertips kept my better judgment silent.

  “Zeus!” Someone screeched from across the yard, and he tensed and closed his eyes before turning around.

  “What?” He growled at the blonde girl, who was striding towards us.

  “Don’t talk to me like that!” She said in disbelief. “Stop hooking up with other people when we're together!”

  Those words rained down on me like a bucket of ice water on my head. It suddenly sobered me up and I tried to get away from him.

  When he refused to let my wrist go, I glared at him. “Get off me, asshole.”

  I felt his grip tighten, not painfully but enough to anger me instantly. “Who the fuck are you talking to like that? Do you know who I am?”

  Oh, hell no!

  Not knowing what else to do, I raised my knee and swiftly hit his groin, which made him fall to the ground.

  “Yeah, I do know who you are,” I spat, before walking back into the house. “You're an asshole.”

  two: recognize

  It was in the library Monday afternoon when I realized where I recognized the boy from.

  There he was, standing tall and proud in a North Atlantic University football jersey between the tall bookshelves. He was in the center of all of the other starting lineup players’ posters, and his was slightly bigger than the rest of them.

  Zeus Kassar: Quarterback, the poster read, and I remembered writing a profile for the school’s newspaper, The Rising Red, on him as a freshman last year. He was one of the top college picks in the United States, despite emigrating from England and formerly playing rugby. Within a year after his arrival, he dominated the high school football scene and his name became known across the nation.

  Rolling my eyes, I remembered how I almost kissed him and how willing I was, which was something that didn't come often. I wasn't ready for anything like that again after what happened last school year, especially with him being an athlete. It wasn't worth it.

  “Cash!” My head jerked away from the poster, and I directed my attention to Isra who seemed to appear in front of me, with her usual green tea latte. Her usually wayward curly hair was pulled back into a low bun, and I could see the deep bags under her eyes from exhaustion. She must’ve had an arduous weekend.

  “What?” I snipped out, before directing my eyes back to my textbook.

  She turned around to see what I was just staring at intently and when she spun back around, I saw the knowing smile which made me groan.

  “Isra, it's not even—” she cut me off before I could finish my sentence.

  “Girl, it was only a matter of time before you got sucked in!” She squealed, before laughing her ass off. “I'm glad I got over his hype las
t year, but you're just starting now!”

  “Would you listen to me?” I raised my voice before quieting down since we were in a library. The librarian sent us a pointed look, and I sent her a small smile before explaining. “I almost kissed him at the frat party last Friday.”

  “Whoa, what?” She said, shock clear in her tone. “That was you?”

  Now it was my turn to be confused. “Wait, what was me?”

  “Remember that guy from the football team, dreads and those hazel eyes and those luscious lips—”

  “I get it, he's hot,” I interrupted, annoyed with her short attention span. She always lost it whenever a cute boy was mentioned. “How did you know about that?”

  “A girl from my tech theatre class said she saw something go down between Zeus and some girl that apparently kicked him in the balls when he tried to kiss her,” she said, before taking a sip of the latte in her hand. “Oh god, this is still nasty as shit, I don't know why I always get it. And then the guy I was telling you about, he heard about it in the locker room.”

  “I only hit him because he tried to kiss me, and then his girlfriend came and started yelling.” I sat back in my chair and ran a hand over my face. “You know I wouldn't go looking for trouble when I'm trying to stay off the radar.”

  Her face softened at my last words before she smiled. “I know. But just ignore it, it'll blow over in a few days. Don't worry.”

  I smiled back at her, but I knew that inevitably something terrible was about to happen.

  three: feast

  My calculus problem set was due Sunday morning at 9 am, but I still found myself at yet another party on Friday, with a drink in my hand.

  I needed an intervention. ASAP.

  Sipping my drink, I looked up at Isra who was currently making out with a huge muscular guy who was most likely from the football team. It was the guy with dreads she was fawning over on Monday. Go figure.

  I drowned the rest of the tequila in my cup without thinking of it. “Izzy, I'm going upstairs,” I coughed out at her before getting up from my seat.

  At first I thought she didn't hear me over the music and her sucking the face off the Bob Marley wannabe, but some seconds later she called to me: “don't get raped or fall to the ancient system of patriarchy!”

  I rolled my eyes before continuing my walk to the steps. “If we taught men not to rape, we wouldn't have a problem!”

  My walk up the steps was interrupted when some girl almost choked up a lung on the top of my boots. I jumped back in disgust, but I felt hands slide around my waist to stop me from tumbling down the stairs.

  “Whoa,” I heard the deep voice say, and I immediately recognized it.

  I craned my neck and my eyes met with Zeus. I could feel the heat in his gaze, and it crept up my body which oddly created goosebumps.

  Faintly, I could hear a slower song switch on, which only elevated my sultry mood, and the way his bare skin felt on my own made everything more explicit.

  My breath fell out in sighs as he drew closer to me. “I don’t think I told you last time how pretty your eyes are.” His voice was now a deep, accented murmur and if I wasn’t so caught up in him, I would’ve missed his words with all the pandemonium from the party happening around us.

  “Thank you.”

  All I could do was stare at him with anticipation. I felt like doing something really stupid. For once, I didn't care about the repercussions of my actions, I just wanted to feel something. Anything.

  I grabbed the back of his neck and crashed my lips to his, like I imagined doing since I first saw him.

  I knew I’d regret this in the morning, but my wants made the long list of reasons of why I shouldn’t be kissing Zeus Kassar undecipherable. The feel of his soft but slightly chapped lips and his stubble rough against my cheeks was enough to cancel out all bad thoughts.

  Was this what it felt like to lose control? To succumb to the bottomless abyss of passion?

  He dipped his tongue between my lips to find my own, and when he did, I felt alive. I could feel this kiss stirring something within me, and I couldn't determine if it was very, very good or very, very bad.

  “Hey!” I heard some guy yell from behind us, and I remembered we were still on the steps. “You're blocking the way!”

  Zeus moved away but he then pressed his body tightly against mine to let the guy pass. I tried to shift over, but he quickly grabbed my face between his hands. “You’re not leaving me that quick.”

  His lips enveloped mine once again, and all thought vanished from my head. I let him lead me walk us further down the hall. I didn't even realize we got to the room before I felt the soft mattress dip underneath my body.

  His lips left mine but only to skim down my neck until he stopped at the edge of my tank top.

  “Off,” he muttered to me, his bright eyes finding my own in the dimly lit room. “Now.”

  “Wait,” I said, and he paused his hands on my waist as he looked at me through the darkness. “You sure about this?”

  “Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” He replied with a slight chuckle as his thumb drew circles against the side of my stomach. “I’m definitely sure. Are you?”

  Was I sure? This man, that I only met once before was above me, and I found myself at a loss for words at the sheer amount of attraction charged between us. My judgement was altered, and not by any substance. This was something dangerous on its own.

  But just this once, I found myself complying with his demands as my head nodded as a response. I could feel my cheeks heating up and I was so glad I couldn't see myself because I'm pretty sure I'd look a mess with my curls all loose and everywhere. God, maybe Gran was right, I did need a perm to tame these kinks—

  “You're so beautiful,” he murmured against the curve my neck, before rising and taking his time to slowly give my body a once over with his searing eyes that now seemed gold rather than hazel.

  And with those three words, I found my brain cleared of any tangible thought.

  Fire was all I felt. Haze clouded my eyes when I made contact with his skin, and I could feel him tongue trailing down through the valley of my breasts, over the plains of my stomach and lower, lower, lower...

  My fingers burrowed into the sheet covered mattress as I felt his cool fingers flick the button on the top of my shorts open and slowly slide them down my legs. I almost liquefied in his arms.

  I was now left in my underwear (thankfully I decided to wear a matching set today), and I could feel him staring at me for too long before I covered my face with my hands.

  “Are you sure you’re with it?” I had to ask, getting tired and the mood slowly dying with him looking at me. “Because if you’re eying me like that, I suggest you feast with something else other than your eyes.”

  His lips slowly parted and in that moment, I wanted nothing more than to let him stare at the windows to my soul for the rest of the time we had together, uncover the secrets I've had buried for long.

  He leaned down to claim my lips and to unhook my bra and it was a wrap.

  But this couldn't be anything more than what it could be. This would be a one night stand that, he would brag about it to his friends, and I would just be another notch in his belt.

  With the way he looked at me right now, as if I was his oxygen, like I was his everything, being a conquest didn't seem too bad. I was his and he was mine, even if it was just for a few moments.

  I could feel myself building up, the tension between us mimicking the bunched springs of the bed we were currently on, while through my half-closed eyes, I could see him white knuckling the headboard as we joined together, our bodies now one.

  My nails dug into his back and dragged across as he let out lust filled groans in sync with my own.

  It was so hard for me to keep my eyes open, because when I closed my eyes all I saw were galaxies behind my eyelids and when I opened them, I stared into the brightest stars in the universe. His lips then latched onto mine in an attempt t
o recreate the Big Bang theory with the mere touch of our mouths.

  We both reached our climax one after another, and the North Star blinded my vision and knocked me into a state of euphoria. My breaths turned into broken pants and I could feel a bead of sweat fall from the bridge of Zeus' nose onto my cheek.

  I felt the loss of him between my thighs as I saw him roll off my body and I wanted to close my eyes again. My thoughts came rushing back into my head and it finally processed what just occurred.

  I had sex with Zeus Kassar. Zeus fuckin' Kassar. Top college RB in the nation. Beautiful tattooed black haired boy with constellations hidden deep in his hazel eyes. Also, obnoxious dickhead definitely had a girlfriend who was never too far away from him.

  With that reminder fresh in my mind, I quickly sat up and began to redress.

  “Hey,” I heard him murmur before I felt his fingers skimming across my lower back, causing me to freeze my movements. “Where are you going?”

  I shook my head to get a grip. I couldn't let myself tumble through that black hole and lose myself to him again for what felt like light years. “I have to go.”

  His cool hand trailed a path across my back. “What's your name?”

  He didn't know my name after what just occurred? The nerve of him—

  “I can see the gears practically turning in your head,” he said with a laugh. “You never told me your name, even before when I first met you.”

  I could feel myself getting hot in the dimly lit room, before turning to face him. “Cash.”

  “What?” He asked confused, with a raised eyebrow. The music from the party was quieter, but still loud.

  I sighed before shaking my head. “It’s Cash, short for Cashmere. Like the really soft wool from sheep's fur. My mom’s a nutjob.”

  Rustles from the sheets were audible before I felt his fingers turn my face to his. My heart raced at his expression, and I wanted nothing more at the moment than to call him mine.