Page 31 of Waiting for Her

My confession lingers in the air between us, crackling and popping.

One hand rests on my leg, the heat of his palm on the bare skin an inferno. His strong fingers flex against my thigh.

Grady licks his lower lip and my eyes drift to watch. I clench my legs together and let out a stuttering breath.

And then…

His lips are on mine, his tongue wasting no time to beg for entry into my mouth, his fingers threading through my hair that’s still pulled up in a ponytail, and for the first time in six years, I feel like I’m where I belong.

Grady

Six years.

It’s a long damn time to go without the feel of Bri Jameson in my arms.

To hear her soft moan.

I’ve been in a holding pattern since the day she told me she couldn’t do it anymore.

Professionally? I’ve been kicking ass.

With my family? I never missed a beat.

Personal life? Nil.

It was a year after Bri broke up with me and one drunken night when I was missing Bri more than normal, I decided to download the Babble dating app. To be fair, I didn’t so much as decide to do it, rather I was encouraged to, quite strongly, by my dumbass friends. But, in the end, I figured it couldn’t hurt.

I’ve dated. A few.

Kennedy, being one of them. We tried. Or rather, I tried. She didn’t have to work at it to know if she wanted more.

I was wrong.

The app only allows girls to be the first to contact the guy, which I thought would make it easier for me to ignore it.

Because girls are shy, right?

I was wrong.

Again.

So very, very wrong.

Within the first hour of my drunken download, I had notifications from seventeen girls wishing to connect.

I shouldn’t have been surprised at the number of girls who contacted me right away.

I wasn’t exactly an unknown on campus, considering my status on the field, and since the app was connected to another social media site, one that was mainly filled with pictures of me playing football. Anyone who clicked on my profile discovered exactly who I was. Initially, Bri was by my side everywhere we went. In almost every picture I posted on social media, she was there with me. It was a noticeable change when she was no longer present in my life.

But the thing is, I could always spot the girls who were after me for the status. Even though a few became relentless in their pursuit, I wasn’t swayed no matter how many nearly naked pictures they would send my way.

College athletes were like a challenge to some of them. A challenge they weren’t willing to back down from. Many would latch onto an athlete, happy to be arm candy if it meant she was part of the status that came with a successful college athlete. They saw prestige, a potential future only a small fraction would ever see.

I eventually replied to Kennedy, though.

There was something about her.

Maybe it was the fact that she looked like the exact opposite of Bri.

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