Page 22 of Replay

“Why you being a creep over here?” I jump at the sound of Maverick’s voice behind me.

“Shit, you scared the crap out of me.” I grab my chest to dull the pounding, unsure if my heart is racing from being caught off guard, or the thought of what my conversation with Nate might reveal.

He slings his arm over my shoulder. “Come on, B, we still have another hour before we head in.”

“I need another drink. Or ten,” I proclaim, muttering the last part to myself.

“We can fix that. I need a partner for beer pong. You in?” Maverick gives me a wink.

As our team lines up on the fifteen-yard line, the crowd roars to life. The sound of howling wolves fills the air. With less than a minute on the clock till halftime, and the end zone within reach,another touchdown and extra point would put us at a 14 to 7 lead.

I swear I'm going to have a bloody lip with how badly I'm chewing on it. It’s almost like time slows once the ball is snapped into Nate’s waiting hands. He looks to the left, but Nola is surrounded. Then he looks to his right, where Graham can't shake Tennessee off his tail. Tennessee’s defensive end is closing in on him, so he makes a dash for it.

Nate charges up the left side of the field, zig-zagging his way past Tennessee.

“Holy shit, he’s running it in!” Cash yells as we all cheer.

A brick house of a linebacker lines up to take out Nate, and we all let out an audible gasp as Nate dives over the pile of players and lands in the end zone.

The fans go wild. Howling and cheers are all we can hear as maroon puffs of smoke signal MRU’s touchdown. Nate points to the section of the crowd where his dad is sitting several rows over and closer to the field. My heart squeezes at how it used to be me he’d point to, then he’d lift his hand up in a half-heart for me to complete from my place in the stands. I quickly shake off those memories as the team kicker, Pike, lines himself up and easily gets MRU the extra point.

There’s a small celebratory gathering of the team before they head off the field. The cameras zoom in to catch the team’s high, and I can’t stop myself from staring at the jumbotron as it focuses on Nate. The close-up reveals the underwater scene expertly tattooed on his throwing arm. And not just any scene, an octopus.

“Did you hear me?” Bellamy yells over the noise, smacking my arm for my attention.

“Sorry, no. What did you say?”

“I said, I hope they keep this up. The party will be even better with a win under their belt!”

“Yeah...uh, sounds great,” I mutter, half listening and half staring at the jumbo screen.

“Whatever, you’re not even paying attention,” she teases, then turns to the rest of our group and howls along with them.

She’s not wrong. I'm not paying her any mind, too busy staring at the tentacles wrapping around his bicep and forearm.An octopus… What are the chances?

“Says here they can change their color and shape to match undersea objects.” I read aloud from the display next to the octopus’s tank.

“Did you know they collect treasure too?” Nate whispers in my ear.

“Really? What kind?”

“Usually rocks or shells, but sometimes they collect shiny objects too.”

“They’re so fascinating,” I say, pushing my face up even closer to the tank to see if there are any others hiding.

Out of nowhere, a suction-like sound erupts behind me, and I jump. I find Nate close behind me, acting all innocent.

“What the hell was that?” I ask, swatting at him.

“What was what?” With a grin, he places his hands on my hips and pulls me flush against him.

“That noise… Did you make it?”

“Not sure what you’re talking about. I’m just educating you on octopus behavior,” he teases, sucking on my neck.

Pushing him away, I scold him with my eyes. “We’re on a field trip…at an aquarium. You can’t get me all hot and bothered.”

“No one’s around… Besides, it’d be hot to hook up in the predator cave, no?” The smooth timber of his voice has goosebumps spreading over my skin as he presses his growing erection against me.

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