Page 74 of The Love Playbook

“Whatever. It’s okay, Joe,” Lettie says, coming to stand beside him. She swings an arm over his shoulder, and I narrow my gaze on the point of contact. “We can still beat ’em,” Lettie says, her tone smug. “How much time is on the clock?”

I close in on her before I check the timer on my phone. “Two minutes. Plenty of time to take you down.” I wink.

“You mean, plenty of time for us to scoreagain, fair and square.”

“In your dreams, Lettie girl. Tell you what? Forget the time. First one to score wins.”

“I’ll take that challenge.” She hip checks me as she passes, sexy curves swaying as she goes, and I force my hands into my pockets to keep from grabbing her and pinning her to the ground in a move that won’t be PG enough for my youngest siblings.

We reset at the faux line of scrimmage while Lettie, Joey, Tuck, and Bailey form a huddle.

After another ten minutes of play, no one has scored.

Our breathes come in short gasps. Dirt streaks our clothes, and Quinton’s once white shirt is now a patchwork of grass stains that I know my mother will be cursing me for long after I’m gone.

“What’s the plan?” Tyler hisses. “We can’t let them win.”

I narrow my eyes on our enemies, noting the way Joey grins down at Charlotte all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, like he’d do anything to please her.

Little bastard better not get any ideas. He may only be sixteen, but I’m not opposed to beating his ass.

“We’re pulling out the secret weapon,” I whisper.

Tyler grins. “You mean the—”

“Yep. They’ll never know what hit them. Ready?” I bump fists with both Tyler and Quinton, then line up.

Bailey blows the whistle this time, and the play begins.

Like I expected, Joey hands the ball off to Lettie while Ty, Quinton, and I spread out, forming a human wall in the narrow backyard and effectively cutting off her path.

Her eyes widen as she tries to get past us, but we shift, blocking her each time she makes a move.

“Pass it!” Joey yells.

Lettie hurls the ball toward Tuck when I turn to Quinton and shout, “Now!”

With a primal scream that curdles my blood, he runs directly at Tuck, squelching and flailing his arms like a deranged octopus.

“What the heck?” Tuck falters, distracted by Quinton’s shrieking, and completely missing Tyler who’s following closely behind.

In his moment of hesitation, Tyler swoops in, snatching the ball mid-air, then spins on his heel and dashes toward the end zone.

With a laugh, I pump my fist in the air while Joey runs after him. “Go, Ty!”

“Get him!” Lettie screams like a battle cry, but it’s too late. Tyler’s too fast. He dodges Bailey and jukes past Joey when he makes a play to grab him, and with one final burst of speed, he crosses the bucket-and-rake line, slamming the ball down with a victorious scream. “Touchdown, baby!”

Quinton goes wild, slamming into his brother in a celebratory hug while I turn to Lettie and shrug. “That’s called winning, baby,” I say, mocking Tyler.

Tucker sprawls on the ground in defeat, groaning theatrically. “I can’t believe we lost tothat.”

“Yeah. What the heck was that?” Charlotte asks, waving a hand toward a grinning Quinton.

“Thatwas called a special play designed by yours truly. The octopus,” I say, barely containing my laughter.

“Don’t feel bad,” Joey tells Tucker as he helps him up and brushes him off. “I mean, Chris does play division I football at AU. They should’ve crushed us, and they barely won.”

Tuck cocks his head as if considering it. “That’s true.”

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