Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 98487 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98487 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Aviva exhales hard. “I loved her, and I still love her. She is such a good coach.”
“Guy coaches are hard, but I like him.”
“Well, that’s all that matters,” she decides. “So, I’m excited to see how this plays out with Evan.”
“If it even does. We look at each other a lot, but I think I flirt and he kind of just takes it.”
She chuckles. “I bet you’re gonna have to tell him—or yell at him, ‘I like you. Be mine.’”
“Probably,” I say, shrugging. “But I’m in no rush. I want him to be comfortable, and he doesn’t seem to be. He gets followed around campus.”
“No way.”
“Yes, girl. It’s gross how these girls act around him. Don’t get me wrong, he’s gorgeous and I want to follow him sometimes, but it’s obvious he doesn’t like it.”
“Poor guy. I want to hug him.”
“Me too,” I groan, and she laughs. “We do that handshake Nico taught me.”
“Aw, how sweet!”
“Right? Well, we’ll see how this goes.”
“I’ve got my fingers crossed, but maybe you should tell him about Nico.”
“I will when he asks. We haven’t done the whole family conversation yet.”
“Oh, okay,” she says, and then my door opens and Cameron comes in very aggressively.
“Cal, tell them you aren’t sleeping with Smexy Evan!”
I notice a bunch of my teammates behind her, all gawking at me. On the phone, Aviva says, “Ew. I’ll let you go.”
I laugh. “Love you.”
She says it back, and I hang up as I look to my teammates. “No,” I say, rolling to my side. “We’re friends.”
“So, you tried, and he denied you?” Shantae asks, and I shake my head.
“No. I’m taking it slow.”
Everyone looks bored. “How slow? Like, can’t you ask if he wants to bang?” someone says, and I roll my eyes.
“Get out of my room,” I say, pulling the covers over my head and closing my eyes, much to their dismay. When the room clears out, I hear Cameron get on my bed before she smacks my butt.
“We’re going shopping tomorrow for something slutty. The hockey house is throwing a party since the RA will be out of town.”
I pull my head out from under the covers. “Huh? I’m running with Evan tomorrow.”
“Yeah, and then he’s leaving, I guess. So, be ready after your run, and don’t tell him about the party. He’s not supposed to know.”
“Oh, that’s gonna be awesome.”
“What? He’s not going to be there,” she says with a shrug.
I guess I could party. I wish Evan would be there, but it’s all good. I put in my AirPods and go under the blanket once more. I find myself on Evan’s Instagram, scrolling. He doesn’t post photos of himself unless he’s with someone. It’s usually like food or drinks or something that means something to him that day. Today, under a photo of his running shoes, the caption reads:
Got my ass handed to me on my run. I don’t mind, though. The view was nice.
I grin as I sigh. I want to think he likes me, but I’m not entirely sure. I guess I could ask, but that seems so silly. I shouldn’t have to ask; I should just feel it.
And I feel like he does.
Hmm, I wonder what my next move should be. This isn’t like my gymnastics routines that I know and can navigate just fine. He’s almost like the Jaeger I couldn’t catch today. Right there, ready for me, but I have to grab hold.
I wonder if he even wants to be held on to.
eleven
Evan
“So, you mean to tell me, with all these girls who have been hitting on you, you’ve walked away and ignored them?” Owen asks.
I chuckle a bit as I head off the interstate toward my mom’s house. Shelli has still not had the baby, and she feels very emotional that she hasn’t seen everyone in a while. So, we’re having a family dinner with the Brooks family. They’re always a blast, and I’m sure the emotions will be high since this is the first Brooks grandbaby and the baby of the firstborn of our family. I wish I could have gotten out of it, but Mom didn’t really give me any options.
Owen won’t be there, so I’ll have to turn my attention to Zac, which will be cool since I love that kid. I miss my brother, but I’m kind of okay he won’t be there. At least I can contain his comments to the phone. Whereas if we were in person, he’d be hounding me.
“Yes,” I say with a sigh. “They don’t even know me. I’m just all new and sparkly.”
“So? What the hell else do you want? A school full of hot girls all want you, and you deny them? I feel like you are going against the guy code. Or something. I don’t know. You’re killing me.”
I snort. “What the hell? I don’t want some meaningless hookup and to just go through a bunch of females. I watched you do it. I’m good.”