“Geez, thanks for that visual.”
“My pleasure,” she grins.
The cheer team finishes their routine and make a ‘V’ outside the doors, shaking their poms as though their lives depend on it. The doors tear open and Slade comes jogging out followed by his team, and a proud Blake who looks ecstatic to be playing for the Mambas.
As the boys race out onto the court, the crowd roars for them and I can’t help the need to smile despite how much I try not to. Blake looks as though he’s fallen in with the team so easily and it warms my heart that he’s found the transition to this new school so easy.
I find myself tracking Slade’s movements as he makes his way around his court. He grabs a ball and dribbles it down the court as a quick warm-up before running to the hoop and launching himself in the air. He dunks it as though it was the easiest thing he’s ever done and I can’t lie, I gape a little. I’m impressed. I guess the guy has skill after all and to be honest, it might have been one of the sexiest things I’ve ever seen.
His name is called from the sidelines and I watch as he walks over to some girl and bends down. He presses a kiss to her lips and she whispers something in his ear that makes a devilish grin appear and has me clenching my thighs. Fuck, the guy really is dangerously sexy.
“That’s Nessa,” Maze explains, clearly watching the same show.
I nod as I look her over. She’s nothing special but from the look of her, she seems like the kind to act first, think later. A bit like me, really. Though I know I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover but sometimes human nature shines brighter and a girl just can’t help it.
I decide pretty damn quickly that I don’t like her and that’s all the thought I put into it before she’s put to the back of my mind.
Slade finishes with Nessa and jogs over to the guy who must be his coach. The guy starts talking and soon enough the whole team is crowded around. I keep my eyes on Blake, feeling a proud big sister moment coming on and as if sensing my eyes on him, the little turd looks up and beams wide.
I instantly flip him off and he laughs, knowing that’s the best kind of support he could possibly get from me. Slade looks at Blake and whacks the back of his head to force his attention back on their coach but curiosity gets the best of him and he glances up at me, locking his heated gaze on mine.
His brows furrow, clearly wondering what the hell I’m doing here. If only he knew but considering he’s wearing the jersey I had a little fun with earlier, he’s got absolutely no idea.
His gaze has a need bubbling deep inside my stomach but I try my best to ignore it, after all, I’m here to witness his downfall, not think about the devilish things he could do to my body.
The longer he glares, the harder it becomes to control myself and I eventually let my lips pull up into a satisfied smirk that only results in sharpening his glare. I watch with amusement as suspicion enters his gaze quickly followed by doubt and the more I smile, the worse it gets. He knows I’m up to something yet he’s got absolutely no idea what and that knowledge is killing him.
Fuck, this is going to be good.
We wait another twenty minutes and then finally, both teams step into position and get this shit started. The buzzer sounds and my grin begins to hurt my cheeks as I watch Slade dominating up and down the court. I have to admit, I’m kind of impressed. He keeps glancing up here, wondering what the fuck I’m up to and despite his distraction, he’s still clearly the best on the court. He’s like an avenging angel, gliding effortlessly past his opponents.
I’ve been to millions of Blake’s games growing up and have witnessed some incredible things, but even I have to admit that this is probably one of the most fast-paced, exciting games I’ve ever been to. It’s a shame that I’ll have to cut early.
Maze grabs hold of my hand and squeezes tight as we watch the droplets of sweat begin to form on Slade’s forehead. It won’t be long now.
Roman cuts in front of Slade and takes the ball from between Slade’s legs making the rest of the Rangers cheer with delight. We’re only ten minutes into the game yet the whole time these two have been at each other’s throat. It’s clear there’s bad blood between them and something tells me it’s more than just a team rivalry thing.