I know that’s not the case. Well, I hope it’s not…
She pulls away first, glancing toward the street. “What kind of car is picking us up?’
“A white Camry.” I lean in, ready to press my lips to hers again, when she stops me, resting her hand on my chest.
“It’s here.”
Reluctantly, I pull away from her and approach the car. The passenger side window rolls down, revealing an older woman, who’s eyeing me up and down. “Who are you here for?”
“Knox?” When I nod, she asks, “Are you that football player, kid?”
“Yeah.” This isn’t the first time I’ve been recognized by someone off campus, and it’s always kind of wild.
She grins. “I loved your daddy back in the day. Hop on in.”
What the hell? That’s a new one.
I open the back door and let Joanna slide in first before I get in after her. The moment I slam the door, the driver is pulling away from the curb, her tires squealing. Joanna falls back against me with a soft giggle and I right her in her seat.
“Better buckle up,” I murmur.
She grabs her seat belt, her gaze finding mine when she pulls it across the front of her. I take over, clicking the belt into place, my hand brushing her hip. Lingering there. Our gazes never straying.
“Thank you,” she whispers.
“You ready for this weekend’s game?” the driver calls from the front seat.
Irritation flits through my blood as I glance in her direction. While I appreciate the woman’s enthusiasm, she interrupted the moment Joanna and I were sharing. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Good to hear.” Her gaze finds mine in the rearview mirror. “Get your seat belt on, son. We need to protect you at all costs.”
I’m rolling my eyes as I pull the seat belt over me, Joanna stifling laughter behind her hand. When I glance over at her, her eyes dance with amusement, and I’m about to ask her if she gets off on my pain when the driver continues talking.
And keeps talking throughout the rest of the ride. I was hoping to kiss Joanna all the way home, but instead, I’m talking stats, both ours and other teams’, our chances for a championship and my NFL possibilities.
“If you’re anything like your daddy, you’ve got a sure shot,” the woman reassures me as she pulls into the apartment parking lot, stopping directly in front of my building. Like she’s been here before. Is she some kind of stalker?
Doubtful. She’s following her directions via Maps.
“Well, that was interesting,” Joanna says as we stand on the sidewalk side by side, watching the Camry leave.
“Sorry about that.” I scratch the back of my head. Some girls get off on the so-called fame I have. I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface popularity-wise, but whatever. Other girls don’t like all the attention I get, but I always tell them I can’t help it. It’s not like I ask for it.
Like tonight. I really hope Joanna didn’t mind. She seems like the type who doesn’t give a damn who I am or what I do, so she’d probably find the constant conversation about, well, me, exhausting.
I get it. Sometimes I find it exhausting too. Like tonight.
“It’s okay. I actually learned something about you.” She’s still watching the parking lot, the little red lights on the back of the Camry getting dimmer and dimmer, until they’re flat out gone.
“You did?” I glance down at her.
She looks up at me. “I found out all your stats, your chances to play in the championship game, and your NFL potential, all from a ten-minute conversation.”
“She knew a lot about me.”
“It was a little frightening,” Joanna agrees.
I smile at her. She smiles in return.