Chapter 1

chapter one

Gavin

I squint my eyes and reach to the table next to my lounge chair for my Oakleys. The sun is brighter in the middle of the ocean, I'm sure of it.

There are two days left at sea, and I'm second guessing my choice to come on this cruise. Especially since all my teammates are already at school, sending me pictures of the fun. Parties, golf cart races through the cul-de-sac, the backyard keg stands.

Meanwhile, I got guilt tripped into coming on one last family hurrah, before I start school and practice.

"Would you stop pouting?" My twin brother, Levi, barks from the chair next to mine.

"I am not pouting. I'm tired."

"You slept till 2:30. You skipped snorkeling this morning, there is absolutely no way you are tired."

"I'm still recovering from summer workouts," I scoff.

He snorts, "Yeah. God forbid you take even a second of life to just enjoy yourself. You eat, sleep, and breathe football."

I roll my eyes. Sure go ahead and get your jabs in. Asshole. This is the first year since we were five years old that he couldn't be on the field with me. To say it's been hard on him would be an understatement. It's been more than hard. Levi was the best wide receiver in the state, colleges all over had their eye on him. That is until he collapsed during the state semifinal game and ended up needing heart surgery for a heart condition nobody even knew he had.

"You could at least pretend like you aren't miserable," he adds. "Mom is basically dying for you to smile."

I follow his subtle nod to the pool where mom's eyes are trained on me. She's talking to a group of strangers, but he's right. She's watching us. I raise my hand in a small wave, causing her to crack a smile.

"Some of the guys I met at the club last night are going to hang out, you wanna come?" I look over to the guys in the direction he's referring to, and decide better of it.

"Nah, I'm good here. Gonna grab some food."

He nods, stalking off. My eyes follow him until he disappears around the corner, then halt on a chair across the deck from mine. Long, slender legs attached to a pink bikini and a face hidden behind a book catch my attention.

I tell myself to look away, but my eyes keep creeping back to where she sits. She takes one hand off the paperback to reach for her drink on the table next to her. I watch intently as her perfectly shaped red nails wrap around the glass. The next thing I know I'm standing next to her lounger, my eyes still focused on her hand and perfectly manicured fingers.

"Are those real?"

My voice surprises me, because I didn't intend to say that aloud. Her book closes and I get a full glimpse of what it was hiding. Shoulder length blonde hair and…boobs.

She realizes I'm staring at her chest and her eyes go wide, and I feel like I could deflate. She looks down at her breasts and back to me.

"I didn't mean…" I backtrack.

She just stares at me, completely mortified, using her book to cover her chest. She thinks I just asked if her boobs are real. Jesus Christ.

"Do you do this often?" She growls, "You know, come up to women and say perverted things?"

Her attitude is snippy and cute, so I can't help but laugh.

"I mean I typically start with my name first but…"

Her facial expression doesn't change, so I hold my hand out in her direction. "Hi, I'm Gavin. I swear I wasn't referring to your boobs. I was actually looking at your nails. I mean it's not that they aren't really nice boobs, because they are, it's just that's not... well that isn't what I was… Shit."

She raises her brow, and looks at my hand like it might burn her if she touches it.

"Gavin?" She questions.

"Yeah, that's what my parents named me." I start to blabber like I do when I'm nervous, "I mean, if I had named myself I definitely would've picked something way cooler. Something badass like Phoenix or something."

Now she's looking at me like I've lost my damn mind. She shoves her book into her bag and pulls a tank top over her head.

She offers me one last look then basically runs away. Something I definitely wasn't used to. Girls back home used to flock in my direction, even wait for me after games at my truck, but I wasn't interested in them. I've never had a steady girlfriend because football has always been my number one priority. I knew that there would always be a fight, it would always be her or football. Never both.

I walk back over to my chair and about thirty seconds later my phone is vibrating with a FaceTime call from my friends. I hit the green button and laugh when I see Hudson and Remi with their middle fingers up.

"What?"

"Trixie just showed up here looking for you, she popped her chest out and stomped around the place looking for you. It took us 10 minutes to get rid of her."

Trixie's name is actually Trinity. Huddy just couldn't ever remember it, so Trixie just kind of stuck. I hooked up with her a few times over the summer when I was staying at Remi's for workouts, but now that school is officially starting, my parents rented me and Levi a house. Thank god she doesn't know where that is.

"Better you than me," I laugh. "Have I missed anything else?"

"Nah," Remi smiles, "Just media popping around the field house, dying to get a word with the five star recruit from North Carolina. Gavin Richardson."

The way he impersonates the reporter with a feminine voice is funny, "Well I'm surprised you didn't take her home."

He laughs, "I tried. She was a total MILF. Almost got her in the car too, until she realized I wasn't you."

I roll my eyes. "You are so full of shit."

"How's paradise?" Remi asks, "We're ready to have you here. You'll be back before the first day of classes right? You are the only one of us that has the campus map memorized."

"Paradise is boring. All I can think about is the fact that the season is about to start and Levi is trying to drag me to the club every two seconds."

Both of them laugh, and Huddy gets a huge grin on his face, "Stop acting like you haven't already scored with the hottest chick on that boat."

Remi rolls his eyes, "I bet you a hundred bucks he has."

I want to correct them and tell them I've actually only thought about football but instead I let them both believe whatever.

"Welp, this little pow wow has been fun and all but I need to eat, then I'm gonna go workout for a bit."

Huddy's shoulders slump, "It better not be all work and no play when you get back."

I shake my head, ending the call.

The second I set foot on campus, it will be business as usual.

Eat. Sleep. Football. Repeat.

As it should be.