20

Kassie

Better Than Expected

On Saturday, the actual game didn't start until one o'clock, but we were expected at six in the morning, just like the practices. After a full week of them, you'd think I would've been used to it.

"They're taking away my Saturdays too," I mumbled into my phone at the crook of my neck, sitting in one of the lounges.

The rest of the football girlfriends were getting their hair and makeup done, putting on the finishing touches before we watched dudes toss balls together. Two of the football girlfriends had already dolled me up, in more dark blue eyeshadow than I'd ever worn in my life, and a couple more brought their supplies closer to me while I sketched in my sketchbook.

I yawned. "I couldn't be more tired with Ambien."

"Where's Mr. Intense?" Zariah asked through the phone.

"Probably yelling at someone."

My roommate chuckled and the girls on the couch snickered too. I held up my sketchbook to the line of them.

"Oh my god, that's so cute, " one of the girlfriends cooed. "I love how you colored the lipstick. Can I take a picture?"

Another one adjusted on the couch. "Could you get me in this position?"

"What position are we talking about?" Zariah asked, amused.

"I'm drawing the girls," I explained, shading in a leg. "It's good practice."

"Kassie?"

At the door, Cleo stood, tapping the watch on her wrist. More things to check off, why was I expecting anything different? I pushed from the chair and said a quick goodbye to Zariah and the girlfriends. It was time to clock in.

"Leave all your stuff behind. We only need you for a few minutes," Cleo told me and we walked down the hallway together.

"What's good?"

"There's cameras up ahead—oh, Ryan!" Cleo and I spotted him together, Ryan, dressed in a nice suit.

Oh.

I'd kind of been picturing that Ryan was going to walk around in his full gear. I didn't think he'd get all decked out. A dark gray suit, no tie, and a black dress shirt underneath, all perfectly pressed, showing off his broad shoulders. Looking fine .

"Why the hell am I in a jersey?" I mumbled to myself.

"I can trust both of you to be professional, correct?" Cleo crossed her arms over her chest as Ryan came close. "You both understand what I want you to do?"

I yawned. "Have fun and be ourselves?"

" No ."

"We understand," Ryan assured her and Cleo gave him a long look.

" Approachable, Ryan."

"Understood."

"You can't ignore the cameras."

He nodded and when Cleo walked away, we were the only two people in the hallway.

"We have photographers down the hall," Ryan explained, his voice low. "Everybody will be coming out in ten minutes but we'll be going first. I have to get back to the coaches, but I'll be walking out and you'll come up to meet me. Then we'll walk together."

My eyebrows furrowed. "That's it?"

"Yes."

There was no way that's what Cleo wanted. And I'd already sat through a number of her lectures about this. I wasn't keen on another one.

"So, I walk up to you, and then what?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like…" I couldn't help the smile of disbelief. "I just…walk up to you? Like a dog?"

"You could give me a respectful hug."

For a long moment, I stared at the golden boy of Marrs University and I tried desperately to be as serious as he was. It didn't work. A giggle burst out of me and I clamped my mouth shut, trying my damndest to keep it together, because I knew Ryan was being a thousand percent serious.

The football player was unamused.

"Ryan?" I sucked in a deep breath, trying not to laugh again. "What the hell is a respectful hug?"

"Goddammit," he muttered.

"Look, you need something besides the two of us robot-walking out of here."

"We'll walk normally."

"That's not good enough," I pointed out. "If anything, a disrespectful hug would be better."

His eyebrows furrowed. "What's a disrespectful hug?"

"It's where I smack your ass before the game."

"Kassie." He stared at me, shocked. "You're not smacking my ass."

"I don't think I could reach anyway."

With a nod, I thought through everything, trying to figure out exactly how we could do this. They wanted a front-page relationship. Just walking together wasn't going to cut it and my fake boyfriend was great getting his teammates together, not so much with the lovey-dovey stuff.

"Go ahead, I got this," I assured him.

"What are we doing?"

"Just go ahead. I'll figure it out."

"Kassie." He leaned down. "I need a game plan."

"Just trust me," I told him.

Slowly, Ryan shifted away from me, watching me carefully with those dark honey eyes of his. It was quiet between us. The truth was, I had no idea what I was going to do but I also knew if Ryan knew too much ahead of time, he'd get too mechanical about it.

"Alright." He nodded. "You'll hear the cameras go off."

"Okay."

I waited along the hallway, counting down the seconds while Ryan walked the long way around the halls, back to where the cameras were. All the cameras. No doubt our photos would be everywhere in a couple of hours and I still wasn't used to that.

Cameras went off like crazy.

Go time .

I drew in a quick breath and pushed away from the wall, taking a quick right. A line of photographers were set up by the hallway. The flashes from the camera were enough to give anybody a headache.

Make him look human .

Turning away from the cameras as much as I could—and as much as I knew he couldn't—I hurried up to him and walked along his side, wrapping my arm around his and tugging him closer to me.

My heart beat in my throat.

Facing the end of the hall, my fingers ran up his arm. I'd never get used to the muscle. Ryan was stacked . And being in front of the cameras meant being…touchy. We were approachable, we were human, we were falling desperately, madly in love. For the cameras.

My hand dropped back to my side and I breathed out a sigh of relief the second we left their sight.

Until he sought mine out.

He reached for my hand and wove his fingers through, holding my hand. At first, I didn't believe it. I glanced down in surprise and back up to see Ryan looking straight ahead, walking in time with me as we took our place deeper into the stadium.

It was a good thing he wasn't looking at me. The blush blazed across my skin.

He's better at this than I thought .