Page 96 of The Love Playbook

“Want me to score another touchdown for you?” I wink, and she laughs.

“Full of ourselves, are we?”

“Always.”

“Tell you what,” she says, leaning closer like she has a secret, and boy, do I want to hear it.

Her gaze focuses on my mouth, and she reaches out, wiping away a smudge of chocolate with her thumb as she says, “Score one for me tomorrow, and maybe I’ll be waiting for you when you get back to give you a good night kiss.”

Butterflies swarm my stomach at the promise. “In my hoodie?” My gaze drops to the hoodie she’s still wearing, and I lick my lips. “Because I’m quite partial to my name scrawled across your back.”

“You want me to watch the game in your hoodie, Collins?”

I raise a shoulder. “I mean, naked would be preferable, but”?she reaches out and smacks me in the arm?“ow! Okay, hoodie it is.” I laugh.

“What am I going to do with you?”

“I can think of a few things if you need ideas.” I wiggle my brows.

She groans and covers her face with her hands. “Again, you’re incorrigible!”

I reach out, peeling her hands off her face and intertwining them with mine. “Maybe, but you like it.”

She says nothing, but she doesn’t need to because the answering blush on her cheeks says it all.

The game against Arkansas was brutal. After several minor injuries on our roster, we pulled out a win. Too exhausted to talk on the ride home, we ride the bus in silence, most of us falling in and out of sleep.

By the time Jace and I walk through the door of our apartment, it’s nearly four in the morning. My knee throbs as I kick my slides off by the door, a side effect of taking a helmet to the kneecap. The only consolation to my injury is us winning.

“Jace, is that you?” Brynn appears in the doorway of his bedroom. Even though she’s barely visible in the darkness, her hair is mussed from sleep.

“Cupcake,” he murmurs, moments before she runs to him and flings herself into his arms like a spider monkey.

Normally, I would make fun of his ass for the term of endearment, but I can’t because I’m too busy staring at the girlsitting on our couch, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.Charlotte. She fucking waited for me.

The bag drops from my fingertips onto the floor with a soft thud, while the sound of Jace’s door closes in the background.

“You waited up for me,” I say, breaking the silence.

I’d hoped, but I hadn’t expected her to actually follow through.

Closing the distance, I sink down beside her on the couch, her chocolate eyes hooded as she blinks sleepily. “A deal’s a deal, and you held up your end of the bargain.” She grins. “Nice touchdown.”

My gaze drops to my sweatshirt as I slide a hand into her hair, cradling her head. “Nice hoodie,” I murmur, and then I capture her mouth with mine.

Chapter 22

CHARLOTTE

The moment the door to the bridal boutique swings open, a bell above the threshold chimes, its soft tinkle cutting through the low hum of conversation. The air is thick with the scent of freshly cut roses and the faint, sweet trace of vanilla from scented candles flickering softly on the counters. Rows of delicate gowns shimmering in white, ivory, and blush, line the walls, their lace and silk sparkling under the soft lighting.

It feels like stepping into a dream—or a nightmare, depending on your point of view. Today, I’m not sure which is more fitting.

A woman standing behind the counter, clad in a sleek black dress with a touch of understated elegance, smiles warmly at my approach. “Let me guess, you’re the lovely Charlotte?”

My brows rise. “Um, yes?” I say, like it’s a question.

She chuckles. “Right this way,” she says, motioning me to follow as she guides me toward the back of the boutique. “Your soon-to-be stepmother told me all about you. She’s so excited for your arrival. I hope you don’t mind, but while we were chatting, we picked a few maid of honor dresses out, just things I thought you might love based on what she told me about you.”