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Chapter Twenty-Four

K nox

This day is complete shit. Not only is my first-ever agent here, Conner Johnson, but I just learned from my best friend that he’s Corie’s ex. How did I not know that? I knew he existed, but Conner Johnson? She deserves so much better than that jackass.

“She dated him? Really?” I ask Landry. We’re doing a team photoshoot to update our pictures and team roster, and all our agents are here. “Why are guys still signing him as their agent?” I ask.

“Yes, he cheated on her, the rat bastard. He’s here with Tanner Anderson. As far as I know, he’s the only one on our team he represents.”

“We should sit down with Tanner and tell him what a jackass his agent is,” I huff.

“Rumor has it that he’s telling Tanner he can take your place next season,” Landry says.

“What. The. Fuck? Seriously? Dude is third-string QB. I’m ranked number one in the entire fucking league. Is Anderson really buying into that bullshit?”

Landry shrugs. “That’s what I hear.”

“Harry gets all the good gossip.” I nod. I wouldn’t put it past Conner, and I’m sure he’s blown all kinds of smoke up the kid’s ass. The Rampage took him in the fifth round of the draft. He’s got some work to do if he plans to take my place. That’s not me being cocky. I’m just stating the facts.

“Yeah,” Landry agrees.

I’m sitting in a chair, waiting for my name to be called for my solo shots, and watching as Conner makes a beeline for Corie.

My hands rest on my thighs and ball into fists.

He says something to her, leaning in close, and my girl takes a step back.

She shakes her head, and he leans in again.

He raises his hand to touch her, but she takes another step back.

“Are you fucking seeing this?” I ask Landry.

“Corie won’t take his bullshit.”

“He’s crowding her. She keeps pulling away from him,” I grind out.

“She knows I’m sitting right here, and that asshole knows it, as well. He’s not going to do a damn thing to her,” Landry assures me.

“He shouldn’t even be breathing the same air as her,” I spit. I’m showing my hand, but I can’t seem to care. Conner better watch his ass and keep his hands off my girl. He had his chance with her, and he fucked it up. Now, she’s mine, and she will always be mine.

I watch as Cody Martin, one of our defensemen, approaches her and starts talking.

Conner throws his hands up in the air and walks away.

When I see Corie's shoulders sag in relief, it takes every ounce of willpower I possess not to stalk after the bastard and let him know if I see him around her again, he’s going to find out that my throwing arm can throw punches just as well as it can pigskin.

“Landry Reynolds!” the photographer's assistant calls out. They’ve worked their way through the defense, and now they’re starting on offense.

“You good?” Landry asks me. He eyes my clenched jaw and my hands that are fisted in my lap.

His brow furrows, and I can see his wheels turning.

I shouldn’t be this upset. I shouldn’t feel this protective of his little sister.

Sure, I can use the excuse of how Conner tried to fuck me over for his own personal gain, but with the way the rage is boiling inside me, he’ll see through it.

He’ll see that she’s not just his little sister to me.

I nod because I don’t trust myself enough to speak. He stands, clamps his hand down on my shoulder, and makes his way to the photographer. I know I just fucked up. I'd be surprised if he didn’t catch on to my anger and figure out I’m madly in love with his sister.

I’m seething, ready to kick Conner’s ass, and all when my best friend was sitting next to me, and he has no idea—at least he didn’t, but he might now—that his sister is my entire world.

She’s more than football. She’s my everything.

I’d give it all up today if it meant she was mine for the rest of our lives.

I let that thought settle, and it finds a place in my chest, rooted so permanently that I know it’s true. I love the game. It was my entire existence up until the day I ran into Corie Reynolds in the hallway of her brother’s place. I didn’t know it then, but it was at that moment, my world changed.

She’s my world now.

I’ve had a great run with the league, but it won’t keep me warm at night.

The league won’t be there when I’m old and gray, sitting on the front porch watching my grandkids play in the yard.

The league is no longer what makes me happy.

There’s one woman who holds that honor, and I’ll be damned if her asshole ex is going to march in here and try to take her away from me.

Not that I think he could. But like I said, he doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as my girl.

The day moves on, and I don’t see Conner again. Good, maybe he’s gone. I make a mental note to talk to Anderson and tell him about my experience with Conner. Not just me, but Foster, too.

We both signed with him for the draft. The Rampage has always been my team. I grew up cheering for them, and this is where I wanted to play. I knew I’d be close to my family, and that was important to me.

On draft day, my uncle Tyler was coming back from the restroom and overheard Conner on the phone, telling the Rampage that I needed more money or wouldn’t sign.

We’d already agreed on a contract, and everything was set in motion.

I’d agreed to a four-year, thirty-eight-million-dollar deal.

Apparently, Conner wanted more than that.

He was gunning for fifty. He gets a cut, and the greedy bastard was trying for more.

Tyler told me what he overheard, and I called Coach Warner. I explained that Conner wasn’t negotiating for me but for him. I fired his ass as soon as I got off the call with Coach Warner, and two hours later, I went number one in the first round to the Rampage.

Foster has a similar story. Conner was also his agent for the draft and was trying to do the same thing.

However, Coach Warner sought out Foster, and they talked.

He told him what Conner was trying to do with both of our contracts.

Foster, of course, had no idea. He, too, fired Conner on the spot and went first round to the Rampage.

There’s more to his story, but that’s his to tell.

Slimy bastard. I can’t believe he hasn’t been banned from the industry with his shady dealings. I’ll have to get with Foster so we can go to Tanner Anderson together and tell him what kind of guy his agent is.

The day is long, but it’s over. I didn’t get a chance to talk to Corie.

Sure, I could have lured her into a dark hallway or a corner somewhere, but I still felt too raw over seeing Conner with her.

I know she’s not into him. It was clear as day from her reaction to him, but I’m still pissed off that he ever had his hands on her.

I know it’s irrational, and that’s why I needed a little more time to cool off.

I drag my feet showering. While our equipment is cleaned, I still feel like I need a shower after being in full gear, as do the other guys.

I’m one of the last ones to enter the showers on purpose.

I need some time to let my anger simmer—not that it’s directed at her.

Never at her. But I also don’t want to take it out on her. She doesn’t deserve that.

With a towel around my waist and one draped over my head, I make my way to my locker.

Landry is sitting at his, which is next to mine, with a phone in his hand.

As I get closer, I see that it’s my phone, and there’s a picture of Corie and me on the home screen.

My heart stutters an erratic beat, but honestly, I also feel relief.

I’m so damn tired of hiding how I feel about her.

I knew making my screen a picture of the two of us was risky.

Hell, maybe I wanted to get caught, because knowing didn’t stop me. Not when it comes to Corie.

“I wasn’t snooping,” he says, handing me my phone. “It was blowing up, and I glanced over and saw the background.”

I nod and take a seat next to him. I knew this moment was going to come at some point. I didn’t think I’d be in nothing but a towel when I had to tell my best friend that his sister is my entire fucking world, but here we are.

“We were going to tell you,” I tell him. No way am I going to put this on her. I agreed to her decision. One that we decided on together.

“How long?” He doesn’t try to hide the anger in his tone. “How long have you been sneaking around behind my back with my little sister?” he spits.

“Since the day she came home.”

“Explain that.”

So, I do. I tell him about running into Corie as I was going upstairs to change and how I was drawn to her every interaction after that.

I tell him about how I tried to fight it.

That I knew going behind his back was wrong, but I couldn’t stop.

“There was this pull, man. It was so fucking strong. I tried, Landry. I promise you I tried, but I couldn’t stop it. ”

“And Corie?”

“I didn’t pressure her, if that’s what you’re thinking.

She was in this with me. We discussed the risks and decided to see what this was between us.

By the time we were both too far gone, we were worried about the team, the season's outcome if you and I were at odds, and of course, we both work for the Rampage and haven’t told them that we’re involved like we were supposed to. ”

Landry leans forward, placing his elbows on his knees as he runs his fingers through his hair. “You’re my best friend, Knox. You’ve been lying to me.” He shakes his head in disappointment. “And the wedding… fuck, you set us up. It’s been my fucking sister this entire time.”