Page 43 of Quarterback Sneak

I scowl. “I’m not allowed to go find him, at least not yet.” Reid crosses his arms over his chest, reflecting what I’m feeling.

“What are we going to do?” Quint asks.

“We’re going to continue to make sure she’s protected, and then I’m going shopping. Who’s with me?” Two sets of eyes stare at me with varied looks of concern.

It’s Quint that breaks the silence and asks. “Why are you going shopping?”

“Because I have a mate to win over.”

Quint rubs his hands together. “I love shopping. Where are we going?”

Reid gives him a look and then without any expression at all, says, “I’ll stay here on protection duty.”

“Thanks. I owe you.”

“No, you don’t,” Reid says. “You’d do the same for me. We’re pack.”

I nod, appreciating each of these guys more than they’ll ever know. I turn to Quint. “Ready?”

“I was born ready.” We take off, leaving Reid to keep an eye on Evie.

“Where to first?” Quint asks.

“Orange chicken.”

Quint nods. “I like it. What’s after that?”

“Sneakers.”

Quint eyes me. “Why?”

“Because she ran from the coffee shop to the practice field in flat sneakers, non-running shoes. I’m sure she gave herself blisters.”

“What if she already has sneakers?” he asks.

I give him a look. “Can anybody have too many sneakers?”

Quint laughs. “From the lips of an athlete.” He claps me on the shoulder. “We’ll buy her the nicest sneakers ever made.”

Chapter 20

Evie

When I wake up, it feels like I’ve been sleeping for days instead of a few hours. I slept so deeply. But when I wake up, I feel so much better. My headache is more of a dull ache now, not the intense pain it was earlier. I glance around the room, looking for Sam but feel relieved when I see she’s not here. I grab my phone from next to my pillow and check it, pausing when I see I have a message from Zane. My heart speeds up a little as I swipe to read it.

Zane-hey, Evie, please let me know when you’re awake

I check the time and realize he sent it almost right after I came up to my room. I can’t believe it’s almost five now. There’s no way I’m going to sleep tonight, but that works because I have a lot of studying to do before the week starts tomorrow. I keep it super simple when I text Zane back.

Me-I just woke up

His response is almost instantaneous.

Zane-how are you feeling?

Me-much better

Zane-good. Are you hungry?