Page 12 of The Devastation You Reap

Damn him. He knows he's good-looking, and hell if he doesn't know how to use it.

"Your coach know you've been beating the crap out of someone?" I ask exactly what I was thinking with little thought.

His eyes narrow on mine for a beat before he cockily says, "who says it was a someone?"

"Because hitting a wall makes it so much better," I deadpan with a roll of my eyes.

His eyes hold mine as his smirk gets wider.

"It's nice that you're concerned, Red. I'll remember that."

"N-no, I'm not… I was just…" I let out a frustrated sigh and lean back against the bench.

He chuckles but doesn't say anymore as I rip my sandwich open and take a massive bite. I usually try to savor it, but my need to shut myself up means I take the biggest bite I'm capable of.

I might be seen as the quiet one, the shy one, but when I'm nervous, all sorts of crap can fall from my mouth. It even got me in trouble a time or two in school, and the last thing I need to do while with Leon Dunn is to let my thoughts fall out of my mouth. He really doesn't need to hear that I think he's hot. An asshole, but hot all the same.

As if he heard me, his eyes turn toward me, making my cheeks burn.

"Just eat," I demand around a mouthful of food.

To my surprise, he does what I say and takes another huge bite of his turkey sub.

Closing my eyes, I force myself to take a breath and will the butterflies that are fluttering in my belly to abate.

So what if he's hot, and apparently wants to sit here with me. He's also a football player.

"What's your name?"

I have to give him a double-take but I guess it was stupid to assume that just because everyone on campus knows who he is that he'd have any clue about me.

"Macie S-Smith."

He studies me, his eyes taking in every inch of my face as my heart pounds so fast my head starts to swim as I wait for him to call me out on my lie.

He doesn't know who you are, Macie. No one knows who you are.

"Huh," he finally says after what feels like the longest silence of my life. "It suits you."

"Um… t-thanks, I think."

"So what are you doing out here on a Monday night then, Macie Smith?"

"Just some volunteer work. What about you?" I ask quickly, needing to turn the conversation away from me.

"Nothing much."

Crumpling up the paper that was around his sandwich he turns his whole attention to me.

My skin pricks with goose bumps and my blood heats.

"I make that shot, and you've got to go out with me again."

He looks away from me and nods toward the trash can on the other side of the path.

"N-no, I'm not—" My words falter as the ball of paper bounces on the edge before it falls right in.

Looking back at him, I find a shit-eating grin splitting his face.