Page 20 of The Surprise Play (Nolan U Football #3)

WILY

She doesn’t know what she’s talking about, but I let Satch lead me into the Humanities building anyway. I don’t know why I’m suddenly so nervous. It’s just an assignment. I’ve handed in plenty before, and if anything, this is potentially one of my better ones.

But that’s the thing.

It’s my words this time. Not somebody else’s that I’ve just proofed.

These are my ideas.

And sure, Satch held my hand every step of the way, and I should have confidence in that, but Pilscher hates me and he’s going to be grading this assignment with that in mind. I’m the dumb shit who doesn’t deserve to pass. I’m good for football, and that’s it.

I’ve been reminded of that my whole life.

So why should the fact that I have an amazing tutor change anything?

Dude, it changes everything! She’s gonna help you graduate, man. Stop acting like a douche and be grateful .

Gritting my teeth, I check myself and rap on the professor’s door.

“Enter.”

I hold the door so Satch can walk in first, and I can instantly tell she’s a star pupil because the guy smiles at her like she’s a welcome sight.

“Well, good morning, Miss Satchwell. How are you today?”

“Very good, sir.” She shifts to point at me. “Thought I’d accompany Wily so I can tell you how hard he worked on this assignment.”

Pilscher’s smile disappears. “Did he now?” Holding out his hand, he flicks his fingers, and I pass over my work, my chest tightening uncomfortably.

Seriously. Why do I even give a shit?

How can I feel more on edge now than I do when I’m facing down a Mac truck on the field? Some of the guys I go up against are even bigger than I am, and yet I never feel an ounce of fear.

But this office with its book-lined walls and stuffy furniture is giving me fucking heart palpitations.

The pages sound loud in the quiet space as Pilscher flicks through what I’ve done.

“Hmmm,” he eventually murmurs, then looks at Satch over the top of his glasses. “How much did you actually do?”

“Well, I typed it,” she answers. “But they are all Wily’s words. I refused to put in anything that he didn’t come up with himself.”

Pilscher’s eyes narrow and then he looks at me, his frown skeptical.

“It’s true,” I back her up. “She was a hard-ass, sir. Wouldn’t let me get away with slacking off. Made me really think about the book, you know?”

“Uh-huh.” He slaps the pages against his leg and eyes me up like I’m a bug he wants to squash with his shiny black shoe. “And what can you tell me about Moby Dick ? Give me one main takeaway.”

“Uh…” My brain immediately starts to fritz out, the pressure quickly turning off the lights in each section.

Oh fuck.

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

Satch clears her throat, and my gaze darts her way.

She gives me a hopeful smile and mouths one little word.

“Reckless,” I punch out, relief soaring through me as I cling to that one idea.

“Captain Ahab was reckless. His determination drove him to forget about common sense. He put his need for revenge above everything else, and it made him kind of crazy. If he hadn’t let his emotions control him that way, then maybe he wouldn’t have sunk his ship and lost most of his crew. ”

The words sail out of me with minimal effort, and my surprise is mirrored on Pilscher’s face as he takes me in and then looks at Satch.

“Did you tell him to say that?”

“No, sir.” She’s grinning like I’ve just won first prize at the county fair. “That was all him.”

“Hmmm.” There goes that sound again, although this time it’s lighter, maybe not so critical. “Well, I look forward to grading this, then.”

His eyes dart back to mine, and then he shoots a glance at Satch before nodding, his lips flirting with a grin .

I’m not sure if I’m supposed to say anything else, and to be honest, I’m still kind of reeling that I managed to just spurt all of that Ahab shit and not get laughed at for sounding ridiculous.

But holy shit.

I just came up with that myself, and I fucking knew what I was talking about!

“That’ll be all for now. I’ll be in touch with your grade soon.” Pilscher raises his chin toward the door, and I practically leap toward it.

I can’t get out of this space fast enough and nearly forget to thank him until Satch nudges my arm and bulges her eyes at me.

“Oh!” I spin back and paste on a smile. “Thanks for the second chance, sir.”

Pilscher gives me a steady look, then nods and murmurs, “Thank her.”

And that’s exactly what I fucking do.

The second we’re down the steps of the Humanities building, I spin to face Satch, grabbing her face and planting a firm kiss on her lips.

She goes stiff beneath my touch, so I pull back just as quickly and smile at her like it’s no big deal. “Thank you. Seriously, Satch, you are a fucking legend.” Picking her up, I spin her around and laugh the words, “Thank you!”

She gasps against my shoulder, her body going all rigid again.

Shit, I probably shouldn’t have just picked her up, but I kind of don’t want to put her down just yet.

I need her to know how grateful I am, and what better way to do that than hug the girl.

“You’re the best, Satch! ”

She lets out an awkward laugh and I stop spinning, leaning my head back so I can look at her face.

Her cheeks have gone bright red, and the smile she’s giving me is super cute.

“It’s, um…” She clears her throat, patting my shoulder. “It’s my pleasure. Working with you was fun.”

“Yeah. It was, right?”

I shouldn’t sound so surprised. She’s an amazing teacher, so of course she was gonna make it interesting.

She pats my shoulder again, and I should really put her down now. Her feet are dangling off the ground, and she might be getting uncomfortable squished against me like this, but…

I like the feel of her in my arms.

She’s got soft curves, and her awesome tits are pressed against my chest.

I kind of wish she’d put her legs around my waist so I can run my hands up her thighs and?—

Dude, no! She’s your tutor! Don’t go ruining it. Just control yourself!

Getting back to business, I ask her one last question before putting her down. Maybe if she’s in my arms, she’ll be less inclined to say no. “Think you can help me study for my upcoming finance test?”

She smiles. “If you want me to.”

And I can’t help smiling back. She really does have a pretty mouth. And I like the way her eyes kind of glow with this look like she’s the privileged one for getting to work with me .

Man, does she have that the wrong way round!

I’m about to tell her that when a derisive snort pops out of a girl sauntering past us .

“He’s supposed to do his weight training at the gym, hippo. You might want to suggest he put you down before he strains something.”

The beauty narrows her eyes at Satch before giving me a “you’re welcome” kind of smirk and…

What the actual fuck did she just say?

“Put me down, please,” Satch whispers, her cheeks even redder than they were before. She starts to wriggle against my hold on her. “Now. Put me down.” She’s fucking desperate, and I lower her to the ground, still reeling over what I just heard.

For a second, I was trying to convince myself that I must have heard it wrong, because no one would talk to Satch like that. I mean, why would they? She’s completely harmless.

But as I watch my tutor straighten her clothes and wrap her arms around her waist, I realize that I wasn’t just hallucinating.

That bitch actually said it.

She fucking called Satch a hippo.

And I don’t know if I’ve ever seen red this bright before. Anger flares through me—an open blue flame—and I turn with a growl, shouting after that walking mouth turd. “You better stay the fuck away from her!”

Satch gasps, her eyes bulging as she covers her mouth, shaking her head at me.

I’m too pissed off to stop myself and am actually fucking glad when that bitch turns to face me.

“Excuse me?” Her haughty tone makes my skin crawl.

“I was doing you a favor. When you’re dealing with weights like that, you should really have a spotter and be working within the safety of a gym.

” She obviously thinks what she’s saying is fucking hilarious as she raises her hands.

“If you want to risk injuring yourself before a big game, well, I guess that’s on you. ”

This is unbelievable. She’s still going?

Can she not hear the trash coming out of her mouth?

Satch sure can. Her expression is pinched and wounded as she pulls her jacket sleeves over her hands and turns to walk away.

Nope. Not happening.

Snatching her wrist, I stop her before she can take another step and pull her back against my side. Swinging my arm around her shoulders, I give the bitch a pointed look and loudly tell anyone who’s wise enough to listen, “You’re talking to the smartest person I know, so watch your fucking mouth!”

“Oh, please.” The girl rolls her eyes, giving Satch a derogatory stink eye that makes me wonder if they know each other. “I know plenty of girls who are just as smart and a damn sight prettier too.”

My tutor squirms against me, and I have to tighten my hold to keep her beside me.

I am so fucking livid right now, I want to close the space between me and this chick and?—

This is one of those cases where it should be okay to hit a girl.

I’ll never do it, but for the first time in my life, I want to. This chick needs shutting up, and if she doesn’t stop looking at Satch like that, I’m gonna lose my shit!

Moving Satch behind my back, I stand up taller and bark at the woman. “You better keep walking, lady. And if I hear you talking to my friend that way again, there’s gonna be a world of trouble coming after you. ”

“Oooo,” she mocks me. “Are you threatening a woman?”

“You’re not a woman,” I scoff. “You’re a fucking viper. Keep that tongue inside your mouth and stay the hell away from us!”

She blinks like she can’t believe I just said that, and I grab Satch’s hand and pull her in the opposite direction before I do something stupid.

I’m beyond pissed that someone would talk to my tutor that way.

But the thing that’s riling me more than anything is the expression on Satch’s face. She’s obviously heard it all before, and that makes me want to break something.