Too Fast (Boys of Lake Chapel #2)

by Abby Millsaps

Her grin matches mine, and in that moment, as my team rallies around me and the Sharks continue to circle, as the band erupts into the fight song in the stands and the crowd chants “Crusade,” all I see, all I want—my entire purpose in this life—is her. Josephine. In Crusaders’ red. Wearing number 5. With Crusade across her back. My Siren. That’s my fucking girl. “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!” I scream, shoving my teammates and rallying the fucking troops. We have a game to finish. We have a game to win. “Spoon check, brother,” I murmur to Kendrick. This’ll only work if he’s got a full drawer. “I’m good,” he assures me. “Whatever you need, I got you.” “Kylian,” I bark into the headset. “Call Nacho.” Silence ensues for exactly one second. Then coaches start talking over each other, all in opposition to my request as the offensive line makes their way back to the line of scrimmage. I line up with Kendrick by my side, more confident than I’ve felt the entire game. Maybe more confident than I’ve felt during any game, ever. “Stats support the sneak,” Kylian advises, just like I knew he would. It’s how his mind works. There’s a clear, statistically supported call for this situation. “I hear you, Kyl. I do.” I can’t criticize him for pointing it out. “But you and I both know something the stats don’t know.” Despite how black and white he can be, Josephine’s opened him up to a world of color over the last several weeks. He feels it. He knows what seeing her in my jersey fucking do...