Fair Catch (Leighton U, #3)

by C.E. Ricci

To anyone still trying to figure out who they are: It’s okay not to know just yet. You’ve got your whole life to find the missing pieces.

The slight waves of his nearly black hair and the sculpted lines of his jaw and nose make him something right out of my Achillean fantasies; a fact further proven when his eyes slide to me briefly as he passes by, revealing their staggering cobalt color.

Let the record show, if this guy just doesn’t come home for days on end at any point during our time living together, I will not be the one filing the missing person’s report. I will be too busy relishing in the silence.

Homicide is illegal, and the only person who’d help me hide the body now lives in New Jersey.

“You internet stalked my roommate?” “Oh, please, Kase. I moonlight as an FBI agent when it comes to people my friends are involved with. It took me all of five minutes on Quinton’s Insta to find this sexy roomie of yours.” A devious little smirk tugs at her mouth. “And honey, he might not be your usual type, but he’s still fine.”

A tinge of pink crawls up his neck, spreading onto his face that’s visible even in the dim light, and I have to admit, embarrassed Kason is kind of adorable. In a dopey puppy dog kind of way.

Oh, this is gonna be too much fun. “Were you just checking me out?” I ask while I cross my arms in front of me, making sure to flex my biceps that my henley already clings to like glue. “God, Kase, you’re about to go on a date. The last thing you should be doing is eyeing up your roommate like he’s some kind of sex kitten.”

“You really are a nervous little virgin, aren’t you? Can’t even look at a half-naked guy without blushing like a schoolgirl.”

Kason is just so awkward—bless the bumbling fool. Knowing him, he’ll probably embarrass himself by spraying the guy he’s meeting with the keg tap or something equally as ridiculous. Going to this party as a sort-of chaperone is basically community service.

He’d be surprised to know that his slightly neurotic, himbo ass has started to grow on me. A miniscule amount, but it’s growth regardless, and that’s a lot coming from me.

Kason’s face becomes a deeper shade of pink than before, and it makes me smirk. Despite us making nice as of late, I really enjoy getting under his skin in other ways. As it turns out, getting Kason to blush is a lot more fun than throwing sarcastic digs ever was.

I can barely focus on the task at hand. My eyes are too busy fixating on the way his arms flex beneath his shirt, or the taut muscles of his back every time he grabs a new ball. With a view like that, I don’t think anyone can blame me for taking a seat on the struggle bus.

“Because, despite our rocky start, you’re kinda growing on me.” Frowning, he adds, “Like a fungus or something.”

“Exactly. And, I mean, there are plenty of guys I would’ve had sex with not long after meeting them, that I’d thought about in that way. Like when I saw you in the coffee shop the day we first met, fucking you was something that crossed my mind, but I had no intention of acting on it because, again, I wanted it to mean something.”

Oh, fuckity fuck fuck. I did not just say that.

But a slow smirk pulls at his lips as he raises the beer the rest of the way to his mouth and finishes it off. Then he proceeds to floor me further by opening his mouth and saying the filthiest, most seductive thing I’ve ever heard. “And who says you’d be the one doing the fucking, there, Kase?”

I’m well aware I should be focusing on the things he’s currently teaching me, but my brain screeched to a fucking halt when he said the last guy I was seeing. Because…guy.

“What? Why’re you staring?” He shrugs. “You being nice is still kinda weird.” “Yeah, well, don’t get used to me being this nice. This is me helping the needy, seeing as you’re basically a cripple.”

He smirks, his brow arching. “Careful there, Lancaster. I might think you like me or something if you’re asking to spend the whole weekend in my presence.” “Oh, shut up and make some room.”

“I don’t think that’s really up to me here, considering I’m the one who mauled you without prompting.” Oh, you beautiful fucking fool. “Then let me return the favor,” I murmur before cupping the back of his neck and reeling his mouth to mine.

“I know what I want. I want you to delete that app and never see any of those fuckers again,” he utters, the words coming out like a harsh command. “Not a single one of them is good enough for you, Kase.” I smile, fingers gripping his waist. “And you think you are?” “I wanna try to be.” His forehead collides with mine. “For you, I wanna try.

And my fucking God, Hayes without a shirt is something straight out of my fantasies. He’s lean with muscle mass in all the right places—his shoulders, biceps, and chest—almost like the body of a swimmer, complete with flat stomach and a tapered waist that disappears beneath the sweats resting on his hips. I already want to see more.

“Well, baby? You got what you wanted. Now, are you planning to stare or play with it?” If I thought Hayes was filthy when he was joking around, it’s got nothing on when he’s serious.

I saw right through that offer you made about helping me with the dating app.” I’m baffled. Absolutely mind-boggled that he outplayed me. “Then why did you let me do it?” “How else was I gonna make you so jealous you’d come storming in and ruin my date?”

“You’re not gonna get any sleep if we keep that up.” “It’s not my fault I wanna keep kissing you.” “Well, if you can’t figure out a way to control your urges, you’ll be a zombie at practice because you were too busy spending the night making out with me in the kitchen.” He pauses for all of two seconds, barely thinking through his answer before whispering, “So fucking worth it.”

“What the hell do you know, Kase? I gotta know where to start.” “That I have no idea what I’m doing, so why don’t you stop asking me questions and just fucking teach me?”

“You said you want this to mean something.” I nod, searching his eyes. “And with you, it will.”

I look down in time to catch him smiling around my dick, and Jesus Christ, the sight is far sexier than it should be. No one should look that good with a cock in their mouth.

I wanna see him lose control, watch as he falls apart. And I wanna be the reason for it.

“Tonight, when you took me out on the dance floor?” I murmur, my fingers skating over his jaw. “That’s when I knew I was completely gone. If I hadn’t realized I’d fallen in love with you before, I knew it then. Felt myself slipping past the point of no return every time you smiled at me.”

“With the 77th pick in this year’s NFL Draft, the Nashville Nighthawks select… Kason Fuller. Tight End, Leighton University.”