The Wrong Quarterback (The Wrong Player, #1)

by C.R. Jane

Walker had messy brown hair and intense blue eyes that were just a shade darker than Parker’s. I understood now where his Disney nickname had come from. He looked just like a Disney prince.

His beauty was intimidating because it also meant that Parker was going to get even better looking…which ...

“Are you going to introduce me?” Walker asked...

“Hey, no winking,” Parker snapped, covering my eyes again. I sighed as I pushed his hand away and saw that Walker’s ...

“Olivia loves when I wink,” Walke...

“What’s up, Little Davis?” He was also freaking gorgeous, with dark black hair and glimmering, mischievous green eyes.

“Living the dream, Lancaster,” Parker replied, obviously at ease with this guy too.

My eyes widened when I realized this was Ari, one of Walker’s best friends. Parker had told me all about Walker’s buddies and how they were in...

“Sorry, I have taste,” Walker drawled, glancing at me again. “Don’t believe anything they say about me. It’s all lies.”

Lincoln Daniels was a Golden God, and possibly the only man who could rival Parker in good looks.

Parker’s hand went in front of my eyes again.

“Just in case,” he w...

Once by the locker room, Parker introduced me to Walker’s wife, Olivia, and I almost fainted when I realized that she was the super famous pop star Olivia that I’d been listening to for years. The one that had been placed in a conservatorship and whose songs made me cry.

As we drove home, all I kept thinking was how perfectly our pieces seemed to fit and that maybe…soulmates really were real.

“Ms. Larsen, what’s the significance of the Battle of Actium?” Her voice cut through the classroom, icy like a winter’s wind.

“Barely a complete answer,” she said, voice dripping with disdain. “Try reading the assigned materials next time, Ms. Larsen.”

I clenched my fists under the desk, trying to keep my cool. I didn’t like anyone talking to Casey like that.

“Do you plan on staring daggers at me the entire class, or do you have something to contribute?”

As soon as I flipped to the first one, I froze, then broke into a grin. Hendrick. Younger, but unmistakably her, with that no-nonsense haircut. And she wasn’t just posing for some faculty photo, either.

No, she was wrapped up with another professor, locked in a kiss that was way more than friendly. Her hands were tangled in his shirt, his hand gripping her waist. I flicked through the rest, and each photo got worse—more intense, more incriminating.

Because the other professor in that photo…wa...

I grinned. I’d been wondering when the Sphinx would show it was worth anything besides annoying me. I guess they’d decided to give me a little taste of w...

Her face blanched, the color draining as her eyes darted over the photos, widening with each one. She looked horrified, her voice catching as she whispered, “Where did you get these?”

“The Sphinx sends its regards.”

I didn’t think it was possible, but she got even paler, suddenly swaying in place like she was going to pass out.

“I expect my recommendation letter by Friday. No excuses, no delays,” I said mockingly, repeating what she...

She stared at me, eyes wide, like I was a monster she’d never seen coming. Turning on my heel, I headed out, whis...

“What does the horny toad say?” Jace

“Rub it,” he answered, his eyebrows going up and down, clearly so proud of himself.

“What is that?” Casey asked as she stepped closer, her eyes widening. “You didn’t tell me you were getting a new tattoo.”

“That’s because I didn’t,” I muttered, peeling back the bandage. Beneath it, the unmistakable symbol of the Sphinx was inked deep into my skin, black and intricate, right over my heart. The whole night hit me then, memories crashing against my brain: the bottle, the letter, the way I’d blacked out.

At one point his masked face appeared in front of the camera, and he grinned before continuing his perusal.

“That, baby, was my final trial for the Sphinx.”

I took a step back, wondering how someone who’d once felt like home, now felt like a stranger.

“Think about everything. The way he always knows where you are, the way he got you to move in with him in a matter of days. He’s manipulating you, Casey. This guy is not who you think he is.”

“Why are you asking me that?” His voice was low, almost calm, but it only made me more uneasy.

“I needed a way to spend time with you. That’s what I came up with.”

“And what would you say if I did, Casey? What would you say if I got the drugs from Jace’s brother, and I tossed it into a drink and gave it to Gray? What would you say if I watched him drink it with a smile on my face before I sent a girl after him. What would you say if I told you I’ve planned everything to make sure you were mine.”

“Hypothetically, of course⁠—”

“I’d say…I’d say you might be a monster.”

“Where are you going, Casey?” His tone was almost gentle, but I knew better. I didn’t answer, just kept moving, my mind racing with the next steps—steps I didn’t want to take.

“Because I told you, Casey—you’re my endgame. If it takes you a little while to realize that, that’s fine. But you’re not running away from me.”

“Yes. Until I’m sure you’re not going to run,”

“I’m going to go make dinner,” he called over his shoulder. “Your favorite—chicken parmesan.”

Parker Davis had just locked me in his basement.

I paused for a second, listening to hear if Casey had stopped screaming and banging on the basement door yet. Bang. Bang. Bang. Nope. Not yet.

But I hadn’t prepared it for her, like a serial killer. That should mean something, right?

holding a gallon jug of milk in one hand and a corn dog in the other.

Sup, QB,” he said around a mouthful, nodding as he gave the milk jug a casual shake, as if that justified his sudden entrance.

“A corn dog and milk? Really, Jace?”