“Three!” all the women scream in unison.
“Oh, come on!” Max throws his hands up. “We literally just started!”
“Should’ve covered her,” Delaney says sweetly, jogging backward with a grin.
The guys get the ball next. Logan dribbles it down the court, and I remember Penny’s advice, so I run up and plant myself directly in his path.
He nearly trips over his own feet.
“Tessa, what are you—” He tries to pivot around me, but I mirror his movements, staying right in front of him.
“I’m playing defense,” I say innocently.
“That’s not—” His sentence cuts off when Iris comes out of nowhere and slaps the ball clean out of his hands.
“Steal!” Iris shouts, already passing it to Anna.
Logan stares at me, half laughing, half exasperated. “You’re playing dirty.”
“I was told to.” I shrug, grinning.
“Oh, you’re gonna pay for that,” he says, but he’s smiling.
Anna makes it halfway down the court before Jaden wraps his arms around her waist from behind, lifting her completely off the ground.
“Foul!” Anna shrieks, laughing. “That’s a foul!”
“We don’t call fouls, remember?” Jaden says, grinning as he sets her down and steals the ball.
“That rule only applies to us!” Iris yells.
The game descends into beautiful chaos.
Miranda sinks another three-pointer while Jaden tries—and fails—to block her. Delaney accidentally elbows Finn in the ribs while going for a rebound, and he doubles over dramatically like he’s been shot. Ari gets tangled up with Beckett, and they both end up on the floor, laughing too hard to get up.
I’m running up and down the court, completely out of breath, with absolutely no idea what I’m doing. But every time I get near Logan, he fumbles. When I stand close to him, his dribbling gets sloppy. When I reach for the ball, he hesitates just long enough for one of the other women to steal it.
“You’re doing this on purpose,” he accuses during a break in play, breathing hard.
“Doing what?” I ask, all innocence.
“Being distracting.”
“I’m just standing here.”
“Exactly,” he says, and the look in his eyes makes my stomach flip.
“Yo, Sean!” Gunnar yells. “Stop flirting and play defense!”
Logan grins at me before jogging away.
The score is tied when Miranda gets the ball again with thirty seconds left. She’s at the three-point line. Jaden is directly in front of her with his arms up.
“Not this time!” Jaden says.
Miranda doesn’t even blink. She fakes left, spins right, and launches the ball in one smooth motion.
Everyone freezes, watching it arc through the air.
