He leans down, his mouth brushing the edge of my smile before he pulls back. “Trust me, if I weren’t running behind, you’d be breakfast.”
I laugh softly, watching him back toward the door. “Go,” I say. “Before you give the team something else to chirp about.”
“Too late,” he calls over his shoulder, flashing that grin that ruins me every time.
I nod even though my body’s already begging me to crawl back under the blanket.
“Good,” he says, then steps close again, dropping a quick kiss on my lips. “See you later.”
“Bye, Coach.”
He shakes his head with a quiet laugh. “Don’t start.”
When the door closes behind him, the apartment goes still. I stay in bed for another minute, staring at the ceiling, before I drag my body up to get myself a cup. I tug on one of his sweatshirts and pad barefoot into the kitchen.
I flip on the coffee machine, waiting for it to gurgle to life, and plug in my phone. It immediately lights up, buzzing against the counter. My stomach twists when I see the screen fill with notifications—missed calls, texts, and a handful of voicemails.
Several from Steven and my parents, a few from friends, including Summer checking in, and another from a number I don’t recognize.
I swipe my thumb over the screen, but don’t open anything yet. I can already imagine what it’s about.
And the thought that Clay probably saw the screen lighting up before he left makes my chest tighten. He didn’t say anything, but I know him. It makes me wonder if he’s heard from his parents or his brother, and if he’s spoken to them yet.
The coffee beeps. I pour a mug, take a sip, and grab the leftover breakfast sandwich from the fridge to pop in the microwave. The hum and smell of it heating give me something to focus on besides the pit in my stomach.
Halfway through my second bite, my phone starts buzzing again. I glance down and seeStevenflashing across the screen.
“Hey,” I say, keeping my tone even.
“Well, look who finally decided to answer,” he drawls. “You forget you have a brother, or are you too busy running plays with the coach?”
I groan, pressing my fingers against my temple. “You’ve been sitting on that one, haven’t you?”
“Maybe,” he says, his voice full of smug satisfaction. “You’re all over my feed, Tess. I had to hear about your big secret romance from some reporter with bad hair. What the hell?”
I sigh. “It’s not exactly how I wanted you to find out.”
“Clearly.” He pauses, the humor giving way to something softer. “So are you gonna tell me what’s going on? I’d rather hear it from you anyway.”
I take a sip of coffee to buy time, but he waits. He always waits.
“It’s not what people think,” I say finally. “It’s not some scandal or anything. We’ve known Clay forever. You know that. It’s just one of those things that sort of… happened.”
Steven hums, skeptical but not cruel. “Just happened? You don’t justhappento start hooking up with your family friend. I mean, I’ve always known about your little crush on him, but c’mon, Tess—start from the top.”
My face heats, and I let out a short laugh. “You sound like Mom.”
I hadn’t even realized he noticed my crush on Clay. It makes me wonder what else I hadn’t noticed.
“Good,” he says. “Maybe you’ll actually answer me, then.”
I exhale, leaning against the counter. “It started at Christmas three years ago. We kissed. It wasn’t much at first, and we both played it off like it didn’t happen after,” I admit. “But then we got snowed in together on the way back home and things just kind of... happened.”
“So… you kissed him,” he says, voice even.
“Yeah,” I admit, smiling a little. “We kissed.”
He lets out a low whistle. “Okay, that explains a lot. Was that before or after the blizzard?”
