Playing to Win (The Players)

“It’s really nice being able to sit next to you at a game,” Natalie says, her attention completely focused on the field below us.

I nudge her shoulder with mine, my gaze on the sidelines where Ace currently stands among his teammates, watching our defense work it out on the field. “I totally agree.”

“You went all out too.”

“I had to.” I am completely decked out in number ten gear. I’m wearing a Townsend jersey with a long-sleeved thermal shirt underneath because it’s freezing cold outside, but I refuse to wear my coat over it because I want everyone to see his name across my back. I’ve got a knit hat on my head with the number ten stitched on the front and a puffball that wobbles on my head every time I move, plus I drew the number ten on each of my cheeks in red glitter paint.

I’m Ace Townsend’s number one fangirl. None of the girls in his fan club—last I heard, they disbanded once it came out that we’re together—can match my enthusiasm for this man.

Not a single one of them.

The game is intense and I’m a yelling, shrieking maniac for most of it. Barely able to control myself. Natalie keeps telling me to stop screaming in her ear but I can’t help it. The game is exciting. They’re all playing so great but then…

During the last quarter, the other team scores a touchdown during the last seconds and wins the game. Our team lost.

It’s devastating.

“I’m a bad luck charm in the stands,” I tell Natalie as the stadium clears out quickly. It’s so cold and the skies are dark gray. A storm is looming and the wind is making everything worse. “I feel terrible.”

“It’s not your fault they lost,” Natalie reassures me, though from the look on her face, she’s got me feeling full of doubt.

Maybe it was my fault.

Ugh, I hate this.

By the time the team is out of the locker room and ready to head out, we’re already gone. Waiting for them back at our apartment because who wants to go to Logan’s to celebrate? We lost.

This is new territory for Ace and I’m nervous. He’s been on such a winning streak and I don’t know how he’s going to feel. Will he be sad? Mad? Frustrated? All of the above.

Probably.

We order a couple of pizzas because we both agree the guys should eat their feelings and by the time they show up, Natalie and I are both anxious, worried over their reactions.

But they enter the apartment like they both live here, laughing and talking.

“I’m starving,” Derek announces, his gaze zeroing in on Natalie who stands helplessly in the kitchen. He goes to her and hauls her into his arms, giving her a long, vaguely inappropriate kiss that I have to turn away from so I don’t just blatantly gawk at them.

The moment I turn, Ace is right there, his arms held out like he wants me to walk into them so I do. He holds me close and I cling to him, breathing in his delicious clean smell, trying to communicate with him without words that I’ve got him. It’s okay to lose a game. He’s still amazing.

“Those fuckers were sneaky,” he murmurs into my hair.

I pull away from him slightly so I can look into his eyes. “I hate that they won.”

He shrugs those impossibly broad shoulders of his. “You win some, you lose some.”

Hmm. He’s being so cavalier about it, which isn’t at all what I expected. “I thought you would be upset.”

“I’m pissed that we lost, can’t lie about that, but what can I do? We still played a great game. In the end, they got the better of us,” he explains.

I touch his cheek, his stubble prickling my palm. “I’m proud of you.”

“Oh yeah?” His brows shoot up.

“Yes.” I drop my hand from his face. “Your reaction is very…mature.”

“I learned from the best.” He ducks down and kisses me and it turns passionate in an instant. I circle my hand around the back of his neck, keeping him in place as I part my lips for his seeking tongue—

The doorbell rings and we jerk away from each other, me smiling helplessly. “We ordered pizza.”

“Oh, thank fuck,” Derek groans, tearing away from Natalie and stalking toward the front door. “I’ll pay for it. That way you guys can’t be pissed if I eat most of it.”

Natalie and I share a secret look. We ordered three pizzas just in case because we’re not dumb.

Ace and I end up locked away in my room after we devour our late dinner, the two of us automatically shedding our clothes before we dive beneath the covers. Drawn close together so we can warm each other up.

And do…other things.

Eventually.

“It was fun, watching you play like a normal spectator,” I tell him.

“I like the photo you sent me, decked out in your Townsend gear,” he says, nuzzling my cheek.

I’m currently wrapped up in his arms and he’s behind me, our bare legs tangling, his erection poking at my butt. “I wish we could’ve met out on the field after the game and taken photos together.”

“No way were we hanging out on that field for long,” he mutters. “We had nothing to celebrate.”

I squeeze his arms that are wrapped around my middle and wiggle my butt, bumping against his cock. “You still played amazing.”

He’s quiet for a moment and I savor the stillness in my room. The way his big body is curved around mine, protecting me. Savoring me.

“I appreciate you saying that,” he finally says, his voice soft, and when he lifts up, I turn my head, pressing my cheek against his chest.

“I love you,” I murmur.

“Baby, you can’t even begin to comprehend how much I love you,” he says, his voice ringing with the emotion.

“I think I have an idea.” I turn in his arms to face him, tilting my head back so I can look into his eyes.

“Thank you for loving me,” he says, his voice serious. “For supporting me no matter what. For always having my back.”

“You do the exact same for me.” I swallow past the sudden lump in my throat, overcome with emotion for this man.

He grabs my hand, resting it on the center of his chest. “Feel this? That’s my heart beating for you. It’s yours.”

I curl my fingers slightly, scratching his warm skin, the steady thud of his heartbeat pounding against my palm. “I’ll cherish it forever.”

“You better. It wants no one else.” He’s smiling, his head descending, those magical lips landing on mine and I lose myself in his kiss.

Lose myself in his arms.

There is nothing better in life than being loved by this man.

Nothing.