Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 98023 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98023 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Ace bounces on his toes behind me again, hanging off my back and practically choking me out. I let him do it for a minute, and then I set him to the side with a quick grip of his forearm.
“As you may know, Dickson’s Dragon Stadium has a capacity of thirty thousand seats, positioned in alphabetical and numerical order. What you may not realize, however, is that sixty years ago, one of the graduating classes switched two of the seat numbers as their final prank, and they’ve never been switched back. The challenge tonight is to find them both while there’s still time on the twenty-minute clock. Winner takes the pot. I assure you, though, it won’t be easy, so do yourself a favor and keep your cockiness in your pants.”
“I swear a whole persona comes over her when she’s doing this shit,” Ace whispers to Julia and me, laughing lightly. Even he’s afraid to get caught chatting while she’s talking, and given how crazy he is, that says something about Lexi Winslow. Both Ace and Julia have known her all their lives—their parents are close friends with her parents—so the intimidation factor shouldn’t be a factor at all.
But it is, because Lexi Winslow isn’t just any average girl. She’s a whole other level of backbone, intelligence, and breathtaking beauty.
I smile. Man, she’s so perfect.
“Keep the noise and other identifying factors to a minimum and break into your groups,” my dream girl commands to the group. “As always, teams get paid as a team, and how you split it up isn’t my problem.”
She nods toward her sidekick Connor, who holds up a stopwatch and makes a show of starting it in front of all of us. The crowd scatters like a bunch of damn ants, giggles and chatter running a short course of excitement as they hurry for the stadium seats.
I reach out for Ace’s shoulder, shoving him in the direction I think we should go first, and he reaches back for Julia’s hand to pull her along at a run. “Let’s start with the high-dollar seats in the VIP section. They’d either not care or shit themselves every time, so it’s worth a shot. We’ll either get a win or eliminate a section really quickly.”
Ace picks up his pace as we’re passing Lexi and Connor, and I let him and Julia take the lead and drag my feet. Lexi rolls her eyes as I approach, but I don’t let that deter me.
“Did you need something, Boden?” she asks.
My smile grows cocky and my heart thrums in my chest as I lay it all on the line. “Only you.”
She scoffs and Connor snorts, speaking for her while she stays silent. “You’re playing out of your league on this one, Blake.”
Both Connor and Lexi are a few years older than me, and from what I know, they’ve been friends for years. But Connor doesn’t know jack shit about just how determined Blake Boden can be when he wants to win something.
“That’s never stopped me before,” I say, shrugging off his comment confidently. “No point in playing the game if you’re not going to play to win.”
Connor laughs, but I don’t miss the way Lexi’s eyes go wide for the briefest of moments before she schools her expression into her usual poker face.
It’s not much, but it’s just enough to keep my sights set on the prize—her.
Lexi
“Good luck getting rid of that one, Lex. He’s stuck to you like a leech,” Connor remarks as Blake Boden finally runs off to join Ace and Julia in their search for the switched seat numbers.
I roll my eyes and shake my head. “He’s a gamer. He likes to win things, and because I’m a challenge, he wants to win me. Simple. He’ll get over it eventually.”
Connor shakes his head on a chuckle. “He seemed pretty determined.”
“Yeah, well, he was determined to take the Dragons to the championship last year, and he failed at that. So I assure you, a conclusion rooted in disappointment is possible for him.”
Connor’s laugh is stilted and a little weird—like it always is—but undeniably loud. It pulls Blake’s attention from the far side of the field, and I wave a hand in front of Connor’s face to shut him up. “Were you not at orientation? Keep it down, Connor, please.”
“Is there a particular reason you’re dead set against giving him a shot? Other than the fact that he’s a football player?”
“That’s enough of a reason, isn’t it?” I scrunch up my nose as I challenge what I think is a clearly dumb question. Connor has known me since elementary school. When we were teenagers in high school, our friendship even blossomed into a coupledom—though, we weren’t a romantic match. He should know me well enough to know that I don’t get involved with football players.