Page 12 of Nothing to Lose

Eli grins as he braces himself, tucking the flag into the elastic of his shorts. “Looking for this?”

“Give it back, little brother,” I taunt.

“You want it? Come get it.”

I wiggle my eyebrows suggestively at him. “You’d like that.”

“You’re insufferable.”

I shrug. “I’ve been called worse.”

“You’ve been called worse by me.”

“And yet here we are.”

“Time’s ticking, Hunter.”

“So, let’s go. What are you waiting for?”

Eli bolts a moment later, my blue teammates already bracing and ready to stop him from making it mid-field. The second he gets past me, he glances over his shoulder with a sexy-as-hell grin that says he wanted to make sure I was the one chasing him. But then I see it, just a split second before he does. Rome shoulder-checks him, hard, as Eli plants his right foot awkwardly to brace for it. His smile disappears so fast my stomach drops. Eli’s leg buckles beneath him as he hits the ground with a sharp hiss through clenched teeth.

I shove Rome in the chest as hard as I can, knocking him down on his ass, then I’m kneeling beside Eli, mud splashing outward, my pulse hammering louder than any noise around us.

“Hey,” I whisper, softer than I mean to. “Don’t move.”

“Fuck you. I’m fine,” he says as he tries to stand up, stubborn as ever. But he immediately winces.

“Yeah,” I mutter as I slide an arm around his back, helping him stand, putting all his weight on his left foot. “That’s convincing.”

Silas slows his jog down in front of us, wiping the rain out of his face. “You alright?”

“Just tweaked it, I’ll be fine,” Eli answers, hobbling next to me. My fingers twitch involuntarily against his bare, cool skin.

I shake my head. “I’ll take him back, you guys can keep playing,” I tell our captain. “Don’t let us lose, blue!”

“Traitor,” Rome hisses as we walk by him, and if I wasn’t holding up the majority of Eli’s weight, I’d knock his teeth out right now. “Abandoning your own team to aid the enemy, I see.”

“Yeah, well, he’s my brother after all, so fuck off, Rome.”

Eli is quiet as we make our slow walk back to the locker room. We’re both completely soaked, covered in mud, and are desperate for showers before we get back to our dorm room.

“You know,” I say. “If you wanted me to hold you, all you had to do was ask.”

Eli snorts. “You wish.”

“You know I do,” I confess again, tightening my grip around his waist. Everything else seems to blur into background noise as we get to the locker room. I’m eager to get him somewhere he can sit down so I can make sure he’s actually okay, knowing the only place I can let my concern be more than brotherly is in private.

Chapter 9

Eli

My emotions are all over the place, adrenaline mixed with anger, fusing with disappointment and irritation. No one wants to leave any type of game with an injury, especially when you’re trying to prove to everyone around you that you’re strong enough to lead them.

And then there’s Hunter. The anguish is still written all over his face, like it’s his fault I got hurt. He looked like he was going to kill Rome, and for a moment, I may have let him. But it’s not like Rome knew I’m hiding an injury. Not that it even qualifies as an injury; it’s just tweaked. I hope.

Hunter helps me into the empty locker room, the heavy doors slamming behind us. He doesn’t bother turning on all the lights, just leads me over to the benches closest to the showers, not letting me go until I’m sitting. Then he drops down to his haunches, carding his thick fingers through his wet hair, pushing it backward, rain droplets slapping against the tile floor.

“Are you okay?” His fingers ghost over my knee, his thumb rubbing back and forth across the inside, my skin pebbling in response. Hunter looks up at me through long lashes, his eyes clear and focused, eyebrows furrowed, concern etched into every single one of his features. He’s so beautiful. It’s hard to admit, because I know I shouldn’t. But it doesn’t change the truth of it. Hunter is one of the most beautiful people I’ve ever laid eyes on. “Eli?”