The Wide Receiver and His Best Friend's Little Sister, Book 3 - Paperback

Collette

I’d kill to be the kind of dancer my mom wants me to be, but it’s just not in the cards. I’m sick of dieting. I'll never fit into the perfect ballerina mold and I’m tired of wishing that I could.

I’m over it. I’m done trying.

I’m perfectly content to dance alone in the dark while the rest of the school is sleeping.

Ethan

Coach says our football team needs discipline. That dancing alongside a bunch of prissy prima donnas is how we’ll learn our lesson.

Only problem?

I don’t have time for ballet. Not when I’m busting my butt to be the star quarterback, the dutiful son, and the perfect student…all so I can achieve my father’s dream.

When I meet Collette, I can’t help but take notice. She’s a vision of grace and beauty all wrapped up in snark and sass. And she helps me see that my own dreams aren’t so stupid after all.

I just wish she could see that in herself. But when I try to bring her out into the light, I can feel her slipping away. Her walls are built up so high, I fear they’ll never come down. I want to love her like she deserves—but that’s just the problem.

She doesn’t believe she deserves it.

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Well, this wasn’t where I thought I was going to be. Years of training and planning to make it into the Ballerina Academy and in two short weeks, that dream was yanked from me faster than I could say pirouette.

And now, here I sat, staring at my reflection in the mirror in an outfit that I’d rethought about fifty times, wishing a hole would just open up and devour me. I will never badmouth uniforms again.

I sighed as I yanked my brush through my hair once more like that was going to fix my dark brown hair that hung stick straight down my back. 

“Eve! You’re going to be late.” The hair on my neck prickled at the sound of Mom’s voice carrying up from the kitchen downstairs.

She had the kind of voice that carried. When we were kids and it was time to come home for dinner, the whole neighborhood knew. Who knew my mom was a drill sergeant in another life.

“Eve! We’re waiting, sweetie.” Mom tried again in her sickly sweet voice. She knew I was angry that they allowed my scholarship to lapse. They were supposed to come up with twenty percent of the tuition—and they hadn’t. And I didn’t blame them—er, I was trying not to. After all, my kid brother George needed surgery and it took all of our remaining pennies to pay that off. Only someone heartless would complain. 

But right now, with the anxiety coursing through my body, I felt bad for myself. 

Really bad. 

“Evelyn. Now!” Dad’s voice echoed against the walls. 

I winced. Everyone on this block was probably urging me to leave my bedroom already so they could have some peace and quiet at seven in the morning. But I still lingered in my bedroom to read the last text that had come in from Collette, one of my friends from school— from my old school. 

Colette: You got this, girl! We can’t wait to hear how it goes!

This was followed by about ten heart emojis and more than a dozen four leaf clovers. Luck. That was definitely what I needed. 

I placed a hand over the churning pit of acid in my belly. If I made it out of this bedroom without puking from nerves it would be a miracle. 

Olivia: I’m seriously jealous. Think of all the boys you’ll be hanging out with while we’re here surrounded by hangry divas.

Boys. I squeezed my eyes shut. Yup, I was definitely going to throw up. 

I heard another ding but I shoved my phone into the back pocket of my jeans before I could check it. The girls from The Ballerina Academy had been texting me all morning to cheer me on for my first day at Oakwood High, the local public school. It was sweet but also—

“Eve!” My mom’s voice was close to my door. Any second she’d come in here and drag me out. 

I sucked in a deep breath and threw the door open to find myself face-to-face with an older version of me. Seriously. Sometimes when I was this close to my mother it was like looking in some sort of funhouse mirror where you see yourself in twenty years. We were the same height—a whopping five foot nothing—with a slim build and dark hair. We even had the same features, the kind of pixie look that got me cast as an elf every year when the academy put on a Christmas show for the little ones.

The only difference was that my mom had laugh lines next to her eyes and she had more confidence than anyone I’d ever met.

Me? Not so much.

“Eve.” She planted her hands on her hips as she said my name with an exasperated huff. “Are you planning on hiding out in there all day?”

“No, Mom,” I muttered, following her into the living room where my dad and little siblings were waiting.

“Babydoll!” My dad also had a booming voice. Maybe that was why he and my mom were drawn together. They’d realized they could hear each other from across the campus green at the college where they’d met. It was love at first bellow.

His arm wrapped around my shoulder as my little brother George tried to steal my little sister Veronica’s snack for lunch and chaos ensued.

“Who’s ready for a great first day?” he asked with way more enthusiasm than was warranted, in my humble opinion.

We both ignored the two kids fighting at our feet. 

“Um, me?” I offered before I winced and hopped back as Victoria’s bowling ball of a head slammed down on my toe.

Dad didn’t seem to notice my distress as he grinned. “That’s my girl. This is going to be great, you’ll see. Oakwood High is going to love you.”

I turned to say something to my mom and—flash!

I blinked rapidly. “Mom,” I groaned. 

Her smile was unapologetic. “It’s not every day our little girl starts a new school.”

My mom, too—her smile was too big, her expression too hopeful. Between her and my dad they looked like they were about to start selling me the latest model of used car or something. It was weird and it did nothing to help my anxiety. I knew they felt bad about me losing my scholarship, but their sympathetic stares made it worse. 

“You’re going to make so many new friends,” my mom said. 

“I already have friends,” I said. “At the academy.”

My mom’s grin faltered and that was when I saw it. Through their bright smiles and their hopeful looks—guilt.

My insides deflated and my anxiety was temporarily replaced with something far worse. Crap, I hadn’t been thinking when I’d said that. They already felt bad enough that they couldn’t afford to send me there anymore. Even with the partial scholarships I’d been scoring year after year, the elite ballet academy was still too expensive. 

Finding out that my last tuition check had bounced right before the holidays had been tough, but I knew no one felt worse about it than my parents. 

My typically self-assured father looked a little lost. “I’m sure your friends will miss you, babydoll, but—”

“But I’ll see them on Thursday,” I finished. This time I was the one wearing a smile and my parents wore matching looks of hope.

“That’s right,” my mother said quickly. “When you dance with Cooper.” Mom drew out his name and wiggled her eyebrows at me. Ever since she’d caught me signing my name with Cooper’s last name five years ago, she always made a point to tease me about it. 

My smile threatened to fall at the mention of my dance partner—who also happened to be my brother’s best friend—but I wouldn’t let it, especially not when Mom was watching me. There was no way I was going to fuel that fire. “Exactly. I’ll see them twice a week for evening classes and on the weekends, I’m sure, so....” I took a deep breath, no longer sure who I was trying to convince with this happy-go-lucky routine. “So it’ll be great.”

I picked up my backpack and called out goodbye to the still-fighting heathens on the floor. George and Veronica went to the grade school so they’d be taking the bus. I was flying solo.

“Aren’t you going to wait for Cooper?” my mom asked. “I’m sure he’d love to give you a ride.”

I just barely held back a bitter scoff. I might have figured out that Cooper had zero interest in being near me, but I didn’t have to disillusion my mother, who thought my brother Trenton’s best friend walked on water. 

I got it, I guess. Since my brother enlisted in the army after high school last year, Cooper was the next best thing. He’d always been like another kid to my parents and these days he was a link to Trenton. 

He was also the biggest pain in my butt. 

“Let me tell Cooper you’re ready.” My mom was picking up the phone and I hurried to stop her. 

“No! I mean…” I took a deep breath. “No. Thanks, but I think I’d prefer to walk. I could use the fresh air.”

My mom set the phone down with a frown. “Okay, if you’re sure.”

“I am.” 

And that was the truth. I needed more one-on-one time with Cooper like I needed a hole in the head. Especially now when I was already nervous, being stuck alone in a truck with my older brother’s best friend was only going to make it worse.

I headed to the door, giving one last wave as my mom blew kisses.

The cold air slapped me across the face when I walked out the door. It sort of was refreshing. A wake up call like a splash of cold water. 

Granted, I didn’t need a mile and a half of refreshing but it was definitely better than the alternative.

See, here was the thing about Cooper—I used to have a crush on him. I had for as long as I could remember. While Trenton had teased me, ignored me, terrorized me—normal big brother crap—Cooper had been my very own hero. 

He’d always been the one to include me in whatever game they were playing, or stick up for me when Trenton’s teasing got too mean, or get me a Band-Aid when I fell down while trying to keep up with them when they played football in our backyard. 

My brother loved me, but Cooper...he looked out for me. 

He made sure my feelings weren’t hurt and that no one teased me at school. He was the one who’d covered my eyes during the scary parts when I’d stay up late to watch movies with them. 

Basically, Cooper Jenkins had been my very own knight in shining armor. He just never knew it. He’d never seen me as anything more than Trenton’s little sister.  

With Trenton overseas, and me alone with Cooper, I guess I’d thought maybe things between us would be different. Especially when Cooper and his teammates got stuck at the academy, being forced to dance with us. I’d thought maybe…

Oh, I didn’t know what I’d thought. It wasn’t like I’d had some crazy dream that he’d suddenly look at me and fall head over heels, but I’d thought maybe he’d stop treating me like a kid. Maybe we could actually be friends or something. I was only one year younger than him, it wasn’t like there was a big age difference. 

But no. That wasn’t what happened. Our dance classes together had definitely not made us friends. He did stop treating me like Trenton’s kid sister, which was something, I supposed.

But it wasn’t normal. Nothing about our relationship felt normal. 

He treated me like a stranger. And that was on a good day. Most of the time he ignored me completely, even when we were standing side by side at the barre. Other times, like when I had the nerve to try and strike up an actual conversation, I was treated to his wide receiver glare. 

That was what I’d come to think of it as. I used to go to see his games with Trenton and the stare he gave me was nearly identical to the ones he gave the opposing team. With his big broad chest, chiseled jaw and cold glare, I had no doubt that look scared the crap out of the guys who went up against him.

Me? Not so much. I knew him well enough to know that he’d never hurt me. He couldn’t because I was Trenton’s little sister, which made me something he felt he had to protect. Not in a sweet way. Not anymore, at least. These days he didn’t treat me like I was a coddled princess or some precious treasure. 

I was a burden, plain and simple. I saw it in his vivid blue eyes every time he looked at me.

I shuffled through the snow. I should have worn boots rather than these tennis shoes. But not even soggy feet could make me regret my decision to walk. 

I’d rather suffer the elements than deal with Cooper’s icy, apathetic stare.

Before I knew it—way before I was ready for it—Oakwood High came into view. It was a sprawling behemoth of hallways and lockers. I knew this from visiting Trenton here over the years. From this vantage point, it was also my worst nightmare. 

Strangers crowded the parking lot, streaming toward the front entrance like a school of sharks. I shivered, pausing at the top of the driveway before forcing my feet to continue.

I could do this, right? I mean, I’d been terrified my first day at the academy, too, but over the years I’d found my place there and I’d made good friends. Surely I could do the same here.

And besides, it wasn’t like I didn’t know anybody. I knew the guys from the football team, thanks to their coach who’d punished them for their lack of discipline by sending them to the academy for weekly classes. 

I hitched my backpack on my shoulder and forged ahead, tucking my head down against the wind as I filed in behind a large group of laughing girls who were heading toward the main entrance.

I might not have been friends with the football team, but Collette was dating Ethan and Bianca was dating Ryan so at least two of the team members were sort of obligated to be nice to me as their girlfriends’ friend.

Right?

I sucked in a deep breath.

Right.

I was through the front doors and in the main foyer and—oh holy crap, it was overwhelming. The walls and ceiling only amplified the loud, rowdy voices that were shouting out to one another. 

My parents would have fit in well here, but me?

I took a step to the side, out of the way of the sea of teenagers who were still streaming in behind me.

My stomach heaved as sadness washed over me. Not a minute into this new “adventure” and I missed the academy already. Not just the people, but the place itself. The halls of the academy were quiet. Reverent, even. The old building was more like an old church—a temple to the gods of ballet. 

There were no stampedes of loud footsteps, no lockers slamming in the distance, no...boys.

The amount of maleness in this hallway was truly terrifying. I wasn’t like Olivia. I didn’t want to flirt with boys at school. I didn't know how. I had no idea how to talk to normal people who didn’t spend their every waking moment thinking about dance or practicing dance or talking about dance.

I didn’t belong here. 

I swallowed hard as I pressed my back to the wall, watching in terror as the foyer grew so crowded I thought I might suffocate.

Then I spotted it. A football jersey. The forest green color was like a lifeline in this sea of strangers. 

I craned my neck and saw a few jerseys, all huddled together near some lockers. I moved toward them, praying it was someone from the ballet class. Ethan or Ryan or…

“Well, look who it is.” 

Or Alex. The handsome blond linebacker who at least three girls at the academy had a crush on was forging through the crowd like it didn’t even exist, forcing them to move out of his path as he made a beeline toward me.

I’d never really talked to Alex. At least, not one on one. But even so, his familiar face was a welcome relief. And his smile—the guy was always smiling—his smile helped to ease some of the tension that had been making me feel like I might faint.

Tilly, one of the more boy crazy girls in our class, mentioned more than once that Alex was a player and that he lived to party, but that was the most I knew about him.

Which made it even more surprising when he threw an arm around my shoulders, tugged me close to his side and steered me over to his friends. I didn’t recognize the two guys he’d been with but they were sporting jerseys and gave me matching nods when Alex told them I was the new girl he’d been telling them about.

I glanced up at Alex. He’d been telling them about me?

Before I could ask what he’d said, he smiled down at me and squeezed my shoulders. “You nervous about a new school?”

I nodded quickly. What was the use in denying it. “Terrified.”

He laughed, as if I was joking.

I wasn’t.

“Don’t worry, Evie, I got you covered.”

I opened my mouth to tell him that no one called me Evie, but I clamped it shut again. He could call me anything he liked just so long as he didn’t leave me alone in this crowd. 

“Where’s your locker?” he asked.

“Um…” I pulled out the welcome packet the registration lady had given me last week when my parents and I had come here to fill out paperwork. I started to flip through the pages but he took it from my hand and found the locker number easily. “It’s right by mine. Just down that hall over there and—Hey!”

I hadn’t even seen anyone approaching and I hadn’t heard him through the loud chaos that echoed around us. Before I could process what was happening, a big muscly arm wedged itself between me and Alex, snatching my welcome packet out of Alex’s hand in one quick move.

“Hey, man…” Alex protested. He stumbled back from the force but caught himself in time to whip around and face the newcomer.

He didn’t have to speak for me to know who it was. 

I could feel Cooper’s presence looming over me from behind. The heat he gave off was like a calling card, that freakin’ scent of soap and Tide and him...I could recognize it in my sleep. As if that wasn’t enough, his oversized hand landed on my shoulder like a weight. 

A possessive, overprotective, completely unwanted weight. 

“I’ll take it from here,” his low voice said. 

I just barely bit back a sigh as I turned to face my new tour guide. 

Cooper.

There he was—the giant, scowling, behemoth himself. I braced myself against the flare of heat that I always felt when his attention was fixed on me like this—like I was the only person on the planet.

I used to dream of him looking at me like this. The only difference was, I used to dream that I had his attention because he liked me. I took in that icy glare as he stared down at me. He looked as if I were causing him pain. As if I were the annoying one here. As if I’d even asked him for help. 

This time I didn’t bother to hide my sigh. “Hey Cooper.”

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