Gabriel Marston bounces on numb toes, his gaze darting around the growing crowd. It’s a full house in the stadium tonight. Not a big surprise since it’s the homecoming game against Rosewood’s biggest rivals—the Stanton Greyhounds. It looks like everyone in town has come out to see the game.
But Rosewood’s team captain and star quarterback can’t concentrate to save his life. Not since he noticed her: the girl with amazing aqua eyes and skin as pale as the snow that threatens to escape the clouds tonight. Gabriel caught sight of her the moment he exited the locker room but the crowd swallowed her before he could reach her.
He can’t explain what it is about the girl that calls to him so fiercely. Obviously, she is gorgeous…but it goes beyond that. It was almost like some lifeless portion of his heart has begun to beat. The pull toward her is so magnetic that it takes all his strength to put one foot in front of the other to head out onto the field and away from the stands.
“Dude? Are you okay?” Gabriel’s best friend Connor Bennett asks, clasping his arm. Connor’s charcoal hair is plastered to his forehead, slicked down from the falling rain whose texture is more sleet than liquid. “You look tense.”
“It’s just nerves,” Oliver West snickers as he yanks his chest pads into position under his jersey. “Gabe’s just worried about the scouts.”
Gabriel snorts, shaking his head. “You guys know I couldn’t care less about getting into Notre Dame. It’s just—” he trails off.
“There was this girl.” He shoves Conner out of the way to continue his search.
Conner and Oliver roll their eyes at each other. Despite the fact that their friend is dating the hottest girl at Rosewood Prep, he has always noticed the fairer sex.
“Dude, Claire will kill you if she hears you’re checking out another girl.”
It’s no secret that Oliver holds a grudge against Claire Scofield for dumping him a few years back, but that doesn’t stop him from wanting her or for feeling snubbed by his friend because of it.
Gabriel ignores Oliver, stretching up on his toes. “I know she’s out there.”
Oliver turns on the bench, scanning the crowd as well. “What’s she look like?”
His sudden interest annoys Gabriel, but he lets it go as he scans the stream of fans pouring in from the south side of the stadium.
“Do you even know if she goes to our school?” Conner asks, bending to tie the laces on his shoes. His fingers are red from the cold, quaking as he tries to maneuver the tiny laces.
Gabriel’s heart sinks. Maybe he’s looking at the wrong side. What if she doesn’t even go to Rosewood?
Just as he’s about to give up, he spots her. Gabriel’s chest warms, pushing every hint of cold from his mind. He stops bouncing as his gaze locks onto the mystery girl.
“Find her?” Conner asks, standing when he notices the odd stillness that has fallen over his friend. Conner’s handsome features tense as his hazel eyes scan the crowd for Gabriel’s missing beauty.
“Sixteen rows up, all the way down at the south end. It looks like she’s sitting by Sadie.”
Oliver nearly swallows his chewing gum. “Sadie Hughes? That freak show I dated for a week?”
Gabriel nods, ignoring the worried glance his friends share behind his back. He doesn’t stop to worry about Sadie’s geekdom or the fact that by even thinking of associating with her his reputation will be sorely tarnished. “She’s in the blue coat.”
His friends cup their hands around their eyes, blocking out the glare of the overhead lights glinting off the drizzle. Conner whistles, nodding his head appreciatively. “Man, you’ve got good taste. That girl is smokin’ hot.”
“So what?” Oliver scowls as he crosses his arms tightly over his chest pads. “She’s gorgeous, no doubt about that, but she’s off limits.” Gabriel turns toward his friend, biting his tongue against his protests. “Sorry, dude, but you gotta face it. You’re with Claire.”
Conner winces. “Yeah, but Claire’s got nothing on that girl. Look at her!” He drools. “Dude, if you don’t go for her I will!”
Oliver’s eyes narrow with anger. “Trust me, she’s a real witch.”
Gabriel nearly loses his balance. “You’ve talked to her? At school?”
With a shrug, Oliver turns his back on the girl. “Yeah. I might have said hi or something.”
Conner stares at his friend, lips curling into an amused grin. “She turned you down, didn’t she?”
Oliver growls, chucking his helmet onto the ground as he shoves into Conner’s face. “I turned her down,” he roars, spittle flying from his lips. “I could have that girl any day I want.”
Conner shrugs, but the humorous glint doesn’t disappear from his eyes.
“Oliver’s right. I’m with Claire.” Gabriel breathes out a weighted sigh, pulling his friends toward the field. “But that doesn’t mean she’s fair game for you two.”
“Oh man, no way,” Conner complains. “Why not?”
“Because I know you. You’ll just use her and walk away,” The thought of their hands on that girl makes Gabriel’s fingers curl into fists. He can’t explain the strange need to protect her from his friends. Only that he can’t imagine letting them hurt her. “Just leave her alone, okay?”
“That’s so not cool,” Conner mutters. He winces under Gabriel’s stern glare. Conner throws up his hands in defeat. “Fine, but I think it’s wrong, man.”
Gabriel turns to glare at Oliver. His scowl is followed swiftly by a shrug. “Whatever.”
It’s the exact response Gabriel anticipated. His “friends” are only by association. He can’t trust them further than he can throw them. Gabriel vows to keep an eye on them…and on the girl.
“We’ve got a game to win, guys,” Gabriel calls as the countdown buzzer sounds. “Focus.”
He jogs alongside his friends, determined not to think about the mystery girl until after the game is over. That is easier said than done.