I saw stars when he slid inside me from behind, and he hooked my hips, hiking me up to arch for him as he withdrew before plummeting inside me again. I was desperate to be close to him, so I pressed up onto my knees, one hand reaching back to hook around his neck while the other reached behind for his ass.

He groaned when I squeezed him, pulling him deeper into me as I pressed my ass back and begged for more. He trailed kisses along my neck, sucking my earlobe between his teeth as I moaned and ground against him.

“You’re mine, Giana Jones,” he growled into my ear, hand crawling over my chest until it clamped down over my throat. I arched into it, gasping in pleasure. “And I’m never letting you go.”

Our first time reconnecting when we’d come back to my apartment was fast — desperate and rabid and over before either of us had the chance to take a real breath. But this time, Clay was slow and purposeful with every thrust. Just when I thought he was ready to release, he’d pull out, kissing me long and deep as he switched us into a new position.

It was on the heels of another orgasm for me that he finally came, too, my ankles on his shoulders as he pumped out every rivulet of his release. And when he carried me into the shower, my legs too weak to move on their own, he sank down under the streaming hot water and cradled me to his chest.

“I love you,” he whispered, tilting my chin up.

“I love you,” I echoed, threading my fingers through the wet hair at the nape of his neck.

And then he kissed me, and for the first time in my life, I felt like the main character.

This was my happy ever after.

Chapter Thirty-One

One month later

Clay

We all stared at Coach Sanders for a full twenty seconds without anyone saying a word.

And then, it was fucking chaos.

“What?!”

“You can’t leave.”

“We just lost a bowl game. And now this shit?”

“Literally just lost.”

“We’re on fire. Why would you leave?”

“We can’t do this without you!”

I just watched the calamity unfold, my heart stuck in my throat even as I attempted to swallow it down. One glance at Holden standing quiet and calm in the corner told me he was still processing, too — and likely trying to decide how a leader should react to this news.

Our head coach was leaving us.

We were on the cusp of greatness, and he was taking a job in the NFL.

I couldn’t fault him. Hell, I knew that when it came down to it, none of us could. It was a dream for almost all of us to play in the League, and nearly every college coach dreamed of the day they were invited up.