He’d felt guilty then because he was pathetic. He was head over heels in love with Eden and praying she’d fall for him before their ten weeks were up. But it was good to know she didn’t see him that way. “If it’s too weird, we don’t have to go there.”

She’d smiled wickedly at him. “I’m gonna make you lose your mind.”

If he had any doubts she wasn’t disgusted by him, they vanished after they were done eating. Eden dragged him into an alleyway and practically shoved his hand into her panties. “I need something now, Doctor. Right now.”

So, he’d gone down on her in the alleyway. Anyone could have seen them from the street. He shouldn’t have done it. If they’d gotten busted, he would have been chucked out of the AFL for sure. But at the time, it was impossible not to obey. At his heart, he was a dumb, loyal dog and he had to give Eden what she wanted.

“You’re fucking tragic,” Derek had told him as he grilled Mara for more present ideas. “Brakes blown, car going downhill, tragic.”

But that didn’t matter. He’d never been so gone over a girl. He wanted to cut the crusts off Eden’s sandwiches and carry her around so she didn’t hurt her feet. He could watch her perform every night and never get bored. He constantly worried about the fact she survived on vape smoke, vodka, and candy.

All of that was new. He’d had exes that lived on cocaine and appetite decrease tea and he’d assumed they knew what they were doing and left them to it. He couldn’t do that with Eden. He had to look after her. Making sure she was okay had become his obsession. The idea of not being able to take care of her once she left for her tour…

But there was still time. He could still swing this the right way.

“Oi, Williams!”

Willow jolted back into his body. Logan Cloak was leaning over him. “What are you looking at, Big W?”

Willow locked his phone. “Your dad’s Instagram. He’s getting pretty thick.”

Logan’s shit-eating smile didn’t budge. “You still seeing that DJ?”

Willow looked around. A few of the boys were watching. Michael Tully had taken off his headphones. Never a good sign. He smiled at Logan. “What’s your point?”

“No point. Just wondering if you and your girl are all good?”

He scanned his teammates’ faces. There was clearly something going on, but no one was going to tell him what it was. He folded his arms across his chest. “We’re doing better than that kick you had today, Cloaky.”

There were a few sniggers. In the last quarter, Logan had taken a free kick and booted the ball into the stands, a lowlight in an all-round shitty game.