[BOOK2]
Friendship built their world. Love will break it open. ❤️
*****
I want her.
I want her more than I've ever wanted anything.
But I can't have her. Because the moment I admit that out loud, the moment I risk everything we've built, I could lo...
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It had been weeks since the gala, but it still lingered in the air. Like champagne on skin. Like a slow-burning memory that refused to fade.
And Theo? He was on fire.
Ever since that night, he'd had two different scouts show up to back-to-back games. One from Leicester City. Another from fucking Arsenal. His name was being said in locker rooms, whispered behind closed doors by coaches who mattered. The dream—the one he'd carried since we were kids—was finally close enough to touch.
And he deserved every second of it.
I'd never seen him so laser-focused. So electric. There was a fire under his skin that made him glow, like he was burning from the inside out. He was sharper on the field. Smarter. Unshakable. But still... him.
Still my Theo.
Until tonight.
Practice had run late. The locker room was already half empty when I slipped into the hallway, hoodie zipped to my chin, hair tied back in a lazy bun. I had a research paper to finish, but I couldn't help it—I just wanted to see him. Even if it was just for a second. A look. A brush of fingertips. Anything.
But I didn't make it far.
The hallway was dim and quiet, lined with trophy cases and faded banners. And in the middle of it—like something out of a nightmare—stood Jake Sutton.
Leaning casually against the wall, arms crossed over his chest. The shadows cut sharp lines across his face, but I'd know that smirk anywhere.
"Lost, Brookes?" he asked, voice too smooth.
I froze for half a second, then rolled my eyes and kept walking. "Not in the mood, Jake."
"Really?" he drawled, straightening. "You never used to run from me."
I didn't look back. "I learned."
But I didn't make it past him. He stepped in front of me, blocking the hallway with his broad frame. Still the same cocky posture. The same calculated smirk. But there was something colder in his eyes now. Something darker.
"I don't want you back," he said plainly, voice low and steady. "Let's get that out of the way."
"Trust me," I snapped. "You're not even on the list."
He smiled at that. "No, but he is. Golden boy. Your precious Theo."
I stiffened. "What about him?"
Jake tilted his head. "He's got a lot riding on this season. Scouts. Contracts. Future wrapped up in a shiny little bow."
I narrowed my eyes. "What's your point?"
He stepped closer, close enough that I could see the edge of a bruise on his jaw—probably from last week's scrimmage. "My point, Isla, is that his world is about to get a whole lot smaller."
