Jared was such a douche sometimes. I caught the ball easily and began dribbling. “Is this practice, Jared? Hoping to make varsity this year?”
Jared scowled. Giving Jared crap was almost as fun as taking Luke down a peg. They were best friends and Jared liked to think making fun of me as if I was his little sister was his prerogative, too. I paid them both back by reminding them of my varsity status.
“Hey, you wanna play, Pipe,” Will Atkins called out. “Since it’s your fault we’re down a guy.”
“Yeah, Piper, you can play skins,” Adam Whitaker snickered. The other guys joined in.
“Doh!” A.J. coughed into his hand.
“You guys are so funny.” I rolled my eyes, trying not to look at the hot guy’s reaction to their teasing. It was almost impossible- he drew me like a magnet. It was hard to gauge since I didn’t know him, but there was a definite frown on his face as he glanced around at the guys laughing behind their fists, jostling each other with their shoulders.
“Well, as fun as this has been,” I said, dribbling toward the three-point line, “I have better things to do than show you guys up on the court.” And with that, I shot the ball and turned away from them, not even watching to see of it went in. I knew it would and their groans and catcalls only confirmed it.
“Show-off!” Jared called after me.
Drew
The tall girl who’d broken up our game and just sunk a sweet three-pointer walked away to the sounds of the guys on the court taunting her with words that would have earned them a black eye if she was my sister. I had to laugh and nod with grudging respect as she continued on her way without flinching. Shoulders back, head high, her middle finger raised in farewell.
We all watched for a moment as she walked away, her long legs carrying her quickly across the grassy field separating the basketball court from the neighboring houses. Before long she had disappeared and I was left wondering if I was going to have to go in search of another pickup game.
“Damn, Piper,” the guy, Jared, said, shaking his head.
“Forget Hines, man, let’s just play,” said another dude, maybe Will.
“In case you didn’t notice, Atkins, we’re down a man.” Jared glared at Atkins. Or Will? Was Will Atkins? I couldn’t keep them all straight.
“We can rotate in. Come on, let’s play.” This time it was Mateo who spoke up. He was easy to remember because he was the only black guy in the group.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket and checked the time, ignoring the notifications letting me know I had four missed calls from my dad and twice as many text messages. I didn’t give a shit. He could wait. I’d been jonesing for a game for the last two weeks. It was his fault we moved, anyway. He could deal with the consequences. If my leaving the house all day to play basketball was the worst to come of it, well so be it.
Still wondering if I was going to have to look for another game, I slipped my phone into my pocket. I’d been stoked to happen upon this game not too far from my house. The guys had been glad to have me since one of their regulars was out of town on vacation. When they stuck me on the skins team, I was happy to add my shirt to the pile on the edge of the court. Indiana was damn hot and I still wasn’t used to the humidity.
“Drew, you still in,” Jared asked. His eyes were a little hesitant. I’d only met these guys today, but they’d been fun to play ball with and fair. I liked the structure that wasn’t always there when you played street ball. It wasn’t hard to figure out these guys made up most of the nearby high school’s basketball team.
“Yeah, man,” I said, walking over to the edge of the court to pick up my water bottle. I chugged half of it.
“Zeke, you sit out first-” Jared was cut off when someone’s phone went off.
“Shit, I have to go, too. I’ll see you guys later.” Will jogged off the court toward an older looking Ford four-door, his phone still to his ear.
“Well, that solves that problem.” And just like that, the game was back on.
I was the tallest guy on the court, but I refused the center position, preferring to play outside the paint. I stayed close enough to handle my share of rebounds, but far enough out to challenge my jump shot. I was better than just shooting under the basket.
Racing down the court, I moved into my sweet spot, just to the side of the top of the key. Jared dribbled down the court, passing the mid-court line. I side-stepped my defender. Jared bounce passed the ball to me. Dribbling once, I lowered my shoulder and drove down the center of the lane. Leaping, I rolled the ball off my fingertips. It was an easy shot. One I’d made a thousand times and more.
“Dude, you’re going to Eastridge Heights this year, right,” Mateo asked.
“Yeah,” I answered. My family just moved to Indiana from Colorado. In a few weeks, I’d be starting at a new school. I’d already been enrolled and even had a tour.
“Sweet,” Mateo whistled and gave Jared a high five as we made our way to the other end of the court. “We could sure use a big guy like you on the team.”
“Yeah, you’re way better than Zeke or A.J.” Noah grunted as he made a jump shot. Noah was good, a little too structured for a pick-up game, but he ran an offense like a pro.
“Whatever, Mr. Perfect.” A.J. body checked Noah as he made his way to the basket.
“And 1!” Noah made his way to the three-point arc and checked the ball to Jared who bounced it right back. ‘And 1’ was another way of saying ‘foul’ but in street ball there were no free throws, just another possession.
“Yeah, Drew here is gonna give you guys a run for your starting positions this year.” Mateo ran defense on Noah, his long arms high. Noah bent low and spun under Mateo’s wings dribbling once before throwing up a beauty of a jump shot.
“Nothing but net!” Noah pounded his fist on his chest as he side-stepped down the court.
“I’m not playing for the team,” I announced.
Everyone stopped. Grayson, who had the ball, held it against his hip, mouth gaping.
“What do you mean you aren’t playing?” Jared’s voice cracked like he was still in middle school.
I shook my head. It was all the same. Everywhere I went. Everyone thought they knew what was better for me than I did. “I’m not playing for the team.” Ever. Again.
“You have to play. You’re the best player we’ve got.” Grayson hugged the ball to his stomach, a pained expression on his face.
I scoffed. “You’ve seen me play one time.”
“And you’ve wiped the court with us,” Zeke proclaimed.
It was true I would be a better center than either Zeke or A.J. They weren’t terrible, but neither of them had figured out how to manage their own height. They were all arms and legs and no coordination. Jared and Luke were good outside shooters and Noah was a better point guard than any of the guys at my old school.
“I’m not playing,” I said again, my voice firm.
Silence reigned on the court while I suffered their scrutiny. It was alright. I was used to it. This wasn’t the first time I’d had to deal with this kind of reaction. I gave them a minute to resign themselves.
“Are we gonna do this or what?”
It was another few seconds before anyone responded, then Mateo held out his fist.
“Yeah, man. Let’s play.”
I jabbed his knuckles with my own before teaming up against Grayson.
Let’s play.
Chapter 2
Piper
My favorite time to play ball in the summer was at night. It was still hot and still humid, but it was bearable. Luke had gone over to Jared’s to play video games and flirt with Jared’s sister, Delaney. Mom was snuggled on the couch with her Kindle and I’d just exhausted another season of Gilmore Girls. The court was calling me.
Maybe it was stupid to sneak out of the house at ten o’clock on a summer night but this was my neighborhood and I knew practically everyone who lived in it. I wasn’t in any danger here. I waited to dribble the ball
until I was good and away from my house. Mom could hear a basketball hitting the pavement in a dead sleep from a quarter mile away, especially if it was Luke or I dribbling it.
I bounced the ball one last time before reaching the grassy field. Walking across the long grass that tickled my ankles, I spun the ball on my finger, a trick Luke and I had worked all summer after sixth grade to perfect.
A newly familiar figure dribbled a ball at the free throw line. He held the ball in front of his chin and his shoulders moved up and down as he let out his breath. Never taking his eyes off the basket, he released the ball. It fell through the hoop with a quiet swish. Wedging my ball between my elbow and my side, I clapped my hands.
A pair of wonderfully beautiful blue eyes looked up in surprise.
“Nice shot,” I praised him.
He didn’t respond but leaned over to pick up the basketball he’d just shot. He was dressed in the same pair of red gym shorts from earlier. He’d put on a shirt since then, much to my dismay, and I wondered if he’d been there all day or if he’d gone home and come back. It seemed a long time to be at the ball court.
“I’m Piper. I don’t remember if I introduced myself earlier.”
He acknowledged me with a quick bob of his head before he shot the ball again, this time from the far corner between the three-point line and the out of bounds.
Dropping the ball from under my arm, I dribbled further onto the court. He was either mute or ignoring me. It shouldn’t bother me so much, but it did. It wasn’t unusual for Luke’s stupid friends to be annoying jerks, but I had high hopes for anybody new I encountered.
It wasn’t easy meeting potential boyfriend material when you were half an inch shy of six feet tall and not only was this guy brand spanking new- he was a good half foot taller than me. That was almost unheard of. The only guy in our high school in that height range was Randy McDonald, who was six-seven. For a brief, irrational moment last year I’d considered what it would be like to date Randy. But the idea was quickly squashed since Randy hadn’t quite mastered the idea of personal hygiene and while I couldn’t really afford to be picky, a girl had to have standards. Deodorant and showers were non-negotiable. Besides all his hygienic faults, he wasn’t at all athletic, preferring to spend his days smoking weed and being a grease ball.
“So,” I drug out the word, “Do you have a name, newbie?”
“How do you know I’m new,” he asked, grunting a little at the end as he jumped, shooting a three.
Without thinking, I stepped to the exact spot where he’d just shot once he stepped away to get his ball, starting a game of PIG. I dribbled a couple times and then sent the ball to the basket, silently cheering for myself when it landed.
“Um, because I’ve never seen you before and I know pretty much everybody who plays on this court.” I watched as he ran the ball in for a right-handed layup.
“So? That could just mean I’ve never played on this court before. For all you know, I’ve lived here all my life.”
As before when he went to shag the ball, I stepped into the exact spot where he’d begun his layup and followed the path he’d taken to make his shot.
“No way. I’d know you if you were from around here.”
I knew everyone on our basketball team and most from the nearby teams. This guy didn’t play for any of them. He could be from one of the smaller schools. 1A or 2A. But I doubted it.
“Do you play for your school?” That would clear things up.
He shook his head and made a mid-range jump shot. Frowning, I worked to sort that out. Maybe he already graduated. He looked old enough to be in college.
I repeated his shot, making it. “Really? Why not? What grade are you in?”
I cringed, really hoping he was still in high school after that juvenile question popped out of my mouth.
“I’ll be a junior this year,” he answered that question without prevarication.
“Oh, yeah? Me too.”
“Your brother said he was a junior.” There was a question on his face as he shot a free throw.
I rolled my eyes. “Twins,” I answered, moving to the free throw line.
He grunted in response and waited for me to make my shot.
“So, where do you go to school,” I asked, knowing I wouldn’t sleep tonight unless I solved this mystery.
“Eastridge Heights.”
I made my free throw and he snagged my ball with one hand before bouncing it toward me.
“What? I go to Eastridge Heights.” I caught my ball and held it, waiting to see what he would do next, and wondering if there was any way I had missed this guy at our school.
No.
There was no way I’d missed this tall hottie. “I know all the ta-” I cleared my throat and started again. No sense letting him know I checked out all the tall guys. “I’ve never seen you there before.”
“It’s a big school, isn’t it?” He nodded toward the ball. “It’s your shot.”
“It is a big school. Wait. Don’t you know? I thought you said you went there.”
Drew shrugged one big shoulder. I swallowed the drool collecting in my mouth again. He was tall and muscular, not skinny like a lot of the big guys our age were. And being tall didn’t automatically mean you were good at basketball. It was a common misconception, especially in Indiana. All I had to do was think of Randy McDonald and I was reminded. But this guy was good.
He, I really wished he would tell me his name, moved to the outside and shot a three-pointer. I was a better inside shot, but I could sink a three when I needed to, especially undefended and on the opposite side from where he’d shot from, like the one I’d shot this morning. The ball fell through the net with a quiet snap. As soon as he vacated his spot, I moved into it and dribbled a couple of times before lifting the ball and shooting.
Clang!
Dang it! Shaking my head, I jogged to retrieve my ball.
Mr. Handsome smirked. “That’s a ‘P’ for Piper.”
I rolled my eyes. Like I hadn’t heard that one before. Every time Luke and I played PIG, he said the same thing.
“I wish I hadn’t told you my name now.”
He chuckled and moved to shoot another outside shot. Of course, he made it.
Catching my tongue between my teeth, I concentrated on making the shot. Yes!
Drew
She was pretty good. And she was pretty. I hadn’t known many girls as tall as Piper, but none were as attractive as her. Long strawberry blonde hair fell loose out of a messy bun on top of her head, framing her angular face which was decorated with smooth creamy skin dotted with freckles that shouldn’t be as cute as they were.
I’d been too focused on the game earlier to spend much time looking her over but she’d given me plenty of opportunity tonight. I’d been a little surprised when she walked up earlier. A pretty girl like her shouldn’t be walking around alone at night, even in a quiet neighborhood like this one.
My eyes raked over her athletic body as she moved to repeat the basket I’d just made. Piper was tall and strong. Her long legs twisted my stomach in knots and my fingers wondered what the miles and miles of her skin would feel like under them.
Crap!
The last thing I needed right now was distractions. Girls were not on the agenda this year. It made me angry how easily I allowed my mind to wonder what it would feel like to hold a girl like Piper, one that stood higher than my elbow. My last girlfriend had been so short, I had to pick her up or stand her on something to kiss her. Not that there weren’t aspects of that that were super hot, there were. But kissing Piper- I wouldn’t have to lift her up to reach her full lips.
Of course, I could…
And those legs wrapped around my waist-
Stop!
Jeez, I’d just met this girl!
Piper shagged her ball and stood there waiting.
Right. My turn. Shaking thoughts of Piper’s legs from my brain, I wondered what shot I could make that she couldn’t. Ha. Let’s
see how good this girl really was.
Without preamble, I dribbled the ball and drove down the lane. Jumping high, I slammed the ball through the hoop.
Yeah!
Grinning, I went to retrieve my ball. There was nothing quite as exhilarating on the basketball court as dunking.
Turning back to see Piper’s expression, I was gratified to see she looked a little impressed. And apprehensive.
Her caramel brown eyes met mine as she inhaled deeply. I raised an eyebrow in question.
Her shoulders slumped as she exhaled. But she wasn’t beaten. Curious to see what she’d do, I watched with fascination as her apprehension turned to determination.
“You got this, Pipe.” I don’t know what made me encourage her that way. And so familiarly. But the words were out before I could think better of them.
Her eyes narrowed at me. “Okay, but if I make this, you have to tell me your name.”
I had to laugh at that, not at all understanding why I didn’t just tell her when she offered up her own. I guess I’d been a little annoyed at her intrusion on my playing time, thinking she was just another basketball groupie, coming to flirt and drive me crazy. But she wasn’t like that, not at all. And the way she’d just begun copying my shots without even talking about it had been kind of- intriguing.
“If you can dunk that ball, I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.” Either I didn’t think she could do it or I really was willing to tell her all about myself. Even I didn’t know which.
Both brows raised high on her forehead before lowering with concentration. Piper dribbled the ball and then her long legs carried her to the basket.
Yes!
It wasn’t pretty, definitely wouldn’t be winning any contests, but she’d dunked it. Grinning, I clapped my hands. Piper, out of breath, ran for her ball. She picked it up off the ground and spun it in her hands as she turned to face me.
And I was struck stupid by the smile on her face. Wow. Piper was gorgeous. Even in cut off shorts and a loose-fitting t-shirt, she was cute. But that smile. That sparkle of joy after making that dunk- she was stunning.
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