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Chapter 65: Lipstick lessons
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Keeping Score Chapter 66: Priorities and wishes
NATEFRESHMAN YEARJUNESince I'd become aware of the possibility of having a shortened lifespan, I'd begun setting short-term goals. At first, they were simple: I'd wanted to live long enough to be taller than my mom. To survive until I'd learned to speak Spanish and figured out calculus. To finish high school. And now, with one year of college behind me, I felt like I could take on anything. My health was stable; it hadn't gotten any better, but it wasn't any worse, either. My parents were thrilled that the year had passed so uneventfully, and they'd even begun doing something unprecedented in our little family: they'd taken short weekend trips by themselves. A few times my mom had even made it through the weekend without calling me to check in. I'd adjusted to sharing a room, too. Tuck and I had ended up to be pretty compatible, and a few months before the end of our freshman year, he'd glanced up from his laptop one night while we were both studying. "Dude, you good to roo
Keeping Score Chapter 67: Feed it to the dogs
LEOSOPHOMORE YEAROCTOBERThe Carolina sideline was relaxed. It wasn't often that this was the case, but right now, we were up by three touchdowns with a little less than four minutes left in the game. And Arkansas had just punted after another three and out that had resulted in negative yardage for them. In other words, we were kicking some serious ass this afternoon.To put the icing on the cake, Coach was sending in Matt as QB on this play. The last year hadn't been easy for my friend; he and the coaching staff clashed more often than not, and he chafed in the role of back-up quarterback. Thom Wilkens was still going strong, and if things continued as they were now, he'd hold onto his job up through graduation, leaving Matt only one year to lead the team, if he didn't consider playing another position. For a guy who was hoping to parlay his college career into a top draft pick, this thought was discouraging. And Matt wasn't shy about letting everyone know how he felt. But r
Keeping Score Chapter 68: Memories
LEOI'd known Quinn since she'd slept in a toddler bed. I remembered her canopy bed with the pink ruffled bedspread, and I remembered when her walls had been covered with posters of boy bands. But at first glimpse, her college room struck me as the most quintessentially Quinn room yet. Her bed was made up with some kind of fluffy white comforter covered with a patchwork quilt I recognized from her bedroom at home. On the wall over the bed was a large framed poster of the sun coming up over the ocean, a shot I was pretty sure she'd taken herself. Several pictures sat on the top of her dresser, including one of her father, one of me from the summer before college, and one of the three of us: Nate, Quinn and me. Off to the side sat a small wooden box, a little worn-looking where some of the varnish had rubbed off. I knew deep down I should respect her privacy and leave it alone, but still, I flipped open the lid and examined the contents. I couldn't explain why, exactly, but over the
Keeping Score Chapter 69: Surprise
LEO"AHHHHHHHH!!!!!" Her scream echoed off the walls of her room as her hand flew to her throat and she backed up against the door jamb. "Oh, my God, Leo! You scared the shit out of me! What the hell are you doing here?" I stood up, hands on my hips. "Well, I told you I was going to celebrate a little different tonight. I thought maybe I'd do it with you." I drank her in, from the oversized hoodie that hung below her hips to the worn jeans encasing her legs. My girl was so fucking beautiful, it made my heart skip a beat.For a nerve-wracking minute, I wasn't sure if Quinn was annoyed that I'd taken her by surprise or overcome with joy. And then she launched herself at me, wrapping her arms around my neck and hugging me tight."I'm so glad you're here. Thank you, thank you, thank you."I pulled back enough to kiss her, my lips smothering the last few thank-yous. She moaned a little, opening her mouth to welcome my tongue with strokes of her own."How did you do this? And how lo
Keeping Score Chapter 70: Lion goes viral
QUINNSUMMER BETWEEN SOPHOMORE AND JUNIOR YEARS"Quinn, did you do laundry last night? I need a T-shirt for today."I rolled over in bed and groaned. "No. I was up late working on that article for class."Leo's voice became louder as he came back into our bedroom. "Shit. I need a shirt, and I'm running late." I opened one eye and caught sight of him running a hand through his damp hair. "Sorry. I thought you were putting a load in yesterday afternoon. You don't have anything clean to wear?""It's not that I don't have anything clean. I need my uniform shirt, specifically. I'll have to get one out of the dirty clothes and hope for the best." He dumped out the hamper in the middle of the floor and began sorting through it.Guilt threaded through me. "I could toss it in the dryer real fast. It might help.""No, I don't have time." Leo snapped out the words. "If I get there late, I have to park way out in the far lot. And then . . ." His voice trailed off. "It's just a mess."I h
Keeping Score Chapter 71: Delayed gratification
QUINN"So aren't you going stir-crazy?" Zelda sounded curious and mildly amused as I updated her on the latest Lioness craziness."Surprisingly, no. I don't mind being here, as long as I have something to do." Holding the phone between my shoulder and ear, I pulled a pile of wet laundry from the washer and dropped it into the dryer. "I'm not sure I'm cut out to be a housewife, but I really don't have anything to complain about. I can write whenever I want, and three of my articles have been picked up so far. No classes, no homework, and tons of privacy.""And quality time with Leo the Lion? That's got to be an added benefit.""Of course." I answered quickly, and I knew Zelda probably picked that up. "So everything's fine and dandy with you two? Sunshine, rainbows and sparkles?" She was teasing, but I knew enough of Zelda now to realize that her snark hid real concern. She just didn't want anyone to realize that she actually had feelings. "Mostly." I hesitated. "I love Leo, Zeld
Keeping Score Chapter 72: Making promises we can't keep
QUINN"This is the best pasta I've had south of Philadelphia." I laid down my fork and sighed. "And the company's not bad either."Leo flashed me a smile, but there was something under it, something not quite complete. All night, his laughter hadn't seemed to reach his eyes, and he'd been preoccupied. "All right." I rested my elbows on the table and leaned my chin in my hands. "Tell me what's going on. You've been giving me lip service all night. Did I not live up to your shower expectations?" This time, real heat flared in his eyes. "Hardly. As a matter of fact, you exceeded them. I'm lucky I can sit still here with the boner you gave me.""Hmm. Okay then, what is it? Don't forget, Leo, I've known you forever. You can't hide this shit from me."He fiddled with his knife where it lay alongside his plate. "I got a call today from a guy who works for Football Sunday.""What's that?" I frowned. "It's an online sports magazine. I think it still has a monthly print component. Any
Keeping Score Chapter 73: Temporary?
QUINNThe next morning, I woke up with gritty, swollen eyes, a pounding head and a sense of doom I couldn't shake. Leo was already awake, sitting on the edge of the bed, his clean T-shirt in his hands. He stared down at it, turning the gray cotton over in his hands. I pushed my back against the pillow, sitting up and wrapping my arms around my knees. "What time is it?""Just after seven." He stretched the shirt wide, the way he always did right before he pulled it over his head. I watched the interplay of muscles on his back, tempted to trace the ridges and ropes."Leo." I took a deep breath. "I think ...I think we need to take a break. I'm going to head back up to New Jersey. I should spend some time with my mom anyway, before classes start again.""What the hell are you talking about?" Leo turned around, his eyebrows drawn together. "Quinn, what are you saying?""Everything is so screwed up." I flexed my feet, intent on the movement of the sheet over them. "What they want fr
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Keeping Score Chapter 131: Days of You and Me
QUINNThe party was in full swing, with music blaring and the dance floor crowded. I was sitting on Leo's lap, with his arms circling my waist as we chatted with Zelda and Tucker. "Hey, did you see that?" Zelda nodded toward the crush of dancing couples. On the very edge, Gia was slow dancing with Tate Durham. She stared up into his face as he murmured to her, and I glanced back at Zelda with raised brows. "When did that happen?" I'd spent quite a bit of time lately with Zelda and Gia, who were both my bridesmaids, but Gia hadn't mentioned anything about Tate Durham. I didn't even realize she knew him, although thinking back, they must've met at Carolina, when we used to go see Leo and Matt."Got me. But they look mighty cozy.""She deserves a little happiness. And Tate's a good guy." Leo, who had been talking to Tucker about how brutal mini-camp had been this year, picked up on my last words. He followed my gaze to Gia and Tate and smirked. "Well, it's about time." "Hey.
Keeping Score Chapter 130: The best choice I ever made
QUINNThanks to the security team that we'd hired to keep the media and the curious public at bay, I could only barely see the people lining the perimeter of the roped-off section of the beach. I knew they were there, but it was okay; today of all days, I wanted to share all of my happiness with everyone and anyone. Behind me, the folding chairs that had been arranged on the portable wooden floor-and who knew they had such things!-were filled with our loved ones. We had quite a crowd, for what we'd both termed a small, intimate wedding, but then we were very blessed with both friends and family. My mother sat in the front row, flanked by Joe and Lisa on one side and Mark and Sheri on the other. Leo and I had dispensed with the silly idea of the bride's side and groom's side. We shared so many friends that making them choose which one of us to support would have been crazy. And our parents had decreed early on that they were all going to sit together, forming a united front. The
Keeping Score Chapter 129: We earned this happily ever after
QUINNWe'd been waiting in the empty, echoing corridor outside the locker room for twenty minutes. The guard had kindly but firmly told us that we couldn't go any further, but after Ellie had cajoled him, he'd promised to give us any update he heard and to talk to the trainer about letting us in as soon as it was possible. People swooshed through the hall, to and fro, but none of them showed us the least bit interest. A couple of reporters straggled down, but a non-life-threatening injury to a second year player who was only just beginning to show his strength wasn't exactly breaking news. I tried not to be bitter about that, thinking of all the times the press had hounded us about stupid stuff since Leo had been in college. One of the journalists was live streaming the game on his phone, with the volume pumped. Apparently the Rebels had made the extra point after Leo's touchdown, but New York had come back to score ten points after that-a fast touch down and then a field goal. Th
Keeping Score Chapter 128: Number 22 is down
QUINN"There's my boy!" Joe clapped his hands and whistled as the Rebels took the field for their first possession in the second half. We were up by two field goals, but with a team like New York, that wasn't quite a comfortable margin. "I told him we wanted to see him score today." Lisa nudged me. "Both times, it's happened when we weren't at the game. It's starting to give me a complex."I laughed. "I missed one of them, since it was on the road. So don't take it personally." Down on the field, the center snapped the ball into Gideon's hands. The quarterback stutter-stepped backwards, looking for an open receiver and then fired a pass downfield to a wide receiver, who caught the ball and took off. The crowd jumped to its collective feet, cheering him on. He made it to the twenty-eight-yard line before he was forced out of bounds by a New York player. We sat back down as the chains moved, and Joe patted my back. "This is going to be it, this next play. You watch. I've got a
Keeping Score Chapter 127: Family reunion
QUINN"I never knew it got so cold down south." Lisa Taylor wrapped her scarf a little more securely around her face. "I'm glad I remembered my gloves."On the other side of me, her husband leaned over. "Well, it is December, Lisa. You can't expect beach weather. Virginia isn't that far south."I bit my lip and tried not to laugh. Leo's parents had been down here for the last three days, visiting on what Joe called a 'pre-wedding mini-vacation' and what Lisa referred to as 'Joe's attempt to keep me from killing people'. Although they never really argued, they sniped at each other all the time, which made it less than fun to be around them. Apparently, being the parents of the groom was almost as stressful as being the bride's family. Simon had called us last week, griping about the tensions between Justine's parents and his own."You've got to take them off my hands for a little while, Leo. Please, I'm begging you." Neither of us had ever heard Simon sound so desperate. "All of the
Keeping Score Chapter 126: This is our time
LEOThe past and present jumbled for a moment in my mind. I had a sudden flash of memory, the feel of those legs wrapped around my back as I sank down into her, the weight of her breasts in my hands, the taste of her ...it was all so vivid and so immediate that I gave myself a little pinch to make sure she was really here now, and that I wasn't in the middle of some psychedelic mind trip. Then she smiled at me and spoke, her voice low and teasing, and I knew this was real. "Are you going to say something, or are you going to just lay there gaping at me? You're kind of freaking me out. I'm starting to worry that you're second-guessing the whole forever thing.""Babe. Never." I sat up and crooked my finger. "Come here. I'd go to you, but I seem to have lost the feeling in my legs."Quinn took a few steps closer to me, just beyond my reach. "You know, I realized something while I was getting changed.""Oh, yeah? What's that?" My eyes were glued to her fingers playing with the hem of
Keeping Score Chapter 125: For the rest of our lives
LEOI let her body slide down mine until her feet hit the floor. Looping my arms around her waist, I held her to me. "Mia, I know we've still got things to work out. I want to keep at it. I don't want to bury our shit under a rug or pretend we're perfect. But I want to deal with all of it together. I want us to be together, and not just for now, not until we see if things are good. I want you to live with me here, in this house I picked out because I could see you all over it."Quinn rested her cheek against my chest. I felt her tears soaking into my shirt, and I could only hope and pray that they were the happy kind. Swallowing hard, I went on, laying everything on the line and going for broke. In the back of my mind, I heard the old Eatonboro High Eagles chant: Go big or go home."Mia Quinn." I dropped to my knees and held both of her hands tightly in mine. "I love you beyond my ability to express it. I've loved you for so long that I can't remember when my heart didn't beat for y
Keeping Score Chapter 124: Redux
LEOThe last time Quinn had been in my house, I'd been in agony, wanting her and yet knowing the timing wasn't right yet. So as I led her up the steps and to my front door, I was determined to erase all the bad memories and replace them with only good ones.Before I turned the doorknob, I paused, gazing down at her. "The day I found this townhouse, I'd been looking at places all day. My mom was with me. Everyone had told me not to buy right away, in case I didn't last the season in Richmond or if I got traded or whatever, but I had a hunch. I knew I wanted to buy a place to live and not be just renting. I was ready for something permanent."She nodded, expectant. "I couldn't put my finger on why none of the houses seemed quite right. Then I realized it was because I couldn't see you in any of them. When I stood here for the first time, though, I turned around and looked at the neighborhood, the front lawn ...the view." I steered Quinn by the shoulders, pulling her back against me
Keeping Score Chapter 123: About time
QUINNBy the second half, Leo seemed to have found his rhythm. He caught several more passes and ran for a decent amount of yardage. When the clock hit all zeros, Richmond had won by ten points. I was ready to sprint down to the locker room, but Ellie caught my arm. "There's no rush, honey. Look." She pointed to the field, where the players were still milling around. "They'll be out there for a bit, doing some on-field interviews, and then they'll be in the locker room for a while before the post-game press conference. I doubt either Leo or Corey will be part of that today, but still-we don't want to be hanging out in the hallway until right before they come out. It's a mess. The press is there, and the jock junkies." She wrinkled her nose. "Okay." I sat down again. "So we just ...stay up here?""Yeah." Ellie lifted one shoulder. "Most of the wives take off and wait in the parking lot or meet their husbands at home. Corey and I have a tradition of meeting in the hall, so I don't
