All Chapters of The Pop Star and the Playboy Quarterback: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

*Ophelia*I am such a hothead. Sometimes, I forget just how different our worlds are and the various ways we’re relied on. He just made me so ANGRY. Asher has expectations he has to live up to, but saying what he did? It hurt me. And I wanted him to hurt, too.But the phone call, while explosive, also revealed my heart still isn’t over Asher. It’s so nonsensical to be into a guy who clearly doesn’t want to continue this relationship, but I’ve learned that when it comes to Asher, my heart never makes any rational sense.Jake has never been an option. I see him as a musician and a person, but I’ve never looked at him and imagined a future. He’s a great and talented person, but no romantic feelings have blossomed in the few years I’ve known him. Why doesn’t Asher believe me?It’s always been important to me to be upfront and candid with other individuals. Even when we were essentially strangers, I told Asher about my mom, something I don’t trust others to know. Camila was the except

*Asher*I park my car in the driveway and sit back, listening as the noise around me fades. I’m exhausted, and the only thing on my mind is taking a hot shower and smothering myself with a pillow.My muscles are sore from the practices and today’s game. I haven’t even answered AJ’s messages since I departed from the stadium. I can’t get into it with him right now. I can’t imagine he understands the nuisances I’m struggling with. Groaning, I finally gather myself to get out of the car, slamming it closed as I lock it and walk up to the front door.Something else feels off. I glance around me to pinpoint the gnawing sense in my brain, but the surrounding area was as I left it. I shake my head. God, I’m genuinely losing it.I put my key in the lock, but the door’s already open. What the hell? I know I locked it when I left.I slowly pushed the door open, peering around the corner to avoid colliding with the burglar. But it’s not a burglar. The alarms in my head that were going off

*Ophelia*I don’t answer any calls from Mac Daddy until I’m in a taxi.“I’ve been trying to get a hold of you all morning. Where have you been?” he snaps.“Busy,” I deadpan. “I’m going to Little Rock.”I’m sure if he were standing before me, I’d watch my manager’s jaw hang down to his feet. I’d thought long and hard about what to do since my last call with Mac Daddy yesterday. I'd been sitting in my hotel room, repeatedly reviewing our phone call in my head.And then, just like always, Asher’s face appeared. I hadn’t heard from him in a week, and I did as Mark asked, I gave him space. But I thought Asher would have finally called me by now. I thought maybe, just maybe, we could talk things out over the phone.I saw he lost his game over the weekend, and it was just another reason I wanted to call him. But I didn’t. I left him alone.And now I can’t do it anymore.“What the hell are you going to Little Rock for?”“Asher Slater,” I confirm.“You’re choosing the playboy quarterb

*Ophelia*We spend the night rediscovering one another, moments of sleep intermixed with sex, tumbling through the sheets with one another as we laugh into each other’s bodies. It’s a blur of ecstasy, moments of clarity pinpointed when I’m falling over the edge that Asher has evoked. His strength, his heart, and his body are all overtaking him. It’s a loving blur, and I wake in the morning with stiff muscles, having done more with my body in the past twenty-four hours than just serving food.It’s nice to wake up with Asher next to me, softly breathing as he gives me a soft smile. I cuddle closer, not wanting any space to sit between us as we lie together on his king-sized bed.We’re quiet for a while, but I don’t mind it. I just want to enjoy this moment, and I am. It’s so calming after the heavy storms we’ve been through recently.“I told you last night, but I mean it. I want this, Ophelia,” he whispers as he runs his fingers down my arm. “I know things started rocky, I know the

*Ophelia*I’ve called Mac Daddy three times since I received Lucy’s text message, but I haven’t heard from him. I’m currently rushing to the recording studio we’re working in. I don’t even understand what Lucy’s message means. What am I stealing exactly?I made sure to shoot Asher a text to let him know I arrived, and that business came up, and I couldn’t call until later. ‘Understood. Go kick ass and take names.’His confidence upped my desperation to get answers, and I burst into the studio to achieve that goal.Mac Daddy, Lucy, and others on the team all jump in surprise.“You weren’t answering my calls,” I state, walking towards my manager.“We were in the middle of a meeting,” he replies, pulling out his phone and barely glancing down at it. “And what’s that meeting?” I snap. The man we’re working with, David Letz, snaps his eyes onto me with shock. Lucy smirks in my direction, seemingly to challenge my opinion and anger. “Because we’re supposed to be here for MY album.”