Phoenix's POV Tatum is silent in the passenger seat beside me as we drive through the streets of Dallas. My brain tells me I need to focus on the road ahead of me instead of the woman beside me. But I just can't help myself when Tatum is as breathtaking as she is. I just want to reach over and caress her face, reveling in the way her big eyes peer up at me, sparkling with excitement. But I can't do that because I need to keep my hands on the steering wheel and my eyes on the road to avoid crashing into oncoming traffic. "I appreciate you letting me crash in your room until my dad gets out," Tatum says quietly from beside me. I turn my head long enough to see that she's already looking at me, the light from the street lamps moving across her face. God, she looks beautiful. Clearing my throat, I grip the steering wheel a little tighter as I adjust slightly in my seat. "It's not a problem, Tate. There is no way in hell I'd let you come to a foreign city and stay by yours

Phoenix's POVThe rain and wind slamming against the windows in my bedroom rattled throughout the room, making my heart leap into my throat. I held my breath as I walked through the quiet and dark house toward the staircase. I heard the majority of the screams and yelling coming from the living room not too long again. When I heard the front door slam, I knew it was my opportunity to go downstairs and see if my mom is okay. This is a regular occurrence with my mom and dad—screaming and yelling at each other until everything simply turns silent, allowing me to breathe properly again. But this time… something feels different. Off, even. But I couldn't quite put my finger on why. I'm twelve years old now, which means I should have enough courage to protect my mom from my dad, but I simply just can't bring myself to leave my room to go to her side. It's as if a force is pinning my feet to the ground and paralyzing my body, forcing me to stay put and not intervene, no mat

Tatum's POV The insistent buzzing of my phone is enough to wake me from the deep sleep I was in. My head feels groggy and my limbs are heavy as I roll over to grab my phone. After Nico stormed out last night, I found it hard to get to sleep because I couldn't stop replaying what happened in my head. I felt guilty for asking him such a personal question, but then I had no idea that it would trigger him that badly. For hours, I sat awake wondering why this man would be afraid of a storm. Surely, it must have something to do with his childhood, which I know next to nothing about besides the fact that he and Khai used to play baseball together at a young age. I sat staring at my phone wondering if I should call and apologize for pushing him too hard, but then I told myself that with how angry he was when he left, he likely wouldn't have answered the phone anyway. Instead, I lay in bed and stared at the roof, getting lost in my thoughts until sleep consumed me. This is why I f

Tatum's POV "Take it easy tonight, Khai. And make sure you have a long, hot bath when you get home to relax the muscles." Khai salutes my dad with a cheeky grin. "Will do, Coach. Get home safe, okay?" Dad returns the salute gesture and laughs. "Will do. Also, did you see Phoenix after the game? I wanted to have a chat with him, but he must have already left." I look up from my phone, mid-way through writing a text message to Sammie, at the mention of Nico. The game finished almost an hour ago, with the Cats winning, but I haven't seen Nico since he walked off the field ahead of me. His leaving without saying goodbye must be unusual, especially for my dad if he is looking for him. Khai looks over at Nico's locker, which is empty, before turning back with a shrug. "I guess he must've left. I didn't see him after the game, so he must've dipped out pretty quickly." Dad hums and rubs his chin with his forefingers, nodding slowly. "Okay. That's fine. I'll catch him at t

Phoenix's POV Every muscle in my body aches as I slump to the ground on my knees, my head dipping forward as I try to inhale as much air into my lungs as my body will allow. Sweat is pouring down the contours of my face and dripping onto my clothed thighs. Holy f*ck. I'm exhausted. "That last throw was amazing," Coach says, clapping his hands as he walks toward me. We have the training field to ourselves today, just me and Coach. He asked if I could come in for a quick training session after work before our game coming up this Sunday. I agreed because I never want to let Coach down, and of course, it doesn't hurt to fit in an extra training session. The only thing that hurts is my f*cking body, but it's nothing a warm bath can't fix when I get home and a good night's sleep before work tomorrow. Panting, I lift my head to look up at Coach as he approaches me, peering at him through the curls obstructing my vision. "You think so?" I ask, pulling my lip ring between