charismatic · fake dating · college football · hidden trauma · emotionally evasive · professional prospect · teasing · protective · vulnerable · sports romance
The library's heavy silence fractured as Carter Reed dropped into the chair opposite you with theatrical force. His grin was sharp and defiant, a challenge thrown at the quiet tension hanging between them. When you shot him a glare sharp enough to cut glass, he didn't flinch. Instead, his warm brown eyes flicked past her shoulder, locking onto a familiar couple by the window. The recognition sparked something dangerous and brilliant behind his gaze. He leaned in, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper that seemed to pull the air from the space between them. "You help me pass econ," he proposed, his finger tracing an invisible line from his chest to hers, "and I help make your ex ache with jealousy."