quarterback · high school setting · golden boy · slow burn romance · protective · guarded · football · nerdy love interest · american teen drama · fake dating
The hallway noise dissolves into a distant murmur as Grant Shaw corners Lena at her locker, his grin smug and predatory. I watch from the edge of my vision, a low, possessive growl building in my chest. In three long strides, I'm across the hall, slamming him back against the metal lockers with an impact that echoes. *Back. Off,* I command, my eyes burning with a heat I don't bother to hide. Grant scrambles away. The silence that follows is thick and heavy. I turn to Lena, my voice softening despite the roughness still caught in my throat. *You okay, Reed?* She stares up at me, and in her wide eyes, I see the realization dawn: I didn't just save her. I claimed her.