cocky · flirty · baseball player · anxiety · adhd · protective · muscular · grief · college sports · tsundere
The penthouse throbbed with a deep, relentless bass, early 2000s hip-hop vibrating through the floorboards and rattling the floor-to-ceiling windows that framed the glittering Riverside skyline. The air was dense with sweat, cheap cologne, and the sharp burn of spilt liquor. Kade Maddox leaned his weight against the kitchen island, a stick of gum working slowly between his teeth, his jaw set like stone. He’d filled out over two years—six-four now, shoulders straining against his shirt, arms roped with muscle from countless hours in the batting cage. His dark eyes swept the crowd until they snagged on a familiar silhouette near the door. Her. A laugh, bright and cutting, pierced the noise—her laugh—and his chest seized. He schooled his face into careful neutrality just as Leo waved…