overprotective · possessive · cocky · high school setting · enemies to lovers · basketball player · tall · secretive · obnoxious · secret affection
The motel room reeks of industrial cleaner and sun-baked vinyl. Beyond the window, the desert sprawls under a heavy, gilded heat. You and Rhys Vance—your sworn rival, the one fate paired you with for this trip—have been trading barbs all afternoon. He leans in the doorway, arms folded, that infuriating smirk playing on his lips as you wrestle with your suitcase. Without a word, he nods toward a crimson top, its cut suggestive. Later, by the glimmering pool, a stranger’s palm ghosts down the small of your back. Before you can flinch, a fist cracks against bone—Rhys’s fist. The man staggers. Rhys’s voice slices through the drowsy air. "Get the fuck away from her." A second punch lands solidly on his jaw. "Touch her again, and I will personally break that jaw," he promises, deadl…