Our eyes connected, and I held his stare as I ran my lips up and down, swirling my tongue over the tip. “I’m close...” His grip on my hair relaxed a little and I knew I had him right where I wanted him.Asher’s head rolled back, a string of cuss words leaving his lips on breathy moans. I sucked him harder... deeper... flattening my tongue against his shaft and bobbing my head up and down.“Fuuuuck,” Asher went to pull away, but I tightened my hold on him, not letting him go until I'd swallowed down every last drop.Licking my lips, I sat up.“Do you have any idea how fucking sexy you look like that?” He wound his hand around my wrist and tugged me forward. I went willingly, letting Asher pull me across his body. He leaned down, kissing me hard, not caring that he could taste himself on my tongue. Desire pulsed through me, but it was late, and we had class in the morning.Asher must have had the same thought because instead of deepening the kiss, he rolled me over and spooned me from

MYA“Hey, sorry I’m late.” I ran a hand through my hair and gave Sally, the New Hope Community Center coordinator, a big smile. “Tell me where you want me, and I’ll jump straight in.”“We had some new kids signposted to the program, three brothers. They recently got placed into foster care. “The elder two, Jay and Mario are a little uncertain, but I’ve paired them up with Pat andHershel.”“And the youngest?”“Hugo, he’s only six. His file says he’s been a selective mute for the last two years.”My heart clenched. I’d seen a lot during my time volunteering with New Hope. It ran a Big Brothers, Big Sisters style program for kids in the foster care system, but instead of one-to-one activities, it operated at a community level. They held weekly sessions, and monthly group events, as well as providing ongoing support to the foster families and their charges.“Here.” Sally thrust a file at me. “It makes for difficult reading. Hugo is ready and waiting when you are.”I sat down on the leath

He gave me an imperceptible shrug, but I took it as permission.Hope unfurled in my stomach. I didn’t want to get overexcited, but this was huge. I gently pushed a card and pen toward him. “So, I know how you love football. Your brothers have been telling me all about it.” I winked and his little brows furrowed. “They said you want to be like Fletcher Cox when you’re older?”He stared back at me with a blank expression, but I kept going. “I want you to think about football for a minute. I want you to think about the way it makes you feel and why you love it so much, and then, when you’re ready, I want you to write one wish down on the card. It can be anything to do with football, okay?”Seconds ticked by as Hugo stared at the blank card. I didn’t push. I didn’t speak. I just sat there quietly, waiting. For this to work, he had to engage with the process... he had to own it.After a few minutes, I was worried he wasn’t going to bite. But then, slowly, Hugo picked up the pen and began

I had friends at Temple. Diego, Aiden, Farrow, and the rest of the team. But none had ever come close to filling the hole left behind by Jason and Cameron.What we had was rare.Special.It was a fucking blessing.And I thanked the universe every day for giving me two of the best friends a guy could ask for.“Mya, it’s so lovely to see you.” Mom pulled my girl into her arms and my heart swelled watching the two of them.They’d formed a special bond after the shooting, and it was a giant relief that the two most important women in my life got on.“Son.” Dad extended his hand and I accepted it. “It’s good to see you both.”It had only been a few days since he drove out to see me, but it was the weekend before the team’s first game, so we wanted to do dinner before life became too hectic to see them.“Something smells delicious.” Mom beamed.“I slaved for hours over this, you’d better enjoy it,” I teased, shooting Mya a knowing wink.“Let me guess, sweetheart,” Mom said to Mya. “You did

Mya dug her fingers into my ribs, and I yelped. “No, we haven’t,” she said. “Sometime after graduation. We’re in no rush.”“You’re the last man standing now, Cam,” I smirked. “You know that, right? It’s time you upped your game.”“Ash...” Hailee warned.“Relax, he knows I’m joking.”“Trust me, when I do finally pop the question, I’ll make sure to have an actual ring.” “Burn,” Jason hissed, unable to hide his amusement.“Okay, this has been nice and all, but I want some alone time with my fiancée.” “Not until you put a ring on—”I hit end call and dropped my cell on the counter, pulling Mya around to me.“Ash, that was rude.”“Nah, they get it.” Cameron and Jason were as infatuated with their girlfriends as I was with Mya. They understood what it was like to want to bury yourself so deep inside her, you didn’t know where you ended, and she began.“I need you, Mya.” Heat coursed through my veins.“Well, I’m right here.” She licked her lips.I prowled toward her and ran my hand along the