Read Online Sacked (Gridiron #1) by Jen Frederick - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Jen Frederick
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imagination,” I murmur. I check my watch. It’s a little after seven. I should be able to call my brother before I hit Hammer’s place. “What time are you opening the doors?” I ask him.
He’s staring at me. They all are. I may make out with a random girl here or there at parties, but I’ve never shown any serious interest. While my sexual status was a joke when I was a freshman, my ability on the field has made it something of a holy artifact. Half the team believes our success is the result of my intestinal fortitude. “I thought sisters were off limits,” he stammers out.
“They are to you, Hammer.”
•••
Matty Iverson, our weak side linebacker, is in my apartment drinking a beer when I get home. The house we live in is one of eight in a block. A booster bought them and gave them back to the university for subsidized athlete housing, but only the starters live in the Playground, as it’s called. I’m not sure who named it, some alum four teams ago or something.
I’ve got my own place on the third floor, but most of the time one of my teammates is up here.
“Why weren’t you at dinner tonight?” Eating together every Thursday night is a team tradition. It’s not mandated by the program, but you better have a damn good excuse for not showing up. Better to bring your sister, as Jack did, than not come at all.
“The parental units are still in town. They cleared it with Coach at the last minute. I texted you.” Matty lifts his phone to show me his text. I pull my own phone out of my pocket.
“So you did.” I find the sheet coach gave us of players to watch for and find Jack’s number. I punch that into my contacts. If Ellie doesn’t give me her number tonight, I’ll have to get it from her brother. “You still hungry?”
One dinner a night doesn’t really satisfy anyone’s appetite, not when you’re working out three to four hours a day.
“You know it. What you got?”
I rummage around in the freezer. “Burritos?”
“Hammer having a party tonight?”
We look at each other and then the burrito. I toss it back into the freezer. “Right. Nothing says sexy like ripping one while you’re trying to close the deal. Hot Pocket?”
“Yeah, I’ll take two.”
I throw two in the microwave. “Three minutes, bro. Be right back. I’m calling my brother. You need anything else?”
He throws his feet onto the coffee table. “Nah, I’m good.”
I shut the bedroom door and flip open my computer. My brother, Ty, answers the video call on the first ring. He must be watching porn or game film on his laptop.
“When’s your bye week?” I minimize the video screen and open a browser window.
“Not until Halloween. Trick or treat, dickhead. Why?”
“Shit, that’s nine weeks away. Maybe I can come up there. We’ve got a bye at the end of September.” In the search box, I type Ellie's name. She’s on the second page of results. Her header is a picture of her and Jack, and her profile picture is the back of her head. Her profile is locked. It tells me nothing other than she was born in February. She must be twenty with Jack twenty-one.
“Sucks that you have one so early,” Ty says. Later in the year, byes are better for our bodies and our teams. We get an extra week to heal, take a mental vacation, and come back ready to fight a major opponent. Instead, we got a fourth week bye. Sucks, but it is what it is. “Why do you want to come up anyway, and what the hell are you looking at?”
“I’m checking out a girl’s Facebook profile. It’s locked, though.” I send him the link.
“Eliot Campbell? Is that a guy?”
“No, her brother is the guy in the picture. She’s the one with the ponytail.”
“What kind of name is Eliot?”
“She’s the one, bro.”
“The one what?”
“Dude.” I frown. “The one .”
“Oh, shit. Did she pass the test?” His eyes get comic book wide.
“No, I haven’t run it yet. She’s new, a transfer student. I was running in the
He’s staring at me. They all are. I may make out with a random girl here or there at parties, but I’ve never shown any serious interest. While my sexual status was a joke when I was a freshman, my ability on the field has made it something of a holy artifact. Half the team believes our success is the result of my intestinal fortitude. “I thought sisters were off limits,” he stammers out.
“They are to you, Hammer.”
•••
Matty Iverson, our weak side linebacker, is in my apartment drinking a beer when I get home. The house we live in is one of eight in a block. A booster bought them and gave them back to the university for subsidized athlete housing, but only the starters live in the Playground, as it’s called. I’m not sure who named it, some alum four teams ago or something.
I’ve got my own place on the third floor, but most of the time one of my teammates is up here.
“Why weren’t you at dinner tonight?” Eating together every Thursday night is a team tradition. It’s not mandated by the program, but you better have a damn good excuse for not showing up. Better to bring your sister, as Jack did, than not come at all.
“The parental units are still in town. They cleared it with Coach at the last minute. I texted you.” Matty lifts his phone to show me his text. I pull my own phone out of my pocket.
“So you did.” I find the sheet coach gave us of players to watch for and find Jack’s number. I punch that into my contacts. If Ellie doesn’t give me her number tonight, I’ll have to get it from her brother. “You still hungry?”
One dinner a night doesn’t really satisfy anyone’s appetite, not when you’re working out three to four hours a day.
“You know it. What you got?”
I rummage around in the freezer. “Burritos?”
“Hammer having a party tonight?”
We look at each other and then the burrito. I toss it back into the freezer. “Right. Nothing says sexy like ripping one while you’re trying to close the deal. Hot Pocket?”
“Yeah, I’ll take two.”
I throw two in the microwave. “Three minutes, bro. Be right back. I’m calling my brother. You need anything else?”
He throws his feet onto the coffee table. “Nah, I’m good.”
I shut the bedroom door and flip open my computer. My brother, Ty, answers the video call on the first ring. He must be watching porn or game film on his laptop.
“When’s your bye week?” I minimize the video screen and open a browser window.
“Not until Halloween. Trick or treat, dickhead. Why?”
“Shit, that’s nine weeks away. Maybe I can come up there. We’ve got a bye at the end of September.” In the search box, I type Ellie's name. She’s on the second page of results. Her header is a picture of her and Jack, and her profile picture is the back of her head. Her profile is locked. It tells me nothing other than she was born in February. She must be twenty with Jack twenty-one.
“Sucks that you have one so early,” Ty says. Later in the year, byes are better for our bodies and our teams. We get an extra week to heal, take a mental vacation, and come back ready to fight a major opponent. Instead, we got a fourth week bye. Sucks, but it is what it is. “Why do you want to come up anyway, and what the hell are you looking at?”
“I’m checking out a girl’s Facebook profile. It’s locked, though.” I send him the link.
“Eliot Campbell? Is that a guy?”
“No, her brother is the guy in the picture. She’s the one with the ponytail.”
“What kind of name is Eliot?”
“She’s the one, bro.”
“The one what?”
“Dude.” I frown. “The one .”
“Oh, shit. Did she pass the test?” His eyes get comic book wide.
“No, I haven’t run it yet. She’s new, a transfer student. I was running in the