Page 68 of The Keeper

“Nothing. Just that⁠—”

“She’s not taking advantage of me. She insisted the necklace was too expensive, but I wanted to buy it for her. You might think I’m naive, but I know how the world works, Noah.”

I reared back, too stunned to speak.

I’d never seen Adil lose his temper. Ever. He was the chillest, most easygoing member of the team. Getting him to take offense at anything was like trying to rage bait a golden retriever. But maybe that was something I’d taken for granted. He was still human underneath the sunshine and rainbows, and he was a smart one at that. People did him a great disservice when they treated him like he was nothing more than a goofball who needed them to hold his hand and teach him the ways of life.

Shame chased away my shock. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I was being a condescending prick, and I didn’t mean to imply you’re naive or gullible. You’re an adult. You know what you’re doing, and you don’t need me to tell you otherwise. I’m happy you found love with Yasmin.” I paused. “That still came out condescending, didn’t it?”

“A little.” But the clouds had passed, and Adil was perky and smiling again. “It’s okay. You put up with me when I was pushing the Konnect stuff, so we’ll call it even. And look, I get why people might think Yasmin’s a gold digger, but she really gets me, you know? We haven’t been dating long, but when you know, you know. It sounds weird, but it’s like…like an electricity in your veins. Like your whole body lights up when you see or talk to them. Do you know what I mean?”

A flurry of images flashed through my head, quick as lightning but vivid enough to leave me reeling.

Raven hair and brown eyes. Conversations in the kitchen and kisses in the dark. A smile that could disarm on the best and worst of days.

Someone I craved so much that I’d asked her to stay when I should’ve let her go.

“Have you ever felt that way about someone?” Adil asked.

My throat constricted around her name. “I…”

A commotion near the entrance drew my attention to the door, and any semblance of a response died on my tongue.

The girls had arrived.

Scarlett. Brooklyn.

Carina.

She was wearing jeans and a generic Blackcastle shirt instead of Samson’s fucking number two, thank God. Her face was alight with amusement, and when she laughed at something Scarlett said, I swore I heard every note over the wild, ragged beats of my heart.

They pumped fast and loud—so loud they caught her attention. A dim part of me recognized that wasn’t possible. It defied the laws of physics, yet I had no other explanation for the turn of Carina’s head at that exact moment, or the way her eyes found mine so easily across the room. Our gazes latched together like two magnets clicking into place, and I felt it—that electricity Adil was talking about. The streak of silver that blurred time and place and every other force tethering me to reason.

She was so close. A dozen steps, and I’d be at her side.

We’d never interacted much in front of our friends. Our relationship had unfolded through mostly private moments, tucked into the intimate corners of our lives. I preferred it that way.

But I had the sudden, pressing need to kiss her. To grab her and claim her in a way I had no business doing.

My pulse hammered harder. My feet touched the floor, and I might’ve surrendered reason to instinct had a group of Blackcastle fans not crossed between us at that moment. They cut off my view of Carina, and reality snapped back with brutal clarity.

The music returned. The fans cleared out, and Carina had already turned away, following her friends to a table on the far side of the pub.

I yanked my eyes back to the bar and motioned to Mac for another drink. My throat was so fucking dry it was hard to swallow.

I almost forgot Adil was there until I felt his eyes boring a hole in my cheek. He’d asked me a question. What was it again?

“Sorry. What were we talking about?” Carina’s presence had shredded my thoughts into confetti. I couldn’t believe I’d almost lost it in the middle of the pub, in front of all our friends. She was a goddamn menace to my mental capacity and overall well-being.

“Nothing.” Adil averted his gaze and took a sip of water, but it looked like he was fighting back a smile. “Nothing at all.”

CHAPTER 27

CARINA

“I was waiting for the right moment to tell you, but I have some great news: we’re going to the World Cup!”

I blinked up at Scarlett. She beamed back at me, her face glowing with excitement. “I thought you were always going to go?”