The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback (Astra and Zayne) novel Chapter 183

Two men emerged from the house with a stretcher between them. The white sheet had been pulled all the way over the body.

Silas.

Astra went completely motionless.

I stepped into her line of sight before they made it three feet from the porch.

“No.”

Her eyes lifted to mine. “Zane…”

“You don’t need to watch that.”

For once, she didn’t argue. Her forehead came quietly against my chest. I wrapped both arms around her and held on.

Behind me, Silas Mercer left the house for the last time.

I didn’t turn around.

u, Aug 13

The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback

I didn’t give a single fuck where they took him.

The only person I cared about was standing in my arms.

And this time, nobody was taking her anywhere without me.

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12:02 Thu, Aug 13

The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback

THIS IS WHAT I’D MEANT

ASTRA

I didn’t know how long I stayed there.

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My face was pressed against Zane’s chest, his arms around me, the emergency blanket bunched between us and what was left of his jacket still hanging from my shoulders.

The chaos around us hadn’t slowed, but with my face buried against Zane, it all seemed farther away-the police moving, through the yard, the occasional burst of a radio, voices I couldn’t quite make out.

I tried not to look toward the house again.

Tried not to picture the stretcher or the white sheet.

I didn’t know what the hell I was supposed to do with that.

Zane’s hand passed slowly over my back.

“You okay?”

I nodded into his chest.

“Liar.”

“I’m trying.”

His arm drew me closer. “That counts.”

I closed my eyes, trying to shut everything else out.

“Astra!”

I knew the voice immediately.

I pulled back from Zane and turned just as Jason came running across the yard toward us.

“Jason?”

Oh my God.

Jason.

His hair was a mess, his clothes looked like he’d slept in them, and even beneath the flashing lights I could see how pale he

was.

An officer shouted after him, but Jason didn’t stop.

He came straight for me.

“Astra.”

The relief on Jason’s face brought tears rushing back to my eyes, and I barely managed a step toward him before Zane’s arm clamped around my waist, keeping me close.

Of course he wasn’t letting go.

Aug 13

The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback

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.7.

Jason stopped in front of me, breathing hard as his eyes swept over me. His lips parted, then pressed together again as his eyes suddenly filled.

For a few seconds, he couldn’t seem to say anything. He dragged a hand over his mouth and swallowed.

“Jesus Christ.”

Before I could say anything, he pulled me into his arms. I stumbled forward with the force of it. Jason held me so tightly I could barely breathe, one hand cupped around the back of my head, the other locked across my shoulders.

“You’re okay,” he breathed against my hair.

My eyes burned. “Yeah.”

“You’re actually okay.”

“I’m okay.”

His breath left him in a long, shuddering exhale. I wrapped my arms around him in return.

Over Jason’s shoulder, I saw Zane.

Oh.

He hadn’t moved. He stood exactly where I’d left him, watching us with a completely blank expression.

Which somehow looked considerably worse than anger.

His eyes dropped to Jason’s arm around me. Then to Jason’s hand on the back of my head. Then back to Jason’s face.

I almost sighed.

Seriously?

Now?

Jason finally pulled away, though his hands stayed on my shoulders.

“Do you have any idea what you put us through?”

My brows shot up.

His eyes widened immediately. “That came out wrong.”

“Very wrong.”

“I meant-fuck.” He dragged both hands over his face. “I thought you were dead, Astra.”

My chest squeezed. “Jason…”

“I should’ve….”

“No.”

His gaze returned to mine.

“Whatever you’re about to blame yourself for, don’t.”

“You don’t even know what I was going to say.”

The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback

“I know you.”

That silenced him and a sad little smile touched his mouth.

“Yeah. You do.”

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Something warm and painful moved through my chest. Jason hadn’t been in my life for long, but somehow that didn’t make what we had any less real. He’d been my first real friend-the first person at school who made me feel seen when I’d spent so long feeling invisible. Whatever had happened between us afterward didn’t erase that.

I reached out and squeezed his hand. “I’m glad you’re here.”

Jason looked down at our hands.

So did Zane.

Oh, for heaven’s sake.

Jason apparently noticed him for the first time too. His gaze moved past me.

“You look like shit.”

Zane’s expression didn’t change. “You’re touching my girl.”

My mouth fell open.

Jason blinked, then looked at me.

I closed my eyes.

Four days. I had survived four days of being kidnapped by an unstable man with a revenge obsession, watched someone shoot himself in front of me, and somehow this was what I had come home to.

“Zane.”

“What?”

“Behave.”

“I am behaving.”

Jason actually laughed, though it sounded more tired than amused.

Zane looked offended. “You think something’s funny?”

“Not particularly.” Jason looked him over. “I’m just impressed you managed to get threatened with arrest before Astra even made it into the ambulance.”

Then, somehow, I laughed.

It caught me off guard, especially when Jason joined in, and suddenly neither of us could seem to stop.

One of the paramedics glanced between us before turning away, but I caught the smile he was trying to hide.

Zane was still watching me.

The annoyance from a moment ago was gone. He didn’t laugh with us or even smile. He just stood there, staring at me as though he’d been waiting for days to hear that sound again.

12:02 Thu, Aug 13 F

The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback

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And somehow, standing there in the middle of flashing lights and ambulances, with everything that had happened stilf clinging to me, I felt a little more like myself again.

Like maybe Silas hadn’t taken all of me with him.

The Ashton estate had never looked so beautiful.

The second the gates came into view, I sat forward.

For days, I’d thought about going home. I’d imagined it whenever the fear became too much, whenever I needed something familiar to hold on to.

But somewhere along the way, home had stopped meaning just my mom.

Whenever I’d closed my eyes, I’d imagined this exact moment-coming through those gates again and seeing the house waiting at the end of the drive.

My throat suddenly felt tight.

Zane noticed.

His hand had been covering mine since we left the hospital, and his thumb brushed once over my knuckles.

“You okay?”

I nodded.

This time, he let me get away with it.

Detective Hayes had arranged for an officer to drive us back after the doctors finally cleared me. Jason had been dropped off first, despite spending several minutes arguing that he should come with us.

Zane had been unusually enthusiastic about leaving him behind.

I decided not to touch that one.

The SUV finally stopped beneath the covered entrance, but I didn’t reach for the door.

I just stared at the house.

Home.

Somehow, without me even realizing when it happened, this place had become home.

And God, I was actually back.

Zane opened his door, but I was already reaching for mine,

“Wait.”

Zane was already coming around the SUV. Before I could reach for the handle, he opened the door himself and held out his hand.

I looked at it for a second before placing mine in his.

“Thank you.”

12:02 Thu, Aug 13 F

The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback

His fingers closed around mine as I climbed out.

He didn’t let go afterward.

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By/the time we reached the steps, the front doors were already opening.

Nadine stood on the other side.