The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback (Astra and Zayne) novel Chapter 4

Chapter 4

ZANE

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I pulled into the driveway and killed the engine, the low rumble dying into silence. Stepping out, I rolled my shoulder, feeling the ache from practice still buried deep in the muscle. The house was dark except for the soft glow of the security lights. Everyone was asleep or at least they should have

been.

I fished the spare key from my pocket, unlocked the door, and slipped inside. The foyer was dead quiet, marble cold beneath my sneakers. I was halfway to the stairs when a soft rustle drifted from the kitchen.

I stopped.

Not loud. Just… movement.

I knew this house. Knew the hum of the fridge, the settling groans in the walls, the old pipes knocking at night. This wasn’t that.

Mom would never be in the kitchen this late. Dad wasn’t home. The twins were out before nine, and the staff knew better than to wander around after midnight unless something was wrong.

So who the hell was in there?

My pulse kicked up. I eased my backpack off one shoulder, set it silently against the wall, and moved toward the kitchen doorway.

I reached the threshold.

There she was.

Back to me, standing on tiptoe in front of an open cabinet, reaching for a glass she couldn’t quite grab. Short. Curvy. Dressed in an oversized T–shirt and faded shorts. Hair damp and clinging to the

back of her neck.

I didn’t recognize her at first.

“Who the hell are you,” I said, voice low and sharp, “and what are you doing?”

She froze.

Then she turned.

And my whole body went still.

Astra Hawthorne.

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2:15 pm PPPP

Chapter 4

Trash–tra?

For one second, I genuinely thought I was hallucinating.

Her eyes went huge behind those stupid glasses. “I…I’m not stealing,” she stammered.

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I stared at her, my brain refusing to catch up. Astra. In my kitchen. In my house. At midnight.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” I snapped, stepping closer. “How did you get in?”

She gripped the edge of the counter. “I live here……now”

I laughed, short and disbelieving. “You live here?”

Her chin lifted, shaky but stubborn. “Elira hired me. I’m the new live–in babysitter for your

brothers.”

The words hit like a punch to the throat.

Astra Hawthorne. Sleeping under my roof, walking my halls, and touching things in my house like she belonged here.

My jaw clenched.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“I’m not,” she said, trying for steady even though her hands were shaking. “I signed the contract. I’m staying.”

I moved closer until she had to lean back against the counter.

“You think you can just walk into my house and act like you belong here?” I said quietly.

Her breath caught, but she didn’t look away. “I’m not acting. I was hired.”

note.

My gaze flicked to the counter. Foil-covered plate. My mother’s handwriting on the

Astra followed my stare. “She left food for me,” she said. “I have permission to be here.”

That made something ugly twist in my chest.

I planted one hand on the counter beside her, boxing her in without touching her.

“You will go upstairs,” I said, each word clipped, “pack your things, and tell my mother this isn’t happening.”

Her throat bobbed.

Then she said, “No.”

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12:15 pm P P P P

Chapter 4.

Flet out a harsh laugh. “You think that was a suggestion?”

Her eyes flashed. “I’m not leaving because you told me to.”

That answer lit a fuse.

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My hand shot out before I could think I grabbed a fistful of her damp hair and yanked her head back hard.

“Ahhh,” She gasped and then let out a low groan of pain as her neck arched, exposing the soft line

of her throat.

“You don’t belong here,” I said. “You didn’t belong at ‘school, and you sure as hell don’t belong here.”

Pain flickered across her face, quick and sharp, but it didn’t break her.

She swallowed and whispered, “That’s not your decision.”

For a second, I just looked at her.

At the trembling shoulders. The fear in her eyes. The stupid, stubborn way she still held my stare.

Then the kitchen lights snapped on.

“What is going on here?”

My mother’s voice cut through the silence like glass.

I straightened immediately, stepping back half a pace but not taking my eyes off Astra.

Mom stood in the doorway in a silk robe, her face calm in that way that meant she was furious.

“Zane,” she said. “Why are you cornering her?”

“I don’t want her here,” I said flatly. “Get rid of her.”

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