The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback (Astra and Zayne) novel Chapter 74

Chapter 74

Chapter 74

ASTRA

Wednesday Evening

B

55 vour hays

I sat cross-legged on the floor in the twin’s room, helping Lucas build a Lego spaceship while Mason read quietly on the bed beside us. Lucas was already looking much better, his fever had broken earlier, and he was back to his usual ghatty self, though still a little tired.

“You’re getting really good at this,” I told Lucas with a soft smile, clicking a blue piece into place. “Soon you’ll be able to build the whole fleet by yourself.”

He grinned up at me, cheeks still faintly pink from the fever. “Will you help me tomorrow too?”

“Of course I will.”

Even while smiling and playing with them, my mind kept drifting back to the couch.

Zane’s weight pressing me down.

His bloody lip against mine.

The way he’d growled that I was his while his hand was between my thighs.

I shivered and quickly pushed the memory away.

My phone buzzed on the carpet beside me. I picked it up and saw Jason’s name.

Jason: Hey Love. Just wanted to say I’m thinking about you. Hope you’re okay after today. Can’t stop smiling when I remember you said yes

A small, genuine smile tugged at my lips. He was so sweet.

But the smile faded almost immediately, replaced by heavy guilt.

“He’s my boyfriend now.

And yet I had let Zane kiss me, no, I had kissed him back on that couch just hours after agreeing to be with Jason.

“What is wrong with me?

I typed a quick reply, trying to sound normal.

Me: I’m okay. Thank you for being so understanding. I’m thinking about you too.

I hit send and sighed, staring at the message. Before I could put the phone down, another notification came in.

This one wasn’t from Jason.

Unknown Number: Miss Hawthorne. You missed last month’s payment. The total amount is $4,800. Please transfer it to the account previously provided. If you fail to meet the deadline or attempt to flee, the resulting consequences will affect both you and your family.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

The loan sharks.

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Chapter 74

I had taken the loan almost two years ago when Mom’s hospital bills first skyrocketed. High interest. Dangerous people.

For nearly two years, I’d managed to stay ahead of them by making the minimum payments every month. Delivery jobs, tutoring gigs, skipped meals, extra shifts – every dollar went toward keeping them off my back.

But Mom’s condition had worsened over the last few months. More tests. More medication. More hospital bills,

Last month, for the first time, I’d missed a payment.

And now the balance had ballooned into something terrifying.

Hands shaking, I opened my banking app.

Now I was staring at my bank app with only $412 left after paying what I could. The $3,000 Elira paid me for my job had helped, but after covering the latest hospital installment, scooter repair estimate ($280 if I wanted it fixed properly), and basic needs… there was almost nothing remaining.

I still owed the loan sharks thousands, with interest growing every single day.

These people didn’t play games. They broke bones. They left warnings. They showed up at your door or your workplace.

I couldn’t let them come here. Not to the Ashton mansion.

My hands started shaking.

How am I going to fix this?

Mason’s voice snapped me out of it.

“Astra? Are you okay?”

I forced a smile, closing the app quickly.

“I’m fine, sweetheart. Just tired…..”

I stood up on shaky legs.

“I’ll be right back. I need to grab something from my room before tutoring!

I rushed out, heart pounding, and went straight to my room. I grabbed the tutoring books with trembling hands, trying to breathe.

“Just get through tutoring. Get the money. Figure out the loan tomorrow.

I walked to Zane’s door, knocked softly, and said, “It’s Astra. We have lessons now… Can you come downstairs to the library?”

There was a pause.

Then his deep voice came from inside.

“Come in.”

My eyes widened.

I didn’t want to go in there. Not after what happened on the couch.

“No, please,” I said through the door, voice unsteady. “We can do it in the library like last time.”

The door opened.

Chapter 74

Zane stood there in a black, his large frame filling the door, looking at me with that dark, unreadable stare.

He didn’t say anything.

He just stepped aside, leaving the door open.

Waiting.

I swallowed hard, clutching the books to my chest like a shield, and stepped inside.

To my surprise, it wasn’t the dark, chaotic cave I had imagined. The room was huge, with high ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the estate grounds. Dark wood furniture, a massive king-sized bed with crisp black sheets, and a sleek modern desk in the corner stacked with textbooks and a laptop. One wall had built-in shelves filled with trophies, football memorabilia, and a few books that looked untouched. Everything was expensive, clean, and coldly elegant just like him.

It smelled like him too. Cedarwood, something expensive, and that faint masculine scent that always made my stomach flutter.

Zane gestured to the chair by his desk without a word.

“Sit.”

I hesitated, then sat down nervously, keeping my bag on my lap. He pulled out the chair beside me and sat down, close enough that I could feel the heat from his body.

To my shock, he actually behaved.

For the next two hours, he focused on the work. No mocking or dirty comments. No dark stares that made my skin burn. He listened when I explained concepts, asked short questions, and did the exercises I gave him.

By the time we finished, it was almost 9 PM.

I closed the last book with a small sigh of relief.

“Well done,” I said quietly. “Keep this up and you’ll be fine for mid-terms.”

Zane leaned back in his chair, watching me with that same impossible to read expression. I stood up quickly, grabbing my bag.

“I should go. It’s late.”

As I turned toward the door, his voice stopped me.

“Are you not going to reward me for doing well, Trouble?”

I paused, heart skipping.

What reward?”

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