Free from Pain to Pleasure (Gainesville Book 1) by Bella Jeanisse Page A

toward him. Then she screamed and covered her eyes when he hit the ground.
    “He’s alright. Relax,” Logan assured her.
    Eyes lifted, Danielle saw he was right. Alex was up. “Oh thank God!”
    Alex brushed himself off and jumped up and down a few times to shake off the mistake. He had found a blind spot with the helmet on. Something he wouldn’t do again. He was used to playing without equipment.
    “I’m good,” he told one of his teammates and got back into position. Absently, he touched Danielle’s necklace. “This is for you, babe.” Even though she wasn’t his girlfriend, he knew one day she would be.
    Logan jumped up again as Alex ran for the end zone with the ball. “Go!” he screamed. Then he grabbed Danielle and stood her up. “Look!”
    She followed his finger and saw Alex run across the field. She could barely see his jersey, but it had to be him. She cringed as someone almost knocked him over, but he spun around and avoided them. In seconds, he had scored his first touchdown of his college career and pushed their team ahead by three.
    From that moment on, Danielle got into the game. She mostly followed what Logan and Marie did. Occasionally, she realized what was going on by herself. Every time he had the ball, she screamed his name.
    It was fourth and goal in the bottom of the fourth quarter. Their team was down by four. Alex itched to make the play, but the plan was to fake it to him, then give it to the tight end to score. It all went to hell when linebackers knocked him and a few others down. The quarterback quickly tossed Alex the ball, and he dove over the pile of bodies. He landed in the end zone.
    “Holy shit!” Logan cried out, shocked. “He did it!”
    Danielle watched as Alex stood up and lifted the ball over his head. He had scored the winning touchdown. She was proud of him, more so that she thought she should be. Her feelings for him confused her. The physical reaction began to be familiar, but the emotional one was too much to handle.

    * * *

    Alex was still full of adrenaline as he showered off. Everyone added to that by congratulating him. He couldn’t believe he played in the game, let alone helped his team win. It was like a dream come true.
    Even with all the excitement, he still thought of Danielle. He hoped she hugged him again. That was the closest he could physically get to her. She didn’t seem to realize it meant more than a friendly gesture to him. He loved when she moved her body just a bit closer if he had an erection. She unconsciously rubbed against it, which made him want to grab her ass. He didn’t dare, though. She freaked out if he did anything more than hug her back. Her eyes held fear daily, no matter how much he assured her she was safe.
    Anxious, Danielle waited outside the home team’s locker room. Her hands shook, and her breathing was erratic. She had not planned to be there, but after Alex had scored, she felt he deserved a big hug. It was the way she expressed her attraction, without realizing it. He meant something to her, although she didn’t know what. Since she had not had a male friend before, she was unsure what was normal. A hug seemed innocent. Her body wanted much more, though. That fact terrified her. Brian still had an iron hold on her, from thousands of miles away.
    As soon as Danielle set eyes on Alex, her heart beat faster. She was oblivious as his teammates walked around her. There was nothing but him. When he was almost in front of her, she jumped into his arms and kissed his lips. Gone was the fear of Brian’s wrath, or someone seeing them. Alex eased her anxiety with a simple touch. She let instinct guide her for once.
    He grabbed her thighs so she wouldn’t fall and kissed her back, hungrily. It was something he thought about night and day. He wanted to devour her. Quickly, he slid his tongue into her open mouth. One hand moved to her ass, and the other held the back of her neck. His cock grew quickly. He ground it against her