Scoring the Player

SCORING THE PLAYER REBECCA JENSHAK CONTENTS 1. Dahlia 2. Felix 3. Dahlia 4. Felix 5. Dahlia 6. Dahlia 7. Felix 8. Dahlia 9. Felix 10. Dahlia 11. Felix 12. Dahlia 13. Dahlia 14. Felix 15. Dahlia 16. Dahlia 17. Felix 18. Dahlia 19. Felix 20. Dahlia 21. Dahlia 22. Felix 23. Dahlia 24. Felix 25. Dahlia 26. Dahlia 27. Felix 28. Dahlia 29. Felix 30. Felix 31. Dahlia 32. Felix 33. Dahlia 34. Dahlia 35. Felix 36. Dahlia 37. Felix 38. Dahlia 39. Felix 40. Dahlia Epilogue Playlist Also By Rebecca Jenshak About the Author © 2023 by Rebecca Jenshak All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this book may be reproduced, distributed, transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without written permission from the author. Rebecca Jenshak www.rebeccajenshak.com Cover Design by Lori Jackson Designs Editing by Edits in Blue, Nancy Smay at Evident Ink, and Fairest Reviews Editing Services Proofreading by Sarah at All Encompassing Books The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Names, characters, places, and plots are a product of the author’s imagination. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. BLURB Valley U’s hottest QB has heard in detail how I want to climb him like a tree. One viral video and my life as a wallflower is over. Felix Walters knows exactly how I feel about him—so does everyone else on campus. It was supposed to be a private conversation between friends. Now I’m the butt of every joke and everywhere I turn all eyes are on me. It’s every shy girl’s nightmare. Except now the hottest guy on campus wants to be my fake boyfriend. Six weeks. Just pretend. I’m a wallflower fake dating Valley U's hottest player. This one is for the sporty girls. 1 DAHLIA “These shoes were a bad idea,” I shout over the music as Jane, Violet, and I push our way through a crowd of people in the backyard of the off-campus house party. I nearly twist an ankle when someone knocks into me and throws off my balance on these four-inch heels. Then someone else bangs into me from the other side, steadying me somewhat but also making me feel like I’m in a human pinball machine. It’s the first week of a new school year, and the parties have been amazing. It’s only Wednesday night and I’ve lost track of how many different off-campus houses and frats we’ve been to this week. Jane comes to a stop on one side of the yard and turns her head to look at me and Vi, excitement sparkling in her eyes. “I had no idea there’d be so many people here tonight. The football guys know how to throw a party.” She’s right. It seems like the entire student body is here. It isn’t a huge house or outdoor space, which makes it feel even more crowded. “Have you seen him?” Violet asks, while she cranes her neck to look around the party. “Who?” I’m careful not to meet her gaze. “Your boyfriend?” “No. Gavin is coming later. He had a basketball thing.” When I give in and look at her, she arches a dark brow and tips her chin so that her long, black hair falls over one shoulder. “You know who.” I do know, but I stay quiet anyway. “Felix Walters,” she says pointedly, amidst my silence. “The cute QB who is totally crushing on you.” My own laugh catches me off guard because her words are so ludicrous. “He does not have a crush on me.” Felix Walters is the most popular jock on campus. He’s the face of the university’s nationally-ranked football team, rumored to definitely be going to the NFL, and he hooks up with only the most beautiful girls. A lot of them. “I think Vi’s right,” Jane says. “He always makes a point to come talk to you when we see him out. Sunday night at The Hideout and then again at the hockey guys’ apartment, Monday night at Phi Kappa Theta, Tuesday at Sigma.” My face is on fire. He’s so far out of my league that even thinking about talking to Felix makes me hot and sweaty. I’ve never had a boyfriend. I’ve dated so infrequently; I can count them all on one hand. I’m not the kind of girl guys clamor to be with. Let alone guys like Felix. I’m too shy. Too awkward. Too average. I’m not at all like the girls he dates. Instead of responding to their ridiculous claim that Felix has a crush on me (ha!), I focus on the party and finding Daisy. She left before us to meet up with her boyfriend Jordan. I finally spot them across the yard, hanging with a group of guys, hockey players, I think. I don’t spend a lot of time scoping out the people in their circle. Jane and Violet are the outgoing half of our foursome. Jane is enthusiastic and fun at every turn. So fun that she often convinces me to live outside my comfort zone. The four-inch heels, for example. And Violet is confident and stunning, and so head-over-heels in love with her boyfriend Gavin that she wants everyone to be as happy as she is. I love them, but right now, I need a dose of reality that I know Daisy will provide. Felix is not into me. He’s a nice guy, that’s all. But still, my skin is buzzing with adrenaline at the thought. Earlier tonight, the four of us (Jane, Violet, Daisy, and I) wrote wishes for the new school year on paper and then burned them. When Jane suggested we ‘put our desires out into the universe,’ I thought it was kind of silly. But as I held the paper in one hand and the lighter in the other, I felt a