Playing For Keeps: #UofJ3, page 1
#UofJ3
Playing For Keeps
#UofJ3
Alley Ciz
Also by Alley Ciz
#UofJ Series
Looking To Score
Game Changer
Playing For Keeps
Untitled #UofJ4- Add to TBR Releasing end of 2021
*Savage Queen: A Royalty Crew U of J Spin-Off Novel*- Preorder, Releasing April 2021
BTU Alumni Series
Power Play (Jake and Jordan)
Tap Out (Gage and Rocky)
Sweet Victory (Vince and Holly)
Puck Performance (Jase and Melody)
Writing Dirty (Maddey and Dex)
BTU6- Coming 2021
@UofJ411: House parties and handcuffs don’t mix. #IsThatBlood #DontMessWithTheFlock #Kaysonova
The mighty Casanova has fallen.
Me: six foot five, two hundred and fifty pounds, collegiate football player.
Protected by my pint-sized girlfriend.
Comical. Ridiculous. BROKEN.
She tackled my heart, but they want the rest of me.
Mason Nova is…MINE.
Gossips love drama. Anything to up their likes, especially when we’re the story.
Enough is ENOUGH.
I stopped hiding and paid the price…even have the scars to prove it. It’s time to control my narrative.
I’m taking a page from my boyfriend’s playbook to prove he’s not the only one playing for keeps.
PLAYING FOR KEEPS is book 3 in the U of J Series and cannot be read as a stand-alone. It picks up right after the epic cliffhanger in GAME CHANGER threw you off of. Our rainbow-haired sass queen is out to prove her Caveman isn’t the only alpha in their relationship to win their #HEA.
Playing For Keeps (#UofJ3)
Alley Ciz
Copyright © 2020 by House of Crazy Publishing, LLC
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, medium and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Copyright © 2020 by House of Crazy Publishing, LLC
All rights reserved.
Without limiting the rights under the copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-950884-16-2
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-950884-15-5
Cover Designer: Julia Cabrera at Jersey Girl Designs
Cover Photographer: Wander Book Club Photography
Cover Models: Megan Napolitan & Wayne Skivington
Editing: Jessica Snyder Edits, C. Marie
Proofreading: Gem’s Precise Proofreads; Dawn Black
Created with Vellum
To my readers. For trusting me to shove them off cliffs and still coming back.
#ILiveForYourShoutyCaps
Author Note
Dear Reader,
PLAYING FOR KEEPS IS BOOK 3 in the U of J Series. You must read book 1, LOOKING TO SCORE AND book 2, GAME CHANGER, prior to this installment to follow the story properly.
#UofJ Series:
Looking To Score
Game Changer
Playing For Keeps
If I’m new to you and you haven’t read my BTU Alumni books you’re fine.
If you have met my other crazy squad of friends and Covenettes there are a few cameos in here you might enjoy, with a tiny time gap between the two series.
XOXO
Alley
IG Handles
CasaNova87: Mason ‘Casanova’ Nova (TE)
QB1McQueen7: Travis McQueen (QB)
CantCatchAnderson22: Alex Anderson (RB)
SackMasterSanders91: Kevin Sanders (DE)
LacesOutMitchell5: Noah Mitchell (K)
CheerGodJT: JT (James) Taylor
TheGreatestGrayson37: G (Grant) Grayson
ThirdBaseAdam16: Adam
CheerNinja: Rei
TheBarracksAtNJA: The Barracks
NJA_Admirals: The Admirals
TightestEndParker85: Liam Parker
Nicknames
Mason Nova: Casanova/Mase
Kayla Dennings: Kay/PF/Smalls/Short Stack
E (Eric) Dennings
CK (Chris) Kent
Em (Emma) Logan
Q (Quinn)
JT (James) Taylor
T (Tessa) Taylor
Pops (James) Taylor Sr.
G (Grant) Grayson
D (Dante) Grayson
Travis McQueen: Trav/QB1
Mama G- Mrs. Grayson
Papa G- Mr. Grayson
B (Ben) Turner
Contents
Playlist
1. Mason
2. Mason
3. #TheGram
4. Mason
5. Mason
6. Mason
7. #TheGram
8. Mason
9. Kayla
10. Mason
11. Kayla
12. Mason
13. Kayla
14. #TheGram
15. Mason
16. Kayla
17. Mason
18. Kayla
19. Kayla
20. Mason
21. #TheGram
22. Kayla
23. #TheGram
24. Mason
25. Kayla
26. Mason
27. #TheGram
28. Kayla
29. Mason
30. Kayla
31. Mason
32. #TheGram
33. Mason
34. Kayla
35. Mason
36. Kayla
37. #TheGram
38. Kayla
39. Mason
40. #TheGram
41. Kayla
42. #TheGram
43. Mason
44. Mason
45. Kayla
46. #TheGram
47. Kayla
48. Mason
49. Kayla
50. Mason
51. Kayla
52. #TheGram
53. Mason
54. Kayla
55. Mason
Epilogue
Epilogue
Randomness For My Readers
Acknowledgments
For A Good Time Call
Also by Alley Ciz
About the Author
Playlist
“I Won’t Give Up”- Christina Grimmie
“I’m Not Okay (I Promise)- My Chemical Romance
“Youngblood”- 5 Seconds of Summer
“Sit Still, Look Pretty”- Daya
“Crazy Girl”- Eli Young Band
“Castle”- Halsey
“If I Can’t Have You”- Shawn Mendes
“Game Time”- Flo Rida
“White Flag”- Bishop Briggs
“Love On Top”- Beyonce
“Classic”- MKTO
“All We Do Is Win”- DJ Khalid
“Lights Down Low”- MAX
“Move”- Little Mix
“Rumors”- Jake Miller
“Burn It To The Ground”- Nickleback
“Remember My Name”- Fort Minor
“Don’t Let Me Down”- The Chainsmokers
“Amen”- Halestorm
“Sucker”- Jonas Brothers
“We Ready”- Archie Eversole
“Glory”- The Score
“The Bones”- Maren Morris feat Hozier
‘Watch Me Burn”- Michele Morrone
“Queen”- Loren Gray
“I Don’t Care”- Fall Out Boy
“Superpower”- Adam Lambert
“Headstrong”- Trapt
“Keep On”- Kehlani
“This Is How We Do It”- Montell Jordan
FIND PLAYLIST on Spotify.
#Chapter1
Blood.
The tremendous amount of blood has the edges of my vision going blurry as the ever-growing puddle of red continues to expand.
What the fuck just happened?
It’s like I blacked out, only to awaken to a nightmare.
Kay is in a crumpled heap on the floor, and that motherfucking pool of crimson only gets larger.
Can I get a replay?
I run the tape back in my head, but the last thing I can remember is feeling Kay’s hands pushing against my side.
Instinct finally kicks in and has me rushing to her side, yelling for someone to “CALL 911!” as I do. My knee cracks as I bend next to Kay’s prone body.
My hands hover an inch over her, itching to touch her, to roll her and scoop her into my arms where I can keep her safe. I flex my fingers, spreading them out completely in indecision. Unsure how badly hurt she is, I can’t risk moving her.
“Ambo’s on the way,” someone behind me confirms.
As scared as I am to touch her, I’m concerned about the amount of blood starting to stain her rainbow-colored curls. Head wounds bleed excessively, but I still need to address it. The last thing we need added to this is Kay bleeding
How the hell did this happen? Why is she hurt?
With the gentlest of touches, I stroke the side of her face. The sight of a bruise already forming on her cheek has me biting the inside of mine hard enough that the coppery taste of blood coats my tongue. Rage floods my veins, pumping hot and fast through my body.
“Kay, baby.” With light, steady pressure, I stretch my thumb to brush underneath the fringe of lashes on her unbruised cheek. “Come on, sweetheart, open those beautiful eyes of yours and show them to me.”
Nothing.
No response.
Not even a flutter of her eyelashes or a twitch of her lids.
“Come on, Skittles.” My forehead drops to hers. “I need you to open your eyes for me, baby.”
She’s so still. If it wasn’t for the steady rise and fall of her chest, I would be afraid she was dead.
What can I do? How can I help her?
My muscles protest being crouched after hours of playing football. What I wouldn’t give for Kay to lay into me about proper aftercare right now.
The shuffle of feet and a flurry of activity happens behind me, but every molecule of my being is still focused on my baby.
A hand touches the back of my bare shoulder, and I twist to see a navy blue shirt belonging to the male paramedic attempting to get close enough to Kay to exam her.
I know I should move, know they need space to work, but I can’t bring myself to do it.
An authoritative command from the paramedic to do so has me reaching out to shove the table out of the way, stepping over Kay’s body, and maintaining my close proximity while they get to work.
The smooth, barely textured material of a nitrile glove grips my hand with purpose, and I meet the confident I got this gaze of the EMT then release my hold on the shirt I used to stanch the blood flow of Kay’s head wound.
“Can you tell us what happened?” He directs his question to me with a quick flick of his eyes up before dropping them to where he slowly peels the material away from Kay’s head to inspect the injury site.
I wish I could say yes, wish I had the answer, but all I have are questions; I shake my head.
Trav makes his way over to my side, the unyielding clench of his jaw causing the bone to jut out as he takes in the efficient movements of Kay’s vitals being taken and a c-collar being strapped around her small neck. His eyes darken in anger as they move to meet mine. I can tell by the strain around them that I’m not going to like what he has to say.
#Chapter2
“She was punched.”
I blink.
Then blink again.
I must have heard that wrong. No way did Trav say someone hit her. Right?
There’s a shuffle of feet, and one of the police officers—who must have arrived around the same time as the EMTs—moves in closer as the paramedic’s head snaps up to me, an accusatory glare plastered across his face.
“The fuck you looking at?” I growl, annoyed as all fuck that he could even think I’m capable of harming a single hair on Kay’s colorful head.
Above me, someone clears their throat, but I ignore it. That’s not the point right now. No, that would be who the fuck punched my girl?
“Who?” I bark at Trav, jumping to my feet, itching for a fight. Someone thought they could put hands on what’s mine? Time for that person to learn a lesson—a very painful one.
Trav looks from me to the officer whose hand dropped to his gun belt at the rage radiating off me before swinging back my way. His eyes harden and his chest expands with a deep inhalation before he says, “Liam Parker.”
Fuck me! How could I forget about that douchemonkey and his little posse showing up to start shit?
Everything that got pushed aside in the wake of my worry for Kay comes flooding back.
The insults he slung.
The way he looked at what’s mine like it was his.
I tried to keep Kay carefully behind me, but I remember her stepping in front of me then her arms wrapping around me.
Why didn’t she stay behind me where she was safe?
But…
That doesn’t explain how he was able to hit her.
You know what? None of that shit matters. Only this does.
Liam Parker hit Kay.
He put hands on her, and now she’s unconscious and bleeding on the floor.
He’s dead.
I whip my gaze around the room, searching for him, my hands curling into fists at my sides.
“He’s not here.” I spin around at Trav’s statement; clearly the roaring inside my ears is making it impossible for me to hear him correctly. “He slipped out while everyone reacted to seeing Kay fly across the room.”
The enamel on my teeth is at risk of wearing away from how I grind them. I want to say my best friend is exaggerating about what happened, but based on where Kay’s body is and the blood on the corner of the table, there was definite force behind the hit she received.
“Just like the snake he is,” Em says, pushing through the crowd of onlookers. I thought she went mama bear on me the first time she saw me after the breakup, but now she’s full-on murderous. Get in line, Em. Get. In. Line.
As soon as I know Kay is okay, I’m going hunting.
#Chapter3
UofJ411: I didn’t do it. #ImInnocent
*picture of two cop cars in front of the AK house*
@Oamberwhereartthou: Have the Alphas ever had a party that the cops had to break up? #Untouchable
@Ofbooksandportkeys: Talk about a victory party. #WeKnowHowToParty
UofJ411: Drama at the AK house #PartyFoul #CasanovaWatch
*picture of Kay being loaded into the back of an ambulance*
@Lynnstifle: Oh, shit! Isn’t that @CasaNova87 girl? #SomeoneCall911 #CasanovasGirl
@Madameizzy: Who has the deets? #NeedToKnowWhatHappened #CasanovaWatch #CasanovasGirl
@Cheril2412: Anyone else think someone is about to die for this? #DontMessWithTheFlock #CasanovaWatch #CasanovasGirl
UofJ411: King watching over his queen #CasanovaWatch #Kaysonova
*picture of Mason by Kay’s side inside the ambulance*
@Mimi_reads: Is it wrong to swoon over how he’s not leaving her side? #IfItsWrongIDontWantToBeRight #CasanovaWatch #Kaysonova
@Miss_rae_mcnally: @CasaNova87 looks pissed AF here #IfLooksCouldKill #Kaysonova
#Chapter4
After the arrival of the first responders and the revelation that Liam fucking Parker is the cause of me being stuck in a living nightmare, it feels like someone pushes a button and everything happens in fast forward.
The police officers start questioning those who didn’t scatter.
The EMTs finish their examination of Kay and load her onto a gurney.
I climb into the back of the ambulance, not once giving them the opportunity to deny me, while our friends and most of the party attendants not being questioned filter outside to watch the drama unfold, the former hustling to the parking lot behind the AK house to get into cars and follow us to University General Hospital.
