Right on cue, she smacked me in the arm. "That is so not cool! If I didn't know I was pretty and awesome, I'd have a major complex about still being a virgin."

"But you're only nineteen. That's still really young."

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She narrowed her eyes and then tilted her head away from me so that her next words came out as a jumbled mess.

"Ihaven'toendnehaout."

"What? I can't hear you. Speak up."

"Ihaven'tdoneanythingpashedmaeurh—"

I laughed and cupped my hand around my ear. "Am I freaking deaf or are you mumbling?"

"I haven't done anything past making out, okay!" she shouted, and then threw a pillow at me.

I caught it and tossed it aside, and was about to laugh, but then I realized that she was being way more serious than usual. This freaking gorgeous girl shouldn't feel self-conscious about her experience level. What did it matter if I had a sloppy kiss at fifteen? And 139/890

horrible, awkward sex at seventeen? I didn't regret it, but it was nothing to write home about.

"Seriously, don't worry about it. It's not like my experiences have been all that great."

She nodded and flipped open her laptop, effectively closing the subject.

Just as she promised, Liam popped up on the screen sitting next to the Tonight Show host. He looked devastatingly handsome in a black suit with styled hair and a cleanly-shaven face. He'd skipped a tie and kept the top buttons of his shirt undone so that every female member of the audience was screaming bloody murder.

"Jeez, I can't believe we actually get to be coached by that guy. How crazy is that?"

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Becca asked. I couldn't pull my attention away long enough to answer her.

The Tonight Show host was trying to start the interview, but the girls in the crowd wouldn't stop screaming. It was quite funny, and Liam played it off well, looking humble and charming. Finally the girls settled down and the host and Liam laughed and shrugged as if to say, what are you going to do?

"His hair looks good like that, usually it's not styled that wa—"

"Shh!" I cut her off just as the host asked his first question.

"So Liam, I was going to ask what it was like being one of the sexiest men alive, but I think our audience answered that question for me," the host began, and everyone laughed.

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Liam looked down and rubbed his chin between his thumb and pointer finger. I'd seen him do the same move a few times before, but seeing it on national television felt strangely surreal. This was the guy that had saved me from Tara on the soccer field. Underneath that body and face, there might be a big heart, and I couldn't figure out how that could be possible.

"It's not usually like this, I assure you. In LA I live a pretty private life," Liam answered with a small smile.

"Ah, so I see that you're still with the LA Stars, but you've kind of stepped back from the limelight a bit. My wife, yes even she's obsessed with you, said she hasn't seen you in as many tabloids lately."

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"You shouldn't let her read those.

They're all fake anyway," Liam joked.

"I'll be sure to pass that along, but she'd kill me if I didn't ask... are you seeing anyone right now?" To his credit, the host looked like he was a bit embarrassed that he was having to ask a question like that.

Becca and I exchanged wide-eyed glances, and she reached to turn the volume up.

"No. I'm just focusing on soccer and my new role as a coach at ULA," he nodded with a tight smile. Of course the crowd went even wilder when he declared himself single.

"Oh, I'm glad you brought that up. You know there's been a lot of talk about your role with that soccer team this week."

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What? What was the host talking about?

Even Liam looked a bit confused about where the interview was going.

"Kinsley Bryant is a freshman on that team, right?"

I screamed. "Did he just say my name?!

Why did he just say my name?"

"That's crazy! Hold on. What did he say?" Becca asked.

Liam looked surprised but played it off well. "You stay up to date with college soccer, Jim?"

The host laughed and then winked at the camera. "Well, I do keep up to date with Sports Illustrated magazine. Have you seen their issue for next month?"

Liam adjusted his position in his seat and shook his head.

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"Well, once a year they do a list of the

‘Sexiest Women in College Sports’. Are you familiar with that segment?” Liam shook his head again, and I could tell he was becoming more and more uncomfortable with the topic of conversation. I, on the other hand, thought I might be having a heart attack. The host laughed, trying to salvage the relaxed-interview-vibe, and then flipped to the list inside the magazine.

"Quite a few of the women on that ULA team made the list. Tara O’Connell, a senior, was listed, as well as a freshman, Becca Riley."

Becca screamed and jumped up, almost toppling her computer off my bed.

"Pause it, pause it!" I yelled.

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When Becca turned back to me her eyes were wide and she was fanning her face.

"What does this mean? How do they even know about us? We were only recruited a few months ago."

I shook my head. "I have no clue, but they definitely freaking said your name!

Becca! If they knew you were sitting here in footie pajamas right now, you'd be number one on that list." I started cracking up, picturing her being interviewed in her onesie.

After we'd taken a few deep breaths in an effort to calm ourselves down, we pulled the laptop back into the center of the bed and pressed play.

"But you know who made one of the first spots on that list? Kinsley Bryant. In fact, she was a fan favorite on the web poll."

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What the hell? How had I not heard anything about this?

"I'm not sure what you're asking me, Jim. They're all great soccer players, but I’m not there to date them. I’m there to help coach. I’ve followed Kinsley’s career for the past year. She was the top recruit in the country and I'm sure she'll be a contender for the Olympic team when they hold tryouts in a few months."

At that point I'd officially left the planet.

Making a list for being pretty was all well and good, but him complimenting my soccer skills on national television made me want to do cartwheels around the neighborhood.

The host yammered on, and then they cut to a commercial so that they could bring on the next guest. I fell back on the bed with 147/890

a giant grin. "I have officially died. I am now speaking to you posthumously."

Becca laughed and fell back next to me.

"I swear he wants you. Seriously, I was watching him at practice and he barely takes his eyes off you."

"That's because he's helping me perfect my drills."

"Or he's imaging you doing those drills sans clothing."

“Didn’t you just hear the man? He’s not there to date us.”

“Yeah, right. We’ll see how long that lasts.”

I laughed and rolled over. "You are hal-lucinating, and did you forget about the guy who was waiting on our porch the other day?

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I'm not equipped to handle any more romance problems."

And that was the truth. If Josh and Trey had been capable of cheating, then a guy like Liam, who had women tattooing his face on their vaginas, was without a doubt a guy I couldn’t trust.

Chapter Six

I was getting ready for practice on Friday morning when Coach Davis poked her head into the locker room.