Between the Flames by A.R. Rose

He wasn’t an ordinary crush, but the two of us were definitely a classic cliche.
Ryder Thompson.
Quarterback of the football team. The star of campus. Everyone wanted to be him, be friends with him, or sleep with him. Unfortunately, I was no exception to that rule.
The problem? I was the nerdy girl who he didn’t know existed — or at least that’s what I thought until his actions showed me otherwise.
I could still feel his fingertips pressed against my neck, his touch lingering so vividly that I let myself wonder if there could someday be an ‘us’. That was until the world came crashing down.
I spent years building a wall around my heart and keeping my feelings for him under lock and key. Now, ten years later, he’s back in my life, making promises I’m not sure he can keep.